Union Songs
In A Durham Mining Town
A Song by Ed Pickford©2013 prs/mcp
- [play]
In a Durham mining town
Spirits sleep deep underground
Ghosts of pulley wheels go round
In a Durham mining townUncle George survived the War
Underground he found Death’s Door
Clung to life a day or two
Then he left the town he knewChorus: What a cold hard place is a mining town
Smoke goes up and rain comes down
Sulphur oozes from the ground
What a cold hard place is a mining townDurham wore a blood-red crown
Mining ruled a mining town
Now its trees bear different fruits
My mind sees its blackened rootsTimes gone by in mid-July
Banners flew in Durham’s sky
Black drapes on a bridal gown
Marked the men lost to a townChorus
In a Durham countryside
You could see two worlds collide
Black hills smouldered night and day
Green hills stood not far awayThreads that weave our history
Make us what we come to be
When I see a town I find
Words like seeds grew in my mindChorus
Homeless now are colliery bands
Idle are the blue scarred hands
Pulley wheels don't go round
In a Durham mining townWhen light makes the night retreat
Durham yawns down every street
In the dawns with sleep complete
[missing line]
Notes
Many thanks to Ed Pickford for permission to add this song to the Union Songs collection
Find more of Ed's work in this collectionVisit Ed Pickford's website at http://www.ed-pickford.co.uk/
union songs..........a selection by mark gregory