New Song to Old Tune (an old story...)

Subject: New Song to Old Tune (an old story...)
From: InOBU
Date: 20 Aug 02 - 01:19 PM

Scales of Revenge

Words Lorcan Otway, Tune Traditional, Willy Of Windsburry from the singing of the great Anne Briggs.

Oh America's fired a cruse missile, and it's killed my brother's son
Now I must put my hopes aside and learn the way of the gun
Oh why and how can they do such things, why bring such grief to me
Now I will go and seek revenge for my faith and my dignity

Oh some men from Saudi Arabia, have killed my old school friend
He was never a part of any war, why bring him this awful end?
Oh why and how can they do such things, why bring this grief to me,
Now I will go and seek revenge for my friend and for my country

Oh the helicopters came last night, and we fled into the dark
But American bullets flew from above, killing my wife, my love,
Oh why and how can they do these things, why bring this grief to me,
As generations of Afghans before, I'll defend this poor country

My son, my son, he will never return, in a foreign war he lies slain
He was fighting for his home and hearth, on some barren Afghani plain
Oh why and how can they do these things, why bring such grief to me
Send troops send troops, to far Iraq, to stop this insanity

And here I sit and I watch the world, as blood is shed for blood
And I can only wonder why and how can we stem this flood
Oh why oh how can they do such things, on justice's bloody path,
And who will be left to say in the end, we've balanced the scales at last

Don't stop, don't stop for our martyred dead, or an inch of blood soaked soil,
But stop oh stop for the love of your child, in fields of hope now toil
Oh how oh why can't we begin, by putting grief behind
We can not ever pay for the dead, by paying another in kind.

Subject: RE: New Song to Old Tune (an old story...)
From: katlaughing
Date: 20 Aug 02 - 02:16 PM

My heart is on the ground with sorrow...you've touched it again, so well, Lorcan. Thank you for the honour of your sharing,

kat

Subject: RE: New Song to Old Tune (an old story...)
From: EBarnacle1
Date: 20 Aug 02 - 02:26 PM

Larry, I also recommend "Every soldier is some mother's son" as performed by Tom Lewis. Eric

Subject: RE: New Song to Old Tune (an old story...)
From: InOBU
Date: 20 Aug 02 - 02:44 PM

Thanks for the kind words, Katl, m' dear. Cheers, Eric... Larry

Subject: RE: New Song to Old Tune (an old story...)
From: Áine
Date: 20 Aug 02 - 03:35 PM

Maith thú, a chara. Very powerful and poetic words. I'd love to hear you perform this. Best song I've seen from you since Engine 33.

Le grá, Áine

Subject: RE: New Song to Old Tune (an old story...)
From: InOBU
Date: 20 Aug 02 - 04:50 PM

It also works to Bonny May if you repete the send of each second line... also, the line about his son dieing on an afghan plain, should be an afgani plain. Cheers again, and thanks for the responce. Larry

"i" added to "afghan" - joeclone -

Subject: RE: New Song to Old Tune (an old story...)
From: Clinton Hammond
Date: 20 Aug 02 - 05:02 PM

Ya gotta get a recording of this done, so we can all hear it, Larry!

.-)

Subject: RE: New Song to Old Tune (an old story...)
From: InOBU
Date: 20 Aug 02 - 10:01 PM

Well... it is only, let's see, about 7 hours old? Reocrding soon. Cheers, Larry

Subject: RE: New Song to Old Tune (an old story...)
From: Peter K (Fionn)
Date: 21 Aug 02 - 05:17 AM

Very, very effective Larry. Really deserves to be heard, and I hope it is.

Subject: RE: New Song to Old Tune (an old story...)
From: InOBU
Date: 21 Aug 02 - 06:28 PM

PS to Fionn from the PM... I use the word strife in almost all my songs... I am trying to break that habbit!!! Cheers ;-) Larry

Subject: RE: New Song to Old Tune (an old story...)
From: InOBU
Date: 22 Aug 02 - 09:24 AM

PS (thanks to the Joe clone!) Larry

Subject: RE: New Song to Old Tune (an old story...)
From: kendall
Date: 22 Aug 02 - 01:05 PM

Good song Mate! Reminds me of Where have all the flowers gone.

Subject: RE: New Song to Old Tune (an old story...)
From: alanabit
Date: 23 Aug 02 - 05:11 AM

It's what you do best - teling the story from the viewpoint of the participents - trying to make them characters instead of just figures. It will be interesting to see how it works in front of an audience. When's the album due?

Subject: RE: New Song to Old Tune (an old story...)
From: InOBU
Date: 23 Aug 02 - 07:53 AM

God only knows when the album is due. I just heard from one of my old band mates, a mother of two young sons, she wanted to know if I had work for her, playing jigs and reels, and she said, no songs. Even though the audience has always been drawn to the ballads first the mucians are afraid of them. I showed her the new song, she said, no just jigs and reels, not this kind of thing. Well, Liah... when they come to draft your kids, wont you wish some one had sung for their sake?
Oh well... Larry

Subject: RE: New Song to Old Tune (an old story...)
From: InOBU
Date: 24 Aug 02 - 07:37 PM

For those who can get these stations... On Sept, 11 KOPN Music Director Sunday Morning Coffeehouse: KOPN, 89.5 FM, Columbia, MO is playing Engine 33 and Election day, and "Roots and Wings" on WESS, 90.3 FM Stroudsburg PA. is playing Engine 33. All the best, Larry

Subject: RE: New Song to Old Tune (an old story...)
From: alison
Date: 24 Aug 02 - 09:55 PM

good song Larry

slainte

alison

Subject: RE: New Song to Old Tune (an old story...)
From: InOBU
Date: 26 Aug 02 - 05:09 AM

Thanks Alison... and for those in the New York (central area...) You can hear Engine 33 and Election day on, Sept 11 on the World Song Shop airs every Sunday night from 10PM to 1AM on WAER Syracuse, 88.3 FM, simulcast on the web at waer.org Cheers, Larry

Subject: RE: New Song to Old Tune (an old story...)
From: Seamus Kennedy
Date: 27 Aug 02 - 01:00 AM

Good man, Larry. Keep up the good work and get it recorded, even on a CD single for radio airplay.

Seamus

Subject: RE: New Song to Old Tune (an old story...)
From: Big Mick
Date: 27 Aug 02 - 01:09 AM

I just sang it through to the tune of The Sons of Liberty as sung by Dan Milner and it sounded wonderful. Great bit of wordsmithing, my friend.

Mick, who agrees that it should be recorded.

Subject: RE: New Song to Old Tune (an old story...)
From: InOBU
Date: 27 Aug 02 - 07:59 AM

I'll have to find Dan this weekend and get the other tune! Cheers Larry

Subject: RE: New Song to Old Tune (an old story...)
From: Tinker
Date: 27 Aug 02 - 08:47 AM

Bittersweet smiles.... wonderful work, haunting subject...Love to hear it...

Tinker