Bill Berry - Florian Geyer Australian folklore | Текст песни

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• Bill Berry
• Florian Geyer Australian folklore

Troops of Geyer clad in black are we
Heia o-ho
And we will stamp out tyranny
Heia o-ho

Chorus
Spearmen ho! Forward go!
On the castle roof let the Red Cock crow
Spearmen ho! Forward go!
On the castle roof let the Red Cock crow

When Adam dug and Eve did toil
Heia o-ho
No princes trespassed on their soil
Heia o-ho

Bold Geyer's men their arrows shoot
The knights are laid low
His banner bears a peasant's boot
To stamp out the foe

The noble's only God is pride
Heia o-ho
The Holy Scripture is our guide
Heia o-ho

We're beaten though our cause is right
Heia o-ho
Our sons will carry on the fight
Heia o-ho

Notes

Words from the singing of Bill Berry. According to Chris Kempster this song was brought back by Australians returning from a work brigade in Yugoslavia in the late 1940's. Werner Lowenstein tells me that he learnt it as boy in Germany and brought it to Australia as a refugee from the Nazis during World War II. He sang it in the Austral Singers in Melbourne. As far as I know this English version is only sung in Australia. "On the castle roof let the Red Cock crow" is a euphamism for burning the castle down.

The song comes from a German song "Wir sind des Geyers schwarzer Haufen" ("We are the Black Band of Geyer"). Florian Geyer was a Franconian Knight who joined the rebels in the German Peasant's War of 1525, rallying under the Peasantry's famous "Bundschuh" flag, which Brad Tate tells me is a red black and white flag with a peasant's boot or clog as the emblem. John Manifold recalls the song being played by BBC broadcasts to Germany during World War II. He included his 1948 translation of it in his Collected Verses (QUP 1978)

The lines:
"When Adam dug and Eve did toil
No princes trespassed on their soil"
are remarkably similar to a verse from the English Peasant's Revolt of 1381:
"When Adam dug and Eve Span
Who was then the Gentleman?"

Recently I discovered this German version on the Web at:
http://www.karoshi.de/Bibliothek/Lieder/geyer.htm
Florian Geyer

Wir sind des Geyers schwarzer Haufen,
Heia Ho Ho,
und wollen mit Tyrannen raufen,
Heia Ho Ho.

Ref.:
Spieß voran, drauf und dran,
setzt aufs Klosterdach den Roten Hahn.

Als Adam grub und Eva spann,
Heia Ho Ho,
Wo war denn da der Edelmann.
Heia Ho Ho.

Wir woll'n nicht l¦nger sein ein Knecht,
Heia Ho Ho,
Leibeigen, frönig ohne Recht
Heia Ho Ho.

Ein gleiches Recht, das woll'n wir han'
Heia Ho Ho,
Vom Fürsten bis zum Bauersmann
Heia Ho Ho.

Uns führt der Florian Geyer an,
Trutz Acht und Bann,
Den Bundschuh führt er in der Fahn,
Hat Helm und Harnisch an.

Jetzt gilt es Schloß, Abtei und Stift,
Heia Ho Ho,
Uns gilt nichts als die Heilge Schrift.
Heia Ho Ho.

Wir wollen’s Gott im Himmel klagen,
Heia Ho Ho,
Daß wir die Pfaffen nicht dürfen totschlagen.
Heia Ho Ho.

Den Pfaffen wollen wir kastrier'n
Heia Ho Ho,
Die Eier an die Kirchtür schmier'n.
Heia Ho Ho.

Bei Weinsberg setzt es Brand und Stank,
Heia Ho Ho,
Gar mancher über die Klinge sprang.
Heia Ho Ho.

(getragen)
Geschlagen ziehen wir nach Haus'
Heia Ho Ho,
Unsre Enkel fechten's besser aus.
Heia Ho Ho.

I found another German site with Florian Geyer song at http://ingeb.org/Lieder/wirsindg.html It gives the name of the authors as Heinrich von Reder, 1885 for the words and Fritz Sotke, 1919 for the tune

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