There’s a song sang up in the mountains and there’s a song upon the sea
There’s a song sang in unison and a song in harmony
There’s a song sang in every timbre and in 47 tongues
Thirty thousand voices are all singing our song
And the more of us who learn to sing it then the sooner there will be
Peace beneath the branches of the lime and olive tree
From mine and mill and field and shipyard, from behind the company door
From the playing fields of Eton to the warrens of the poor
From Helsinki to Buenos Aires our reasons are the same
From Melbourne to Vancouver now we have come to Spain
For if you sing a song of freedom then it does not matter where
If your song is freedom then you sing it everywhere.
There are some of our number who have known the pains of war
There are some of our number who have never fought before
But there are none of our number would think it were in vain
To leave their warm blood spilled upon the dry hot soil of Spain
And if I end up on that roll of honour I’ll be in good company
If there’s peace beneath the branches of the lime and olive tree
One day there will be no fascist and no anti-fascist men
One day there’ll be no ‘us’ and one day there’ll be no ‘them’
For equality is for everyone no matter what we’ve done
The sins of our fathers will not ever harm our sons
For there will come a great tomorrow for everyone to see
Peace beneath the branches of the lime and olive tree
But if all our dreams are sold and bartered and if all our names are lost
And if everything we’ve fought for crumbles into dust
They will never take from me the love I felt that day
I went because my open eyes could see no other way
And if I live to be one hundred make this my legacy
Peace beneath the branches of the lime and olive tree
Yes if I live to be one hundred make this my legacy
Peace beneath the branches of the lime and olive tree
There’s a song sang in unison and a song in harmony
There’s a song sang in every timbre and in 47 tongues
Thirty thousand voices are all singing our song
And the more of us who learn to sing it then the sooner there will be
Peace beneath the branches of the lime and olive tree
From mine and mill and field and shipyard, from behind the company door
From the playing fields of Eton to the warrens of the poor
From Helsinki to Buenos Aires our reasons are the same
From Melbourne to Vancouver now we have come to Spain
For if you sing a song of freedom then it does not matter where
If your song is freedom then you sing it everywhere.
There are some of our number who have known the pains of war
There are some of our number who have never fought before
But there are none of our number would think it were in vain
To leave their warm blood spilled upon the dry hot soil of Spain
And if I end up on that roll of honour I’ll be in good company
If there’s peace beneath the branches of the lime and olive tree
One day there will be no fascist and no anti-fascist men
One day there’ll be no ‘us’ and one day there’ll be no ‘them’
For equality is for everyone no matter what we’ve done
The sins of our fathers will not ever harm our sons
For there will come a great tomorrow for everyone to see
Peace beneath the branches of the lime and olive tree
But if all our dreams are sold and bartered and if all our names are lost
And if everything we’ve fought for crumbles into dust
They will never take from me the love I felt that day
I went because my open eyes could see no other way
And if I live to be one hundred make this my legacy
Peace beneath the branches of the lime and olive tree
Yes if I live to be one hundred make this my legacy
Peace beneath the branches of the lime and olive tree
inviata da Dq82 - 19/5/2019 - 19:17
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The ballad of Johnny Longstaff
Lyrics taken from mudcat.org
Tune: L'Internationale
Any Bread? - Carrying the Coffin - Hostel Strike - Cable Street - Robson’s Song - Ta-Ra to Tooting - Noddy - The Great Tomorrow - Ay Carmela - Paella - No Hay Pan - Trench Tales - Lewis Clive - David Guest - Over the Ebro - The Valley of Jarama - Trespassers (da tiny notes)
Written in Calgary in Western Canada in November 2017 it’s a song about a song. The Internationale was possibly the most popular left wing anthem of the 20th century. This famous song features heavily in the testimonies of many of the volunteers and many of the British described the incredible emotion of singing it at the moment they crossed over the border after climbing through the mountains.
Here were we, all young men from really all the nations of Europe joining this one song in their own language which seemed to express a yearning for the unity of mankind. I find it extremely difficult to explain how exhilarating this was. I don’t think I’ve ever felt the same feeling at any other time in my life. - John Dunbar
Our reworking references the famous words of Cecil Day Lewis
It was not fraud or foolishness glory, revenge, or pay
We came because our open eyes could see no other way
The Volunteer, Cecil Day Lewis
It also owes much to these words of Bob Cooney
And if we live to be a hundred
We'll have this to be glad about
We went to Spain!
Because of that great yesterday
We are part of the greater tomorrow
-Hasta La Vista - Madrid! - Bob Cooney