1. |
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We don’t know where we’re going and we’re not sure where we are
We’re planning global conquest but we’ve not got very far
We’re in the ale house or the jail house with Sibelius!
We’ve took so many short-cuts we can’t find our own way back
We’ve spent too many long nights on the wrong side of the track
Inside the ale house and the jail house with Sibelius!
You’ll find us in the ale house or maybe in the jail house
Oh alongside Sibelius
Ask us where we’ve come from and we don’t know where we’ve been
America, Australia or somewhere in between
We’re in the ale house or the jail house with Sibelius!
You’ll find us in the ale house or even in the jail house
Oh alongside Sibelius
We’re on the right side of the argument - the wrong side of the law
We’d like to say for certain but we’re not completely sure
We’re in the ale house or the jail house with Sibelius!
We’ve sipped the finest champagne and we’ve dined on caviar
We tripped the light fantastic - found it all a bit bazaar
We’re in the ale house and the jail house with Sibelius!
You’ll find us in the ale house or especially in the jail house
Oh alongside Sibelius
We’ll toast the revolution then we’ll sing God save the Queen
It’s either agony or ecstasy but nothing in between
We’re in the ale house and the jail house with Sibelius
And if God is in his heaven and if all’s right with the world
Why is the incubus, the succubus and hell’s demonic hoards
Inside mi’ ale house and mi’ jail house with Sibelius!
You’ll find us in the ale house or even in the jail house
Oh alongside Sibelius
You’ll find us in the ale house…..
or maybe in the jail house - Oh alongside Sibelius
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2. |
Paradise Street
04:47
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As I was out walking down Paradise Street – Blow the man down bullies blow the man down
A pretty young damsel I chanced for to meet – Blow the man down bullies blow the man down
So I upped and I tailed her my flipper and took her in tow
And yardarm to yardarm for New York away we did go.
But as soon as that packet was clear of the bar – Blow the man down bullies blow the man down
Her mate knocked me out with the end of a spar – Blow the man down bullies blow the man down
Then it's starboard and larboard for fifty days straight I must haul
For Kicking Jack Williams the brigand commands the Black Ball.
Well there's tinkers, and tailors, and soldiers, and all – We say blow the man down…
We all shipped for sailors on board the Black Ball – We say blow the man down…
We gullible fools, we poor devils, how hard we must graft.
The cruel Captain orders “ye land lubbers lay fore and aft”
So it’s… Blow the man down bullies blow the man down – way hey, blow the man down
Rouse her right up boys for Liverpool town – give me some time to blow the man down
A bonnie good mate and a bold captain too – way hey, blow the man down
A bonnie good ship and a bonnie good crew – give me some time to blow the man down
So rouse her right up boys for Liverpool town – Blow the man down…
We will blow the man up and we’ll blow that man down – Blow the man down…
May I caution and give you fair warning before we belay,
Don't ever take heed of what Liverpool’s pretty girls say
Then at last, my fine boys, we are back round the rock – And it’s blow the man down…
And soon, very soon, we’ll be safe in the dock – And it’s blow the man down…
Older and wiser – our trials and our sentence complete
Then we’ll spend all our tin once again in old Paradise Street.
Blow the man down bullies blow the man down – way hey, blow the man down
Rouse her right up boys for Liverpool town – give me some time to blow the man down
A bonnie good mate and a bold captain too – way hey, blow the man down
A bonnie good ship and a bonnie good crew – give me some time to blow the man down
Blow the man down bullies blow the man down – way hey, blow the man down
Rouse her right up boys for Liverpool town – give me some time to blow the man down
A bonnie good mate and a bold captain too – way hey, blow the man down
Our tale being told it’s farewell and adieu…
– give me some time to blow the man down.
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3. |
Men of Constant Sorrow
03:50
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Three jobs on the go - but still she can’t make ends meet
A pay-day loan - no man at home and nights out now a rare treat.
Christmas coming fast. The kids are all expecting!
Here comes another pay freeze, there can be no happy ending.
And all her yesterdays - and all her bright tomorrows
Lie strewn in broken disarray. Woman of constant sorrow
She had a part to play. She had her lines to follow
But someone tore the script up
And those promises sound hollow - hollow to her now
Worked all his life but now he’s blind - he can’t work anymore.
A government statistic of the undeserving poor.
His benefits have been withdrawn - he’s just been re-assessed.
He’s no less blind but he’s still on the scrap heap with the rest.
No money and the rent is due - there’s only one way out
The rope goes tight, there’s one last breath and no-one hears him shout,
“I had a part to play - I had some lines to follow”
But someone tore the script up
And your promises sound hollow – hollow to us now
For those of you that make it through to realise your pension
Don’t celebrate – there’s one small thing that they forgot to mention
You thought you had a deal - You thought they’d keep their bargain
Your thirty, forty, fifty years not worth a ruddy farthing.
The politicians’ say, “We’re all in this together.
Green shoots around the corner boys. Look out for better weather.”
You played your part quite well. Your lines were neatly followed
then someone tore the script up
Now their promises sound hollow - hollow -hollow
And all our yesterdays and all our bright tomorrows
Lie strewn in broken disarray. We are men of constant sorrow
We want a part to play. We want some lines to follow.
But you tore all the scripts up
Now your promises sound hollow
…hollow to us now.
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4. |
The Girl I Left Behind
06:21
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I’m lonely since I crossed the hill from where I left my county
With heavy thoughts my heart does fill the further I do roam
For as I seek to make my way, each day more reminds me
How pleasantly the hours did pass away - With the girl I left behind me
I never shall forget that night the stars were bright and shining
And gently lent their silvery glow to light me on my road
But now I’m bound for Waterloo. I pray God’s great design be
To bring me safe back home once more - to the girl I left behind me
Her golden hair in ringlets fair
Her eyes like sparkling diamonds shone
A fairer lass in all the world - no man gazed upon
Ye Gods above oh hear my prayer - to life’s temptations blind me
But guide me safe back home again to the girl I left behind me
I’ve felt the force, the raging storm of life’s great adventure
The crashing waves now cease to roar - I’ve drank to my fill
Release me from this battlefield. Transport me and confine me
With the fairest maid of all - The girl I left behind me
Her golden hair in ringlets fair
Her eyes like sparkling diamonds shone
A fairer lass in all the world - no man gazed upon
Ye Gods above oh hear my prayer - to life’s temptations blind me
But guide me safe back home again to the girl I left behind me
So if I don’t answer to the roll don’t seek for me - you’ll find me
Safe home in the warm embrace - of the girl I left behind me
Her golden hair in ringlets fair
Her eyes like sparkling diamonds shone
A fairer lass in all the world - no man gazed upon
So if I don’t answer to the roll - don’t seek for me - you’ll find me
Safe home in the warm embrace - of the girl I left behind me
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5. |
The Vicar of Barton Wood
05:19
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A pious young vicar of tender years came to our shire
He was handsome and zealous in equal part – much to admire.
Now in Barton Wood nothing much happens and so it is said
The appointment of one so anointed turned every girl’s head.
He soon filled the pews with the ladies who hung on his every word.
Stirred their passions, the Word of the Lord was ne’er so keenly heard
Now one night a newlywed came for to ask his advice
Would the Lord bless her marriage with children – she’d pay any price.
Her man was too busy with farming to tend to her needs
One thing on our vicar’s mind - it wasn’t God’s Holy Creed!
Suffice it to say as the night wore on, from the path of the righteous he strayed.
He’d found he was a poacher by night and a God fearing Christian by day
This woman departed well pleased with the service she’d got
But her tongue was too loose and the womenfolk soon knew the lot.
And in no time at all there’s a queue forming up at his door
for his ministrations. For them, it seems, he had the cure.
An upstanding pillar of village life, but when the menfolk were out of the way
He was a poacher by night and a God fearing Christian by day.
To the widow and her three fine daughters he visiting went.
But the widow was out so with three girls he found time well spent.
How gaily they romped and with gusto what sport they did play
till the widow returned and discovered them in disarray.
Well she threw off her shawl and she bowed and then pitched herself into the fray
To the arms of a poacher by night and a God fearing Christian
A poacher by night and a God fearing Christian
A poacher by night and a God fearing Christian by day
In time the news of his deeds met the Archbishop’s ear
whose solution was to promote him to a life more austere
Now obedience to God and to Church meant that he must depart
so the vicar obeyed but he did so with much heavy heart
In vain the ladies of Barton Wood begged and implored him to stay
Each one of them said their goodbye’s in their own special way.
And they said “If court life doesn’t befit you well, you’re welcome back here any day
For we love our poacher by night and a God fearing Christian
A poacher by night and a God fearing Christian …
A poacher by night and a God fearing Christian by day”
That’s what they say!
Poacher by night and a God fearing Christian by day
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6. |
We Won't Lie Down
05:45
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Out of the east a wind is rising
What do you think of that?
“Too busy living day to day”
And the rain goes pit-a-pat
Clouds are gathering a storm is coming
What do you have to say?
“As long as I’ve got my Sky TV
It’s sunshine every day”
And day on day and year on year
They work us more for less
While we focus our attentions
On those with no redress
As long there are those poor souls
Whose fate is yet more cruel
We count ourselves as winners
In this carousel for fools
You who live and suffer moan
For others’ misery or your own
Drunk as with intoxication
From the wine of desolation
Your women, children, young and old
They cry in pain and weep from cold
And many more destructions play
In this ghastly masquerade
We won’t lie down
We won’t lie down
Out of the east a change is coming
The tempest has arrived
Do we count ourselves as winners?
Is it enough to be alive?
Or has something pricked our conscience?
Do we stand or do we yield?
Is the dark veil lifted from our eyes?
Is the tyranny revealed?
And day on day and year on year
Our masters call for more
But we focus our attention
On the undeserving poor
As long there are those poor souls
Whose work we will not do
Our place is in the vanguard
of this carousel for fools
You who live and suffer moan
For others’ misery or your own
Drunk as with intoxication
From the wine of desolation
You who suffer woes untold
Reap the whirlwind and behold
Your poor country bought and sold
For the price of blood and gold
You who live and suffer moan
For others’ misery or your own
Drunk as with intoxication
From the wine of desolation
Your women, children, young and old
They cry in pain and weep from cold
And many more destructions play
In this ghastly masquerade
We won’t lie down
We won’t lie down
Shake off your chains like morning dew
And remember – ye are many – they are few!
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7. |
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Oh, the summertime is coming
And the trees are sweetly blooming
And the wild mountain thyme
Grows around the blooming heather
Will you go, Lassie, go?
I will build my love a bower
By yon pure and crystal water
And on it I will lay
All the flowers of the mountain
Will you go, Lassie, go?
And we'll all go together
To pick wild mountain thyme
All around the blooming heather
Will you go, Lassie, go?
If my true love won't come with me
I will surely find another
To pick wild mountain thyme
All around the blooming heather
Will you go, Lassie, go?
And we'll all go together
To pick wild mountain thyme
All around the purple heather
Will you go, Lassie go?
And we'll all go together
To pick wild mountain thyme
All around the purple heather
Will you go, Lassie go?
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8. |
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I was around when the Tora hit the ground, yes I was there to see it all begin
I split Eve from her lover, got between Cain and his brother, man, I gave you original sin
I tempted Jesus in the desert - forty days and nights - I spelled it out as plain as it could be
Talked to Mohammed he repeated what the man had said, they both set out to set their peoples free
I laid my cards on the table
I did the deal – got all parties to agree but
Oh Jesus’ and Mohammed’s men as far as I can see
You’re doing my job for me
I’ve watched crusaders launch their holy wars, I saw good people drown in rivers of blood
I’ve seen evangelists, extremists, fundamentalists and terrorists who thought they understood
And in the name of the Father
Or for Yahweh or for Allah or for God
Oh Jesus’ and Mohammed’s men as far as I can see
You’re doing my job for me
I thought we had an understanding
I thought I was the Prince of Evil - that was me but
Oh Jesus’ and Mohammed’s men as far as I can see
You’re doing my job for me
And in the name of the Father
Or for Yahweh or for Allah or for God
Oh Jesus’ and Mohammed’s men as far as I can see
You’re doing my job for me
Je suis Charlie
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9. |
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I well remember Martin Luther King
Damn you who say he didn’t change a thing
You should have been there
You should have been there
When Rosa Parks sat down to make her stand
When Rosa changed the history of her land
You should have been there
You should have been there
Oh how it raised my soul to be there
When men of violence rose to have their say
The Mahatma Ghandi found a peaceful way
You should have been there
You should have been there
Oh how it raised my soul to be there
Sing aloud sing aloud sing aloud and bellow - Freedom
Sing aloud sing aloud sing aloud and bellow - Freedom
You should have been there
You should have been there
Oh how it raised my soul to be there
For twenty-seven years he was confined
No bribe nor threat would change Madiba’s mind
You should have been there
You should have been there
On Robben Isle they hoped his dreams would drown
But he smiled and brought Apartheid crashing down
You should have been there
You should have been there
Oh how it raised my soul to be there
Sing aloud sing aloud sing aloud and bellow - Freedom
Sing aloud sing aloud sing aloud and bellow - Freedom
You should have been there
You should have been there
Oh how it raised my soul to be there
Who stood before the tanks at Tiananmen?
Who’ll stand defending freedom once again?
We have to be there
I hope you’ll be there
For what are our tomorrows like to be?
Our future is to write our history
What will we see there?
I hope you’ll be there
Oh it would raise my soul if you’re there
Sing aloud sing aloud sing aloud and bellow - Freedom
Sing aloud sing aloud sing aloud and bellow - Freedom
You should have been there
You should have been there
Sing aloud sing aloud sing aloud and bellow - Freedom
Sing aloud sing aloud sing aloud and bellow - Freedom
You should have been there
You should have been there
Sing aloud sing aloud sing aloud and bellow - Freedom
Sing aloud sing aloud sing aloud and bellow - Freedom
You should have been there
You should have been there
Oh how it raised my soul to be there
Oh how it raised my soul to be there
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10. |
My Old Town
03:46
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11. |
Sicily Bound
04:40
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You say –
How can we abandon them to their fate?
Women and children in a parlous state,
A tidal wave of suffering and its coming our way
There but by the grace of god - m'aide
You say.
And what do they have that’s worth staying for?
Famine and pestilence and Civil War
So they’re pinning their hopes on a distant shore
And the luck of the draw
They’re all sailing for Sicily bound
One in one hundred lands on holy ground.
Watching on helpless as their boats go down,
could you watch them drown?
You say - Turn them all away!
Only because they will be saved do they come
Each to their own – look after number one
Why should we share our wealth with those who create none
And look at the numbers – look at what you’ve done
You say
And packed to the gunnels - fore and aft
A flotilla of flimsy, unseaworthy craft
Full of Libyans, Somalians and Syrians,
With their lives in our hands
They’re all sailing for Sicily bound
One in one hundred lands on holy ground.
Watching on helpless as their boats go down,
would you watch them drown?
And drowning’s not the only way to lose your life
There’s the fumes in the hold, there’s the point of a knife
Scafisti deal death at an all-in price
Of a thousand euros one way
All sailing for Sicily bound
One in one hundred lands on holy ground
Watching on helpless as their boats go down
Could you watch them drown?
They’re all sailing for Sicily bound
One in one hundred lands on holy ground
Watching on helpless as their boats goes down
Could you watch her drown?
all sailing for Sicily bound
One in one hundred lands on holy ground
Watching on helpless as their boats go down
Shall we watch them drown?
as their boats go down
as the boat goes down
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12. |
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Please Monsieur a penny for mi’ keep sir
Please Monsieur a penny for the poor
I was as right as rain sir, now I’m a trifle lame
And I haven’t been the same since they packed me off to war
At nineteen years my life stretched out before me
I had no wish for to fight a foreign foe
Apprenticed engineer sir, a promising career
Aah but all that has gone queer – sir - since the blighters bid me go
Please Monsieur a penny for mi’ keep sir
Please Monsieur a penny for the poor
I was as right as rain sir, now I’m a trifle lame
And I haven’t been the same since they packed me off to war
I had a sweetheart - she doesn’t want to know me
A fulsome damsel - a galleon in full sail
Her name was Sadie Frost and she let me go because
I’m not half the man I was since I shipped for Passchendaele
So please Monsieur a penny for mi’ keep sir
Please Monsieur a penny for the poor
I was as right as rain sir, now I’m a trifle lame
And I haven’t been the same since they packed me off to war
I gained the rank of Quartermaster Sergeant
I kept mi’ books and mi’ figures trim and neat
Til a lousy mortar shell blew mi’ two fine legs to hell
I wish I was there as well – and not begging on this street
So please Monsieur a penny for mi’ keep sir
Please Monsieur a penny for the poor
I was as right as rain sir, now I’m a trifle lame
And I haven’t been the same since they packed me off to war
So don’t you dare go fight for king and country
Don’t you shoulder a bayonet and a gun
You stay safe and sound. Don’t go dodging mortar rounds
Cos mi’ legs have not been found since I went to fight the Hun
Please Monsieur a penny for my keep sir
Please Monsieur a penny for the poor
I was as right as rain sir, now I’m a trifle lame
And I haven’t been the same since they packed me off to war
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13. |
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There were three men came out of the west, their fortunes for to try
And these three men made a solemn vow
John Barleycorn must die
They've ploughed, they've sown, they've harrowed him in
Threw clods upon his head
And these three men made a solemn vow
John Barleycorn was dead
They've let him lie for a very long time, 'til the rains from heaven did fall
And little Sir John sprung up his head and so amazed them all
They've let him stand 'til Midsummer's Day 'til he looked both pale and wan
And little Sir John's grown a long long beard and so become a man
They've hired men with their scythes so sharp - to cut him at the knee
They've rolled him and tied him by the waist - serving him most barbarously
They've hired men with their sharp pitchforks who've pricked him to the heart
And the loader he has served him worse than that
For he's bound him to the cart
They've wheeled him around and around a field 'til they came unto a barn
And there they made a solemn oath on poor John Barleycorn
They've hired men with their crabtree sticks to cut him to the bone
And the miller he has served him worse than that
For he's ground him between two stones
And little Sir John with the nut brown bowl and his brandy in a glass
And little Sir John with the nut brown bowl proved the strongest man at last
The huntsman he can't hunt the fox not so loudly to blow his horn
And the tinker - he can't mend kettle nor pots without a little barleycorn
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The Mather Robinson Band Salford, UK
Dave Mather and Pete Robinson grew up together in the north of England in the nineteen sixties and have been writing and performing music individually and as a team ever since. From Opera to rock to pop and now back to their roots in folk music. Mather & Robinson entertain audiences in the north west of England but if you ask them - they will hummmm. ... more
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