Prologue
The Newsies Lyrics
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In 1899, the streets of New York echoed with the voices of Newsies.
Peddeling the papers of Joseph Pulitizer,
William Randolph Hearst, and other giants of the newspaper world.
On every corner you heard them carrying the banner.
Bringing you the news for a penny a pape.
Poor orphans and runaways, the newsies were a ragged army, withour a leader.
Until one day, all that changed.
The lyrics to The Newsies' Prologue paint a vivid picture of the bustling streets of New York in 1899 and the hardworking newsies who sold the papers of Joseph Pulitizer, William Randolph Hearst, and other newspaper tycoons. The newsies were a ragged army of poor orphans and runaways who peddled the papers for a penny a piece, but they lacked a leader. However, everything changed one day.
The Prologue sets the stage for the plot of the musical and introduces the audience to the world of the newsies. It presents the newsies as underdogs who lack direction and leadership, but the subsequent events of the story will see them band together and fight against their oppressors. The opening line, "In 1899, the streets of New York echoed with the voices of Newsies," immediately immerses the audience in the time and place of the story. The lyrics are accompanied by upbeat music and energetic dance, which captures the youthful spirit of the newsies and the bustling energy of the city.
Overall, The Newsies' Prologue is a memorable opening to the musical that sets the scene and tone for the rest of the production. It introduces the audience to the world of the newsies and foreshadows the challenges that they will face as the story unfolds.
Line by Line Meaning
In 1899, the streets of New York echoed with the voices of Newsies.
During 1899, the streets of New York were filled with the voices of Newsies.
Peddeling the papers of Joseph Pulitizer, William Randolph Hearst, and other giants of the newspaper world.
Newsies sold newspapers from Joseph Pulitzer, William Randolph Hearst and other prominent newspaper publishers
On every corner you heard them carrying the banner.
Newsies could be heard promoting and selling newspapers on every street corner.
Bringing you the news for a penny a paper.
Newsies sold papers for a very reasonable price of one penny per copy.
Poor orphans and runaways, the newsies were a ragged army, without a leader.
The Newsies were made up of orphaned and runaway children who were unorganized and did not have a leader.
Until one day, all that changed.
One day, something happened that caused a significant change for the Newsies.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@ya-xy8pj
Jack (spoken): Them streets down there, they sucked the life right outta my old man. Well they ain't doin' that to me.
Crutchie (spoken): But everyone wants to come to New York.
Jack (spoken): You keep your small life in the big city.
Give me a big life in a small town.
(sung): They say folks is dyin' to get here.
Me, I'm dyin' to get away,
to a little town out west
that's spankin' new.
And while I ain't never been there,
I can see it clear as day.
If you want, I bet'cha you could see it, too.
Close your eyes...
Come with me,
Where it's clean and green and pretty.
And they went and made a city outta clay.
Why, the minute that ya get there,
Folks'll walk right up and say,
"Welcome home, son, welcome home to Santa Fe!"
Plantin' crops,
Splittin' rails,
Swappin' tales around the fire,
'cept for Sunday when you lie around all day.
Soon your friends are more like family,
and they's beggin' you to stay!
Ain't that neat?
Livin' sweet
in Santa Fe.
(spoken): Hey, no one worries about no gimp leg in Santa Fe. You just hop a Palomino, you'll ride in style!
Crutchie (spoken): Picture me, ridin' in style.
Jack (spoken): Hey, I bet a few months of clean air, you could toss that crutch for good!
Jack & Crutchie (sung): Santa Fe,
you can bet.
We won't let them bastids beat us.
We won't beg no one to treat us fair and square.
There's a life that's worth the livin',
and I'm gonna do my share.
Jack (sung): Work the land.
Chase the sun.
Jack & Crutchie (sung): Swim the whole Rio Grande just for fun!
Crutchie (sung): Watch me stand!
Watch me run...
Jack (spoken): Hey, hey...
(sung): Don't you know that we's a family?
Would I let you down?
No way.
Just hold on, kid,
till that train makes Santa Fe.
@gwenyth2744
Lyrics:
[Jack:]
Them streets down there, they sucked the life right outta my old man. Well they ain't doin' that to me
[Crutchie:]
But everyone wants to come to New York
[Jack:]
You keep your small life in the big city. Give me a big life in a small town
They say folks is dyin' to get here
Me, I'm dyin' to get away
To a little town out west
That's spankin' new
And while I ain't never been there
I can see it clear as day
If you want, I bet'cha you could see it, too
Close your eyes
Come with me
Where it's clean and green and pretty
And they went and made a city outta clay
Why, the minute that ya get there
Folks'll walk right up and say
"Welcome home, son
Welcome home to Santa Fe!"
Plantin' crops
Splittin' rails
Swappin' tales around the fire
'Cept for Sunday when you lie around all day
Soon your friends are more like family
And they's beggin' you to stay!
Ain't that neat? livin' sweet
In Santa Fe
Hey, no one worries about no gimp leg in Santa Fe. You just hop a palomino, you'll ride in style!
[Crutchie:]
Picture me, ridin' in style
[Jack:]
Hey, I bet a few months of clean air, you could toss that crutch for good!
[Jack & Crutchie:]
Santa Fe
You can bet
We won't let them bastards beat us
We won't beg no one to treat us fair and square
There's a life that's worth the livin'
And I'm gonna do my share
[Jack:]
Work the land, chase the sun
[Jack & Crutchie:]
Swim the whole Rio Grande just for fun!
[Crutchie:]
Watch me stand!
Watch me run...
[Jack:]
Hey, hey...
Don't you know that we's a family?
Would I let you down?
No way
Just hold on, kid
'Til that train makes Santa Fe
@hansolo6920
We all have a Jack Kelly inside us, just longing for our own Santa Fe. But at the end of the day, we're stuck in New York.
@potatochisponbroadway4600
Fuck you Hans Solo, I live in the frigin middle of nowhere and I want NewYork
@j03y_jinxx
That was beautiful.
@giuliag5560
That's deep, like woah
@jaydasmalls7467
Your're not wrong I wanna go somewhere where people won't judge me for who I am.
@izabellaperchikov4128
Han Solo i actually am a New Yorker and I also wish I could be in a sante foe kind of place
@BeMoreBroadway
At "watch me stand, watch me run", I legit started to cry...just because Crutchie sounds SO CLOSE to tears at that point.
@allisongarippo3269
Ikr I'm close to tears
@lilyheidtke3672
Howdy, I'm flowery. (And yes!!!!!!!!!!!! I cried.)
@bisexualaf3025
Is that flowy for a profile picture I see?