[Intro] [marching snare, jangly 12-string guitar, distant crowd chants] Ten sixty-six... One king... two invasions... (clarion echo call sets song pace) Did Harold have to die With an arrow in his eye? He had such plans For Saxon clans Before the Norman tide rolled by [fiddle enters] “York to Hastings…” [Verse 1] the Saxons and Harold ruled the heart lands long after the Roman empire lost its throne Now here come the Normans Same old story Just a different set of bones Did Harold have to die With an arrow in his eye? He had such plans For Saxon clans Before the Norman tide rolled by He sent the Vikings home Up at Stamford Bridge alone But down south sailed The Norman veil Across the sea of foam (Historical nod to Stamford Bridge victory before Hastings.) [Pre-Chorus] Two weary marches Through autumn rain One tired crown to save The bells of York Still rang his name Before they dug his grave [Chorus] Oh the banners flew Beneath the autumn sky He fought two battles hard Against the conqueror’s tide Oh what could have been With the Saxon team If Harold kept his crown And the old ways stayed supreme [crowd gang vocals] “HEY! Did Harold have to die With an arrow in his eye?” [Verse 2] Hardrada fell up north Tostig never made it home The shield wall broke Through ash and smoke Beneath the battle drone Then William crossed the waves With his horses, priests and blades While Halley’s fire Burned through the sky Like England’s warning flame (Reference to Halley’s Comet appearing in 1066.) [Bridge — Soul Section] [instruments pull back] One last exhausted stand One arrow flew Through autumn gloom On that muddy hill One kingdom lost for good The old gods sighed The white horse died On Caldbeck's crimson mud The old oak halls The mead-fire songs Slipped softly from his hands And somewhere down In Sussex fields The ravens turned in flight While England changed In just one day Between the dawn and night [Final Chorus] Oh the banners flew Beneath the Norman bastard's sky He fought like every Saxon king Against the turning tide Oh what could have been With the Saxon team If Harold rode back home And kept the old world clean Did Harold have to die With an arrow in his eye? He fought two fights Through days and nights For one last Saxon cry [Outro] [fiddle + crowd chant] Ten... sixty... six... Ten... sixty... six... Solo voice: “What could have been…” Crowd: “For the Saxon dream!…” (pub gang vocals weary mandolin harp melodies military snare rolls harmonized “HEY!” chants bridge drops into near-spoken reflection)
