The Battlefield Band is a Scottish band playing traditional music and thei… Read Full Bio ↴The Battlefield Band is a Scottish band playing traditional music and their own compositions, with occasional forays into other traditions as well as covers of contemporay popular songs.

The band's current brand of music was developed when Brian McNeill and Alan Reid were joined by Jenny Clark (vocals, guitar, cittern, dulcimer) and Duncan MacGillivray (pipes and whistle). Stand Easy, the album they recorded in 1979, still stands up as one of the band's finest. The next line-up included Dougie Pincock (bagpipes) and Jim and Sylvia Barnes, Alan Reid (vocals and electric keyboards) and Brian MacNeill (fiddle). Alan has been a constant member ever since. Every line-up has had a bagpiper, and sometimes two.

For a mainly instrumental and traditional band, the presence of electric keyboards is unusual but even more unusual is the absence of percussion. Every album revives some well-researched, long-dead Scottish songs and tunes as well as modern compositions (often original ones). The music ranges from the usual drinking, friendship, and hard times to history, geography, and politics. As one the most well-travelled folk bands of the past twenty years or more it is no surprise that there have been some exhausted members.

The present line-up consist of Alan Reid (Keyboards/Guitar/Vocals), Mike Katz (Highland Bagpipes/Small Pipes/Whistles/Guitar), Alasdair White (Fiddle/Whistle/Banjo/Bazouki/Highland and Small Pipes/Bodhran) and Sean O' Donnell (Vocals/Guitar).

I Am the Common Man
Battlefield Band Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

I am the Common Man.
I am the brute and the slave.
I am the fool, the despised,
From the cradle to the grave.
I am the hewer of coal.
I am the tiller of soil.
I am serf of the seas,
Born to bear and to toil.

I am the builder of halls.
I am the dweller of slums.
I am the filth and the scourge
When winter′s depression comes.
I am the fighter of wars.
I am the killer of men,
Not for a day or an age,
But again and again and again.
I am the Common Man,
But, Masters of mine, take heed,

For you have put into my head
Oh! Many a wicked deed.

Overall Meaning

The song "I Am the Common Man" by Battlefield Band is a powerful ballad that speaks of the struggles and hardships of those who are considered the common man. Despite being known as the brute, slave, fool, and despised, they still continue to bear the difficulties of their situation. In the face of adversity, the common man remains the hewer of coal, the tiller of soil, and the serf of the seas. The song depicts the common man as the builder of halls, dweller of slums, filth, and the scourge of oppression, particularly in times of winter depression.

The song also speaks of the common man's role as a fighter in wars and a killer of men, highlighting the cost of war on the average person. The closing lines of the song are a warning to the masters of the common man to take heed because they have put many evil deeds into their heads. This line showcases the idea that the aristocracy's oppression and control can lead people to perform wicked deeds, but the resilience of the common man cannot be underestimated.

" I Am the Common Man" by Battlefield Band is a powerful statement on the struggles of the average person in society. The song highlights themes of oppression, war, and societal inequality. The ballad serves to glorify the common people who continue to fight for their rights and freedom in the face of adversity.

Line by Line Meaning

I am the Common Man.
I represent the average person.

I am the brute and the slave.
I have been oppressed and treated like an animal throughout history.

I am the fool, the despised, From the cradle to the grave.
Society often looks down on me and I am mistreated until I die.

I am the hewer of coal.
I am the one who works in mines to extract coal.

I am the tiller of soil.
I am the farmer who works and tills the land.

I am serf of the seas, Born to bear and to toil.
I am the worker on the sea who has no power, but keeps working.

I am the builder of halls.
I am the construction worker who builds large buildings.

I am the dweller of slums.
I am the one who lives in poor conditions in urban areas.

I am the filth and the scourge When winter′s depression comes.
When times are tough, I am seen as dirty and disgusting.

I am the fighter of wars.
I am sent to fight conflicts and wars.

I am the killer of men, Not for a day or an age, But again and again and again.
I am forced to kill other people in battles multiple times throughout history.

I am the Common Man, But, Masters of mine, take heed, For you have put into my head Oh! Many a wicked deed.
I may be an ordinary person, but my mistreatment by the rich and powerful has driven me to commit terrible acts.

Writer(s): Alan Reid, Joseph Corrie

Contributed by Leah D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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Most interesting comment from YouTube:

@Foss-px3pg

27w↑1

The Snows Of France And Holland
(Brian McNeill)
=
Oh the north wind knows no border
As it shifts across the shore
The road finds only other roads
And the dark hides even more
For there's many a weary corner
From Flanders tae the Rhine
And the snows of France and Holland
Have parted me and mine.

There's sounds to hear and sounds to fear
And sights to make you sing
The bonniest in the morning
Is the snow goose on the wing
For her neck is long and slender
Her road's a simple line
And the snows of France and Holland
Have parted me and mine.

Oh the moon stands o'er the ocean
And the waves roll back the tide
The strongest man is the wisest fool
Till he knows the road he rides
For the snow goose cries to the cold North wind
The fool cries out for signs
And the snows of France and Holland
Have parted me and mine.

Both the words and the music are pure gems.

All comments from YouTube:

@jessicafarias4588

2y↑4

Thank you for sharing this album....my father played the pipes to me as a young giro and we spent many hours listening to battlefield band,the chieftains and oasis. This is a classic. I love to hear this so much thank you!

@chuckclark4160

4y↑8

I bought this album on cassette many years ago when I saw the Battlefield Band in concert in Springfield. Illinois and literally played it until it wore out.

Amazed and happy to find it here. Thanks