Learn Through English
 
Music/Ethics: Slavery, Human Rights, Freedom.
Song: Songs of Freedom

Author: Bob Marley

ÀREA: MÚSICA/HUMANITATS

DISCUSSION TOPIC: SLAVERY/FREEDOM/HUMAN RIGHTS

SONG: REDEMPTION SONGS

AUTHOR: BOB MARLEY

Before listening:

1. Let’s do some brainstorming first. What do you know about ‘reggae’? Share it with your classmates and then find some more information about it here.

2. Read the song from top to bottom carefully. You may not find some of the words in a dictionary and some structures are not grammatically correct because the song is not written in standard English. Don’t worry about that, just try to understand the meaning in general.

Old pirates, yes, they rob i;
Sold I to the merchant ships,
Minutes after they took i
From the bottomless pit.
But my hand was made strong
By the hand of the almighty.
We forward in this generation
Triumphantly.

(Chorus)
Won’t you help to sing
These songs of freedom? -
’Cause all I ever have:
Redemption songs;
Redemption songs.

Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery;
None but ourselves can free our minds.
Have no fear for atomic energy,
’Cause none of them can stop the time.
How long shall they kill our prophets,
While we stand aside and look? ooh!
Some say its just a part of it:
We’ve got to fulfil de book.

Chorus

Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery;
None but ourselves can free our mind.
Wo! have no fear for atomic energy,
’Cause none of them-a can-a stop-a the time.
How long shall they kill our prophets,
While we stand aside and look?
Yes, some say it’s just a part of it:
We’ve got to fulfil de book.

Chorus

After listening:

1. Analyse the structure and the rhythm of the song. How many parts has it got?

2. The text is written in first person. Do you think it’s Bob Marley speaking or he speaks for someone else?

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