[thechat] missing lyrics in 'this land is your land' ?

[deke]

On 20 Sep 2001, at 15:18, Joe Crawford posted a message which said:

> > >(If you ever get a chance to hear Arlo cover 'This
> > >Land Is Your Land,' where he sings the verses you don't learn in school,
> > >you'll hear a very different perspective on who owns what, and whose 'land'
> > >is whose.)
 
> > Interesting that Bush used it as his campaign song, but didn't play
> > those verses...
 
> Huh? Wha? I want to know more about this... here's a random set of
> lyrics I just found -- what's the story on edited lyrics?
> http://www.arlo.net/lyrics/this-land.shtml

Woody Guthrie originally wrote the song as "God Blessed
America" in 1940, and he recorded it twice; the 1952 session
was the last recording session of Woody's life, and as Woody
died shortly after that. 

As you will note, it isn't a matter of chopping out offensive
verses. Inoffensive verses were chopped out, too, and replaced
with other inoffensive verses, and some of the wording was
changed to "tighten up" the lyrics. 

I seems obvious to *me* that Woody deliberately rewrote the song,
to reflect his sensibilities as a poet and a human, rather than simply 
omitting offensive verses to shorten the song and giving it more 
commercial appeal. Your milage may vary.

Here's the 1940 version. The words in brackets were crossed out.
-----------
This land is your land, this land is my land
 From [the] California to the [Staten] New York Island,
 From the Redwood Forest, to the Gulf stream waters,
[God blessed America for me.]

As I went walking that ribbon of highway
And saw above me that endless skyway,
And saw below me the golden valley, I said:
[God blessed America for me.]

I roamed and rambled and followed my footsteps
To the sparkling sands of her diamond deserts,
And all around me , a voice was sounding:
[God blessed America for me.]

Was a high wall there that tried to stop me
A sign was painted said: Private Property,
But on the back side it didn't say nothing --
[God blessed America for me.]

When the sun come shining, then I was strolling
In wheat fields waving and dust clouds rolling;
The voice was chanting as the fog was lifting:
[God blessed America for me.]

One bright sunny morning in the shadow of the steeple
By the Relief Office I saw my people --
As they stood hungry, I stood there wondering if
[God blessed America for me.]
--------

And the 1952 version:

---------
This land is your land, this land is my land
 From the redwood forest to the New York island.
 From the snow-capped mountains to the Gulf Stream waters
This land is made for you and me.

As I go walkin' my ribbon of highway
I see all around me my blue blue skyway
Everywhere around me the wind keeps a-whistlin'
This land is made for you and me.

I'm a-chasin' my shadow out across this roadmap
To my wheat fields waving, to my cornfield dancing
As I go walkin' this wind keeps talkin'
This land is made for you and me.

I can see your mailbox, I can see your doorstep
I can feel my wind rock your tip-top treetop
All around your house there my sunbeam whispers
This land is made for you and me.
--------

deke

------------------------
 "The church is near but the road is icy; 
  the bar is far away but I will walk carefully." 
                            -- Russian Proverb