Day Before the War
(R. Johnson / Moose & Raffi, D.Pike / Homeland)
Emily said she's Little Red Riding Hood,
Buttoning up her coat
And I wonder what she would have said
Six years old and in Baghdad instead
Waiting for peace to be declared
The day before the war.
We went and planted last year's Christmas tree
We all agreed it looked so sad
And I wondered what I'd dig instead
If I were a christian in Baghdad
Waiting for peace to be declared
On the day before the war.
It's all gibberish they're telling us
They don't know what it means
We'd all be home by Christmas, yeah, yeah, yeah
Nineteen fourteen.
The streets were quiet like the night was holding its breath
A clinched fist angry, scared, ashamed,
We lit candles in Trafalgar Square
Now all the lives go up in flames
Waiting for peace to be declared
Just like on the day before the war.
It's all gibberish they're telling us
Few casualties ours is not the reason why
Baghdad is lit up like a Christmas tree
On the fourth of July
Emily said, she's Little Red Riding Hood,
Buttoning up her coat
And I wondered in Baghdad instead
How many six-year-olds are dead.
And each one is much like another
A child of a mother and a father
A very special son or daughter
A lot like me and you.
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recorded by Roy Bailey on the Hokey Pokey sampler
"All Through The Year" (1991)
One of the first songs about the gulf war
MJ
Thanks to Mudcat for the Digital Tradition!