Lyr Add: 1st Amendment Banjo (Malvina Reynolds)

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: 1st Amendment Banjo (Malvina Reynolds)
From: Joe Offer
Date: 02 Feb 14 - 08:38 PM

Barbara posted the melody for "First Amendment Banjo" in the Folknik, the newsletter of the San Francisco Folk Music Club.

-Joe-

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: 1st Ammendment Banjo -- Mavina for Pete
From: Desert Dancer
Date: 01 May 09 - 03:28 PM

and perhaps add an "l"? ;-)

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: 1st Ammendment Banjo -- Mavina for Pete
From: Barbara
Date: 01 May 09 - 12:57 PM

Here's the link to Nancy's blog,

http://web.mac.com/nancyschimmel/iWeb/Site/writing%20malvina/writing%20malvina.html

and could one of you clever Joe clones take the second M out of the subject line AMMENDMENT -- it should be spelled 'amendment', ol' fumble thumbs strikes again.

Blessings,
Barbara

Subject: Lyr Add: FIRST AMENDMENT BANJO (Malvina Reynolds)
From: Barbara
Date: 01 May 09 - 12:43 PM

This was posted to the SF club list this morning, and the words come from the blog of Nancy Schimmel, Malvina Reynolds' daughter.

The dots for the tune can be found there as well. I'll post the link in a minute.
Blessings,
Barbara

FIRST AMENDMENT BANJO
(Malvina Reynolds 1961)

Come gather round, you singing folk,
And listen to my tale,
About this long, lean banjo man
Who loved to sing and frail.
When many songs were lost and gone
Or hidden out of sight,
He found that frabjous music
And he sang with all his might.

He sang with all his might, my boys,
And people gathered round,
They followed him where'er he went
To hear the joyful sound.
The girls and boys who followed him
They loved his singing way,
They picked up flutes and strung up lutes
And learned to sing and play.

And all the world is singing now
That never sang before,
The treasury of hearty song
Made richer by the store.
And who would take this singing man
Who purely loved to frail,
And wrest him from the world of life
And muffle him in jail?

And who is so afraid of song
And truth that's bravely said,
And who so fears the singing kind
To wish their singing dead?
They hailed his banjo into court
And stood it at the bar,
Because it would not tune its strings
To cruelty and war.

Oh, gather round, you singing folk,
And sing along with me,
A song to ring around the world
And set that banjo free.
Oh, gather round, you singing folk,
And clearly sing along
A song of truth and liberty
That will not suffer wrong
And Pete will lead the song.