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Those Three Are On My Mind

Pete Seeger
Language: English


Pete Seeger

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[1966]

those three



Da una poesia di tale Frances Taylor, una canzone rimaneggiata e musicata da Pete Seeger e poi incisa da Harry Belafonte (compare nella compilation “The Essential Harry Belafonte, 1952-1977” pubblicata nel 2005).

Dedicata a James Chaney, un afroamericano, Andrew Goodman e Michael Schwerner, due bianchi di fede ebraica, tutti e tre attivisti per i diritti civili, trucidati da poliziotti e membri del KKK il 21 giugno 1964 nella contea di Neshoba, Mississippi.
Sull’episodio anche Tom Paxton scrisse una canzone, Goodman and Schwerner and Chaney.

Nell’ultima strofa si fa riferimento a Thomas Paine, uno dei padri fondatori degli USA.

Testo pubblicato su Broadside Magazine n.75 dell’ottobre 1966.
I think of Andy in the cold wet clay
Those three are on my mind
With his comrades down beside him on that brutal day
Those three are on my mind

There lies young James in his mortal pain
Those three are on my mind
While my tears keep falling like the rain, like the rain,
Those three are on my mind

I see blue-eyed Michael with his blue-eyed bride
Those three are on my mind
And three proud mothers weeping side by side
Those three are on my mind

But I breathe yet and for some the sky is bright
I cannot give up hoping for a morning light
So I ask the killers "Do you sleep at night?"
Those three are on my mind
Those three are on my mind

I see the tin-roofed shanties where my brothers live
Those three are on my mind
And the burned-out churches where they sing "we forgive"
Those three are on my mind

While on the backwoods road still ride the hooded bands
Poisoning the air through the good southlands
And so I ask the killers, "Can you ever wash your hands?"
Those three are on my mind
Those three are on my mind

There sit the mighty judges handing down the law
Those three are on my mind
In their marble courthouse we are filled with awe
Those three are on my mind

I know of Tom Paine's watered tree
I know the price of liberty
But I must ask the question that must burn in me
Did they also burn the courthouse when they killed those three?
Those three are on my mind
Those three are on my mind
Those three are on my mind

Contributed by Alessandro - 2009/7/22 - 16:50


Michael Schwerner, James Chaney e Andrew Goodman e la foto del rinvenimento dei loro corpi...

... e i loro assassini: lo sceriffo Lawrence A. Rainey (qui ritratto nel 1967 durante il processo, Cecil Ray Price (qui a destra dello sceriffo Rainey, di cui era l'attendente, Samuel Holloway Bowers, leader del KKK del Mississippi e Edgar Ray "Preacher" Killen, altro esponente del KKK, condannato nel 2005 a 20 anni di prigione come mandante dell'omicidio nel 1964 dei tre attivisti dei diritti civili.

Alessandro - 2009/7/22 - 22:01


My name is Dawn. I was born in 1967 a few years after this monsterous attack. I have the same Grandmother that was Edgar Rays Grandmother. No one in our family speaks of this horriable injustice. No one in our family has had contact with Edgar in many years. I feel so hurt and angry about the murders of those three innocent boys. Neshoba County is still behind in life and racism (20 years or more). The Sheriff and KKK in the 60's in my opinion were never brought to justice. And the poor family's that were terrorized , murdered , and tortered will receive justice from God and all of the people who still mourn for their right's (civil). Thank You for remembering :) I will never forget.

dawnfsunrise@live.com - 2012/9/2 - 07:11


A quest'episodio è ispirato il vecchio film "Missisipi burning"

Silva - 2012/9/2 - 10:30


My Mother in law wrote the lyrics to this song...Pete wrote the music. Her name was Frances Fink Taylor.
May they both rest in peace.

Robb - 2016/4/20 - 02:09


Robb - I read about Harry Belafonte singing this song at a social justice event last weekend in Atlanta. The article incorrectly stated that it was a new song. I found another reference that misidentified Frances Taylor as Frances Parker. I'm interested in learning more about Frances Fink Taylor and would be very interested to get some information from you. Her story deserves to be told. - Ken kmliss@gmail.com

Ken - 2016/10/6 - 13:13




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