Help: Wanted: Protest song about incinerators

Subject: Wanted: Protest song about incinerators
From: Julie B
Date: 05 Jul 02 - 01:34 PM

I'm searching for protest songs (or even just lyrics/poems) about the building of controversial waste incinerators. This is a hot topic in the UK at the moment, as the Government want to build dozens of the things in towns and cities all over the country, but there is strong, and growing, opposition from the public who think they pose a significant and proven health risk.
I've surfed the web a bit but haven't managed to find anything, except this tantalising news story from Feb 2001:

"A composer has applied for council cash to write a song about the proposed incinerator in Newhaven. Mike Flood, 39, has gone cap-in-hand to Newhaven Town Council chiefs to seek funding for the music. He has already teamed up with Newhaven poet Ruth Gillett to draw up a lavish piece about the burner, which could be built at North Quay. It has provoked widespread opposition in the port town and surrounding areas over possible health risks. Mike, from Newhaven, hopes the tune would give a focus to the controversial issue of incineration which is raging throughout Sussex.

For source article see http://www.thisiseastbourne.co.uk/eastbourne/archive/2001/02/20/NEWS650ZM.html

Does anyone have further details of Mike Flood or the song? Also, details of any other such songs would be very much appreciated.

Julie B

Subject: RE: Help: Wanted: Protest song about incinerators
From: GUEST
Date: 05 Jul 02 - 06:19 PM

American folk singer Larry Long did a song called "Garbage" but I can't recall if it is about incinerators or not, or if it is on any of his albums.

Subject: RE: Help: Wanted: Protest song about incinerators
From: GUEST,Julie B at home
Date: 08 Jul 02 - 04:14 PM

Thanks guest. Sadly I can't find details of this song on the web.

Anyone else know of any incinerator protest songs?

Julie

Subject: RE: Help: Wanted: Protest song about incinerators
From: GUEST
Date: 08 Jul 02 - 04:16 PM

Maybe you should write one?

Subject: RE: Help: Wanted: Protest song about incinerators
From: GUEST,MCP
Date: 08 Jul 02 - 06:55 PM

You'll find Bill Steele's Garbage in the DT.

I had a vague memory that Malvina Reynolds did a song about something like this, but I may be wrong about that - it was a long time ago.

You might want to take a look at this site though, which has environmental songs on it (I didn't go through them): Earth Songs

Mick

Subject: RE: Help: Wanted: Protest song about incinerators
From: Julie B
Date: 17 Jul 02 - 06:31 AM

Refresh...

Thanks for the info so far
Unfortunately still haven't found one, and don't have time to write one just now (feel sure I'd be reinventing the wheel anyway!)...I'm sure there must be one already out there..anyone got any new leads?

Julie B

Subject: RE: Help: Wanted: Protest song about incinerators
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 17 Jul 02 - 07:46 AM

And it's go, boy, go
They'll time your every breath
And every day you're in this place
You're two days nearer death

The chorus to Ron Angel's Process Man is quite applicable as it stands - it'd be easy enough to put some new verses to it, or even just modify some of the existing ones.

The best songs come out of local action, so I'd advise hunting around on the net and finding out details and contacts for some of these. They've never got round to trying to build an incinerator anywhere near where I live, so I've never really got into it myself. Short-sighted of me maybe.

This site mentions"Protesters sang children's nursery rhymes with the words changed to describe our plight (see samples of songs which follow)" in the context of a successful local campaign - but the song samples don't actually follow. Still, here is a link that might get you to the people involved.

And here is a news item from Taiwan that mentions songs as part of a protest.

And here is a link to the site of a prolific songwriter called David Rovics who has written plenty of environmental songs, though I don't know if any are about waste incinerators.

And finally here is another link that might be helpful.

Subject: RE: Help: Wanted: Protest song about incinerators
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 17 Jul 02 - 07:49 AM

Here is the David Rovics link, which escaped somehow in that last post of mine.

Subject: RE: Help: Wanted: Protest song about incinerators
From: harvey andrews
Date: 17 Jul 02 - 09:16 AM

I did write one once, but it wasn't very good, so I burnt it.

Subject: RE: Help: Wanted: Protest song about incinerators
From: vectis
Date: 17 Jul 02 - 08:43 PM

I think McGrath has it Julie Mary
from just up the coast.

Subject: RE: Help: Wanted: Protest song about incinerators
From: Charley Noble
Date: 18 Jul 02 - 11:49 AM

Nothing comes to mind. Bill Steele's "Garbage" song may well be the closest you can get; it does have a line in the chorus "We're filling up the air with garbage (garbage, garbage, garbage)!"

Malvina Reynolds is also a good possibility but I'm not aware of any of her fine protest songs focused on incinerators, as a burning issue...

Charley Noble, a nautical incinerator accessory

Subject: RE: Help: Wanted: Protest song about incinerators
From: Bullfrog Jones
Date: 18 Jul 02 - 03:13 PM

I read the thread title and thought that it must be you (knowing your local problem). I'm sure there's something at the back of the brain. I'll keep racking!

BJ

Subject: RE: Help: Wanted: Protest song about incinerators
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 18 Jul 02 - 03:31 PM

"Ring a ring a roses" would do well - even if the stuff about it being about the Plague is probably untrue, the "all fall down" bit carries a punch.

And the old uns like We Shall Not be Moved and so forth can always use new verses, which come to mind easily enough when you're in that sort of situation.

Or you could write new verses for "So long it's been good to know you." Like:

They're building an oven where the kids used to play,
And they tell us the poison won't get in our way,
They tell us more rubbish than they'll ever burn,
But there's one thing we know and we hope they will learn

We say, so long, it's been good to know you,
So long, it's been good to know you,
This dirty old rubbish will just have to go,
You can take it and shove it where the sun doesn't show.

Subject: RE: Help: Wanted: Protest song about incinerators
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 18 Jul 02 - 05:57 PM

And here's another verse and chorus to be going on with. You've got the facts to make the songs yourself:

Well, there's cash from this ash, to buy experts who'll swear
That dioxins won't harm you, they're good for your hair,
And there's nothing to fear from this chemical feast,
Why, the rubbish they burn will not hurt man nor beast.

We say, so long, it's been good to know you,
So long, it's been good to know you,
You've got rubbish to say, you've rubbish to burn,
But we've got some rubbish we'd love to return.

Subject: RE: Help: Wanted: Protest song about incinerators
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 18 Jul 02 - 06:01 PM

And of course Woody's chorus (more or less):

So long, it's been good to know you,
So long, it's been good to know you
, So long it's been good to know you
This dusty old dust is a getting our homes,
So you'd better be drifting along.

Subject: RE: Help: Wanted: Protest song about incinerators
From: Julie B
Date: 19 Jul 02 - 03:32 PM

Thanks McGrath, and everyone else. This is really helpful stuff.

I don't know "So long it's been good to know you", but Steve Parkes is a mine of musical information, so I'm sure he'll be able to sing it to me at work on Monday!

Julie

Subject: RE: Help: Wanted: Protest song about incinerators
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 19 Jul 02 - 03:50 PM

This site was a version of it, notes and words and various sound files to give you a idea.

Subject: RE: Help: Wanted: Protest song about incinerators
From: GUEST,Felipa
Date: 20 Jul 02 - 04:49 AM

but the dust storms were due to erosion not incineration