HARVEST IN THE MARCH LANDS [Verse 1] We watched the barley through the summer, Watched the oats beneath the rain, Counted every cloud above us, Prayed the sun would come again. From Rathdown fields to mountain water, Every furrow, every lane, But the stalks stood thin and broken And the earth gave back no grain. [Pre-Chorus] Now the evenings close around us, And the north wind shakes the door, There is nothing in the granary, Nothing hidden on the floor. [Chorus] Harvest in the march lands, Harvest turned to stone, Children crying by the hearthside, Winter coming on. Harvest in the march lands, Black clouds over the Pale, If the earth will give us nothing Then somebody else must pay. [Verse 2] October crawls towards All Hallows, Smoke lies low across the ground, Cattle ribs beneath their hides now, Not a cartwheel makes a sound. Women count the final measures, Men stare silent at the rain, Every loaf is cut much thinner, Every prayer is said in vain. [Verse 3] Then somebody cursed the landlords, Cursed the papers and the Crown, Cursed the men who took the old estate And drove its master down. “Our own lord knew every family, Knew the widow, knew the poor. He would never watch us starving With his granaries behind a door.” [Pre-Chorus] And the murmur moved from cottage Into forge and field and inn, What began as fear of winter Turned to something hard within. [Chorus] Harvest in the march lands, Harvest turned to stone, Children crying by the hearthside, Winter coming on. Harvest in the march lands, Hear the hungry people say: If the law protects the taker, Then we’ll make another way. [Verse 4] At the crossroads after sunset, Someone came from off the hill, Mud upon his coat and boots, His horse was blowing still. He spoke low beside the fire, But every man leaned near: “The one they sent across the water Is back among us here.” [Instrumental Build] [Fiddle rises] [Verse 5] No bell was rung to tell us, No proclamation read, The message travelled under doors And over garden walls instead. Sharpen scythes and mend the harness, Hide the powder, count the shot, Bring the pikes down from the rafters, See what weapons we have got. [Chorus] Harvest in the march lands, Now the fields are bare, But there are men upon the mountain And a fire is rising there. Harvest in the march lands, Let the great house bolt its door, The lord they thought was gone forever Has come home to Rathdown once more. [Bridge] We asked for bread, They gave us law. We asked for mercy, This is what we saw: Full cellars behind stone walls, Empty bowls below, Men who never turned the soil Telling hungry men to go. So let them hear the fiddles, Let them hear the marching feet, Let them see the lanterns moving Where the mountain roads all meet. [Final Chorus] Harvest in the march lands, Under an All Hallows moon, Winter may be coming, But another thing comes soon. Harvest in the march lands, From the foothills to the sea, The old lord has returned to us, And the people will be free. Harvest in the march lands, No grain beneath the blade, So tonight we reap another crop From the debts that must be paid. [Outro] Close the shutters. Douse the light. Someone’s riding Through the night. Empty granary. Mountain flame. And every village Knows his name.
