Now John worked in an open shop,
With a fink and stooge and labor spy.
When a pay raise he requested,
He would get the stock reply,
"Oh, no John, no John, no John, no!"
Now John worked hard from morn till sunset,
Toiled and toiled till very late.
He asked the boss to cut his hours
And let him work the usual eight.
"Oh, no John, no John, no John, no!
Well, John just scratched his head and wondered
Why the boss did treat him so.
"Can it be he doesn't love me,
Or perhaps I've got B.O.", [*]
Oh, no John, no John, no John, no!
"Now, shall I get Carnegie's book on
'How to Win the Bosses Love',
Or do you suppose that profit's
What the boss is thinking of."
Oh, no John, no John, no John, no!
Well, John arrived at work one morning:
Pickets marching to and fro.
Should he cross the picket line
And scab against the C.I.O.? [**]
Oh, no John, no John, no John, no!
Well, John just grabbed a picket sign
And joined the union there and then.
Is there anything can keep him
From his fellow working men.
Oh, no John, no John, no John, no!
Well, John got his two weeks vacation,
Cut his hours and raised his pay
Could he ever get these things
The cringing, crawling, pleading way?
Hell, no John, no John, no John, NO!
With a fink and stooge and labor spy.
When a pay raise he requested,
He would get the stock reply,
"Oh, no John, no John, no John, no!"
Now John worked hard from morn till sunset,
Toiled and toiled till very late.
He asked the boss to cut his hours
And let him work the usual eight.
"Oh, no John, no John, no John, no!
Well, John just scratched his head and wondered
Why the boss did treat him so.
"Can it be he doesn't love me,
Or perhaps I've got B.O.", [*]
Oh, no John, no John, no John, no!
"Now, shall I get Carnegie's book on
'How to Win the Bosses Love',
Or do you suppose that profit's
What the boss is thinking of."
Oh, no John, no John, no John, no!
Well, John arrived at work one morning:
Pickets marching to and fro.
Should he cross the picket line
And scab against the C.I.O.? [**]
Oh, no John, no John, no John, no!
Well, John just grabbed a picket sign
And joined the union there and then.
Is there anything can keep him
From his fellow working men.
Oh, no John, no John, no John, no!
Well, John got his two weeks vacation,
Cut his hours and raised his pay
Could he ever get these things
The cringing, crawling, pleading way?
Hell, no John, no John, no John, NO!
Contributed by Bernart Bartleby - 2015/4/15 - 16:36
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Testo di autore anonimo, sulla melodia di una canzone tradizionale inglese risalente alla fine del 600 (“No, Sir, No”, o “No, John, No!”, o “The Spanish Merchant's Daughter”), raccolto da Joe Glazer e Bill Friedland.
Testo trovato su Folk Archive
Trovo la canzone (in mezzo a molte altre che nei prossimi giorni con piacere andrò a spulciare) nel “Socialist Song Book” pubblicato dalla Young People's Socialist League nel 1959.