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generations of change - ed hamer lyrics

[verse 1]
my father was a bailie from a wee farm near caiplie
he worked on the land a’ the days of his life
by the time he made second he aye swore he reckoned
he ploughed nearly half of the east neuk of fife

[verse 2]
he’d feed on at randerston, cawhill, and clephington
tambo and carnbee and big rhynie hill
at kingsbarn he was married and at boarhills he was buried
but man, had he lived, he’d be ploughing on still

[chorus]
for those days were his days and those ways were his ways
to follow the plough while his back was still strong
but those days have passed, and the time’s come at last
for the weakness of age to make way for the young

[verse 3]
i was not for ploughin’, to the sea i was goin’
to follow the fish and the fisherman’s way
come rain, hail, or sunshine, i watch the long run*line
no man more contented his whole working day

[verse 4]
i’ve long*lined the fladden ground, dutch, and the dogger bank
pulled the big fish from the deep devil’s hole
i’ve side*trawled off shetland, the faroes, and iceland
in weather much worse than a body could thole
[chorus]
for those days were my days and those ways were my ways
to follow the fish while my back was still strong
but those days have passed, and the time’s come at last
for the weakness of age to make way for the young

[verse 5]
my sons they have grown, and away they have flown
to search for black oil in the far northern sea
like oilmen they walk, and like yankees they talk
no there’s not much in common ‘tween my sons and me

[verse 6]
they’ve rough*rigged on josephine, forties, and ninian
dunlin and claymore and fisher and awk
they’ve made fortunes for sure, for on one run ashore
they’d spend more than i’d earn in my whole season’s work

[chorus]
for these days are their days and these ways are their ways
to ride the rough rigs while their backs are still strong
but these days’ll pass, and the time come at last
for the weakness of age to make way for the young

[verse 7]
my grandsons are growin’, to the school they are goin’
but the long days of summer they spend here with me
we walk through the warm days, we talk of the old days
the cornfields, the codfish, the land and the sea
[verse 8]
we walk through the fields that my father once tilled
talk to the old men that once sailed with me
oh man, it’s been awful good; i’ve taught them all i could
the past and the present their future might be

[chorus]
for the dawn will be their day, oh what will be their way?
what will they make of the land, sea, and sky?
oh man, i’ve seen awful change, but it still seems quite strange
to look at my world through a young laddie’s eyes

- ed hamer lyrics

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