The original group consisted of Stefan Cush (Vocals, Guitar), Paul Simmonds (Guitar, Bouzouki, Mandolin, Keyboards), Phil "Swill" Odgers (Vocals, Guitar, Tin Whistle, Melodica), Jon Odgers (Drums, Percussion) and Shanne Bradley (Bass, Flute).
Their first single, "The Green Fields of France", was released in 1984. Written by Eric Bogle (of 'The Band Played Waltzing Matilda' fame), the song's protagonist imagined having a conversation with one of the fallen soldiers of World War I whilst sitting by his graveside. The song received considerable airplay on the John Peel show on BBC Radio 1 and finished at No.3 in Peel's Festive 50 for that year.
The following year came TMTCH's debut album, 'The Night of a Thousand Candles' and its accompanying single "Ironmasters" - this time a self-penned number by main songwriter Simmonds, linking the Industrial Revolution to the present-day treatment of the working class. The original final line of the song - "and oh, that iron bastard, she still gets her way" (a reference to the then Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher) had to be removed for the single version to ensure radio airplay.
In 1985 the band signed for MCA records and released "How Green Is The Valley". The record included "Ghosts Of Cable Street" a political number concerning The Battle of Cable Street in 1936 and "Shirt Of Blue" which regarded the miners' strike of 1984-5 . At the end of promotion for the album Shanne Bradley was replaced on bass by Ricky McGuire (ex UK Subs ).
In 1987 the band switched to Magnet Records and the new record released was, what may fans consider their best "Waiting For Bonaparte". Once again the strongest songs were stories of historical origin. "The Colours" told of an English mutineer sailor during the Napoleonic War and "The Crest" a stretcher bearer during World War II. Sadly whilst "The Colours" was at no.61 in the British top 75 it was blacklisted by Radio 1 due to the line "You've Come Here To Watch Me Hang", which echoed the events happening in South African townships at the time.
In 1988 the band were on the move again and signed for new label Silvertone (who later put out The Stone Roses debut release). Highlights of "Silvertown" included "Rain, Steam and Speed", "A Place In The Sun" and "A Map Of Morocco". They followed this up in 1990 with "The Domino Club" , which had a more conventional rock sound dispensing with much of the folk element in their sound.
Surprisingly the band split in 1991 after releasing a live set "Alive, Alive-0". Paul Simmonds and "Swill" Odgers then formed Liberty Cage who released an album "Sleep Of The Just" in 1994 and an EP "I'll Keep It With Mine" in 1995.
To the delight of their fans the band reformed (minus drummer Jon Odgers who had become Therapy? drum technician). Their new cd was "Never Born To Follow", released on the Demon label in 1996. The following year the band released the mini-album "Six Pack". Two "Best Of" collections followed "Majestic Grill" and "The Mud, The Blood And The Beer" both 1998.
The band again withdrew into semi retirement during which Odgers and Simmonds again relased new material together, "Baby Fishlips" in 1999 and "Folk At The Fortress" in 2002.
The band released a brand new cd in 2003 "The Cherry Red Jukebox", which most fans agreed was a real return to form. In 2005 the band released a DVD to celebrate 21 years together "21 Years Of Love And Hate". This was later released as a live double CD "Smugglers and Bounty Hunters". The band continue to play occasional live concerts. Their next planned release is an acoustic folk orientated cd, including reworking of several popular old songs from their back catalogue.
During breaks from the band "Swill" Odgers has released two Cd's with his band "The Swaggerband" which includes Ricky McGuire and Jon Odgers plus lyrical contribution from Paul Simmonds. They are "The Day After" in 2004 and "Elvis Lives Here" on Irregular Records in 2006.
Official Website http://www.tmtch.net/
The Green Fields Of France
The Men They Couldn't Hang Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Do you mind if I sit down here by your graveside?
And rest for awhile in the warm summer sun,
I've been walking all day, and I'm nearly done.
And I see by your gravestone you were only 19
When you joined the glorious fallen in 1916,
Well, I hope you died quick and I hope you died clean
Or, Willie McBride, was it slow and obscene?
Did they Beat the drum slowly, did the play the pipes lowly?
Did the rifles fir o'er you as they lowered you down?
Did the bugles sound The Last Post in ?
Did the pipes play the Flowers of the Forest?
And did you leave a wife or a sweetheart behind
In some loyal heart is your memory enshrined?
And, though you died back in 1916,
To that loyal heart are you forever 19?
Or are you a stranger without even a name,
Forever enshrined behind some glass pane,
In an old photograph, torn and tattered and stained,
And fading to yellow in a brown leather frame?
The sun's shining down on these green fields of France;
The warm wind blows gently, and the red poppies dance.
The trenches have vanished long under the plow;
No gas and no barbed wire, no guns firing now.
But here in this graveyard that's still No Man's Land
The countless white crosses in mute witness stand
To man's blind indifference to his fellow man.
And a whole generation who were butchered and damned.
And I can't help but wonder, no Willie McBride,
Do all those who lie here know why they died?
Did you really believe them when they told you "The Cause?"
Did you really believe that this war would end wars?
Well the suffering, the sorrow, the glory, the shame
The killing, the dying, it was all done in vain,
For Willie McBride, it all happened again,
And again, and again, and again, and again.
The Men They Couldn't Hang's song The Green Fields of France is a haunting and melancholic tribute to Private William McBride, a nineteen-year-old soldier who lost his life during World War I. The song is told from the perspective of an unknown individual who stumbles upon McBride's graveside and engages in an imaginary conversation with him. The lyrics are contemplative and pose a series of poignant questions aimed at understanding McBride's experience during the war and the futility of his sacrifice.
The song's chorus, "Did they Beat the drum slowly, did the play the pipes lowly? Did the rifles fir o'er you as they lowered you down? Did the bugles sound The Last Post in ? Did the pipes play the Flowers of the Forest?" is particularly emotive, as it symbolizes the traditional military funeral practices that McBride would have received. The use of rhetorical questions throughout the song encourages the listener to reflect on the senselessness of war and how the horrors of conflict are often glossed over by patriotic rhetoric.
The final verse of the song is particularly poignant, as it highlights how the sacrifice of soldiers like McBride is often forgotten or rendered meaningless with time. The chorus repeats the words "and again, and again, and again" in a repetitive and almost despairing tone, which suggests that war is a never-ending cycle of violence and that the loss of young lives like McBride's will continue with each new military conflict.
Line by Line Meaning
Well, how do you do, Private William McBride,
Greetings, Private William McBride.
Do you mind if I sit down here by your graveside?
May I sit beside your grave to rest?
And rest for awhile in the warm summer sun,
Take a break from walking under this warm sun.
I've been walking all day, and I'm nearly done.
I've been walking all day and am quite exhausted.
And I see by your gravestone you were only 19
I see from your gravestone, you were just nineteen.
When you joined the glorious fallen in 1916,
You joined the fallen in 1916.
Well, I hope you died quick and I hope you died clean,
I hope you died a quick and painless death.
Or, Willie McBride, was it slow and obscene?
Or was it a slow and gruesome death, Willie McBride?
Did they Beat the drum slowly, did the play the pipes lowly?
Did they beat the drum slowly and play the pipes softly at your funeral?
Did the rifles fir o'er you as they lowered you down?
Did they fire rifles over you as they lowered you down?
Did the bugles sound The Last Post in ?
Did the bugles sound The Last Post during your funeral?
Did the pipes play the Flowers of the Forest?
Did they play the tune Flowers of the Forest on the pipes?
And did you leave a wife or a sweetheart behind
Did you have a wife or a lover left behind?
In some loyal heart is your memory enshrined?
Is your memory revered in the heart of a loved one?
And, though you died back in 1916,
Even though you died in 1916,
To that loyal heart are you forever 19?
Are you still forever nineteen in that loved one's heart?
Or are you a stranger without even a name,
Or are you just a nameless stranger?
Forever enshrined behind some glass pane,
Forever enshrined behind a glass pane,
In an old photograph, torn and tattered and stained,
In an old photograph, ripped, stained, and worn.
And fading to yellow in a brown leather frame?
Slowly fading to yellow in an old leather frame?
The sun's shining down on these green fields of France;
The sun is shining on these green fields of France;
The warm wind blows gently, and the red poppies dance.
The gentle wind blows while the red poppies sway.
The trenches have vanished long under the plow;
The trenches have vanished under the plow long ago.
No gas and no barbed wire, no guns firing now.
No more gas, barbed wires, or gunshots today.
But here in this graveyard that's still No Man's Land
But in this graveyard, which is still No Man's Land,
The countless white crosses in mute witness stand
The countless white crosses stand in silent witness
To man's blind indifference to his fellow man.
To the insensitivity of man to his fellow man.
And a whole generation who were butchered and damned.
And to an entire generation of people who were killed and doomed.
And I can't help but wonder, no Willie McBride,
And I can't help but wonder, Willie McBride,
Do all those who lie here know why they died?
Do those buried here even know why they died?
Did you really believe them when they told you 'The Cause?'
Did you truly believe the 'cause' they told you?
Did you really believe that this war would end wars?
Did you truly think this war would end all wars?
Well the suffering, the sorrow, the glory, the shame,
The suffering, sorrow, glory, and shame,
The killing, the dying, it was all done in vain,
The killing and dying was all without gain.
For Willie McBride, it all happened again,
Willie McBride, it all happened again,
And again, and again, and again, and again.
And again, and again, and again, and again.
Writer(s): Trad, Eric Bogle, John Loesberg
Contributed by Noah M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Paul Smeenis
on Ironmasters
Dunno what track 6 is but it sure isn't Ironmasters