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  1. The Rookery

From the recording The Rookery

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Lyrics

every night I have a dream, I’m talking to a folk singer
he’s looking worn and kind of lean, says he hasn’t been a winner
it’s nineteen fifty-two or ‘three and he’s singing ‘bout the workers
but the commie scare has shut him down and he’s singing in small circles
he said, don’t get me wrong, I don’t mind being out here on the margin
but the crows above the money fields, their number’s growing larger

you can see that the rookery has spread, and up in every tree
are black eyes and a ready set of wings
and they’ll haul down and beat about and they’ll drown out all the protest shouts
and it gets louder when they hear somebody sing
it gets louder when they hear somebody sing

so I was singing union halls, and they put me on the blacklist
they asked me all about my friends, and I told ‘em where to kiss it
now Guthrie’s gone to ride the rails, Seeger’s looking worn and pale
they’re censoring the radio, and everybody’s scared of Joe

(chorus)

and somewhere in the distance, I heard somebody say
one of these mornings, we’re gonna rise up singing

some days we do go hungry, and some days we do get bored
the tedium of poverty is real wrath of the Lord
we break it up with music, we make it up in song
it doesn’t feel like politics, we ain’t doing nothing wrong

(chorus)

every night I have a dream
I’m talking to a folk singer
he’s looking worn and kind of lean
says he hasn’t been a winner