SONG LYRICS
All Songs copyright 2004 by Sarah Underhill
Song of the Hedge School
Where can we go?
The parson has broken the fiddle
He says it's a tool of the devil
Where can we go to play?
We come here
Where the greenwood casts its shadow
Outlaws and witches are we
In the hedge along the roadside
Where the timid folk fear to wander at night
Hidden in the briars we can be free
We come here
And we'll cup the flame of our music
And keep it alive
Where can we go
To learn how to write and to cipher?
Our teacher is risking the gallows
By meeting us here to read
We come here
Where the greenwood casts its shadows
Outlaws and witches and slaves with no masters are we
In the hedge beside the roadside
Where the timid folk fear to wander at night
Hidden in the briars we can be free
We come here
And we'll cup the flame of our learning
And keep it alive
Where can we go
To hear spoken our own heart's language
Shout aloud words like Freedom and Justice
Where can we go to sing?
We come here
Where the greenwood casts its shadows
Outlaws and witches and slaves with no masters
And all the free people are we
In the hedge along the roadside
Where the timid folk fear to wander at night
Hidden in the briars we can be free
We come here
And we'll cup the flame of our music and
We come here
And we'll cup the flame of our learning and
We come here
And we'll cup the flame of our dreaming
And keep it alive
BERRIES IN THE HEDGE
As I walked out the Foordmore road, all at the foot of the mountain, oh,
There I spied the berries in the hedge, all growing blue and scarlet, oh.
Refrain:
How they grow, the berries in the hedge, blue and scarlet and golden, oh.
Comes the crow, the linnet from the ledge, all for the plucking of the berries, oh.
Blue the sky, and green below, fair the air and breezy, oh.
Sweet the fruit, sweet music from the throats of the birds at the plucking of the berries, oh.
Twas then I turned my face to my home, back to my shady bower, oh.
Light my heart, and merry as a bird's, that's tasted the honey of the berries, oh.
Light my heart and free of care, merry as a bird on the mountain, oh,
Free as a bird in the mountain air, then home to my cottage in the valley, oh.
GRANDFATHER'S TREES
Down in a green and flowering valley, beside the river from the Lake of Tears
Grandfather planted four young yew trees, to watch his farmhouse and his children dear
With peace and gentleness and justice, the wandering
freed slave he took in.
This village by the bounteous river became a haven for his friends and kin.
And as they laid him on the hillside in a humble unmarked Quaker's grave,
A silent prayer went up to heaven: May you all live in peace and unafraid
May you all live in peace and unafraid
And long life to the yew trees- may they flourish for a thousand years.
Time as the river flowing onward erased all traces of the family home.
The trees kept watch upon the hillside, their roots now mingled with Grandfather's bones.
Upriver now a glowing furnace, to split the atom for the nation's work,
A mighty power plant was raised there, beside the river where it quenched its thirst.
And still he asks me to remember. These words are whispered on the river breeze:
"Take care, my children keep this valley well," murmur the branches of Grandfather's trees
Murmur the branches of Grandfather's trees-
Oh, long life to the yew trees- may they flourish for a thousand years.
Still standing bearing silent witness, as the gentle Quakers had of old,
The trees now grown to living spires, reaching to heaven where the clouds unfold.
And on a clear September morning, two silver missiles full of martyred souls
Came hurtling southward o'er the yew trees, in deadly desperation found their goal.
And as we gathered by the river, smoke from the burning towers dimmed the skies.
Our tears and prayers went up to heaven: let us not be the evil we despise
Let us not be the evil we despise
And the wind in the yew trees held the sorrows of a thousand years.
The trees do ask my heart this question, the bones beneath their branches know no rest:
What if those planes had struck the power plant, there plunging down to lay the land to waste?
If that atomic furnace melted, a cloud of sorrow then would haunt the land.
My yew trees would stand dead and voiceless, keeping blind watch above the barren sand.
These buried bones and roots below me cry out a warning so that all may hear:
With the free will that God does grant us, shut down these mad machines of doom and fear
Shut down these mad machines of doom and fear
And long life to the yew trees, may they flourish for a thousand years.
Yes, long life to the yew trees, may they flourish for a thousand years
HOLE IN THE GROUND [WATER PRAYER]
I get my water from a hole in the ground. I dip in my bucket with a musical sound,
Scooping up some dead leaves, some mud swirling around.
I get my water from a hole in the ground.
With the tree's thirsty roots the spring water I share. It tastes sweet as the mint or the cold mountain air.
Remember whether you pipe it for miles to your sink, or buy it in plastic bottles for a "purified" drink,
All of our water, wherever it's found, somewhere it came from a hole in the ground.
And whatever we spill on this humble clay finds its way to our water as it trickles away,
From the city tap or supermarket shelf, or if you haul it from that hole in the ground yourself.
We get our water from a hole in the ground, filled up by the rain with its musical sound.
All of us living, the whole world around, we all get our water from a hole in the ground.
DARK'S LULLABY
Soft arms, holding you safely
Tales told, whispering peacefully
No fears of shadows or dangers
Be not afraid of the darkness, child
Refrain:
Hush, hush, night wind caressing
Soft kiss of blackness a blessing.
Sleep, dream, sorrows forgetting.
Be not afraid of the darkness, child.
The while knight, on the white charger
Banishes evil, calling it darkness.
Ah, but the truth is never that simple
There's nothing to fear in the darkness, child.
Sweet smells, night flowers blooming
Soft sounds, small creatures moving
Love the night and the secrets it's telling
Be not afraid of the darkness, child
Look up: velvet clouds sailing
Black night, friend of the mystery
Ride the night wind, safe to the morning
There's nothing to fear in the darkness, child
FROM THE PRISON
In my upstate town on an old back road there stands a prison
And my kids at a real young age they asked of me
What is that building, Mama? Why that's a jail son
And the men inside done a crime so they can't go free
From the prison you can see the small town airport
Through barred windows watch the light planes come and go
Why are the prisoners in the yard most all black men, Mama?
I'll tell you son, it's a story you should know
I drive each day past the high walls like a fortress
Barbed wire and armed guards in towers an everyday sight
Some days I drive on by and I don't even see it
Tell me Mama, why are most the guards all white?
This story is old, this story is not over
Divide and conquer, those of a different race
The people in the jail, they are poor, they have no money
The guards are paid to keep them in their place
Corrections officer brags how he likes to rough up the inmates
He's the father of your school friend with good wages and a benefit plan
You wouldn't believe what we have to do for them people he tells me
In the local plant they try to recruit for the Ku Klux Klan
I see the buses bring the wives to visit their husbands
Holding children by the hand waiting to enter the big steel gate
The prisoners are poor and the guards are well paid honey
And the one that writes the paychecks trying to keep it that way
There was a legend 'bout a train they called the Midnight Special
If it shone its light through your prison bars you would go free
But there's no train running by this upstate jail now
Just the lights on the airplanes rising above the trees
From the prison you can see the small town airport
And through barred windows watch the light planes come and go
Why do the prisoners in the break yard have no money, Mama?
I'll tell you son, it's a story you should know
I'll tell you son, and then you'll know
PRO-CHOICE SONG
They say that life is a struggle
I can tell you that aint no lie
Just to put food on the table
Enough to make a grown woman cry
Pollution, crime and poverty
Cost of living on the rise
Drugs and desperation
Can you hear the children cry
I heard this question
From the mouth of a young girl
Saying how can I bring a baby
Into this cruel old world?
But if we work it out
And if we come up with a plan
To care for the needs of every woman, child and man
If we clean up this planet
Let me tell you the good news
When my world is on the right track
Why then I may choose
If I choose to have a child
If this child grows to be a young man
Government sends him off to war
To be killed in a foreign land
If I choose to have a child
Then they can take my child from me
They've been killing women's children
Since the dawn of history
So how can someone stand there
Tell me he's got a right
To say that my choice is wrong
And his choice is right
So tell me who should have the power
Whose is the choice to make
Is it the mother of a baby
Or the master of a slave?
And when all things are equal
When this world is a perfect place
There will be no need for abortion
And then we can rest our case.
I saud when all things are equal
When each child has a happy home
But I tell you brothers and sisters
We got a long way to go.
DONALD TRUMP'S LAMENT
I'm gonna tell you a story from New York town
It's very sad to relate
Bout how the poor little rich boy, Donald Trump,
Got stood up by the head of state.
Trump was floating one afternoon
In the swimming pool in his living room
And as he checked his watch for the hundredth time,
He began to cry
Oh, Gorbachov's in town but he didn't stop by,
He didn't say hi, he didn't say why
I'm such a wonderful guy-
How come he wont see me?
There was an out of work actor walking the streets
Who was a Gorbachov lookalike
He borrowed a limo and a big fur hat
When he heard of Trump's terrible plight
At the Trump Tower gates a crowd gathered round
Trump heard ther noise and came running down
But when he went to shake the actor's hand
Folks began to smile
Yes, Gorbachov's in town but he's just passing through,
Got too much to do, it's strange but it's true
You may own this town but
He aint got time for you
Because he's bringing the word to the old UN
He's got a Christmas present for the boys
He's going to send them home, so tell the Pentagon
To cut back on their orders for new war toys
Instead of drinking champagne with Donald Trump
He sent the defense industry into a slump
Now Don he made you look like a jerk
And some of your friends may be out of work
Yes, Gorbachov's in town and he's doing just great
He's looking for peace
Not for real estate
So try and understand Don
We know it's hard for you....
[repeat first refrain]
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