SONGS FROM ALDERMASTON

SONGS FROM ALDERMASTON – Part II

Link to CND website: www.cnduk.org

Strangest Dream

Last night I had the strangest dream,

I’d never dreamed before,

I dreamed the world had all agreed,

To put an end to war

I dreamed I saw a mighty room,

The room was full of men,

And the paper they were signing said

They’d never fight again.

And when that paper was all signed,

And a million copies made,

They all joined hands and bowed their heads,

And grateful prayers were prayed,

And people in the streets below

Were dancing round and round,

And guns and swords and uniforms

Lay scattered on the ground.

Today I saw a dream come true,

I never thought I’d see,

Ten thousand marched on London town,

On one thing they agree:

The future of the human race

Must never again depend

On politics and business men,

Protest, your lives defend!

We Shall Overcome

American civil rights anthem, adopted by the British peace movement with some new words.

We shall overcome, we shall overcome,

We shall overcome some day,

Deep in my heart,

I do believe,

We shall overcome some day.

We will ban the bomb, we will ban the bomb,

We will ban the bomb some day,

Deep in my heart,

I do believe,

We shall ban the bomb some day.

We shall live in peace….. etc.

We are not afraid, we are not afraid,

We are not afraid today….. etc.

Mack The Bomb

Variation of Mack The Knife. AEC = Atomic Energy Commission.

Oh the shark has pretty teeth, dear,

And he shows them pearly white,

And the AEC has figures,

But it keeps them out of sight.

When the shark bites with is teeth, dear,

Scarlet billows start to spread;

Strontium 90 shows no color,

But it leaves you just as dead.

Strontium 90 leaves no clue, dear,

It’s not like thalidomide;

If the baby is deformed, dear,

You just blame the other side.

Strontium 90 leaves no trace, dear,

No one knows who gets the knife,

You can always say that background

Radiation took the life.

In your milk on Monday mornig

Comes an extra little kick,

Well, the taste is just the same, dear,

But the Geiger counters tick.

Oh, the shark has pretty teeth, dear,

And he shows them, pearly white;

And the AEC has figures,

But they keep them out of sight.

Old Smoky

On top of Old Smoky

All covered in snow

There’s Strontium 90

From the H-Bomb below.

Now living’s a pleasure,

And the H-bomb’s a grief,

And Strontium 90

Is worse than a thief.

For a thief will just rob you,

Pinch money you save,

But Strontium 90

Will send you to your grave.

The grave will decay you,

And turn you to dust,

There’s no politician

A worker can trust.

They’ll kid you and fool you,

And tell you more lies

Than deaths from leukemia

Or stars in the sky.

For the H-bomb’s explosioin

Will cut like a knife

Thru the ranks of our people

And poison all life.

The leaves they will wither,

All life it will die,

You’ll be incinerated

And never know why.

So come all you people,

And listen to me,

Get rid of the H-bomb

And Strontium 90.

A Little Bomb Like You

Tune: Johnny I Hardly Knew Ya

Charles de Gaulle, he said to me:

I want to have a little bomb like you,

Independent mine will be,

I want to have a little bomb like you,

I like you and you like me

But just in case we don’t agree,

I want a little bomb like you, Mac,

I want a little bomb like you.

Mao to Krushchov turned and said:

I want to have a little bomb like you,

My bomb will be twice as Red,

I want to have a little bomb like you,

East is East and West is West,

The Chinese bomb will be the best,

I want to have a little bomb like you, Nik,

I want a little bomb like you.

Come Away, Melinda

‘Mummy, mummy, come and look and see what I

have found,

A little way away from here while digging in the

ground.’

‘Come away, Melinda, come in and close the door,

It’s nothing but a picture book they had before the

War.’

‘Mummy, mummy, come and see,

Oh, mummy, come and look

There’s four or five Melinda girls inside this

picture book.’

‘Come away, Melinda, come in and close the door,

There were lots of little girls like you before they

had the War.’

‘Mummy, mummy, come and see,

Oh mummy hurry, do.

Here’s someone grown up very tall

who doesn’t look like you.’

‘Come away, Melinda, come in and close the door,

Your father was a man like that before they had

the war.’

‘Mummy, mummy, come and see, such things I’ve

never seen

There’s happy faces all around and all the ground

is green.’

‘Come away, Melinda, come in and close the door,

That’s just the way it used to be before they had

the War.’

‘Mummy, mummy, come and see and tell me if you

can,

Why can’t it be the way it was before the War

began?’

‘Come away, Melinda, come in and close the door,

The answer lies in yesterday – before they had the

War.’

We’ll All Go Together

Tune: She’ll Be Coming ‘Round The Mountain.

Oh we’ll all go together when we go,

Oh we’ll all go togethr when we go,

Yes, we’ll all go together,

However nice the weather,

Yes, we’ll all go together when we go.

It’ll all be accidental when it comes,

It’ll all be accidental,

Just that some poor guy went mental,

It’ll all be accidental when it comes.

Oh we’ll all go together when we go,

Universal bereavement,

An astounding achievement,

Yes we’ll all go together when we go.

It’ll be too late to stop it when it comes,

It’ll be to late to stop it

When we’re about to cop it,

It’ll be too late to stop it when it comes.

So, let’s stop it now before it comes,

Let’s stop it now before it comes,

Yes, let’s stop it now,

Make a devil of a row,

Let’s stop it now before it comes.

Oh Freedom

Civil rights movement song, adopted by peace and anti-Vietnam War movement. Jim Crow is a slang term for the U.S. segregation system. (The Americans used to ‘fence in’ what the called ‘strategic hamlets’ to try to prevent the Vietcong taking them over.)

Oh Freedom, Oh Freedom,

Oh Freedom over me,

And before I’ll be a slave

I’ll be buried in my grave

And go home to my Lord and be free.

No more fighting, no more fighting,

No more fighting over me,

And before I’ll be a slave

I’ll be buried in my grave

And go home to my Lord and be free.

No more Jim Crow, no more Jim Crow,

No more Jim Crow over me,

And before I'll be a slave

I'll be buried in my grave

And go home to my Lord and be free.

No more H-bomb, no more H-bomb,

No more H-bomb over me,

And before I’ll be a slave

I’ll be buried in my grave

And go home to my Lord and be free.

Oh Freedom, Oh Freedom,

Oh Freedom over me,

And before I’ll be fenced-in

I’ll vote for Ho Chi-Minh

And go home to the North

And be free.

What Did You Learn In School Today?

What did you learn in school today

Dear little boy of mine?

What did you learn in school today

Dear little boy of mine?

I learned that Washington never told a lie,

I learned that soldiers never die,

I learned that everybody’s free,

And that’s what the teacher said to me,

That’s what I learned in school, today,

That’s what I learned in school.

What did you learn in school today

Dear little boy of mine?

What did you learn in school today

Dear little boy of mine?

I learned that policemen are my friends,

I learned that justice never ends,

I learned that murderers die for their crimes,

Even if we make a mistake sometimes,

That’s what I learned in school today,

That’s what I learned in school.

What did you learn in school today

Dear little boy of mine?

What did you learn in school today

Dear little boy of mine?

I learned that war is not so bad,

I learned of the great ones we have had,

We fought in Germany and in France,

And someday I might get my chance,

That’s what I learned in school today,

That’s what I learned in school.

What did you learn in school today

Dear little boy of mine?

What did you learn in school today

Dear little boy of mine?

I learned our government must be strong,

It’s always right and never wrong,

Our leaders are the finest men,

And we elect them again and again,

That’s what I learned in school today,

That’s what I learned in school.

The Hammer Song

(Later Trini Lopez had a hit record with his version ‘If I Had A Hammer’)

If I had a hammer, I’d hammer in the morning,

I’d hammer in the evening all over this land,

I’d hammer out danger, I’d hammer out a

warning,

I’d hammer out a love between all my brothers,

All over this land.

If I had a bell, I’d ring it in the morning… etc.

If I had a song, I’d sing it in the morning… etc.

Now I’ve got a hammer, and I’ve got a bell,

And I’ve got a song to sing

All over the world,

It’s the hammer of justice, it’s the bell of freedom,

And it’s the song about a love between

My brothers and my sisters

All over the world.

The Family Of Man

I belong to a family, the biggest on Earth,

A thousand every day are coming to birth,

Our name isn’t Dallas or Hasted or Jones,

It’s a name every man should be proud he owns.

Chorus:

It’s the family of man keeps growing,

The family of man keeps sowing

The seeds of a new life every day.

I’ve got a sister in Melbourne, a brother in Paree,

The whole wide world is dad and mother to me,

Wherever you turn you will find my kin,

Whatever the creed or the color of their skin.

(Chorus)

The miner in the Rhondda, the coolie in Peking,

Men across the world who reap and plow and

spin,

They’ve all got a life and others to share it,

Let’s bridge the oceans and declare it.

(Chorus)

From the North Pole ice to the snow at the other,

There isn’t a man I wouldn’t call brother,

But I haven’t much time, I’ve had my fill

Of the men of war who want to kill.

(Chorus)

Some people say the world is a horrible place,

But it’s just as good or bad as the human race,

Dirt and misery or health and joy,

Man can build or can destroy.

(Chorus)

The Crow On The Cradle

The sheep’s in the meadow, the cow’s in the corn,

Now is the time for a child to be born,

He’ll cry for the moon, and he’ll laugh at the sun,

If he’s a boy he’ll carry a gun,

Sang the crow on the cradle.

If it should be that our baby’s a girl,

Never you mind if her hair doesn’t curl,

With rings on her fingers and bells on her toes,

And a bomber above her wherever she goes,

Sang the crow on the cradle.

Rockabye baby, the dark and the light,

Somebody’s baby is born for a fight,

Rockabye baby, the white and the black,

Somebody’s baby is not coming back,

Sung the crow on the cradle.

Your mammy and pappy, they’ll scrape and they’ll

save,

Build you a coffin and dig you a grave,

Rockabye little one, why do you weep?

We’ve got a toy which will put you to sleep,

Sang the crow on the cradle.

The crow on the cradle is a bird that I hate!

The crow and you darling are making a date,

The crow’s on my cradle, oh what shall I do?

That is a thing that I leave to you,

Sang the crow on the cradle.

(Alternative last verse)

Oh give me a gun and I’ll shoot that bird dead,

That’s what your mammy and pappy once said,

Crow on the cradle, oh what shall I do?

That is a thing that I leave to you,

Sang the crow on the cradle.

A Mighty Song Of Peace

Tune: Down in Demerara

A mighty song of peace will soon be ringing,

Soon be ringing, soon be ringing,

A mighty song of peace will soon be ringing,

All over this land,

All over this land, this land,

All over this land,

A mighty song of peace will soon be ringing,

All over this land.

A mighty song of unity and peace will…. etc.

A mighty song of justice, unity and peace… etc.

A mighty song of freedom, justice, unity and

peace… etc.

A mighty song of friendship, freedom, justice,

unity and peace…. etc.

Song of Hiroshima

In the place where our city was destroyed,

Where we buried the ashes of the ones that we

loved,

There the green grass grows and the white waving

weeds,

Deadly the harvest of two atom bombs,

Then brothers and sisters you must watch, and

take care,

That the third atom bomb never comes.

Gentle rain gathers poison from the sky

And the fish carry death in the depths of the sea,

Fishing boats are idle, their owners are blind,

Deadly the harvest of two atom bombs,

Then, landsmen and seamen you must watch, and

take care,

That the third atom bomb never comes.

The sky hangs like a shroud overhead

And the sun’s in the cage of the black, lowering

cloud,

No birds fly in the leaden sky,

Deadly the harvest of two atom bombs,

Then brothers and sisters you must watch, and

take care,

That the third atom bomb never comes.

All that men have created with their hands

And their minds, for the glory of the world we live

in,

Now it can be smashed, in a moment destroyed,

Deadly the harvest of two atom bombs,

Then people of the world you must watch, and

take care,

That the third atom bomb never comes.

Bunk, Bunk, Bunkum

Tune: She’ll Be Coming ‘Round The Mountain

We’re campaigning for your future and for ours,

For if the big bang coms there’ll be no flowers,

There’ll be no people left to buy them,

No florists to supply them,

No people and no nation and no powers.

Singing bunk, bunk, bunkum ballyhoo,

Don’t believe those soothing lies they’re telling

you,

When they talk about disarming

We find it quite alarming,

Not because of what they say but what they do.

Roll This Campaign On

(Tune: When The Saints Go Marching In)

We’re gonna roll, we’re gonna roll,

We’re gonna roll this campaign on,

We’re gonna roll, we’re gonna roll,

We’re gonna roll this campaign on.

And if the Yanks get in the way,

We’re gonna roll right over them,

We’re gonna roll this campaign on,

We’re gonna roll…. etc.

And if the Reds get in the way…. etc.

The Sun Is Burning

The sun is burning in the sky,

Strands of cloud are softly drifting by,

In the park the dreamy bees

Are droning in the flowers among the trees,

And the sun burns in the sky.

Now the sun is sinking low,

Children playing know its time to go,

And the couples in the park

Are holding hands and waiting for the dark,

And the sun is sinking low.

Nnow the sun is in the West,

Little kids lie down to take their rest,

High above a spot appears,

A little blossom blooms and then draws near,

And the sun is in the West.

Now the sun has come to Earth

Shrouded in a mushroom cloud of death,

Death comes in a blinding flash

Of hellish heat and leaves a smear of ash,

And the sun has come to Earth.

Now the sun has disappeared,

All is darkness, anger, pain and fear,

Twisted, sightless wrecks of men

Go crawling on their knees and cry in pain,

And the sun has disappeared.

A New Day

I can see a new day,

A new day soon to be,

When the storm clouds are all past,

And the sun shines on a world that is free.

I can see a new world,

A new world coming fast,

When all men are brothers,

And hatred is forgotten at last.

I can see a new man,

A new man standing tall,

With his head high and his heart proud,

And afraid of nothing at all.

Writing On The Wall

(Tune: Yankee Doodle)

Old Belshazzar had a wall,

Someone chalked a slogan,

Belshazzar got his chips that night,

Which proved that they weren’t joking.

Here’s the writing on the wall,

This is what is written:

Boot the bases, ban the bomb

And up with neutral Britain!

Moving On To Victory

We’re moving on to victory,

With hope and dignity.

Black and white all are brothers,

Bland and white all are brothers,

In the land of liberty.

We are going to ban the H-bomb,

For all eternity.

One Man’s Hands

One man’s hands can’t put an end to war,

Two men’s hands can’t put an end to war,

But if two and two and fifty make a million,

We’ll see that day come round,

We’ll see that day come round.

One man’s voice can’t shout to make them hear,

Two men’s voices can’t shout to make them hear,

But if…. etc.

One man’s strength can’t ban the atom bomb,

Two men’s strength can’t ban the atom bomb,

But if… etc.

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