Gordon Edgar Downie (born February 6, 1964) is a Canadian rock musician, wr… Read Full Bio ↴Gordon Edgar Downie (born February 6, 1964) is a Canadian rock musician, writer and occasional actor. He is the lead singer and lyricist for the Canadian rock band The Tragically Hip. He has released three solo albums, Coke Machine Glow in 2001, Battle of the Nudes in 2003; and The Grand Bounce in 2010. Coke Machine Glow was sold along with a book of poetry of the same name, included with the CD. Canadian indie band The Dinner Is Ruined plus Julie Doiron and Josh Finlayson, called The Country of Miracles, served as his backing band for all three solo albums.

Biography
Early life
Downie was born in Amherstview, Ontario. He is the godson of former Boston Bruins general manager and coach Harry Sinden. He attended Ernestown Secondary School (Odessa, Ontario) in grade nine and part of grade ten. He graduated from Kingston Collegiate and Vocational Institute in 1982, a school also attended by his band-mates. Downie then studied film at Queen's University in Kingston. Downie was a minor league hockey goalie and played for an Ontario championship winning Bantam level team in 1979.

If I Had A Hammer
Gord Downie & the Country of Miracles Lyrics

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If I had a hammer I′d hammer in the morning
I'd hammer in the evening all over this land
I′d hammer out danger, I'd hammer out a warning
I'd hammer out love between my brothers and my sisters all over this land

If I had a bell I′d ring it in the morning
I′d ring it in the evening all over this land
I'd ring out danger, I′d ring out a warning

I'd ring out love between my brothers and my sisters all over this land

If I had a song I′d sing it in the morning
I'd sing it in the evening all over this world
I′d sing out danger, I'd sing out a warning
I'd sing out love between my brothers and my sisters all over this land

If I′ve got a hammer and I′ve got a bell
And I've got a song to sing all over this land
It′s the hammer of justice, it's the bell of freedom
It′s the song about love between my brothers and my sisters all over this land

It's the hammer of justice, it′s the bell of freedom
It's the song about love between my brothers and my sisters all over this land

All over this land
All over this land

Overall Meaning

These lyrics are from the song "If I Had a Hammer" by Gord Downie & the Country of Miracles. The song is a cover of the folk classic originally written by Pete Seeger and Lee Hays in 1949. The message of the song is simple but powerful: if the singer had certain tools, namely a hammer, a bell, and a song, they would use them to spread messages of justice, freedom, and love throughout the world.

The first verse introduces the idea that if the singer had a hammer, they would use it to hammer out danger and warning all over the land. This can be interpreted as a call to action, an appeal for people to take action against injustices they see around them. The second verse continues this theme with the idea of the bell, which would ring out danger and warning. The third verse brings in the idea of the song, which would be used to sing out messages of danger, warning, and love.

The final verse combines all three elements - the hammer, the bell, and the song - to create a powerful message of justice, freedom, and love. The hammer represents the tool that can be used to fight against injustice; the bell represents the tool that can be used to call for freedom; and the song represents the tool that can be used to spread love and unity among people.

Overall, the lyrics of "If I Had a Hammer" are a call to action for people to use whatever tools they have at their disposal to fight for justice, freedom, and love in the world.

Line by Line Meaning

If I had a hammer I'd hammer in the morning
If I possessed a hammer, I would use it to strike in the morning

I'd hammer in the evening all over this land
I'd strike it in the evening, all throughout this country

I'd hammer out danger, I'd hammer out a warning
I would use the hammer to remove any danger and warn people of it

I'd hammer out love between my brothers and my sisters all over this land
I'd use the hammer to bring people closer together, fostering love and brotherhood throughout the land

If I had a bell I'd ring it in the morning
If I owned a bell, I'd ring it in the morning

I'd ring it in the evening all over this land
I'd ring it in the evening throughout the entire country

I'd ring out danger, I'd ring out a warning
I'd use the bell to alert people about danger and warn them

I'd ring out love between my brothers and my sisters all over this land
I'd use the bell to create love and unity among people all across the land

If I had a song, I'd sing it in the morning
If I possessed a song, I'd sing it in the morning

I'd sing it in the evening all over this world
I'd sing it in the evening, throughout the entire world

I'd sing out danger, I'd sing out a warning
I'd use the song to bring attention to danger and warn people of it

I'd sing out love between my brothers and my sisters all over this land
I'd use the song to spread love and compassion among all people, throughout this land

If I've got a hammer and I've got a bell
If I own a hammer and a bell

And I've got a song to sing all over this land
And I have a song that I want to sing across the entire country

It's the hammer of justice, it's the bell of freedom
The hammer symbolizes justice and the bell represents freedom

It's the song about love between my brothers and my sisters all over this land
The song is about spreading love and compassion among all people across the entire country

All over this land
Throughout the entirety of this country

Writer(s): SEEGER PETER, HAYS LEE

Contributed by Dominic I. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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