Somewhere To Begin
T.R. Ritchie
People-say-to-me, oh, you gotta be crazy
How can you (sing) (dream) (love) in times like these
Don’t you read the news
Don’t you know the score-how can you (sing) (dream) (love) When so many others grieve
People-say-to-me, what kind of fool believes
That a (song) (dream) (love) will-make a difference in the end
By way of a reply, I say a-fool such as I
Sees a (song) (dream) (love) as somewhere to begin
A (song) (dream) is somewhere to begi…in
A search for-something worth believing in
If changes are to come, there are things that must-be done
And a (song) (dream) is somewhere to begin
3rd Chorus:
Love is somewhere to begin
A search for-something worth believing in
If changes are to come, there are things that must-be done
And love is somewhere, and a dream is somewhere
And a song is somewhere to begin (repeat last line slow)
************
Look To the People
Ruth Pelham
We’re gonna look to the people for courage (chorus)
We’re gonna look to the people for loving (chorus)
We’re gonna look to the people for laughter (chorus)
We’re gonna look to the people for justice (chorus)
We’re gonna look to the people for music (chorus)
In the hard times coming ahead
We’re gonna’ sing and shout
We’re gonna work it out
In the hard times comin’ ahead
With people’s courage 3x
With people’s loving 3x
With people’s laughter 3x
With people’s justice 3x
With people’s music 3x
We can ma…..ke it
************
When I’m Gone
Phil Ochs
There's no place in this world where I'll belong when I'm gone
And I won't know the right from the wrong when I’m gone
And you won't find me singin' on this song when I’m gone
So I guess I'll have to do it while I'm here
And I won't feel the flowing of the time when I’m gone
All the pleasures of love will not be mine when I’m gone
My pen won't pour a lyric line when I’m gone
So I guess I'll have to do it while I'm here
And I won't be running from the rain when I'm gone
And I can't even suffer from the pain when I'm gone
Can't say who's to praise and who's to blame when I'm gone
So I guess I'll have to do it while I'm here
I won't see the golden of the sun when I'm gone
And the evenings and the mornings will be one when I'm gone
Can't be singing louder than the guns when I'm gone
So I guess I'll have to do it while I'm here
All my days won't be dances of delight when I'm gone
And the sands will be shifting from my sight when I'm gone
Can't add my name into the fight when I'm gone
So I guess I'll have to do it while I'm here
And I won't be laughing at the lies when I'm gone
And I can't question how or when or why when I'm gone
Can't live proud enough to die when I'm gone
So I guess I'll have to do it while I'm here
Repeat first verse - last line 3x
************
Hold On Strong
Ben Bochner
We gotta hold on to each other, hold on strong
We gotta hold on to each other, ’til the danger’s gone
We gotta hold on to each other, all night long
We got to hold on to each other, got to hold on
Hard times are coming, you can feel it in the air
You can read it in the paper, you can see it everywhere
There’s trials and tribulation, astonishment and shock
You’re gonna need a strong foundation, need a solid rock
Chorus
It’s easy to get lonely, yeah it’s easy to get lost
And it’s easy to get broken down, beaten up and tossed
Don’t let go of your spirit, don’t get caught up in despair
Don’t run and hide, just come inside, you know you’ll find us there
Chorus
The tallest tree in the forest, can’t make it on it’s own
You’re gonna need some friends around you, when that wind begins to blow
It’s gonna shake up all our branches, it’s gonna tug on all our roots
’Til the only thing left standing, is the one that’s great and true
Chorus
************
The Times They Are A Changing
Bob Dylan
Come gather 'round people wherever you roam
And admit that the waters around you have grown
And accept it that soon you'll be drenched to the bone
If your time to you is worth savin'
Then you better start swimmin' or you'll like a stone
For the times, they are a-changin'
Come writers and critics who prophesize with your pen
And keep your eyes wide the chance won't come again
And don't speak too soon for the wheel's still in spin
And there's no tellin' who that it's namin'
For the loser now will be later to win
For the times they are a-changin'
Come senators, congressmen please heed the call
Don't stand in the doorway, don't block up the hall
For he that gets hurt will be he who has stalled
There's a battle outside and it's ragin'
It'll soon shake your windows and rattle your walls
For the times they are a-changin’
Come mothers and fathers throughout the land
And don't criticize what you can't understand
Your sons and your daughters are beyond your
command
Your old road is rapidly agin'
Please get out of the new one if you can't lend a hand
For the times they are a-changin’
The line it is drawn the curse it is cast
The slow one now will later be fast
As the present now will later be past
The order is rapidly fadin'
And the first one now will later be last
For the times they are a-changin’
Last line 2 X
************
Singing For Our Lives
Holly Near
We are a gentle, loving peo…ple
And we are singing, singing for our li…ives
We are a gentle, loving peo…ple
And we are singing, singing for our li…ives
We are a land of many co….lors, and we are singing....
We are gay and straight toge…ther, and we are singing........
We are a peaceful, loving peo…ple, and we are singing....
We are a justice-seeking peo…ple, and we are singing....
We are young and old toge…ther, and we are singing....
Repeat 1st verse
************
Banks of Marble
Les Rice
I've traveled 'round this country, from shore to shining shore
It really made me wonder, the things I heard and saw
I saw the weary farmer, plow….ing sod and loam
I heard the auction hammer, a-knockin down his home
But the banks are made of marble, with a guard at every door
And the vaults are stuffed with silver, that the farmer sweated for
I saw the seaman standing, idly by the shore
I heard the bosses saying, got no work for you no more
But the banks are made of marble, with a guard at every door
And the vaults are stuffed with silver, that the seaman sweated for
I saw the weary miner, scrubbing coal dust from his back
I heard his children crying, got no coal to heat the shack
But the banks are made of marble, with a guard at every door
And the vaults are stuffed with silver, that the miner sweated for
I've seen my brothers working, throughout this mighty land
I prayed we'd get together, and together make a stand
Then-we-might-own those banks of marble, with a guard at every door
And we'd share those vaults of silver, that we have sweated for
************
A Satisfied Mind
Joe (Red) Hayes and Jack Rhodes
How many ti….mes have….you heard someone say
If I had his money….I could do things my way
But little they know….that it's so hard to find
One rich man in ten…. with a satisfied mind
Once I was win….ning in fortune and fame
Everything that I drea….med for, to get a start in life's game
Then suddenly it happened…., I lost every dime
But I'm richer by fa….r, with a satisfied mind
Money can't buy…. back your youth when you're old
Or a friend when you're lo….nely, or a love that's grown cold
The wealthiest person….is a pauper at times
Compared to the ma….n, with a satisfied mind
When life…has en….ded, and my-time has run out
My friends and my lov….ed ones, I'll leave there's no doubt
But there's-one-thing-for-cer….tain, when it comes my time
I'll leave this old wor….ld with a satisfied mind
Repeat 1st verse
************
Deportee
Words by Woody Guthrie - Music by Martin Hoffman
The crops are all in and the peaches are rotting
The oranges piled in their creosote dumps
You're flying them back to the Mexican border
To pay all their money, to wade back again
Goodbye to my Juan, good-bye Rosalita
Adios mis amigos, Jesus y Maria
You won't have your names when you ride the big airplane
All they will call you will be deportees
My Father's own father, he waded that river
They took all the money he made in his life
My brothers and sisters come working the fruit trees
And they rode the truck till they took down and died
Chorus
Some of us are illegal, and some are not wanted
Our work contract’s out and we've got to move on
Six hundred miles to that Mexican border
They chase us like outlaws, like rustlers, like thieves
We died in your hills, we died in your deserts
We died in your valleys, and died on your plains
We died 'neath your trees, and we died in your bushes
Both sides of the river, we died just the same
Chorus
The sky plane caught fire over Los Gatos canyon
A fireball of lightning, that shook all our hills
Who are all these friends who are scattered like dry leaves?
The radio said they were just deportees
Is this the best way we can grow our big orchards?
Is this the best way we can grow our good fruit?
To fall like dry leaves to rot on my topsoil
And be called by no name except “deportees"?
Chorus
************
We All Need More Kindness in This World
Guy Davis
We-all-need-more kindness in this world
We all need more kindness in this world
You may look high and low, but there’s no place else to go
We all need more kindness in this world
We-all-need-more:
Hugging
Laughing
Sunshine
Peacetime
Friendship
************
Tears In the Closet
Kevin Fristad
************
The Liar
Paul Simon - adapted by Kevin Fristad
I am just a rich boy and my story's always told
I’m the center of attention, with a pocket full of ego I make promises
All lies and jest still I hear what I want to hear
And disregard the rest, it’s all poo poo poo-poo-poo-poo-poop
When I became the president, I was no more than a boy
In the company of yes men, in the quiet of my White House bedroom tweeting wild
Laying there seeking out Fox News and Friends, that is where my people go
Looking for approval only they would know
Lie-lie-lie, lie-lie-lie lie lie-lie-lie, lie lie lie
Lie-lie-lie lie lie lie lie lie lie lie lie lie
Asking only for some real love I come looking for a friend
But I get no offers….just a come-on from the whores like Stormy Daniels
I do declare I don’t know her, I don’t know her….I never touched her there
Lie, lie, lie, lie, lie, lie, lie, lie, lie
Chorus
Now I’m laying out my prison clothes and wishing I was gone
Going home….where my New York City penthouse is awaiting me, they’re holding me, ain’t going home
In the courtyard stands a liar who was awful at his trade
And he carries the reminders of every lie that laid him down and cut him 'till he cried out
In his anger and his rage, I got busted, I got busted, but J.P. still remains
Mmmmmmmmmmmmm
Chorus 2 x
************
Quite Early Morning
Pete Seeger
You know it's darkest, before the dawn
This thought keeps me, moving on
If we could heed, these early warnings
The time is now, quite early morning
If we could heed, these early warnings
The time is now, quite early morning
Some say that mankind, won't long endure
But what makes them feel, so doggone sure
I know that you, who hear my singing
Could make those free,,,dom bells go ringing
I know that you who, hear my singing
Could make those fre…edom bells go ringing
So though it's darkest, before the dawn
This thought keeps us, moving on
Through all this world, of joy and sorrow
We still can have, singing tomorrow
Through all this world, of joy and sorrow
We still can have, singing tomorrow
And so we keep on, while we live
Until we have no, no more to give
And when these fingers, can pick no longer
Hand the old guitar, to young ones stronger
And when these fingers, can pick no longer
Hand the old guitar, to young ones stronger
************
We Shall Not Be Moved
Traditional
We shall no…t we shall not be moved
We shall no…t we shall not be moved
Just like a tree that's standing by the wa…ter
We shall not be moved
We’re fighting for our freedom, we shall not be moved x 2 (chorus)
We’re fighting for our children, we shall not be moved x 2 (chorus)
Black and white together, we shall not be moved x 2 (chorus)
Young and old together, we shall not be moved x 2 (chorus)
When our burden’s heavy, we shall not be moved x 2 (chorus)
We’re standing all together, we shall not be moved x 2 (chorus)
Repeat 1st verse and chorus
************
What Did You Learn In School Today
Tom Paxton
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 seldom die
I learned that everybody's free, that's what the teacher said to me
And that's what I learned in school today, that's what I learned in school
Chorus
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
And that's what I learned in school today, that's what I learned in school
Chorus
I learned that wars are 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
And that's what I learned in school today, that's what I learned in school
Chorus
I learned our government must be strong, it's always right and never wrong
Our leaders are the finest men, and so we elect them again and again
And that's what I learned in school today, that's what I learned in school
************
If I Had A Hammer
Pete Seeger and Lee Hays
If I had a hammer, I’d hammer in the mo-or-ning
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 love between my brothers and my sisters
A-aa-all o…ver this land
If I had a bell, I'd ring it in the mo-or-ning
I'd ring it in the evening, all over this land
I'd ring out danger, I'd ring out a warning
I'd ring out love between my brothers and my sisters
A-aa-all o…ver this land
If I had a song, I'd sing it in the morning
I'd sing it in the evening, all over this land
I'd sing out danger, I'd sing out a warning
I'd sing out love between my brothers and my sisters
A-aa-all o…ver this land
Well I got a ham…mer… and I got a be…ell
And I got a SONG TO SING, all over this land
It's the hammer of justice, it's the bell of fre…edom
It's the song about love between my brothers and my sisters
A-aa-all o…ver this land
Repeat last 3 lines.
************
Preacher and the Slave
Joe Hill
You will eat, bye and bye
In that glorious land above the sky (way up high)
Work and pray, live on hay
You'll get pie in the sky when you die (that’s a lie)
Long-haired preachers come out every night
Try to tell you what's wrong and what's right
But when asked how 'bout something to eat
They will answer in voices so sweet
Chorus
And the Starvation Army, they play
And they sing and they clap and they pray
Till they get all your coin on the drum
Then they tell you when you're on the bum
Chorus
Holy Rollers and Jumpers come out
And they holler, they jump and they shout
Give your money to Jesus, they say
He will cure all diseases today
Chorus
If you fight hard for children and wife
Try to get something good in this life
You're a sinner and bad man, they tell
When you die you will sure go to hell
Chorus
Workingmen of all countries, unite
Side by side we for freedom will fight
When the world and its wealth we have gained
To the grafters we'll sing this refrain
You will eat, by and by
When you learn how to cook and how to fry
Chop some wood, it'll do you good
‘Till we meet in that sweet by and by
You will eat, by and by
When you learn how to cook and how to fry
Chop some wood, it'll do you good
‘Till we meet in that sweet by and b……y
(that’s no lie)
************
Solidarity Forever
Ralph Chaplin
When the union's inspiration through the workers' blood shall run
There can be no power greater anywhere beneath the sun
Yet what force on earth is weaker than the feeble strength of one
But the union makes us strong
Solidarity forever, solidarity forever. Solidarity forever
For the union makes us strong
Is there aught we hold in common with the greedy parasite
Who would lash us into serfdom and would crush us with his might
Is there anything left to us but to organize and fight
For the union makes us strong
It is we who plowed the prairies built the cities where they trade
Dug the mines and built the workshops endless miles of railroad laid
Now we stand outcast and starving midst the wonders we have made
But the union makes us strong
All the world that's owned by idle drones is ours and ours alone
We have laid the wide foundations built it skyward stone by stone
It is ours not to slave in but to master and to own
While the union makes us strong
Chorus
They have taken untold millions that they never toiled to earn
But without our brain and muscle not a single wheel can turn
We can break their haughty power gain our freedom when we learn
That the union makes us strong
In our hands is placed a power greater than their hoarded gold
Greater than the might of armies, magnified a thousand-fold
We can bring to birth a new world from the ashes of the old
For the union makes us strong
Chorus
************
Bread and Roses
Mimi Farina and James Oppenheim
As they go marching marching, in the beauty of the day
A million darkened kitchens, a thousand mill lofts gray
Are touched with all the radiance, that a sudden sun discloses
For the people hear them singing, bread and roses, bread and ro…ses
As they go marching marching, they battle too for men
For they are in the struggle, and together all will win
Their lives shall not be sweated, from birth until life closes
Hearts starve as well as bodies, give them bread and give them ro…ses
As they go marching marching, unnumbered women dead
Go crying through their singing, their ancient call for bread
Small art and love and beauty, their drudging spirits knew
Yes it is bread they fight for, but they fight for roses too
As they go marching marching, they’re standing proud and tall
The rising of the women, means the rising of us all
No more the drudge and idler, ten that toil where one reposes
But a sharing of life's glories, bread and roses, bread and ro…ses
************
Bag of Old Clothes
Kevin Fristad
************
Politicians
Kevin Fristad
************
Broken Peace
Kevin Fristad
************
Where Have All the Flowers Gone
Pete Seeger
Where have all the flowers gone? Long time passing
Where have all the flowers gone? Long time ago……o
Where have all the flowers gone? Girls have picked them every one
When will they ever learn? When will they ever learn?
Where have all the young girls gone? Long time passing
Where have all the young girls gone? Long time ago……o
Where have all the young girls gone? Taken husbands every one
When will they ever learn? When will they ever learn?
Where have all the young men gone? Long time passing
Where have all the young men gone? Long time ago……o
Where have all the young men gone? Gone for soldiers every one
When will they ever learn? When will they ever learn?
Where have all the soldiers gone? Long time passing
Where have all the soldiers gone? Long time ago……o
Where have all the soldiers gone? Gone to graveyards every one
When will they ever learn? When will they ever learn?
Where have all the graveyards gone? Long time passing
Where have all the graveyards gone? Long time ago……o
Where have all the graveyards gone? Covered with flowers every one
When will we ever learn? When will we ever learn
Repeat 1st verse
************
Your Daughters and Your Sons
Tommy Sands
They wouldn't hear your music and they tore your paintings down
They wouldn't read your writing and they banned you from the town
But they couldn't stop you dreaming and a victory you've won
For you sowed the seeds of freedom in your daughters and your sons
In your daughters and your sons, in your daughters and your sons….
You sowed the seeds of freedom in your daughters and your sons
Your weary smile it proudly hides the chain marks on your hands
As you bravely strive to realize the rights of everyone
And though your body's bent and low a victory you've won
For you sowed the seeds of justice in your daughters and your sons
Chorus
Well I don't know your religion but one day I heard you pray
For a world where everyone can work and children they can play
Though you never had your share of the fruits that you have won
You sowed the seeds of equality in your daughters and your sons
Chorus
Well they taunted you in Belfast and they tortured you in Spain
And in that Warsaw ghetto where they tied you up in chains
In Vietnam and in Chile where they came with tanks and guns
It's there you sowed the seeds of peace in your daughters and your sons
Chorus
And now the music's playing and the writing's on the wall
And all the dreams you painted can be seen by one and all
And now you've got them thinking and the future's just begun
For you sowed the seeds of freedom in your daughters and your sons
Chorus x 2
And you sowed the seeds of music in your daughters and your sons
************
Blowin' In The Wind
Bob Dylan
How many roads must a man walk down
Before you call him a man?
How many seas must a white dove sail
Before she sleeps in the sand?
Yes and how many times must the cannon balls fly
Before they're forever banned?
The answer my friend is blowin' in the wind
The answer is blowin' in the wind
How many years can a mountain exist
Before it's washed to the sea?
Yes and how many years can some people exist
Before they're allowed to be free?
Yes and how many times can a man turn his head
Pretending he just doesn't see?
Chorus
How many times must a man look up
Before he can see the sky?
Yes and how many ears must one man have
Before he can hear people cry?
Yes and how many deaths will it take till he knows
That too many people have died?
Chorus
************
Jacob's Ladder
Traditional
We are climbing…Jacob’s ladder
We are climbing…Jacob’s ladder
We are climbing…Jacob’s ladder
Brothers, sisters, all
Every rung goes…higher and higher
Every rung goes…higher and higher
Every rung goes…higher and higher
Brothers, sisters, all
Every rung…makes us stronger
Every rung…makes us stronger
Every rung…makes us stronger
Brothers, sisters, all
Chorus
We are climbing…higher and higher
We are climbing…higher and higher
We are climbing…higher and higher
Brothers, sisters all
Chorus x 2
************
We Shall Overcome
Pete Seeger and Others
We shall overcome
We shall overcome
We shall overcome some day
Oh, deep in my heart
I do believe
We shall overcome some day
We'll walk hand in hand
We'll walk hand in hand
We'll walk hand in hand some day
Oh, deep in my heart
I do believe
We shall overcome some day
We shall all be free
We shall all be free
We shall all be free some day
Oh, deep in my heart
I do believe
We shall overcome some day
We are not afraid
We are not afraid
We are not afraid today
Oh, deep in my heart
I do believe
We shall overcome some day
We are not alone
We are not alone
We are not alone today
Oh, deep in my heart
I do believe
We shall overcome some day
The whole wide world around
The whole wide world around
The whole wide world around some day
Oh, deep in my heart
I do believe
We shall overcome some day
************
Down By The Riverside
Traditional
Gonna lay down my sword and shield
Down by the riverside, down by the riverside, down by the riverside
Gonna lay down my sword and shield, down by the riverside
Study war no more
I ain't gonna study war no more, I ain't gonna study war no more
I ain’t gonna study war no more, I ain't gonna study war no more
I ain't gonna study war no more, I ain’t gonna study war no more
Gonna stick my sword in the golden sand
Down by the riverside, down by the riverside, down by the riverside
Gonna stick my sword in the golden sand, down by the riverside
Study war no more
Chorus
Gonna put on my starry crown
Down by the riverside, down by the riverside, down by the riverside
Gonna put on my starry crown, down by the riverside
Study war no more
Chorus
Gonna lay down that atom bomb
Down by the riverside, down by the riverside, down by the riverside
Gonna lay down that atom bomb, down by the riverside
Study war no more
Chorus x 2
************
This Land Is Your Land
Woody Guthrie
This land is your land, this land is my land From California to the New York island From the red wood forest to the Gulf Stream wa…ters This land was made for you and me
As I was walking, that ribbon of highway I saw above me, that endless skyway I saw below me, that golden val…ley This land was made for you and me
I've roamed and rambled, and I followed my footsteps To the sparkling sands of. her diamond deserts And all around me, a voice was sou…nding This land was made for you and me
Chorus
When the sun came shining, and I was strolling And the wheat fields waving, and the dust clouds rolling As the fog was lifting, a voice was chanting This land was made for you and me
Chorus
As I went walking, I saw a sign there And on the sign it said, "No Trespassing" But on the other side, it didn't say nothing That side was made for you and me
Nobody living, can ever stop me As I go walking, that freedom highway Nobody living, can ever make-me-turn-back This land was made for you and me
Chorus X 2
************
This Little Light of Mine
Traditional
This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine
This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine
This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine
Let it shine, let it shine, let it shine
I’m gonna sing for truth….
I’m gonna sing for justice….
I’m gonna sing for freedom….
I’m gonna sing for equality….
Every where I go….
This little light of mine….
