Een van de populairste ‘moderne’ punkbands, met zelfs enkele top 10 hits. Prayer of the Refugee gaat over een vluchteling in de VS die de eindjes aan elkaar probeert te knopen, maar daarbij dagelijks geconfronteerd wordt met uitbuiting en discriminatie. Tekstueel haalt Prayer of the Refugee het misschien niet bij The Ghost of Tom Joad, een song met een vergelijkbare thematiek, maar de oprechte woede maakt veel goed.
Warm yourself by the fire, son,
And the morning will come soon.
I’ll tell you stories of a better time,
In a place that we once knew.
Before we packed our bags
And left all this behind us in the dust,
We had a place that we could call home,
And a life no one could touch.
Don’t hold me up now,
I can stand my own ground,
I don’t need your help now,
You will let me down, down, down!
Don’t hold me up now,
I can stand my own ground,
I don’t need your help now,
You will let me down, down, down!
Down!
We are the angry and the desperate,
The hungry, and the cold,
We are the ones who kept quiet,
And always did what we were told.
But we’ve been sweating while you slept so calm,
In the safety of your home.
We’ve been pulling out the nails that hold up
Everything you’ve known.
Don’t hold me up now,
I can stand my own ground,
I don’t need your help now,
You will let me down, down, down!
Don’t hold me up now,
I can stand my own ground,
I don’t need your help now,
You will let me down, down, down!
So open your eyes child,
Let’s be on our way.
Broken windows and ashes
Are guiding the way.
Keep quiet no longer,
We’ll sing through the day,
Of the lives that we’ve lost,
And the lives we’ve reclaimed.
Go!
Don’t hold me up now,
I can stand my own ground,
I don’t need your help now,
You will let me down, down, down!
Don’t hold me up now,
I can stand my own ground,
I don’t need your help now,
You will let me down, down, down!
Don’t hold me up…
(I don’t need your help, I’ll stand my ground)
Don’t hold me up…
(I don’t need your help)
No! No! No!
Don’t hold me up!
(I don’t need your help, I’ll stand my ground)
Don’t hold me up!
(I don’t need your help, I’ll stand my ground)
Don’t let me down, down, down, down, down!
Uitgelichte afbeelding: By Source, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=22214990
