The Modern Lumberman's Alphabet

from For The Time Being by Montgomery Street Band

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lyrics

A for the accidents from faulty old gear
B for the bankruptcy we all do fear
C for the cancer that eats at our bones and
D for the dollars we don’t get to take home

Chorus
How merry are we
No mortal on earth is as happy are we
Tell me hi deery ho deery hi deery down
Give the shanty boys whiskey and nothin’ goes wrong

E for the earth that we kill like a jerk
F the feller-buncher that took all the work
G for the gas that we breathe through the night and
H for the hell that we will raise right

(Chorus)

I for indigenous land that we stole
J for the jerks who made it their goal
K for the kinship we all must create
Because of L the lifeblood from us the company takes

(Chorus)

M the monopoly that closed all the mills
N for the nightshifts we all must work still
O the oligarchies our votes they do kill and
P the plutocrats who run capitol hill

(Chorus)

Q for the questions that we’re not allowed
R for our rights that are squashed in the ground
S for the sprayin’, of ethics it lacks and
T the time from our kids that we’ll never get back

(Chorus)

U for the uselessness that I feel
V for the vengeance we hope to have still
W is the wealth for someone else that we make
And now I hope you’re ready to do what it takes

Three more letters I’m too poor to rhyme
Because this industry takes all my time
For the break whistle’s blowin’ and now I must go
Farewell everybody
Half the battle
Is to know

credits

from For The Time Being, released September 21, 2021
Based on the Lumberman's Alphabet, an old folk tune sung by the forestry workers of the Atlantic maritimes in the 18th and 19th century.

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Montgomery Street Band Fredericton, New Brunswick

Fredericton based bluegrass/newgrass outfit

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