[net.music.folk] Add a new verse

jak@talcott.UUCP (Joe Konstan) (05/08/85)

[to the great bug eater who puts bytes in my Apple]

     I realize it is an oldish song, but coming up high on my new
"favorites" list is a Harry Chapin song called "She is Only Seventeen."
It covers the various protest movements, but it wasn't written
yesterday, and therefore doesn't even mention the latest in divestment
rallies, sit-ins, etc.

     I therefore announce the first (as far as I know) unofficial (like
me) contest to add a new verse to the song (or even two).  I am
attaching a copy of the lyrics, as best I could get them from my album
(Greatest Stories--Live).  If anybody notices any errors, please mail
them to me (especially around question marks).

     To enter, mail me a copy of your suggested verse(s).  The winner or
winners will gain instant fame as I post them back to the net, and, if
anybody happens to know where to reach Chapin (if he's still alive--I
really don't know), I'd be happy to send them along to him, or the
record company as well, with full attributions.

     Again, please send these by E-mail, DO NOT POST INDIVIDUAL ENTRIES
TO THE NET, I will repost all (if few enter) or the best (in my opinion)
after a couple of weeks.  And here are the lyrics, presented without any
permission whatsoever:

She has no fear of failure
She's not bent with broken dreams
For the futures just beginning
When your always 17

It was 1961
When we went to Washington
She put her arms around me
And said Camelot's begun
We listened to his visions
Of how our land should be
We gave him our hearts and mind
To send across the sea

In 1963,
White and black upon the land
She brought me to the monuments
And made us all join hands
And scarcely 6 months later
She held me through the night
When we heard of what had happened 
In that futile(?) Dallas light

Oh she is always 17
She has a dream that she will lend us
And a love that we can borrow
There is so much joy inside her
She will even share our sorrow
She's our past, our present
And our promise of tommorow
Oh truly she's the only hope I've seen
And she is always 17

It was 1965
And we(?) marching once more
>From the burning cities
Against a crazy war
Memphis, L.A., and Chicago
We fled through 68
Till she took me up to Woodstock
Saying, with love its not too late

We started out in 70's
living off the land
she was sowing seeds in Denver 
Trying to make me understand
That mankind is woman
And woman is man
And until we free eachother
We cannot free the land

chorus  (Oh, she is always 17 ...)

1972
I'm at the end of my rope
But she was picketing the White House
Chanting "The truth's the only hope"
In 1975 
When the crooked king was gone
She was being small(?) with children
Saying the dream must still go on

chorus


-----------------------------------------------
I don't believe in disclaimers

Mithrandir
jak@talcott.{UUCP,ARPA}    konstan@h-sc4.UUCP konstan@h-sc1.UUCP

emery@siemens.UUCP (05/08/85)

you might try this path:

buddyh!hendrixvax!morrison!kmoon!chapin

I suspect you can get there from moskvax...
















(Harry Chapin was killed in an auto accident a few years ago, and joined
that great jam session in the sky.)

rose@sdcsvax.UUCP (Daniel Rose) (05/09/85)

In article <433@talcott.UUCP> jak@talcott.UUCP (Joe Konstan) writes:
>
>if anybody happens to know where to reach [Harry] Chapin (if he's
>still alive--I really don't know), I'd be happy to send them along
>to him, or the record company as well, with full attributions.

If I remember correctly, Harry Chapin died in a terrible car crash
in the late 1970's or early 1980's.  Unfortunately, he was drunk at
the time and apparently driving completely out of control.  This may
not have cast a bad light on his music, but it certainly didn't help
his fans' perception of him.  I don't remember if anyone else was
involved in the accident.

					Dan Rose
					sdcsvax!rose