[Intro – 1940s wartime big band, muted trumpet, upright bass, brushed snare, soft piano, distant factory rhythm] [Verse 1 – warm female alto, restrained swing] She tied a bright scarf in her hair Before the break of dawn, Left her coffee by the window, Pulled her work shoes on. No khaki coat, no marching band, No rifle at her side, Just a factory whistle calling, And a nation’s changing tide. [Verse 2 – brass enters softly, steady swing, metallic percussion] Once her hands had sewn the buttons, Set the table, made the bread, Now she held a roaring riveter, With goggles on her head. She learned the song of aluminum, The sparks, the steel, the flame, And shoulder-to-shoulder on the line, A million women came. [Pre-Chorus – rising strings, snare brushes building] The radio spoke of distant shores, Above the hammer’s tune, And somewhere there a boy she loved Might need those wings real soon. [Chorus – full 1940s big band, soaring female lead, brass swells] So roll that steel and drive that rivet, Keep those engines turning strong! From midnight shift to morning light, She kept them moving on. Every bomber, every vessel, Every wing that crossed the blue, Held the hands of working women In every bolt and screw. [Instrumental – swinging brass break, trumpet lead, factory hammer percussion, walking bass] [Verse 3 – lower intimate vocal, piano and upright bass] Oil stained her rolled-up sleeves, And burns marked tired hands, She drilled and welded through the night For boys in foreign lands. They said, “Just keep the line alive Until our boys come home,” As though the world she'd learned to build Was never hers to own. [Bridge – tempo eases, sentimental strings, muted trumpet] Then whistles cried out victory, And church bells filled the air, The soldiers marched through crowded streets, With banners everywhere. She cheered beside her neighbors, But beneath that victory song, She knew they'd soon come asking her To leave where she belonged. [Final Chorus – powerful big-band crescendo, stacked female harmonies] But steel remembers every hand That bent it into form, And factory walls remember Who kept the lights on through the storm. They may sing about the fighting men Who crossed the distant shore— But behind them stood the women Who built the tools of war. [Outro – drums drop away, piano, upright bass, lone trumpet] [Female vocal – slow, firm] Not waiting. [Factory hammer – single strike] Not watching. [Brass swell, riveter rhythm returns] Building. [Final chord – full orchestra and big band, factory whistle fading]
