Six years ago, today.
Live version of 'Rachel Corrie' available 18/04/06A live version of Billy's new song, The Lonesome Death of Rachel Corrie, including his explanation of how he came to write it on his recent American tour, is available as a free download from the American blog site Huffington Post.
It was recorded live at The Birchmere in Alexandria, VA, on 28 March 2006. The song uses a tune borrowed from Bob Dylan's The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll.
A play created from her words due to be performed in a New York Theatre was cancelled.
The Lonesome Death of Rachel Corrie was written on Billy's recent tour of the USA, and recorded at Big Sky Recordings, Ann Arbor, on 22 March. It was first released as a download on The Guardian web site, and the tune is borrowed from Bob Dylan's The Lonesome Death Of Hattie Carroll.
Lyrics
An Israeli bulldozer killed poor Rachel Corrie
As she stood in its path in the town of Rafah
She lost her young life in an act of compassion
Trying to protect the poor people of Gaza
Whose homes are destroyed by tank shells and bulldozers
And whose plight is exploited by suicide bombers
Who kill in the name of the people of Gaza
But Rachel Corrie believed in non-violent resistance
Put herself in harm's way as a shield of the people
And paid with her life in a manner most brutal
But you who philosophise disgrace and criticise all fears,
Take the rag away from your face.
Now ain't the time for your tears.
Rachel Corrie had 23 years
She was born in the town of Olympia, Washington
A skinny, messy, list-making chain-smoker
Who volunteered to protect the Palestinian people
Who had become non-persons in the eyes of the media
So that people were suffering and no one was seeing
Or hearing or talking or caring or acting
And the horrible math of the awful equation
That brought Rachel Corrie into this confrontation
Is that the spilt blood of a single American
Is worth more than the blood of a hundred Palestinians
But you who philosophise disgrace and criticise all fears,
Take the rag away from your face.
Now ain't the time for your tears.
The artistic director of a New York theatre
Cancelled a play based on Rachel's writings
But she wasn't a bomber or a killer or fighter
But one who acted in the spirit of the Freedom Riders
Is there no place for a voice in America
That doesn't conform to the Fox News agenda?
Who believes in non-violence instead of brute force
Who is willing to confront the might of an army
Whose passionate beliefs were matched by her bravery
The question she asked rings out round the world
If America is truly the beacon of freedom
Then how can it stand by while they bring down the curtain
And turn Rachel Corrie into a non-person?
Oh, but you who philosophise disgrace and criticise all fears,
Bury the rag deep in your face
For now's the time for your tears.
It was recorded live at The Birchmere in Alexandria, VA, on 28 March 2006. The song uses a tune borrowed from Bob Dylan's The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll.
Download 'Rachel Corrie' live Visit The Huffington Post
The Lonesome Death Of Rachel Corrie - Free Download
Billy's song about Rachel Corrie, who was killed in Gaza trying to help Palestinians, is available as a free download from this site.A play created from her words due to be performed in a New York Theatre was cancelled.
The Lonesome Death of Rachel Corrie was written on Billy's recent tour of the USA, and recorded at Big Sky Recordings, Ann Arbor, on 22 March. It was first released as a download on The Guardian web site, and the tune is borrowed from Bob Dylan's The Lonesome Death Of Hattie Carroll.
Lyrics
An Israeli bulldozer killed poor Rachel Corrie
As she stood in its path in the town of Rafah
She lost her young life in an act of compassion
Trying to protect the poor people of Gaza
Whose homes are destroyed by tank shells and bulldozers
And whose plight is exploited by suicide bombers
Who kill in the name of the people of Gaza
But Rachel Corrie believed in non-violent resistance
Put herself in harm's way as a shield of the people
And paid with her life in a manner most brutal
But you who philosophise disgrace and criticise all fears,
Take the rag away from your face.
Now ain't the time for your tears.
Rachel Corrie had 23 years
She was born in the town of Olympia, Washington
A skinny, messy, list-making chain-smoker
Who volunteered to protect the Palestinian people
Who had become non-persons in the eyes of the media
So that people were suffering and no one was seeing
Or hearing or talking or caring or acting
And the horrible math of the awful equation
That brought Rachel Corrie into this confrontation
Is that the spilt blood of a single American
Is worth more than the blood of a hundred Palestinians
But you who philosophise disgrace and criticise all fears,
Take the rag away from your face.
Now ain't the time for your tears.
The artistic director of a New York theatre
Cancelled a play based on Rachel's writings
But she wasn't a bomber or a killer or fighter
But one who acted in the spirit of the Freedom Riders
Is there no place for a voice in America
That doesn't conform to the Fox News agenda?
Who believes in non-violence instead of brute force
Who is willing to confront the might of an army
Whose passionate beliefs were matched by her bravery
The question she asked rings out round the world
If America is truly the beacon of freedom
Then how can it stand by while they bring down the curtain
And turn Rachel Corrie into a non-person?
Oh, but you who philosophise disgrace and criticise all fears,
Bury the rag deep in your face
For now's the time for your tears.
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