The Green Fields of France (Ronan Tynan, Irish Tenor)

Ronan Tynan singing The Green Fields of France. Written By Eric Bogle. in concert in Ellis Island.

Well, how do you do, young Willie McBride,
Do you mind if I sit here down by your graveside?
And rest for awhile neath the warm summer sun,
I've been walking all day, and I'm nearly done.
I see by your gravestone you our only 19
When you joined the great fallen in 1916,
I hope you died well and I hope you died clean
Or, Willie McBride, was it slow and obscene?

Did they Beat the drum slowly, did the play the fife lowly?
Did they sound the 'death march' as they lowered you down?
did band play The Last Post in chorus?
Did the pipes play the Flowers of the Forest?

Did you leave a wife or a sweetheart behind
In some fateful heart is your memory enshrined?
And, though you died back in 1916,
in that fatal heart are you forever 19?
Or are you a stranger without even a name,
Enclosed in forever behind a glass pane,
In an old photograph, torn and tattered and stained,
And faded to yellow in a brown leather frame?

Did they Beat the drum slowly, did the play the pipe lowly?
Did they sound the 'death march' as they lowered you down?
Did band play The Last Post in chorus?
Did the pipes play the Flowers of the Forest?

The sun now it shines on the green fields of France;
there's warm summers breeze, it makes red poppies dance.
And look how the sun comes from under the clouds;
there's No gas no barbed wire, no guns firing now.
But here in this graveyard it's still No Man's Land
the countless white crosses lie mute in the sand
to man's blind indifference to his fellow man.
To a whole generation who were butchered and damned.

Did they Beat the drum slowly, did the play the fife lowly?
Did they sound the 'death march' as they lowered you down?
Did band play The Last Post in chorus?
Did the pipes play the Flowers of the Forest?

Young Willie McBride, I can't help wonder why,
Do all those who lie here why they died?
Did you really believe when they told you "The Cause?"
Did you really believe that this war would end wars?
Well the sorrow, the suffering the glory, the pain
The killing, and dying, was all done in vain,
For Willie McBride, it all happened again,
again, and again, and again, and again.

Did they Beat the drum slowly, did the play the fife lowly?
Did they sound the 'death march' as they lowered you down?
Did band play The Last Post in chorus?
Did the pipes play the Flowers of the Forest?

Submited by

Saturday, May 21, 2011 - 15:41

Videos :

AjAraujo

AjAraujo's picture
Offline
Title: Membro
Last seen: 6 years 35 weeks ago
Joined: 10/29/2009
Posts:
Points: 15584

Add comment

Login to post comments

other contents of AjAraujo

Topic Title Replies Views Last Postsort icon Language
Poesia/Meditation Apenas uma luz... 2 962 01/30/2011 - 15:45 Portuguese
Poesia/Dedicated Em algum lugar de Cabul ao Haiti 2 2.591 01/30/2011 - 15:41 Portuguese
Poesia/Intervention Desafio 3 1.561 01/30/2011 - 15:37 Portuguese
Poesia/Dedicated Humano, demasiado humano... 2 1.423 01/30/2011 - 15:33 Portuguese
Poesia/Meditation Perto de Ti, longe de Ti... 3 1.539 01/30/2011 - 15:29 Portuguese
Poesia/Meditation Grãos de Areia 4 660 01/30/2011 - 15:16 Portuguese
Videos/Music The Lord's Prayer (Andrea Bocelli) 0 10.348 01/30/2011 - 14:09 English
Videos/Music I believe (Andrea Bocelli & Katherine Jenkins) 0 4.180 01/30/2011 - 14:04 English
Videos/Music The prayer (Celine Dion & Andrea Bocelli) 0 5.994 01/30/2011 - 13:46 English
Videos/Music Medley, live (Andrea Bocelli and Luciano Pavarotti) 0 9.045 01/30/2011 - 13:34 English
Videos/Music Because We Believe (Andrea Bocelli) 0 6.453 01/30/2011 - 13:31 English
Videos/Music Canto Della Terra (Andrea Bocelli & Sarah Brightman) 0 11.078 01/30/2011 - 13:25 English
Videos/Music Time To Say Good Bye (Sarah Brightman & Andrea Bocelli) 0 5.484 01/30/2011 - 13:20 English
Videos/Music Vivo Per Lei (Andrea Bocelli & Hayley Westenra) 0 8.640 01/30/2011 - 13:11 English
Poesia/Meditation A Muralha 3 1.850 01/29/2011 - 01:00 Portuguese
Poesia/Meditation Guerra ou Paz? 3 2.380 01/29/2011 - 00:57 Portuguese
Poesia/Sadness O bêbado e os sinos 3 1.737 01/29/2011 - 00:55 Portuguese
Poesia/Meditation Onde quer que vá 3 1.174 01/29/2011 - 00:49 Portuguese
Poesia/Joy Artistas de rua 1 658 01/29/2011 - 00:47 Portuguese
Poesia/Intervention Toque Divino (poema das mãos) 4 2.497 01/28/2011 - 16:38 Portuguese
Poesia/Meditation Dilema de decidir 3 954 01/28/2011 - 16:36 Portuguese
Poesia/Meditation Vidas Urbanas (Recomeçar) 4 1.463 01/28/2011 - 16:34 Portuguese
Poesia/Joy Um belo dia... de primavera! 3 858 01/28/2011 - 16:30 Portuguese
Poesia/Meditation Fluidos 3 746 01/28/2011 - 16:28 Portuguese
Poesia/Meditation A dor da vida 4 2.961 01/28/2011 - 16:26 Portuguese