Info: No Man's Land (Eric Bogle)

Subject: No Man's Land
From: Rt Revd Sir jOhn from Hull
Date: 20 Aug 01 - 09:50 PM

Does anybody know where I can find the words to this song, they are for a friend, that sings at my local session.I know June Tabor has sang it, and the chorus is something like "Did they beat the drum slowly? Did they sound the pipe lowly.Thank You.john

PS. I have tried the DT, but can;t find it there.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land
From: Pene Azul
Date: 20 Aug 01 - 09:53 PM

The lyrics are here (click) in the Digitrad.

Jeff

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land
From: Noreen
Date: 20 Aug 01 - 10:01 PM

John, if you put No Man's Land in the Digitrad and Forum Search box at the top of the main forum page, it links you to the DT lyrics (provided by Jeff above) and also approximately 90 threads (no, I didn't count them) which mention the song... happy reading to you and your friend!

Noreen

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land
From: Thomas the Rhymer
Date: 20 Aug 01 - 10:04 PM

Choice song!

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land
From: Rt Revd Sir jOhn from Hull
Date: 20 Aug 01 - 10:25 PM

Thanks everybody, I missed the comma thing, between the n and s the first time I looked at the DT.thanks again.john

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land
From:
Date: 20 Aug 01 - 11:40 PM

John, that's called an apostrophe. Often used to denote contractions.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land
From: Lin in Kansas
Date: 21 Aug 01 - 12:25 AM

And possessives.

Lin

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land
From: GUEST,Bill Anderson
Date: 21 Aug 01 - 04:13 AM

The song you are seeking the lyrics for is called "The Green Fields of France" by Eric Bogle and if you still require the lyrics then email me at [e-mail]

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land
From: Rt Revd Sir jOhn from Hull
Date: 21 Aug 01 - 04:48 AM

Thanks Bill, but I have got them now, I will remember my apostrohes next time. :-)

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land
From: GeorgeH
Date: 21 Aug 01 - 06:15 AM

Sorry, Bill, but Eric never called it "Green Fields of France". Which point has been made in previous threads.

The finest recording of it is on the CD "We died in Hell - they called it Paschaendaele", which was the first of the Paschendale peace concerts (and the hardest to find on CD). However, in the UK, ADA Records had it listed in the last catalogue of theirs which I saw. (June Tabor sings it on the album, but the recording is a multi-national collaboration).

George

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land
From: Rt Revd Sir jOhn from Hull
Date: 21 Aug 01 - 07:09 AM

Why do they call a song diferent names? It is a bit confusing for new people.john

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land
From: Liz the Squeak
Date: 21 Aug 01 - 02:46 PM

There's also a great (some people may not think so) parody called 'Why Willy McBride'.... don't know if it's here or not, but it's a hoot!!! especially for those whom it follows.... I heard it 4 times in 3 hours at one festival in 3 different locations... almost as bad as bloody Fields of Athen sodding ry......

Here's a thing. Both those have 'fields' in their title or pseudo title..... is this a coincidence???

LTS

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land
From: Gareth
Date: 21 Aug 01 - 03:22 PM

Try this for

Willy McBride's Reply

Gareth

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land
From: Susanne (skw)
Date: 21 Aug 01 - 07:00 PM

John, as far as I've heard from singers, a lot of material between folk singers is still passed on orally, during sessions or after gigs. Titles may get forgotten in the process, and a likely one made up by a singer when he or she starts doing the song. It can get really bad sometimes, not only with modern songs, even more so with trad. ones. But for us, there's always the Mudcat Café to turn to for help! :-)

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land
From: Rt Revd Sir jOhn from Hull
Date: 21 Aug 01 - 07:05 PM

Thanks Suzanne.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land
From: Snuffy
Date: 21 Aug 01 - 08:49 PM

"No Man's Land", "Green Fields of France", "Willie McBride" or anything else you care to call it. Fortunately I haven't heard it too often recently. At Warwick the overdone one was "She moves through the Fair", and at Saltburn it was " All his other wives came in"

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land
From: GUEST
Date: 28 Nov 02 - 08:08 PM

i need the sheet music to this song.   can't find it anywhere.
have lyrics w/o problem, and have chords, would like to find the vocal part.
any help?

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land
From: GUEST
Date: 29 Nov 02 - 12:21 AM

Sheet music to tunes of mudcat songs can be found at the "Yet Another Digital Tradition" page which I find very useful.

http://sniff.numachi.com/~rickheit/dtrad/

Here if I did it right

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land
From: Rt Revd Sir jOhn from Hull
Date: 11 Jun 04 - 03:35 PM

refresh [for new member Spud, looking for lyrics]

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land
From: Strollin' Johnny
Date: 12 Jun 04 - 02:10 AM

Wasn't it renamed 'The Green Fields Of France' when the Irish hi-jacked it and tried to pretend it was traditional Irish? :0)

Incidentally, Eric told us at the concert he did locally last year that he doesn't give a damn what title people give it, as long as they sing it.

GUEST - buy Eric's "Songbook - Vol. 2" CD, you can hear the tune on there and a lot of other nice stuff). It's quite simple, I can't believe anyone would need to read the dots to be able to play/sing it! (And, as someone who earns his living from his music, Eric might appreciate the small sum in royalties he'd receive for your use of his material). :0)

Johnny :0)

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land
From:
Date: 12 Jun 04 - 03:13 PM

Wasn't renamed. Just the Irish thinking their name is paramount

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land
From: GUEST,Spike
Date: 12 Jun 04 - 04:02 PM

If you want a hoot, ask Eric about the near riot in Ireland on tour, when he had the audacity to tell the audience that he wrote it and NOT the Fureys!!! TEE HEE

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land
From: GUEST,The Irish Man
Date: 28 Jun 04 - 02:28 PM

Wankers

Subject: No Man's Land
From: Enid
Date: 06 Jul 11 - 08:05 AM

Eric Bogle's song - aka Green Fields of France - has been covered numerous times. The Fureys, The Corries, June Tabor, The Clancy Brothers, to name but a few. Is there a "definitive version" at all? It's only natural that individual preferences vary - and precisely this makes an interesting subject for debate. There's a discussion here worth following:
http://www.salutlive.com/2011/07/song-of-the-day-tjune-tabor-no-mans-land.html#more

Subject: RE: No Man's Land
From: Leadfingers
Date: 06 Jul 11 - 08:17 AM

I THINK even Eric Bgle has recorded slightly different versions himself ! It has become a 'True' Folk Song in that there is now NOT a definitive version , unless you take the Eric Bogl Song Book as definitive.

Subject: RE: No Man's Land
From: Colin Randall
Date: 06 Jul 11 - 08:49 AM

I always found it slightly odd that a song sympathetic to a British squaddie, albeit of Scottish or Irish origin, should have made it into the Irish charts, albeit with the Fureys and the more marketable title they gave it.

One of those commenting on the short discussion at Salut Live/Facebook swears he knows of a Dubliners version, from a Celtic compilation CD, and I must admit that apart from a vague thought they may have done it live, I cannot recall any recorded proof. Can anyone else shed light?

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land (Eric Bogle)
From: Snuffy
Date: 06 Jul 11 - 03:56 PM

I have a couple of recordings of the Dubliners doing The Band Played Waltzing Matilda, but don't know of a recording of No Man's Land

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land (Eric Bogle)
From: Effsee
Date: 06 Jul 11 - 08:52 PM

Colin Randall, I don't see why you should find it odd. the alternative title "Willie McBride" would at least hint that the grave might be an Irish soldier.
Many from the north and soyth of Ireland derved in the war.
The nationality of the fallen doesn't really matter in the ethos of the song.
Reference, Harvey Andrew's song on the same theme, "Hello Hans".

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land (Eric Bogle)
From: Effsee
Date: 06 Jul 11 - 09:10 PM

Bejaysus, sorry about the typos!

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land (Eric Bogle)
From: Bugsy
Date: 07 Jul 11 - 01:58 AM

I have heard it said that Eric's prefered version is that by June Tabor.

Cheers

Bugsy

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land (Eric Bogle)
From: Colin Randall
Date: 07 Jul 11 - 03:51 PM

Effsee; I made the point in my comment that the name implied Irish or Scottish origins.
But let us not be politically naive. You know as well as I do that while may men, from north and south, died in both World Wars, it was not necessarily a passport to popularity for an Irish Catholic to serve the crown. I can see both points of view (ie those of the Irishman who enlisted and the nationalists who resented his gesture), but it is surely quite natural to be surprised at such a song's popular appeal in nationalist ireland.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land (Eric Bogle)
From: Leadfingers
Date: 07 Jul 11 - 07:46 PM

The main reason for its Irish Nationalist popularity is the year - 1916 was the year of the Easter Uprising , so it is easy to make the assumption that the basis of the song is in Ireland , NOT Flanders Field

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land (Eric Bogle)
From: Bugsy
Date: 07 Jul 11 - 09:13 PM

The only problems with that assumption Leadfingers are, the reference to the "Green fields of France", the question, "Did the pipes play The Flowers of the Forest", and that Eric introduces the song as being a song about WW1.

Cheers

Bugsy

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land (Eric Bogle)
From: Effsee
Date: 07 Jul 11 - 10:14 PM

Perhaps Colin you under-estimate the Irish, and the effect of the passage of time.

"Tempes mores", and all that?

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land (Eric Bogle)
From: Rapparee
Date: 07 Jul 11 - 10:22 PM

I fail to see why the nationality of the dead matters. "...I hope you died well and I hope you died clean/Or young Willie McBride was it slow and obscene?" is more to the point.

The song isn't about ANY war -- it could be sung over the graves of those who have died in Afghanistan as well as those who died in Flanders. I've know US veterans to cry when they hear it and "And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda".

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land (Eric Bogle)
From: Bugsy
Date: 07 Jul 11 - 11:17 PM

"The song isn't about ANY war...."

I would think that the reference to the war to end wars is a pretty strong reference to WW1. Apart from the fact that Eric and I have discussed the song and it's about visiting the WW1 battlefieds and war graves.

Cheers

Bugsy

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land (Eric Bogle)
From: Dave MacKenzie
Date: 08 Jul 11 - 04:12 AM

The song, as originally written, is about a Scotsman stopping by the grave of a casualty of the Great War and musing on the circumstances of his death. Although the soldier's surname is of Irish origin, he could have come from anywhere, and the narrator postulates a military funeral by a Scottish Regiment. Although this soldier died in a specific time and place, the song expands to include all wars. What later interpreters (and misinterpreters) have done to it is another business entirely.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land (Eric Bogle)
From: Keith A of Hertford
Date: 08 Jul 11 - 04:42 AM

1916 was the year of the Somme, and the heaviest of British losses.
I think Colin is wrong to say there was any issue in Ireland about serving in the army before 1916.
Most families would have someone enlisted.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land (Eric Bogle)
From: Keith A of Hertford
Date: 08 Jul 11 - 04:51 AM

Professor Keith Jeffery,
"In all, about 210,000 Irishmen served in the British forces during World War One. Since there was no conscription, about 140,000 of these joined during the war as volunteers. Some 35,000 Irish died. Irishmen enlisted for the war effort for a variety of reasons. Some, just like their fellows in other warring states, joined up for the perceived justice of the cause. But in Ireland, which in 1914 was deeply divided between nationalist and unionist political groups, more local considerations played an important part for many individuals.

Nationalists, for whom the establishment of an Irish 'home rule' parliament in Dublin had been the principal political aim for most of the 19th century, were committed to the war effort by their leader, John Redmond, in September 1914.

This was on the grounds that the necessary legislation had been passed (though in fact it was suspended for the duration of the war), and that the 'freedom of small nations' (such as Belgium or Serbia) was that of Ireland as well. The plight of gallant, Catholic little Belgium, invaded by a militaristic aggressor, was disadvantageously compared with Ireland, achieving freedom (so Redmond argued) within the British Empire, rather like Canada or Australia.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land (Eric Bogle)
From: threelegsoman
Date: 08 Jul 11 - 08:05 AM

Green Fields Of France (No Man's Land) lyrics and chords

will take you to my version of this fine song.

http://youtu.be/eYBuz1ZZ84Q

will take you to Willie McBride's Reply written by Stephen L. Suffet

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land (Eric Bogle)
From: Leadfingers
Date: 08 Jul 11 - 08:20 AM

Bugsy - It is sad but true that a LOT of songs have had all sorts of misinterpretation , especisally from a U K viwepoint , in that ANY song popularised by ANY Irish singer or band HAS to be an Irish song !
Dirty old Town for one , Shoals (Shores) of Herring (Erin) for another !

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land (Eric Bogle)
From: Colin Randall
Date: 08 Jul 11 - 10:39 AM

Keith A:

I have already accepted that many Irishmen fought and died in the two World Wars. I am also aware of the background to numbers of Irishmen feeling it was acceptable to enlist in 1914 ("Twas England bade our Wild Geese go, that small nations might be free). But there is plenty of evidence of nationalist frowning upon the practice. More to the point, of course, is that Eric Bogle's song was taken into the Irish charts by the Fureys during the Troubles where it stayed for something like six months and reached number one.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land (Eric Bogle)
From: Bugsy
Date: 08 Jul 11 - 08:23 PM

I quite agree Leadfingers, in fact one of my more lengthy introductions is on the subject of English and Canadian songs being appropriated by the Irish as their own. (all done in a very light hearted way, with tongue firmly in cheek and, in the words of Kenny Everett, "In the best possible taste"

Cheers

Bugsy

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land (Eric Bogle)
From: Rapparee
Date: 08 Jul 11 - 10:47 PM

Bugsy, I'm not questioning the provenance of the song -- definitely WW1. All I'm saying is that it's also appropriate to any war, any time. I can see a Roman legionnaire being affected by it after, say, Teutonberger Wald. It speaks the universal truth about war -- just as Eric Bogle's "War Correspondent" does.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land (Eric Bogle)
From: kendall
Date: 11 Nov 12 - 06:43 AM

Bugsy, I have a letter from Eric Bogle in which he says that I sing his song just as he wants it sung.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: No Man's Land (Eric Bogle)
From: threelegsoman
Date: 11 Nov 12 - 07:51 AM

You can find my version using the following link:

No Man's Land (The Green Fields of France)

Also, a reply to this song was written by Stephen L. Suffet which can be found using this link;

Willie McBride's Reply