G'day all,

Like Rick Fielding, I have heard Ewan McColl sing this ... and I automatically assumed it was his song. I will check to see if it is on one of the 'lecture' concerts that were broadcast here in Australia.

BTW: The song dates as Second World War, right from the start, with the line which (should) read :
" ... though the battle sights of a mark 4 (IV) three o three"
ie, from the working end of the Rifle No. IV, Mk III, 0.303" calibre, the updated version of the old "smelly", or SMLE (Short Magazine Lee Enfield) adopted by British forces just before the outbreak of WWII.

Regards,

Bob Bolton