Song of the Lower Classes (Windborne)
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- Опубликовано: 19 янв 2020
- Windborne Live at the Cutler Majestic Theatre with Christmas Celtic Sojourn, 2017
Footage courtesy of WGBH Boston
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SONG OF THE LOWER CLASSES
Text: Ernest Jones (verses 1-3), Bob Davenport (verse 4), Windborne (verses 5-6)
Melody by Ian Robb, harmonies by Windborne
We plough and sow, we are so low, that we delve in the dirty clay,
‘Til we bless the plain with golden grain and the vale with the fragrant hay.
Our place we know we are so low, down at the landlord’s feet.
We’re not too low the bread to grow but too low the bread to eat.
We’re low, we’re low, we are so low yet from our fingers glide
The silken flow and the robes that glow round the limbs of the sons of pride.
And what we get and what we give we know and we know our share:
We’re not too low the cloth to weave but too low the cloth to wear.
Down down we go, we are so low, to the hell of the deep-sunk mine,
But we gather the proudest gems that glow when the crown of the despot shines.
Whenever he lacks upon our backs fresh loads he deigns to lay.
We’re far too low to vote the tax but not too low to pay.
We’re low, we’re low as to war we go to fight some foreign country
That was yesterday our greatest friend but today’s our enemy.
“God bless our boys!” the papers scream, “Praise them!” the churchmen cry.
When the war is won and home we come, who cares if we live or die?
We’re low, so low, into boats we go to flee war in our home country,
And we’ll try to make a better life when we land across the sea.
But it’s “Send them back!” the press cries out, “Back to where they came!”
We’re far too low to feed and clothe but not too low to blame.
We are so low but soon we know that the low folk will arise,
And the tyrants in their tow’rs of gold shall hear the people’s cries!
No more shall they hold us in thrall; their lies we will not heed.
But every heart shall hear the call, and the people will be free!
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This song is a timeless anthem for the lower classes: a living breathing resistance to injustice. Its messages today are as impactful and revolutionary as they were when Ernest Jones spent two years in solitary confinement in the for publicly expressing them in the 1840s. In January of 2017, Windborne took a video of our last verse in front of Trump Tower, and over a million people saw it on Facebook and RUclips (tinyurl.com/SOTLC). It was the response to this video that took our group from touring a few weeks out of every year to a full time occupation. 
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An artist’s duty, as far as i am concerned, is to reflect the times- nina simone
Love this! Not too long ago, my husband and I were discussing the state of modern folk protest music. There's no outlet for it where we live (everything is jazz and rock here). So happy to know that the protest song is still alive and well!
Check out David Rovics out of Oregon. His protest music is outstanding.
Wow! Windborne's lyrics are awesome put to song. Their harmonies remind me of Maddie Pryor and Steeleye Span from 40+ years ago.
I am Chinese, they just singing out the true feeling of me!
Lovely harmonies...a fifth voice is made by four. Felt the same when I heard The Tenebrae Choir Singing Paul Mellor's 'Tender Light'
So great to hear a folkie sound again!
I was in the audience for this! That was my first time seeing you guys...gave me chills then, still does now.
I am absolutely in love with your voices and voicing. Stunning!
I've got chills and tears in my eyes - what a wonderful performance!
Absolutely beautiful and devastating, thank you! All power to the people ❤️
I cannot stop to listen to this song! Great !!!
MORE IMPORTANT NOW THAN EVER !!!
Wow! Chilly bumps. Thank-you.
There's a lot of elements of "The Foggy Dew" in this
A song for today!!! Bravo👏👏👏👏
Windborful! Can't wait ... hope your are coming to Lopez Island on time again.
What goes on at Lopez?
I used to go there as a child.
This is fantastic. So happy to discover you!
Wow! Apt for these times. First heard you today. I'll be listening a lot more!
Yes we shall!😊
Good to hear, today.
Stirring and beautiful
This is an English Chartist song written by Ernest Jones (1819-1869) Few things change!
Love the Chartists.
It's Medieval in origin. First written down by a monk in a Benedictine abby in Yorkshire England.
@@briankocheraabcdt4628 ooh link please?
What great recording.
Freedom!
❤️
Nice updating of a nineteenth century song. The lyrics of the first three verses are as transmitted, the last three are new. (I have to say I prefer this finale to the original one, which was merely "Justice will be served when we go to Heaven and the tyrants don't!")
Actually it's Medieval in origin, sung by a Goatherd in a Benedictine Abby in Yorkshire England.
@@briankocheraabcdt4628Where on earth did you hear that? The words were written by Ernest Jones in 1852, and in the 20th century set to a hymn tune by Martin Cathy.
May justice soon be served upon the tyrants in their towers of gold.
For all who fardels bear and grunt and sweat over a weary life.
@speedfolk Wär das nicht was für euch? :)
Make a new Bernie song pls
Wow.such a powerful song. Send this to Jeff bezos
They Might Be Giants said it best: “The communists have the music”
Definitely!
@@WindborneSingersActually, the song is of Medieval origin, long before the Communist political movement ever existed.
"The first documented song in the English language came from the mouth of an illiterate cow herder. More than 1,300 years ago the Venerable Bede, a medieval scholar known as the “father of English history,” wrote down the words sung by Caedmon, who tended animals at a Benedictine monastery in North Yorkshire." - The Wall Street Journal " The History of Song Is All About Outsiders" by Ted Gioia
We-ell, state communism has a notably dismal record for good music, Shostakovich notwithstanding. It's popular socialist movements that keep producing great protest songs. Forgive me for quibbling over terminology!
遍身罗绮者，不是养蚕人。
Imagine being one of the two bell ends to downvote this.
This was good but they completely went off of the original version to avoid mentioning religion
Earnest Jones didn’t mention religion in the original poem. You may be thinking about Ian Robb or Martin Carthy, who added words in the 20th century. none of us are Christian so those words don’t resonate, but also we want to place the responsibility for salvation in the hands of real people, not divine intervention.
@@WindborneSingers The entire movement this poem was based off of was known as chartism. It was an appeal to the parliament from the lower classes to implement a charter that would give all Britons voting power as well as increased legislative power and equality almost exactly in the vein of America. This movement appealed a lot to religion (see Hymm of Celebration) as non-church of england protestantism was very popular among the low classes. These people firmly believed God was on their side, and they were correct.
Anyways i wrote that nerdy paragraph to show you how the entire movement had strong Christian roots. Therefore by eliminating the last stanza of the poem, which had apocalyptic language of trumpets (so yes religion is not specifically mentioned, but its certainly still a theme), you are being unfaithful to the Chartist movement.
@@johnmkwii9393 if you look at either of our two books, you will find we are very familiar with the chartists and Jones. Jones’s last verse was “We’re low we’re low we are so low
Yet when the trumpets ring
The thrust of a poor man’s arm will go
Through the heart of the proudest king
We’re low we’re low our place we know
Only the rank and file
We’re not too low to kill the foe
Too low to touch the spoil”
A revolutionary for sure. A friend of Marx and Engels as well. The verse I believe you were thinking of was either Bob Davenports from the 1960s:
We're low we're low 'till that happy day
When we're called to a heaven on high
When the freedom we never had in our lives
Will be there on the day we die
If you see no worth suffering hell on earth
For the promise of a heaven above
Why not join the fight that one day we might
See a heaven down here below
Or perhaps Shelley Posen, writing on Ian Robb’s version (we are friends with both of them):
We are so low, but soon we know
We’ll see that day arise
When every man borne high and low
His dream may realize
While skin and bone must rot below
And none can death defy
The rich man’s robes to dust will go
And the poor man’s soul will fly
Either way, we do no disservice to Jones- the trumpet reference you mention was very much a human trumpet as clearly shown by the revolutionary nature of the rest of the verse and song. Jones and the chartists criticized the church, as you can find easily find record of, and while they did form their own churches, these were of the radical bent. They called for the complete separation of church and state and the need to make material change on earth, not wait for heavenly salvation. Jones would approve of the verse I’d say!
@@WindborneSingers Yes that is all fine and dandy, but as I mentioned Chartism was a very Christian movement (brought on partially by the prosecuted puritans and evangeleists), so I think preforming the song in a way that disregards those roots is a touch disrespectful.
Basically my issue is that you are preforming this as some humanist revolutionary communist rise of the lower class to eliminate the rich and create a social commune. Which is what the communists wanted, but not the chartists. In reality this was a movement seeking equality, *free* capitalism, and voting rights (versus the lasseiez faire opression they were facing).
The singing was excellent, i dont want to take away from that as well, so very well done.
@@johnmkwii9393 you said we changed the song to avoid religion. There is literally no reference to religion, or a god of any denomination in the original text. It is confusing how you think that that is in any way disrespecting the original song. You seem to think that because there were strongly christian chartists we should insert modernly composed lyrics about heaven. No, the original song ended with a verse about killing the rulers. We changed that to be less specifically violent and to focus on a more general sort of liberation, but since the song includes nothing about religion at any point, it is just your desire for the newly composed christian lyrics that informs your opinion. We aren’t christian and have no desire to insert modern Christian lyrics into a text that never included them 🤷♂️