I heard this, for the first time, after a year of (honors) american history in Louisiana ( foreign exchange student), returning home I tried my best to learn all of the references in the song, this song is very dense cultural meaning and I , to this day, still havnt caught most of this song(+9 years later) outside the very flowery language
@Willie A absolutely, it's entirely about America and comparing it with Rome. anyone versed in Roman history who doesn't have a fetish for it will realise how horrific Rome was for common or lower class or marginalized people and connect it to how many "values" are shared, like this song does
A This is such a beautiful song. There is so much genuine emotion in his voice; it's not something you run across that often these days. Phil Ochs was one of a kind. Love you always, Phil.
I tried, not an american, this song relies heavily on understanding events and periods in american history to a point I have not been made aware/taught
takes me back to when i was a young lad who loved this kind of thing. now i m a very old lad who still likes this sort of thing.. love the concept of high born ladies
such an amazing singer songwriter. I thought I had heard all of his songs, thanks to UA-cam I am discovering some truly great songs. ..or did I hide from the memory. ..still can't bear that he left us
I have taken phils advise. Western woman invited the heathen here. I wish the western woman and its spawn well. Let them have what your ancestors died for. Enjoy the heathens rule all western men off honour know we are free
This is In Cold Blood meeting Psycho, meeting Slaughterhouse Five, meeting Catch 22, meeting Malaparte's The Skin, meeting... Never heard something so sinister, so moving, so beautiful and so truthful at the same time. Effing masterpiece.
You get a fuller idea just WHY Phil wasn't a-marchin' anymore when you truly realize all the horrors his "character" experienced through those eight verses of dread.
This is certainly one of a kined. Most radio stations would not play it as it is too long and you could not get enough adds in. Usually Phil writes very direct songs but this unique in that there are lots of different ways of understanding it. It is impressive that he could remember it all. 13 minutes is one hell of a song.
@@lorenyoung791 Ringing Of Revolution's not that long is it? It's only 4 minutes and some. Maybe I've just been listening to a bit too much Dylan recently but that doesn't seem _too_ long to me?
This song is to The Crucifiction what When The Music's Over is to The End in The Doors' legend and lore -- the 2nd epic that somehow successfully follows the 1st epic.
Jim Morrison wanted the world and he wanted it NOW... Phil Ochs could pretty much do WITHOUT it... and, sadly, did 8-9 years after writing and recording this gem.
Don Roby I have the same disorder as phil did bipolar ihave bouts of depression just like he did but ihave been able to live with ir through the spy and medication
In the fire blue forests, faded and forgotten I crawled through the cotton fields, picking for cotton The overseer sneered, his whipping was rotten With ecstasy. I'm child-like terror I tore out the tap roots Cards of the lash were calling to follow suit I dashed for the swamps, the hounds in hot pursuit Jealously. All through the night a figure of fright, as I hid my head And the buried their nose in a cut of my cloths, now torn in shreds And they never would leave until they believed that I was dead But I'd never curse their names Oh, who am I to blame I know I'd do the same Endlessly. And all the high-born ladies So lovely and so true, Have been handed to the soldiers When in Rome do as the Romans do. Frail and afraid in the mists of the morning The snakes and the spiders were sadly performing The bark of the dogs kept up the warning Inside the wood. Sweating and swearing I crawled from the manger The highway appeared to take me from danger Is there anyone here who would pick up a stranger? Oh I wish you could. Then someone replied "would you like a ride?" "Come in" he said. We drove for a while, he gave me a smile and a piece of bread The hammer was hard in the chrome of the car as I cracked his head Then we took off in a spin Oh I smashed his skull again Oh thank you my good friend, I feel so good. And all the high-born ladies So lovely and so true, Have been handed to the soldiers When in Rome do as the Romans do. Late in the evening I came to the city I fell to the sidewalks sighing for pity A diamond was dropped from the hands of the pretty To be so kind. Cowards and corpses were busy competing The rhymes of the riots were busy repeating I raced to the corner and sped(?) from the speeding To save my mind. Latches and locks, companies of cops ran from the rain There was silk in the stores for the whims of the whores That shone with shame. I asked for a light from a priest in the night Then I fanned the flames. And the traffic all stood still To see if someone had been killed I was glad to leave a thrill So far behind. And all the high-born ladies So lovely and so true, Have been handed to the soldiers When in Rome do as the Romans do. A monk and his mother were dancing so dandy A topless nun was handing out candy The beautiful bishop broke out the brandy The kiss we crave. They stuttered and stammered, would I feel like staying We fell to our knees, feverishly praying the salt in the salt-peter seemed to be saying Be brave, be brave. I reached reached for a robe, I preached and I probed And I taught the tune. And the greed for the gills was played to the hilt As I promised doom I toyed with their fears, until coins and tears filled the room Then I took off down the road Laughing madly like a toad God bless every soulless soul That would be saved. And all the high-born ladies So lovely and so true, Have been handed to the soldiers When in Rome do as the Romans do. A chorus of children were passing the hours I joined in their fun and gave them my flowers Covered with kisses and showered with showers That they repaid. Taken and trusting, would I be their teacher? She looked so appealing, I wanted to touch her Just out of reach, unable to reach her Their hands were raised. Charmed by the chalk, the lessons were taught, inside the class They studied the rules of the samurai schools, they had to pass The room was adjourned, the lessons were learned, I turned on the gas And I watched them make their pleas They passed the test with ease I gave them their degrees, They made the grade. And all the high-born ladies So lovely and so true, Have been handed to the soldiers When in Rome do as the Romans do. Feeling my weakness, a coward for company I joined the ranks of the hot and hungry To teach what it means to have love for your country We marched away. We lowered our lives for the lines of a border We danced with the mothers, played with the daughters We followed our fantasies, following orders It was child's play. After the war the bullets were bored so we capped the game With cynical smiles we put them on trial to place the blame Now what kind of beast would love such a feast Have you no shame? So we hung the by the feet Oh, we shot them in the street Oh, the victory was sweet on victory day. And all the high-born ladies So lovely and so true, Have been handed to the soldiers When in Rome do as the Romans do. The bread and the circuses came to be nearing The Saviour or somebody must be appearing Pagans and pageants were all disappearing Inside my head. The stones on the statues were staring and stalling Caesar and Cassius were cursing and calling The empire had risen and now it was falling Or so it seemed. The crown and the cross seemed empty and lost in dark despair And luminous lies, death in disguise were everywhere The canvas was cold, the story was old, I said my prayers Then I crowned him on the head Oh, I blessed him as he bled Oh At last, the king is dead God save the queen. And all the high-born ladies So lovely and so true, Have been handed to the soldiers When in Rome do as the Romans do. Now nothing remained for building or burning The losing of lovers was all I was learning A time for escape and a time for returning had come to me Back through the ashes and back through the embers Back through the roads and the ruins I remembered My hands at my side I sadly surrendered Do as you please. The hero was home, proven and grown, I fell on the floor Mad with romance they started to dance, their star was born I bled like the rain, exploded in pain, then I screamed for more Oh, make me feel sublime Release me from my mind Oh, Kill me one more time And set me free. And all the high-born ladies So lovely and so true, Have been handed to the soldiers When in Rome do as the Romans do.
There is no need to disparage Bob Dylan. These are two different gifted songwriters. Bob Dylan gave us some great songs. It is true their gifts were different. Phil had a wonderful voice and a more lyrical way of expressing himself. You must not let the fact that Phil left us too soon make you bitter. You and I as well as many other are able to appreciate his gift to us. Pity the ones who can't.
The hammer was hard in the chrome of the car as I cracked his head. WHooooaaaa. I believe this song compares the fall of Rome and the prophecy of the fall of the US. Mentions Jesus, Nazi Germany. A little disorganized but Phil knew what he was doing. If you want to hear lyrics that couldn't be better, read about or listen to The Ringing of Revolution. Not in sequence but these are some lines from a great lyrical mind: Oh, life was a game, and work was a shame, And pain was prevented by pleasure. The world, cold and grey, was so far away In the distance only money could measure. As the windows were smashed by the ringing of revolution. Down on our knees we're begging you please, We're sorry for the way you were driven. There's no need to taunt just take what you want And we'll make amends, if we're living. But away from the grounds the flames told the town That only the dead are forgiven. As they crumbled inside the ringing of revolution. Signed, A big fan who was never a Leftist. His one fan who is not..
His best friend was a Buckley l oving Brit, different times,it is impossible to consider conservativism a quirk of someones personality when the whole Right Wing movement is as openly fascist as it is today.
What is this song a critique of and what is it about? It seems to be talking about a slave or prisoner on the run but Ochs didn't tend to write about non topical or fictional people unless it had some greater meaning
My decoding: Early forties, a white psycho prisoner somewhere in the South escapes during prison slave labour, starts (or continues) serial+mass killing spree, escapes again by joining Army, goes to Europe, takes part in "liberation" of Italy* (war crimes and crimes against civilians included), with his killing spree before and after fascists' capitulation, escapes again by returning to the States, being celebrated as a war hero and a role model, making him wishing for all that to stop once for all. Pretty much one of more powerful anti-war and anti-imperial songs. *Precisely described hanging of Mussolini was the starting point of my decoding.
I disagree. I Ain't Marching Anymore, The War Is Over, Ballad of Joe Hill, William Butler Yeats Visits Lincoln Park & Escapes Unscathed, William Moore, Ballad of Billie Sol, Crucifixion, Ballad of Medgar Evers, Ringing Of Revolution, Flower Lady, White Boots Marching In A Yellow Land, Is There Anybody Here, Draft Dodger Rag, Power & Glory, Santo Domingo, Bracero, Days of Decision, Here's To The State of Mississippi, Going Down To Mississippi, and Ballad of Lou Marsh to name a few. All are great songs in their own right. All of them have a political message and theme
Dylan is a complicated person. He would even plagiarize material in his early years and went on to write some of the greatest songs ever written. He had a strange relationship with the media and authorities. Then his career is longer than long and more varied than necessary, I would argue. Phil Ochs on the other hand was very strong in his area and he did stick to his forte and earned respect for himself. Overall, I prefer Phil Ochs to Bob Dylan easily. Another great songwriter is Joni Mitchell. She knows exactly what to say and how best to say it. She has been fearlessly original right from the start and expressed what she was going through in unique ways that probably nobody has ever managed to do. I am not aware of any cover that Joni Mitchell has done. Her talented was not influenced by anyone. Personally, I prefer Joni to Bob any day. I even like Robert Hunter more than Dylan. Hunter was a great powerhouse of songwriting. I am yet to unpack Gordon Lightfoot except for his few well known songs. By the way, I have nothing against Bob Dylan. He remains the cultural influencer that he was even with all his characteristic twists and turns. What I am not comfortable with is the fact that Dylan's sources of imagery and inspiration are just a few and not so thoroughly original. On the other hand, Leonard Cohen, Joni Mitchell, Phil Ochs, etc. are more original and probably more accessible. Dylan always makes an effort to be obscure and wraps himself in layers of complexity. All in all, we are a lucky generation to have witnessed these great songwriters.
One of his songs I really like. I don't really like most of his overtly political songs. They might have a good messages, but many of them are not good songs. Bob Dylan was far better at those. But many of Ochs's less political songs I like just as much as anything Dylan ever wrote.
I'm at the same point. He has great talent but his non-political songs are the best. He also has some great political songs, but this three post Elektra albums are clearly their best.
I don't agree that Dylan was better at topical music but most of Phil's overtly political songs were written for an event to be sung for that particular cause or individual. He knew the difference and was devastated when Blood on the Tracks came out realizing how much Dylan had left and how little he did....
Why do you think this song is not political? This is as good as anti-war song may be. (Most probably inspired by Heller's Catch-22, and maybe by Malaparte's The Skin. The "hero" ends up in Rome literally, where Mussolini and other fascists are hung by their feet, and where statues of Caesar and Cassius are). It also deals not with slaves in cottonfields (non-existant in the time of motor trucks), but with prison slave labour. (Do notice: hardly any truck driver in South in late 30s/early 40s would stop for African-American hitchhiker.) It also deals with the idea hinted earlier in There But For Fortune: that all "outcasts" and "criminals" (in this case, even psycho serial killer) are products of society they live in and judged as such by the same hypocritical society, and, "depending of context", may even become celebrated role models (when even them are recognising how "sick" they are, as in the case of this anti-hero giving himself up, just to become "the star"). As Jiddu Krishnamurti said, 'It is no measure of health to be well adjusted to a profoundly sick society.' So much so that even murdering psychopath may have a higher moral ground and (as used here by Ochs) recognise (and often "punish", in his sick way) sickness, immorality and hypocrisy of e.g. exploitative prison system, religious institutions, competition-oriented education...By the way, this masterpiece is probably unique for being sung in first person of psychopat serial killer. I will welcome being corrected. But that is probably not the bravest thing in it, since it implies that the 2nd World War was just another war of different sick flavours of always one and the same imperialism. No wonder FBI had 500-pages file on Ochs. (If anyone wonders why is this song so "coded" to look like an allegory only, when it is a linear narration from the psychopath's "realistic" point of view at the first place.)
I don't think anyone besides Phil Ochs could have composed this. One of the most powerful songs ever.
I heard this, for the first time, after a year of (honors) american history in Louisiana ( foreign exchange student), returning home I tried my best to learn all of the references in the song, this song is very dense cultural meaning and I , to this day, still havnt caught most of this song(+9 years later)
outside the very flowery language
@@CopenhagenRayne It is the history of humanity condensed into 14 minutes.
@Willie A absolutely, it's entirely about America and comparing it with Rome. anyone versed in Roman history who doesn't have a fetish for it will realise how horrific Rome was for common or lower class or marginalized people and connect it to how many "values" are shared, like this song does
Nah its not about America but we come to expect this of Americans
One of my favorite songs. Wish my friends liked this kind of music, shame not a lot of people know of him.
Change your friends.
I don't know how he came out with this cos his other stuff is run of the mill.
@@brendandarkside1207absurd
@@brendandarkside1207
nope
It's sad how few ears this beautiful song has touched. Phil is a national treasure.
I am happy to report to you that this masterpiece has touched both of the ears I have got. Additionally, it has touched the soul I think I have.
A
This is such a beautiful song. There is so much genuine emotion in his voice; it's not something you run across that often these days. Phil Ochs was one of a kind.
Love you always, Phil.
Made me cry again. He sounds so vulnerable.
seriously, has anyone ever studied these lyrics? every line is devastating... no one on earth could write like Phil, a fallen angel.....
I tried, not an american, this song relies heavily on understanding events and periods in american history to a point I have not been made aware/taught
Nah he thought outside his country with this masterpiece
takes me back to when i was a young lad who loved this kind of thing. now i m a very old lad who still likes this sort of thing.. love the concept of high born ladies
Best song of Phil Ochs. Beautiful and poignant.
Was young then but believed musicians were poets artists historians and brave commentators of our present days..thank you Phil Ochs
such an amazing singer songwriter. I thought I had heard all of his songs, thanks to UA-cam I am discovering some truly great songs. ..or did I hide from the memory. ..still can't bear that he left us
I have taken phils advise. Western woman invited the heathen here. I wish the western woman and its spawn well. Let them have what your ancestors died for. Enjoy the heathens rule all western men off honour know we are free
I like most of his song's lyrics they had meaning not like what is heard today. very distinctive and powerful. will always miss you Phil.
the guy was a poet historian
This is In Cold Blood meeting Psycho, meeting Slaughterhouse Five, meeting Catch 22, meeting Malaparte's The Skin, meeting... Never heard something so sinister, so moving, so beautiful and so truthful at the same time. Effing masterpiece.
“a journalist”, of the highest degree
It might still be my favourite Ochs song.
mine, too.
You get a fuller idea just WHY Phil wasn't a-marchin' anymore when you truly realize all the horrors his "character" experienced through those eight verses of dread.
Pity with each birth the cycle goes on
Beautiful poet historian as said
masterpiece from a giant of song.
Might be my favorite song of all time... Lyrics take you on a journey
When he throws his voice it reminds me of Jeff Mangum's way of singing. I wonder if he knows about this great artist who's Phil Ochs ...
This is certainly one of a kined. Most radio stations would not play it as it is too long and you could not get enough adds in. Usually Phil writes very direct songs but this unique in that there are lots of different ways of understanding it. It is impressive that he could remember it all. 13 minutes is one hell of a song.
He did tend to write long cinematic songs that dove radio programmers crazy: this one, Pleasures of the Harbor, Ringing of Revolution, the Highwayman.
I first heard this amazing song when it was played by the legendary WHFS out of Bethesda Maryland -- perhaps arund 1974-5?
@@lorenyoung791 Ringing Of Revolution's not that long is it? It's only 4 minutes and some. Maybe I've just been listening to a bit too much Dylan recently but that doesn't seem _too_ long to me?
this is one of best of his longer compositions
Saw him live at the Riverboat in Toronto many years ago
Not sad completely beautiful for the rest of us!
This song is to The Crucifiction what When The Music's Over is to The End in The Doors' legend and lore -- the 2nd epic that somehow successfully follows the 1st epic.
i dreamed of this song before i awoke todyay.
Wow! been looking for this for ever
A great commentary on America's hypocritical history and puritanical hedonism.
Hi what does this mean please
This song is shadowbanned for rape references etc. It must be cos its not in his catalogues. It truly transcends history anyway
the history of america in one song
Oh, just one more thing (thank you, Peter Falk) -- this song in a way is the inner room(s) of the house that is I Ain't A-Marchin' Anymore.
You nailed it.
And if my thought-dreams could be seen
They'd probably put my head in a guillotine
But it's alright, Ma, it's life, and life only.
It really bugs me that they finally uploaded the new albums to spotify - except this one for some reason
Agreed
Except this one: for a reason.
@@bodhiheera1197, I’m an Englishman, what do you think the ‘reason’ is/was?
"The rhymes of the riots were busy repeating..." Living near Portland, Oregon -- I can attest to how unfortunately true THAT line is.
Thanks Dave
This is a rare piece. Not in Spotify, not here: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_songs_recorded_by_Phil_Ochs
Jim Morrison wanted the world and he wanted it NOW... Phil Ochs could pretty much do WITHOUT it... and, sadly, did 8-9 years after writing and recording this gem.
He is so loved and missed. I wish that he hadn't.
This song is better than anything Dylan ever recorded.
+Emmie04 Nope---that's why Phil hung himself.
+Geoffrey Connor Phil hung himself because he was manic-depressive. Not because of any comparison with another artist.
Don Roby I have the same disorder as phil did bipolar ihave bouts of depression just like he did but ihave been able to live with ir through the spy and medication
His alleged bipolar disorder was never diagnosed and his alcoholism exacerbated it.
This is simply not true. Its a great song, but come on now.
In the fire blue forests, faded and forgotten
I crawled through the cotton fields, picking for cotton
The overseer sneered, his whipping was rotten
With ecstasy.
I'm child-like terror I tore out the tap roots
Cards of the lash were calling to follow suit
I dashed for the swamps, the hounds in hot pursuit
Jealously.
All through the night a figure of fright, as I hid my head
And the buried their nose in a cut of my cloths, now torn in shreds
And they never would leave until they believed that I was dead
But I'd never curse their names
Oh, who am I to blame
I know I'd do the same
Endlessly.
And all the high-born ladies
So lovely and so true,
Have been handed to the soldiers
When in Rome do as the Romans do.
Frail and afraid in the mists of the morning
The snakes and the spiders were sadly performing
The bark of the dogs kept up the warning
Inside the wood.
Sweating and swearing I crawled from the manger
The highway appeared to take me from danger
Is there anyone here who would pick up a stranger?
Oh I wish you could.
Then someone replied "would you like a ride?"
"Come in" he said.
We drove for a while, he gave me a smile and a piece of bread
The hammer was hard in the chrome of the car as I cracked his head
Then we took off in a spin
Oh I smashed his skull again
Oh thank you my good friend,
I feel so good.
And all the high-born ladies
So lovely and so true,
Have been handed to the soldiers
When in Rome do as the Romans do.
Late in the evening I came to the city
I fell to the sidewalks sighing for pity
A diamond was dropped from the hands of the pretty
To be so kind.
Cowards and corpses were busy competing
The rhymes of the riots were busy repeating
I raced to the corner and sped(?) from the speeding
To save my mind.
Latches and locks, companies of cops ran from the rain
There was silk in the stores for the whims of the whores
That shone with shame.
I asked for a light from a priest in the night
Then I fanned the flames.
And the traffic all stood still
To see if someone had been killed
I was glad to leave a thrill
So far behind.
And all the high-born ladies
So lovely and so true,
Have been handed to the soldiers
When in Rome do as the Romans do.
A monk and his mother were dancing so dandy
A topless nun was handing out candy
The beautiful bishop broke out the brandy
The kiss we crave.
They stuttered and stammered, would I feel like staying
We fell to our knees, feverishly praying
the salt in the salt-peter seemed to be saying
Be brave, be brave.
I reached reached for a robe, I preached and I probed
And I taught the tune.
And the greed for the gills was played to the hilt
As I promised doom
I toyed with their fears, until coins and tears filled the room
Then I took off down the road
Laughing madly like a toad
God bless every soulless soul
That would be saved.
And all the high-born ladies
So lovely and so true,
Have been handed to the soldiers
When in Rome do as the Romans do.
A chorus of children were passing the hours
I joined in their fun and gave them my flowers
Covered with kisses and showered with showers
That they repaid.
Taken and trusting, would I be their teacher?
She looked so appealing, I wanted to touch her
Just out of reach, unable to reach her
Their hands were raised.
Charmed by the chalk, the lessons were taught, inside the class
They studied the rules of the samurai schools, they had to pass
The room was adjourned, the lessons were learned,
I turned on the gas
And I watched them make their pleas
They passed the test with ease
I gave them their degrees,
They made the grade.
And all the high-born ladies
So lovely and so true,
Have been handed to the soldiers
When in Rome do as the Romans do.
Feeling my weakness, a coward for company
I joined the ranks of the hot and hungry
To teach what it means to have love for your country
We marched away.
We lowered our lives for the lines of a border
We danced with the mothers, played with the daughters
We followed our fantasies, following orders
It was child's play.
After the war the bullets were bored so we capped the game
With cynical smiles we put them on trial to place the blame
Now what kind of beast would love such a feast
Have you no shame?
So we hung the by the feet
Oh, we shot them in the street
Oh, the victory was sweet
on victory day.
And all the high-born ladies
So lovely and so true,
Have been handed to the soldiers
When in Rome do as the Romans do.
The bread and the circuses came to be nearing
The Saviour or somebody must be appearing
Pagans and pageants were all disappearing
Inside my head.
The stones on the statues were staring and stalling
Caesar and Cassius were cursing and calling
The empire had risen and now it was falling
Or so it seemed.
The crown and the cross seemed empty and lost in dark despair
And luminous lies, death in disguise were everywhere
The canvas was cold, the story was old, I said my prayers
Then I crowned him on the head
Oh, I blessed him as he bled
Oh At last, the king is dead
God save the queen.
And all the high-born ladies
So lovely and so true,
Have been handed to the soldiers
When in Rome do as the Romans do.
Now nothing remained for building or burning
The losing of lovers was all I was learning
A time for escape and a time for returning had come to me
Back through the ashes and back through the embers
Back through the roads and the ruins I remembered
My hands at my side I sadly surrendered
Do as you please.
The hero was home, proven and grown, I fell on the floor
Mad with romance they started to dance, their star was born
I bled like the rain, exploded in pain, then I screamed for more
Oh, make me feel sublime
Release me from my mind
Oh, Kill me one more time
And set me free.
And all the high-born ladies
So lovely and so true,
Have been handed to the soldiers
When in Rome do as the Romans do.
Wow thank you please respond so I don't lose these lyrics .
This man always sang the Truth and he changed my life forever for the better. Dylan is a drop of tap water compared to this man's Hurricane!
There is no need to disparage Bob Dylan. These are two different gifted songwriters. Bob Dylan gave us some great songs. It is true their gifts were different. Phil had a wonderful voice and a more lyrical way of expressing himself. You must not let the fact that Phil left us too soon make you bitter. You and I as well as many other are able to appreciate his gift to us. Pity the ones who can't.
Dylan obviously had a significant influence upon Phil's writing , particularly with these type of. story telling epics.
No comparison required. Love them both.
Dylan couldn't carry Phil's JOCKSTRAP! On his BEST day! The King is dead! Long live The King!
and all the highborn ladies - ich weiß worüber er singt...
The hammer was hard in the chrome of the car as I cracked his head. WHooooaaaa. I believe this song compares the fall of Rome and the prophecy of the fall of the US. Mentions Jesus, Nazi Germany. A little disorganized but Phil knew what he was doing. If you want to hear lyrics that couldn't be better, read about or listen to The Ringing of Revolution.
Not in sequence but these are some lines from a great lyrical mind:
Oh, life was a game, and work was a shame,
And pain was prevented by pleasure.
The world, cold and grey, was so far away
In the distance only money could measure.
As the windows were smashed by the ringing of revolution.
Down on our knees we're begging you please,
We're sorry for the way you were driven.
There's no need to taunt just take what you want
And we'll make amends, if we're living.
But away from the grounds the flames told the town
That only the dead are forgiven.
As they crumbled inside the ringing of revolution.
Signed, A big fan who was never a Leftist. His one fan who is not..
Agreed
His best friend was a Buckley l oving Brit, different times,it is impossible to consider conservativism a quirk of someones personality when the whole Right Wing movement is as openly fascist as it is today.
Not a big fan of this album, but this song is Phil Ochs' best. Joe Hill is pretty good too.
What is this song a critique of and what is it about? It seems to be talking about a slave or prisoner on the run but Ochs didn't tend to write about non topical or fictional people unless it had some greater meaning
I believe it’s the story of America through a central character. I could be wrong.
My decoding: Early forties, a white psycho prisoner somewhere in the South escapes during prison slave labour, starts (or continues) serial+mass killing spree, escapes again by joining Army, goes to Europe, takes part in "liberation" of Italy* (war crimes and crimes against civilians included), with his killing spree before and after fascists' capitulation, escapes again by returning to the States, being celebrated as a war hero and a role model, making him wishing for all that to stop once for all. Pretty much one of more powerful anti-war and anti-imperial songs.
*Precisely described hanging of Mussolini was the starting point of my decoding.
@@dejanvul This all throws many people into deep denial: this is something that I cannot and do not want to see and hear.
His political system songs were not wonderfully put into songs and were more poetry but this and other ones were up there at the top .
I disagree. I Ain't Marching Anymore, The War Is Over, Ballad of Joe Hill, William Butler Yeats Visits Lincoln Park & Escapes Unscathed, William Moore, Ballad of Billie Sol, Crucifixion, Ballad of Medgar Evers, Ringing Of Revolution, Flower Lady, White Boots Marching In A Yellow Land, Is There Anybody Here, Draft Dodger Rag, Power & Glory, Santo Domingo, Bracero, Days of Decision, Here's To The State of Mississippi, Going Down To Mississippi, and Ballad of Lou Marsh to name a few. All are great songs in their own right. All of them have a political message and theme
but phil is by far a better singer and songwriter than Dylan
Gordon Lightfoot is better than both.
Hi what does this song mean please
Dylan is a complicated person. He would even plagiarize material in his early years and went on to write some of the greatest songs ever written. He had a strange relationship with the media and authorities. Then his career is longer than long and more varied than necessary, I would argue. Phil Ochs on the other hand was very strong in his area and he did stick to his forte and earned respect for himself. Overall, I prefer Phil Ochs to Bob Dylan easily. Another great songwriter is Joni Mitchell. She knows exactly what to say and how best to say it. She has been fearlessly original right from the start and expressed what she was going through in unique ways that probably nobody has ever managed to do. I am not aware of any cover that Joni Mitchell has done. Her talented was not influenced by anyone. Personally, I prefer Joni to Bob any day. I even like Robert Hunter more than Dylan. Hunter was a great powerhouse of songwriting. I am yet to unpack Gordon Lightfoot except for his few well known songs. By the way, I have nothing against Bob Dylan. He remains the cultural influencer that he was even with all his characteristic twists and turns. What I am not comfortable with is the fact that Dylan's sources of imagery and inspiration are just a few and not so thoroughly original. On the other hand, Leonard Cohen, Joni Mitchell, Phil Ochs, etc. are more original and probably more accessible. Dylan always makes an effort to be obscure and wraps himself in layers of complexity. All in all, we are a lucky generation to have witnessed these great songwriters.
One of his songs I really like. I don't really like most of his overtly political songs. They might have a good messages, but many of them are not good songs. Bob Dylan was far better at those. But many of Ochs's less political songs I like just as much as anything Dylan ever wrote.
I'm at the same point. He has great talent but his non-political songs are the best. He also has some great political songs, but this three post Elektra albums are clearly their best.
But they are good songs so im confused where you got confused
I don't agree that Dylan was better at topical music but most of Phil's overtly political songs were written for an event to be sung for that particular cause or individual. He knew the difference and was devastated when Blood on the Tracks came out realizing how much Dylan had left and how little he did....
Why do you think this song is not political? This is as good as anti-war song may be. (Most probably inspired by Heller's Catch-22, and maybe by Malaparte's The Skin. The "hero" ends up in Rome literally, where Mussolini and other fascists are hung by their feet, and where statues of Caesar and Cassius are). It also deals not with slaves in cottonfields (non-existant in the time of motor trucks), but with prison slave labour. (Do notice: hardly any truck driver in South in late 30s/early 40s would stop for African-American hitchhiker.) It also deals with the idea hinted earlier in There But For Fortune: that all "outcasts" and "criminals" (in this case, even psycho serial killer) are products of society they live in and judged as such by the same hypocritical society, and, "depending of context", may even become celebrated role models (when even them are recognising how "sick" they are, as in the case of this anti-hero giving himself up, just to become "the star"). As Jiddu Krishnamurti said, 'It is no measure of health to be well adjusted to a profoundly sick society.' So much so that even murdering psychopath may have a higher moral ground and (as used here by Ochs) recognise (and often "punish", in his sick way) sickness, immorality and hypocrisy of e.g. exploitative prison system, religious institutions, competition-oriented education...By the way, this masterpiece is probably unique for being sung in first person of psychopat serial killer. I will welcome being corrected. But that is probably not the bravest thing in it, since it implies that the 2nd World War was just another war of different sick flavours of always one and the same imperialism. No wonder FBI had 500-pages file on Ochs. (If anyone wonders why is this song so "coded" to look like an allegory only, when it is a linear narration from the psychopath's "realistic" point of view at the first place.)
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