John Barleycorn
Steve Winwood Lyrics

There were three men came out of the west, their fortunes for to try
Three men traveled to try their luck

And these three men made a solemn vow
They made a firm promise

John Barleycorn must die
They decided to kill John Barleycorn

They've plowed, they've sown, they've harrowed him in
They prepared the soil, planted seeds, and covered them

Threw clods upon his head
They covered him with earth

And these three men made a solemn vow
They reinforced their promise to kill John Barleycorn

John Barleycorn was dead
John Barleycorn was killed

They've let him lie for a very long time, 'til the rains from heaven did fall
They left him to rest until the rain came

And little Sir John sprung up his head and so amazed them all
Grain grew and surprised everyone

They've let him stand 'til midsummer's day 'til he looked both pale and wan
They let him mature until midsummer, when he became pale and weak

And little Sir John's grown a long long beard and so become a man
The grain produced long stems and matured into adulthood

They've hired men with their scythes so sharp to cut him off at the knee
They employed workers to cut off the grain's upper stalks with their sharp blades

They've rolled him and tied him by the way, serving him most barbarously
They tied the wheat into bundles harshly

They've hired men with their sharp pitchforks who've pricked him to the heart
They hired individuals with pitchforks to stab and wound the wheat

And the loader he has served him worse than that
A worker treated the wheat more brutally

For he's bound him to the cart
Tied the wheat to a cart

They've wheeled him around and around a field 'til they came onto a pond
They transported the wheat around a field and ended up at a pond

And there they made a solemn oath on poor John Barleycorn
They made a promise over the wheat

They've hired men with their crabtree sticks to cut him skin from bone
They hired workers to strip the wheat down to the grain

And the miller he has served him worse than that
The miller treated the wheat roughly

For he's ground him between two stones
He ground the wheat between two stones

And little Sir John and the nut brown bowl and his brandy in the glass
They made grain into beer or spirits

And little Sir John and the nut brown bowl proved the strongest man at last
The brewed/fermented grain was stronger than expected

The huntsman he can't hunt the fox nor so loudly to blow his horn
The hunter can't perform his usual tasks because he's drunk from the grain

And the tinker he can't mend kettle or pots without a little barleycorn
The tinker cannot work without a drink of spirits made from the grain