Transcript History of Protest Songs

“Bruce Springsteen’s
messages of hope”
“Talk about a dream, try to make it real.”
Bruce Springsteen
Essential Questions
• What impact do songs have on social
movements?
• What is the historical context in which
these songs are written and performed?
• What makes a song effective in a cause?
Role of Music
• Music has been used to lift the spirits of
poor, oppressed and rebels.
• Music has been used to communicate the
ideas of change and protest.
• From different historical eras from slavery,
The Great Depression, Civil Rights
Movement and Vietnam, individuals have
shared their opinions of injustice.
Bruce Springsteen
• He was born on
September 23, 1949
from the state of New
Jersey.
• He is known as “The
Boss”.
• His first album was
released in 1972.
• He writes on various
types like anti-war
songs, social injustice
and the right of
underprivileged.
• His influences are
Woody Guthrie, Pete
Seeger and Phil Ochs.
“My City in Ruins”
There is a blood red circle
On the cold dark ground
And the rain is falling down
The church door's thrown open
I can hear the organ's song
But the congregation's gone
My city of ruins
My city of ruins
Now the sweet bells of mercy
Drift through the evening trees
Young men on the corner
Like scattered leaves,
The boarded up windows,
The empty streets
While my brother's down on his knees
My city of ruins
My city of ruins
Come on, rise up! Come on, rise up!
Come on, rise up! Come on, rise up!
Come on, rise up! Come on, rise up!
Now's there's tears on the pillow
Darlin' where we slept
And you took my heart when you left
Without your sweet kiss
My soul is lost, my friend
Tell me how do I begin again?
My city's in ruins
My city's in ruins
Now with these hands,
With these hands,
With these hands,
I pray Lord
With these hands,
With these hands,
I pray for the strength, Lord
With these hands,
With these hands,
I pray for the faith, Lord
We pray for your love, Lord
We pray for the lost, Lord
We pray for this world, Lord
We pray for the strength, Lord
We pray for the strength, Lord
Come
Come
Come
Come
Come
Come
Come
Come
Come
Come
Come
on
on
on,
on,
on,
on,
on,
on,
on,
on,
on,
rise
rise
rise
rise
rise
rise
rise
rise
rise
up
up
up
up
up
up
up
up
up
"Lonesome Day"
Once I thought I knew
Everything I needed to know about
you
Your sweet whisper, Your tender touch
But I didn't really know that much
Joke's on me, It's gonna be okay
If I can just get through this lonesome
day
Hell's brewin' dark sun's on the rise
This storm'll blow through by and by
House is on fire, Viper's in the grass
A little revenge and this too shall pass
This too shall pass, I'm gonna pray
Right now all I got's this lonesome day
It's allright? It's allright? It's allright
Better ask questions before you shoot
Deceit and betrayals bitter fruit
It's hard to swallow, come time to pay
That taste on your tongue don't easily
slip away
Let kingdom come I'm gonna find my
way
Through this lonesome day
“Rising”
Can't see nothin' in front of me
Can't see nothin' coming up behind
I make my way through this darkness
I can't feel nothing but this chain that binds
me
Lost track of how far I've gone
How far I've gone, how high I've climbed
On my back's a sixty pound stone
On my shoulder a half mile line
Come on up for the rising
Com on up, lay your hands in mine
Come on up for the rising
Come on up for the rising tonight
Left the house this morning
Bells ringing filled the air
Wearin' the cross of my calling
On wheels of fire I come rollin' down here
Come
Come
Come
Come
on
on
on
on
up for the rising
up, lay your hands in mine
up for the rising
up for the rising tonight
Li,li, li,li,li,li, li,li,li
Spirits above and behind me
Faces gone, black eyes burnin' bright
May their precious blood forever bind me
Lord as I stand before your fiery light
Li,li, li,li,li,li, li,li,li
I see you Mary in the garden
In the garden of a thousand sighs
There's holy pictures of our children
Dancin' in a sky filled with light
May I feel your arms around me
May I feel your blood mix with mine
A dream of life comes to me
Like a catfish dancin' on the end of the line
Sky of blackness and sorrow (a dream of
life)
Sky of love, sky of tears (a dream of life)
Sky of glory and sadness (a dream of life)
Sky of mercy, sky of fear (a dream of life)
Sky of memory and shadow (a dream of life)
Your burnin' wind fills my arms tonight
Sky of longing and emptiness (a dream of
life)
Sky of fullness, sky of blessed life (a dream
of life)
Come
Come
Come
Come
on
on
on
on
up for the rising
up, lay your hands in mine
up for the rising
up for the rising tonight
Li,li, li,li,li,li, li,li,li
"Empty Sky"
I woke up this morning
I could barely breathe
Just an empty impression
In the bed where you used to be
I want a kiss from your lips
I want an eye for an eye
I woke up this morning to the empty
sky
On the plains of Jordan
I cut my bow from the wood
Of this tree of evil
Of this tree of good
I want a kiss from your lips
I want an eye for an eye
I woke up this morning to an empty
sky
Empty sky, empty sky
I woke up this morning to an empty
sky
Empty sky, empty sky
I woke up this morning to an empty
sky
Empty sky, empty sky
I woke up this morning to an empty
sky
Empty sky, empty sky
I woke up this morning to an empty
sky
Empty sky, empty sky
I woke up this morning to an empty
sky
Blood on the streets
Yeah blood flowin' down
I hear the blood of my blood
Cryin' from the ground
Empty sky, empty sky
I woke up this morning to an empty
sky
Empty sky, empty sky
I woke up this morning to an empty
sky
"Waitin' On A Sunny Day"
It's rainin' but there ain't a cloud in the
sky
Musta been a tear from your eye
Everything'll be okay
Funny thought I felt a sweet summer
breeze
Musta been you sighin' so deep
Don't worry we're gonna find a way
I'm waitin', waitin' on a sunny day
Gonna chase the clouds away
Waitin' on a sunny day
Without you I'm workin' with the rain
fallin' down
Half a party in a one dog town
I need you to chase the blues away
Without you I'm a drummer girl that
can't keep a beat
And ice cream truck on a deserted
street
I hope that you're coming to stay
I'm waitin', waitin' on a sunny day
Gonna chase the clouds away
Waitin' on a sunny day
Hard times baby, well they come to tell
us all
Sure as the tickin' of the clock on the
wall
Sure as the turnin' of the night into
day
Your smile girl, brings the mornin' light
to my eyes
Lifts away the blues when I rise
I hope that you're coming to stay
I'm waitin', waitin' on a sunny day
Gonna chase the clouds away
Waitin' on a sunny day
"Countin' On A Miracle"
It's a fairytale so tragic
There's no prince to break the spell
I don't believe in magic
But for you I will, for you I will
If I'm a fool, I'll be a fool
Darlin' for you
I'm countin' on a miracle
Baby I'm countin' on a miracle
Darlin' I'm countin' on a miracle
To come through
There ain't no storybook story
There's no never-ending song
Our happily ever after Darlin'
Forever come and gone
I'm movin' on
If I'm gonna believe
I'll put my faith
Darlin' in you
I'm countin' on a miracle
Baby I'm countin' on a miracle
Darlin' I'm countin' on a miracle
To come through
Sleeping beauty awakes from her dream
With her lover's kiss on her lips
Your kiss was taken from me
Now all I have is this
Your kiss, your kiss, your touch, your touch
Your heart, your heart, your strength, your
strength
Your hope, your hope, your faith, your faith
Your face, your face, your love, your love
Your dream, your dream, your life, your life
I'm runnin' through the forest
With this wolf at my heels
My king is lost at midnight
When the tower bells peal
We've got no fairytale ending
In God's hands our fate is complete
Your heaven's here in my heart
Our love's this dust beneath my feet
Just this dust beneath my feet
If I'm gonna live
I'll life my life
Darlin' to you
[CHORUS (4X)]
"Land Of Hope And Dreams"
Grab your ticket and your suitcase
Thunder's rolling down the tracks
You don't know where you're goin'
But you know you won't be back
Darlin' if you're weary
Lay your head upon my chest
We'll take what we can carry
And we'll leave the rest
Big Wheels rolling through fields
Where sunlight streams
Meet me in a land of hope and dreams
I will provide for you
And I'll stand by your side
You'll need a good companion for
This part of the ride
Leave behind your sorrows
Let this day be the last
Tomorrow there'll be sunshine
And all this darkness past
Big wheels roll through fields
Where sunlight streams
Meet me in a land of hope and dreams
This train
Carries saints and sinners
This train
Carries losers and winners
This Train
Carries whores and gamblers
This Train
Carries lost souls
This Train
Dreams will not be thwarted
This Train
Faith will be rewarded
This Train
Hear the steel wheels singin'
This Train
Bells of freedom ringin'
This Train
Carries broken-hearted
This Train
Thieves and sweet souls departed
This Train
Carries fools and kings
This Train
All aboard
This Train
Dreams will not be thwarted
This Train
Faith will be rewarded
This Train
Hear the steel wheels singin'
This Train
Bells of freedom ringin'
"The Promised Land"
On a rattlesnake speedway in the Utah desert
I pick up my money and head back into town
Driving cross the Waynesboro county line
I got the radio on and I'm just killing time
Working all day in my daddy's garage
Driving all night, chasing some mirage
Pretty soon little girl I'm gonna take charge.
The dogs on main street howl,
'cause they understand,
If I could take one moment into my hands
Mister, I ain't a boy, no, I'm a man,
And I believe in a promised land.
I've done my best to live the right way
I get up every morning and go to work each day
But your eyes go blind and your blood runs cold
Sometimes I feel so weak I just want to explode
Explode and tear this town apart
Take a knife and cut this pain from my heart
Find somebody itching for something to start
The dogs on main street howl,
'cause they understand,
If I could take one moment into my hands
Mister, I ain't a boy, no, I'm a man,
And I believe in a promised land.
There's a dark cloud rising from the desert
floor
I packed my bags and I'm heading straight
into the storm
Gonna be a twister to blow everything down
That ain't got the faith to stand its ground
Blow away the dreams that tear you apart
Blow away the dreams that break your heart
Blow away the lies that leave you nothing
but lost and brokenhearted
The dogs on main street howl,
'cause they understand,
If I could take one moment into my hands
Mister, I ain't a boy, no, I'm a man,
And I believe in a promised land
I believe in a promised land...
“Meet Me At Mary's Place” Written by Sam Cooke
A friend of mine told me one early mornin'
(Over at Mary's place, ho)
Said tonight there's gonna be a party goin'
on
(Over at Mary's place, ho)
He said: „If you can enjoy a real nice affair
(Over at Mary's place, ho)
Then you'll make it your business to be right
there“
(Over at Mary's place, ho)
He said in fact: „Meet me
(Meet me at Mary's place)
We're gonna have
(We're gonna have us a ball today)
Why don't you
(Meet me at Mary's place)
Why don't you meet me
(Meet me at Mary's place)
We're gonna have
(We're gonna have us a ball today)
Why don't you“
(Meet me at Mary's place, ho)
He said: „There's one thing I that want you
to know
(Over at Mary's place, ho)
You're gonna have a good time before you
go“
(Over at Mary's place, ho)
He said: „There's one more thing that I'm
gonna guarantee
(Over at Mary's place, ho)
Got to have fun if you're a man like me“
(Over at Mary's place, ho)
If you wanna have fun, meet me
(Meet me at Mary's place)
We're gonna have
(We're gonna have us a ball today)
Why don't you
(Meet me at Mary's place)
Oh meet me
(Meet me at Mary's place)
We're gonna have
(We're gonna have us a ball today)
Why don't you
(Meet me at Mary's place, ho)
If you wanna have a good time
(meet me at Mary's place)
We're gonna have
(We're gonna have us a ball today)
Come on and
(Meet me at Mary's place)
Oh, meet me
(Meet me at Mary's place)
We're gonna have
(We're gonna have us a ball today)
Come on and
(Meet me at Mary's place, ho
"Mary's Place"
Your loving grace surrounds me
Everybody's here
Furniture's out on the front porch
Music's up loud
I dream of you in my arms
I lose myself in the crowd
Let it rain, let it rain, let it rain
Let it rain, let it rain, let it rain, let it rain
Meet me at Mary's place, we're gonna have
a party
Meet me at Mary's place, we're gonna have
a party
Tell me how do you live broken-hearted
Meet me at Mary's place
I got seven pictures of Buddha
The prophet's on my tongue
Eleven angels of mercy
Sighin' over that black hole in the sun
My heart's dark but it's risin'
I'm pullin' all the faith I can see
From that black hole on the horizon
I hear your voice calling me
Let it rain, let it rain, let it rain
Let it rain, let it rain, let it rain, let it rain
Meet me at Mary's place, we're gonna have
a party
Meet me at Mary's place, we're gonna have
a party
Tell me how do we get this thing started
Meet me at Mary's place
Familiar faces around me
Laughter fills the air
I got a picture of you in my locket
I keep it close to my heart
A light shining in my breast
Leading me through the dark
Seven days, seven candles
In my window light your way
Your favorite record's on the turntable
I drop the needle and pray
Band's countin' out midnight
Floor's rumblin' loud
Singer's callin' up daylight
And waitin' for that shout from the crowd
Waitin' for that shout from the crowd
Waitin' for that shout from the crowd
Waitin' for that shout from the crowd
Waitin' for that shout from the crowd
Waitin' for that shout from the crowd
Turn it up, turn it up, turn it up
Turn it up, turn it up, turn it up, turn it up
Meet me at Mary's place, we're gonna have
a party
Meet me at Mary's place, we're gonna have
a party
Tell me how do we get this thing started
Meet me at Mary's place
Meet me at Mary's place
Meet me at Mary's place
"Worlds Apart"
I hold you in my arms, yeah
that's when it starts
I seek faith in your kiss and
comfort in your heart
I taste the seed upon your lips,
lay my tongue upon your scars
But when I look into your eyes
we stand worlds apart
Where the distant oceans sing
and rise to the plain
In this dry and troubled country
your beauty remains
Down from the mountain road
where the highway rolls to dark
'Neath Allah's blessed rain we
remain worlds apart
Sometimes the truth just ain't
enough
Or is it too much in times like this
Let's throw the truth away we'll
find it in this kiss
In your skin upon my skin in the
beating of our hearts
May the living let us in before the
dead tear us apart
We'll let blood build a bridge over
mountains draped in stars
I'll meet you on the ridge
between these worlds apart
We've got this moment now to
live then it's all just dust and dark
Let's let love give what it gives
Let's let love give what it gives
"Paradise"
Where the river runs to black
I take the schoolbooks from your
pack
Plastics, wire and your kiss
The breath of eternity on your lips
In the crowded marketplace
I drift from face to face
I hold my breath and close my eyes
I hold my breath and close my eyes
And I wait for paradise
And I wait for paradise
The Virginia hills have gone to brown
Another day, another sun goin' down
I visit you in another dream
I visit you in another dream
I reach and feel your hair
Your smell lingers in the air
I brush your cheek with my fingertips
I taste the void upon your lips
And I wait for paradise
And I wait for paradise
I search for you on the other side
Where the river runs clean and
wide
Up to my heart the waters rise
Up to my heart the waters rise
I sink 'neath the river cool and
clear
Drifting down I disappear
I see you on the other side
I search for the peace in your
eyes
But they're as empty as paradise
They're as empty as paradise
I break above the waves
I feel the sun upon my face
Born in the USA
Born down in a dead man's town
The first kick I took was when I hit the
ground
You end up like a dog that's been beat
too much
Till you spend half your life just
covering up
Born in the U.S.A.
I was born in the U.S.A.
I was born in the U.S.A.
Born in the U.S.A.
Got in a little hometown jam so they
put a rifle in my hand
Sent me off to a foreign land to go and
kill the yellow man
Born in the U.S.A.
I was born in the U.S.A.
I was born in the U.S.A.
I was born in the U.S.A.
Born in the U.S.A.
Come back home to the refinery
Hiring man says "son if it was up to
me"
Went down to see my V.A. man
He said "son don't you understand
now"
Had a brother at Khe Sahn fighting off
the Viet Cong
They're still there he's all gone
He had a woman he loved in Saigon
I got a picture of him in her arms now
Down in the shadow of penitentiary
Out by the gas fires of the refinery
I'm ten years burning down the road
Nowhere to run ain't got nowhere to
go
Born in the U.S.A.
I was born in the U.S.A.
Born in the U.S.A.
I'm a long gone daddy in the U.S.A.
Born in the U.S.A.
Born in the U.S.A.
Born in the U.S.A.
I'm a cool rocking daddy in the U.S.A.
"Devils & Dust"
I got my finger on the trigger
But I don't know who to trust
When I look into your eyes
There's just devils and dust
We're a long, long way from home, Bobbie
Home's a long, long way from us
I feel a dirty wind blowing
Devils and dust
Now every woman and every man
They wanna take a righteous stand
Find the love that God wills
And the faith that He commands
I've got my finger on the trigger
And tonight faith just ain't enough
When I look inside my heart
There's just devils and dust
I got God on my side
And I'm just trying to survive
What if what you do to survive
Kills the things you love
Fear's a powerful thing, baby
It can turn your heart black you can trust
It'll take your God filled soul
And fill it with devils and dust
Well I've got God on my side
And I'm just trying to survive
What if what you do to survive
Kills the things you love
Fear's a dangerous thing
It can turn your heart black you can trust
It'll take your God filled soul
Fill it with devils and dust
Yeah it'll take your God filled soul
Fill it with devils and dust
Well I dreamed of you last night
In a field of blood and stone
The blood began to dry
The smell began to rise
Well I dreamed of you last night, Bobbie
In a field of mud and bone
Your blood began to dry
And the smell began to rise
We've got God on our side
We're just trying to survive
What if what you do to survive
Kills the things you love
Fear's a powerful thing, baby
It'll turn your heart black you can trust
It'll take your God filled soul
Fill it with devils and dust
It'll take your God filled soul
Fill it with devils and dust
[Harmonica solo]
[Harmonica solo]
"Your Own Worst Enemy"
You can't sleep at night
You can't dream your dream
Your fingerprints on file
Left clumsily at the scene
Your own worst enemy has come to town
Your own worst enemy has come to town
Yesterday the people were at ease
Baby you slept in peace
You closed your eyes and saw her
You knew who you were
And your own worst enemy has come to
town
Your own worst enemy has come
Your world keeps turning round and round
But everything is upside down
Your own worst enemy has come to town
There's a face you know
Staring back from the shop window
The condition you're in
Now you just can't get out of this skin
Ah ah ah
Ah ah ah
Ah ah ah
Hooo...
The times they got too clear
So you removed all the mirrors
Once the family felt secure
Now no one's very sure
Your own worst enemy has come to
town
Your own worst enemy's come
Everything is falling down
Your own worst enemy has come to
town
Your own worst enemy has come
Everything is falling down
Your own worst enemy has come to
town
Your flag it flew so high
It drifted into the sky
"
“Long Walk Home”
Last night I stood at your doorstep
Trying to figure out what went wrong
You just slipped something into my palm
and you were gone
I could smell the same deep green of
summer
'Bove me the same night sky was glowin'
In the distance I could see the town where I
was born
It's gonna be a long walk home
Hey pretty darling, don't wait up for me
Gonna be a long walk home
A long walk home
In town I pass Sal's grocery
Barber shop on South Street
I looked in their faces*
They're all rank strangers to me*
Well Veteran's Hall high upon the hill
Stood silent and alone
The diner was shuttered and boarded
With a sign that just said "gone"
It's gonna be a long walk home
Hey pretty darling, don't wait up for me
Gonna be a long walk home
Hey pretty darling, don't wait up for me
Gonna be a long walk home
It's gonna be a long walk home
[Guitar break]
[Sax break]
Here everybody has a neighbor
Everybody has a friend
Everybody has a reason to begin again
My father said "Son, we're lucky in this town,
It's a beautiful place to be born.
It just wraps its arms around you,
Nobody crowds you and nobody goes it alone"
"Your flag flyin' over the courthouse
Means certain things are set in stone.
Who we are, what we'll do and what we won't"
It's gonna be a long walk home
Hey pretty darling, don't wait up
Gonna be a long walk home
Hey pretty darling, don't wait up
Gonna be a long walk home
It's gonna be a long walk home
It's gonna be a long walk home
Hey pretty darling, don't wait up
Gonna be a long walk home
Hey pretty darling, don't wait up
Gonna be a long walk home
It's gonna be a long walk home
It's gonna be a long walk home
for me
for me
for me
for me
The Ghost of Tom Joad
Men walkin' 'long the railroad tracks
Goin' someplace there's no goin' back
Highway patrol choppers comin' up over the
ridge
Hot soup on a campfire under the bridge
Shelter line stretchin' 'round the corner
Welcome to the new world order
Families sleepin' in their cars in the
Southwest
No home no job no peace no rest
The highway is alive tonight
But nobody's kiddin' nobody about where it
goes
I'm sittin' down here in the campfire light
Searchin' for the ghost of Tom Joad
He pulls a prayer book out of his sleeping
bag
Preacher lights up a butt and takes a drag
Waitin' for when the last shall be first and
the first shall be last
In a cardboard box 'neath the underpass
Got a one-way ticket to the promised land
You got a hole in your belly and gun in your
hand
Sleeping on a pillow of solid rock
Bathin' in the city aqueduct
The highway is alive tonight
Where it's headed everybody knows
I'm sittin' down here in the campfire light
Waitin' on the ghost of Tom Joad
Now Tom said "Mom, wherever there's a cop
beatin' a guy
Wherever a hungry newborn baby cries
Where there's a fight 'gainst the blood and
hatred in the air
Look for me Mom I'll be there
Wherever there's somebody fightin' for a
place to stand
Or decent job or a helpin' hand
Wherever somebody's strugglin' to be free
Look in their eyes Mom you'll see me."
Well the highway is alive tonight
But nobody's kiddin' nobody about where it
goes
I'm sittin' down here in the campfire light
With the ghost of old Tom Joad
Born To Run
In the day we sweat it out in the streets of a
runaway american dream
At night we ride through mansions of glory in
suicide machines
Sprung from cages out on highway 9,
Chrome wheeled, fuel injected and steppin out
over the line
Baby this town rips the bones from your back
Its a death trap, it's a suicide rap
We gotta get out while were young
`cause tramps like us, baby we were born to
run
Wendy let me in I wanna be your friend
I want to guard your dreams and visions
Just wrap your legs round these velvet rims
And strap your hands across my engines
Together we could break this trap
Well run till we drop, baby well never go back
Will you walk with me out on the wire
`cause baby Im just a scared and lonely rider
But I gotta find out how it feels
I want to know if love is wild, girl I want to
know if love is real
Beyond the palace hemi-powered drones
scream down the boulevard
The girls comb their hair in rearview mirrors
And the boys try to look so hard
The amusement park rises bold and stark
Kids are huddled on the beach in a mist
I wanna die with you wendy on the streets
tonight
In an everlasting kiss
The highways jammed with broken heroes
on a last chance power drive
Everybodys out on the run tonight but
there's no place left to hide
Together wendy well live with the sadness
Ill love you with all the madness in my soul
Someday girl I don't know when were gonna
get to that place
Where we really want to go and well walk in
the sun
But till then tramps like us baby we were
born to run
"We Are Alive"
There is a cross up yonder up on Calvary Hill
There is a slip of blood on a silver knife
There is a graveyard kid down below
Where at night did come to life
And above the stars, they crackle in fire
A dead man’s moon throws seven rings
Well, we put our ears to the cold grave
stones
This is the song they’d sing
We are alive
And though our bodies lie alone here in the
dark
Our spirits rise to carry the fire and light the
spark
To stand shoulder to shoulder and heart to
heart
A voice cried out, I was killed in Maryland in
1877
When the railroad workers made their stand
Well, I was killed in 1963 one Sunday
morning in Birmingham
Well, I died last year crossing the southern
Desert
My children left behind in San Pablo
Well they left our bodies here to rot
Oh please let them know
We are alive
Oh, and though we lie alone here in the
dark
Our souls will rise to carry the fire and light
the spark
To fight shoulder to shoulder and heart to
heart
Let your mind rest easy, sleep well my friend
It’s only our bodies that betray us in the end
I awoke last night in a dark and dreamy
deep
From my head to my feet, my body gone
stone cold
There were worms crawling all around me
Fingers scratching at an earth black and six
foot low
And alone in the blackness of my grave
Alone I’d been left to die
Then I heard voices calling all around me
The earth rose above me, my eyes filled
with sky
We are alive
And though our bodies lie alone here in the
dark
Our souls and spirits rise
To carry the fire and light the spark
To fight shoulder to shoulder and heart to
heart
To stand shoulder to shoulder and heart to
heart
We are alive
“Death To My Hometown”
No cannonballs did fly
No rifles cut us down
No bombs fell from the sky
No blood soaked the ground
No powder flash blinded the eye
No deafening thunder sounded
But just as sure as the hand of god
They brought death to my hometown
They brought death to my hometown
No shells ripped the evening sky
No cities burning down
No armies stormed the shores for
which we’d die
No dictators were crowned
High off on a quiet night
I never heard a sound
The marauders raided in the dark and
brought death to my hometown, boys
Death to my hometown
They destroyed our families’ factories
and they took our homes
They left our bodies on the plains
The vultures picked our bones
So listen up, my Sonny boy
Be ready for when they come
For they’ll be returning sure as the rising
sun
Now get yourself a song to sing and sing it
’til you’re done
Yeah, sing it hard and sing it well
Send the robber baron’s straight to hell
The greedy thieves that came around
And ate the flesh of everything they’ve
found
Whose crimes have gone unpunished now
Walk the streets as free men now
And they brought death to our hometown,
boys
Death to our hometown, boys
Death to our hometown, boys
Death to our hometown