by Billy Bragg (Oyster Band)


I was a miner, I was a docker
I was a railwayman between the wars
I raised a family in time of austerity
With sweat at the foundry, between the wars
I paid the union and as times got harder
I looked to the government to help the working man
They brought prosperity, down at the armoury
We're arming for peace, my boys, between the wars

I kept the faith and I kept voting,
Not for the iron fist, but for the helping hand
Theirs is a land with a wall around it
And mine is a faith in my fellow man
Theirs is a land of hope and glory
Mine is the green field and the factory floor
Theirs are the skies all dark with bombers
Mine is the peace we knew between the wars

Call up the craftsmen, bring me a draughtsman
Build me a path from cradle to grave
And I'll give my consent to any government
That does not deny a man a living wage
Go find the young men, never to fight again
Call up the banners from the days gone by
Sweet moderation, the heart of this nation,
Desert us not, we are between the wars

(the mumbling is said to be And behold when they opened the sixth door
there was a great earthquake,
and the sun became black as sackcloth