The Minstrel Boy --- Thomas Moore (1779-1852)
The
[D]minstrel
boy to the [A]war
has [D]gone,
In the
[G]ranks
of [D]death
you will [A]find
[D]him.
His
[D]father’s
sword he hath [A]girded
[D]on,
And his
[G]wild
harp [D]slung
be-[A]hind
[D]him.
[G]
“Land of Song!” cried the [A]warrior
[D]bard,
“Though
[G]all
the world be-[A]tray
[D]thee,
One
[G]sword
at least thy [A]right
shall [D]guard,
One
[G]faithful
[D]harp
shall [A]praise
[D]thee!”.
The
[D]minstrel
fell but the [A]foeman’s
[D]steel
Could
[G]not
bring [D]that
soul [A]un-[D]der.
The
[D]harp
he loved never [A]spoke
a-[D]gain,
For he
[G]tore
it’s [D]cords
a-[A]sun-[D]der.
And
[G]said:
“No chains shall [A]sully
[D]thee,
Thou
[G]soul
of love and [A]braver-[D]y.
Thy
[G]songs
were made for the [A]pure
and [D]free.
They shall
[G]never
[D]sound
in [A]slave-[D]ry.”
US Civil War verse.
The
[D]minstrel
boy will re-[A]turn,
we [D]pray.
When we
[G]hear
the [D]news
we will [A]cheer
[D]it.
The
[D]minstrel
boy will re-[A]turn
one [D]day,
Torn per-[G]haps
in [D]body,
not in [A]spir-[D]it.
Then
[G]may
he play on his [A]harp
in [D]peace,
In a
[G]world
such as Heav’n has in-[A]tend-[D]ed.
For
[G]all
the bitterness of [A]man
must [D]cease,
And
[G]ev’ry
[D]battle
must be [A]end-[D]ed.