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Babylon Is Fallen

[ Roud 7706 , 24534 ; Ballad Index R229 ; DT BABYLNFL , BBLNFALL ; Henry Clay Work (1832–1884)]

Babylon Is Fallen! is an anti-slavery song written by Henry Clay Work during the American Civil War.

Steve Turner sang Babylon Is Fallen in 2018 on his Tradition Bearers CD Late Cut. He noted:

Henry Clay Work (1832–1884) of Scottish descent, was one of the greatest 19^th century American songwriters, most famous in America for the song Marching Through Georgia. But we probably know him better for My Grandfather’s Clock. He was a slave abolitionist and was known to Abraham Lincoln and the like through the American Civil War. He assisted his father Alanson Work who helped nearly four thousand slaves to reach freedom through the Underground Railroad. This lesser known anti-slavery song, written in the 1860s, is from the collection Songs of Henry Clay Work (Bertram G Work).

This video shows Steve Turner in Humph Hall in Sydney, Australia in January 2018:

Lyrics

Henry Clay Work’s Babylon is Fallen!

Don’t you see de black clouds
Risin’ ober yonder,
Whar de Massa’s old plantation am?
Neber you be frightened,
Dem is only darkies,
Come to jine an’ fight for Uncle Sam.

Look out dar, now!
We’s agwine to shoot!
Look out dar, don’t you understand?
(Oh, don’t you know dat)
Babylon is fallen!
Babylon is fallen!
An’ we’s agwine to occupy the land.

Don’t you see the lightnin’
Flashin’ in de canebrake,
Like as if we’s gwine to hab a storm?
No! You is mistaken,
’Tis darkies’ bay’nets,
An’ de buttons on dar uniform.

Way up in the cornfield,
Whar you hear de tunder,
Dat is our ole forty-pounder gun;
When the shells are missin’,
Den we load wid punkins,
All de same to make the cowards run.

Mass was de Kernel
In de Rebel army,
Eber sence he went an’ run away;
But his lubly darkies,
Dey has been a-watchin’,
An’ dey take him pris’ner tudder day.

We will be be the Massa,
He will be the sarvant,
Try him how he like it for a spell;
So we crack de Butt’nuts,
So we take the Kernel,
So the cannon carry back de shell.

Steve Turner sings Babylon is Fallen

Don’t you see the black cloud
Risin’ over yonder
Where the master’s old plantation stands?
Never you be frightened,
Those are only comrades
Come to join the fight for Uncle Sam.

Chorus (after each verse):
Look out there now,
We are gonna shoot.
Look out there, don’t you understand?
Babylon has fallen!
Babylon has fallen!
I’m a-gonna occupy the land.

Don’t you see the lightnin’
Flashin’ in the canebrake,
Like as if we’re gonna have a storm?
No! You are mistaken,
Those are comrade’s bayonets
And the buttons on their uniforms.

Way up in the cornfield,
Where you hear the thnder,
That is our old forty-pounder gun;
When the shells are missing
We will load with pumkins,
All the same to make the cowards run.

Master was the Colonel
In the Rebel army,
Ever since he went ann run away;
Now his lovely servants,
They’ve all been watching,
And they took him prisoner yesterday.

We will be the master,
He will be the servant,
Try and see if he likes it for a while;
So we crack de buttnuts,
So we take the Colonel,
So the cannon carried back the shell.