From Green To Black And Back Again

When Cromwell came Wales was green
With salmon and trout in the rivers and streams
A country fair where the deer ran free
And the forests swept down to the sea

Then the Crawshaws, Guests and Baileys came
And the land would never be the same
They came to Wales with a master plan
To clear the trees and rape the land

Chorus
From green to black and black again
For the coal and the lime and the iron they came
Now the work is done and the land has changed from green to black and back again

They dug for coal and for iron ore
they sunk their pits on the valley floors
they quarried lime from the mountain sides
as the furnace flames lit up the sky

And the people came from far and wide
They left the fields and the countryside
Women and children young and old
Spent their lives digging out black gold

Chorus

But the masters pay was the masters might
And the wages dropped to below whats right
So the workingmen took up the call
A union now will save us all

But the masters had the union banned
No rights would come to the workingman
So the lines were drawn and the word went round
We march at dawn to Newport town

Chorus

From the Chartist march to the miners strike
It’s the story of the fight for workers rights
And as the land returns to the way it was
We are left to wonder what we’ve lost

But our passion and pride will never wane
The pits are gone but the spirit remains
We are proud to say we are working men
For we know that Wales will rise again

Chorus x 2

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