John Brown went off to war to fight on a foreign shore.
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His mama sure was proud of him!
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He stood straight and tall in his uniform and all.
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His mama's face broke out all in a grin.
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"Oh son, you look so fine, I'm glad you're a son of mine,
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You make me proud to know you hold a gun.
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Do what the captain says, lots of medals you will get,
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And we'll put them on the wall when you come home."
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As that old train pulled out, John's ma began to shout,
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Tellin' ev'ryone in the neighborhood:
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"That's my son that's about to go, he's a soldier now, you know."
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She made well sure her neighbors understood.
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She got a letter once in a while and her face broke into a smile
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As she showed them to the people from next door.
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And she bragged about her son with his uniform and gun,
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And these things you called a good old-fashioned war.
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Oh! Good old-fashioned war!
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Then the letters ceased to come, for a long time they did not come.
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They ceased to come for about ten months or more.
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Then a letter finally came saying, "Go down and meet the train.
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Your son's a-coming home from the war."
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She smiled and went right down, she looked everywhere around
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But she could not see her soldier son in sight.
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But as all the people passed, she saw her son at last,
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When she did she could hardly believe her eyes.
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Oh his face was all shot up and his hand was all blown off
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And he wore a metal brace around his waist.
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He whispered kind of slow, in a voice she did not know,
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While she couldn't even recognize his face!
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Oh! Lord! Not even recognize his face.
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"Oh tell me, my darling son, pray tell me what they done.
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How is it you come to be this way?"
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He tried his best to talk but his mouth could hardly move
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And the mother had to turn her face away.
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"Don't you remember, Ma, when I went off to war
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You thought it was the best thing I could do?
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I was on the battleground, you were home... acting proud.
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You wasn't there standing in my shoes."
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"Oh, and I thought when I was there, God, what am I doing here?
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I'm a-tryin' to kill somebody or die tryin'.
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But the thing that scared me most was when my enemy came close
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And I saw that his face looked just like mine."
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Oh! Lord! Just like mine!
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"And I couldn't help but think, through the thunder rolling and stink,
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That I was just a puppet in a play.
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And through the roar and smoke, this string is finally broke,
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And a cannon ball blew my eyes away."
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As he turned away to walk, his Ma was still in shock
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At seein' the metal brace that helped him stand.
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But as he turned to go, he called his mother close
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And he dropped his medals down into her hand.
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John Brown
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Bob Dylan |