"Forgotten Years" as written by Martin Rotsey, Robert Hirst, James Moginie, Peter Garrett and Wayne Stevens....
Few of the sins of the father, are visited upon the son
Hearts have been hard, our hands have been clenched in a fist too long
Our sons will never be soldiers, our daughters will never need guns
These are the yrs between
These are the yrs that were hard fought and won
Contracts torn at the edges, old signatures stained with tears
Seasons of war and peace, these should not be forgotten yaers
Still it aches like tetanus, it reeks of politics
How many dreams remain? This is a feeling too strong to contain
The hardest years, the darkest yrs, the roarin' yrs, the fallen yrs
These should not be forgotten yrs
The hardest yrs, the wildest yrs, the desperate and divided yrs
We will remember, these should not be forgotten yrs
Our shoreline was never invaded, our country was never in flames
This is the calm we breathe, this is a feeling too strong to contain
Still it aches like tetanus, it reeks of politics
Signatures stained with tears, who can remember
We've got to remember
The hardest...
Forsaking aching breaking yrs, the time and tested heartbreak yrs
These should not be forgotten yrs
The blinded yrs, the binded yrs, the desperate and divided yrs
These should not be forgotten yrs, remember
Hearts have been hard, our hands have been clenched in a fist too long
Our sons will never be soldiers, our daughters will never need guns
These are the yrs between
These are the yrs that were hard fought and won
Contracts torn at the edges, old signatures stained with tears
Seasons of war and peace, these should not be forgotten yaers
Still it aches like tetanus, it reeks of politics
How many dreams remain? This is a feeling too strong to contain
The hardest years, the darkest yrs, the roarin' yrs, the fallen yrs
These should not be forgotten yrs
The hardest yrs, the wildest yrs, the desperate and divided yrs
We will remember, these should not be forgotten yrs
Our shoreline was never invaded, our country was never in flames
This is the calm we breathe, this is a feeling too strong to contain
Still it aches like tetanus, it reeks of politics
Signatures stained with tears, who can remember
We've got to remember
The hardest...
Forsaking aching breaking yrs, the time and tested heartbreak yrs
These should not be forgotten yrs
The blinded yrs, the binded yrs, the desperate and divided yrs
These should not be forgotten yrs, remember
Lyrics submitted by Chris_Gough
"Forgotten Years" as written by Martin Rotsey James Moginie
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
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"Few are the sins....upon the son"- the Father is Britain, Australia is the son, the sin is the war
"Signatures stained with tears"- Australians weren't conscripted, the signed up, and would regret it
"Our shoreline was....strong to contain"- Australia wasnt invaded because of those who fought an died to protect it, the calm we breath is peace, the feeling is freedom
This is simply a song about remembering the sacrifice made by all soldiers during war
'Few are the sins of the fathers .... ' is a play on the fairly well known biblical quote "The sins of the father will be visited upon the sons" or to that effect - Exodus I believe.
It's indicating that we are especially blessed and have not had to pay the price that our predecessors did, we've haven't had to live the hardness of our fore-fathers etc. etc. It sets up the rest of the song. Our job now is not to forget this, to respect this and make sure we don't make the same mistakes that lead back to some of that stuff.
And it's not just about war, but the bitterness of divided societies, depressed and unjust economic situations among other things - stuff we've not fully sorted out either of course.
The lines "Still it aches like tetanus, it reeks of politics
How many dreams remain? This is a feeling too strong to contain"
Commemorating the fallen of WWI and WWII, has been hijacked by politicians for political gain, it was hijacked at the time of war, and it's STILL being hijacked by politicians today to pit us against one another and to divide us along ideological lines.
The song is saying; "I know it's hard, but don't let politics stop you from honoring the fallen; their sacrifices and their victories, because THEY fought for US, not partisan political gain". We must ALWAYS remember that, and not use it as an excuse to ignore, or be angry with, the sacrifices of those who have taken up arms to defend, not only our nation, but other nations as well.
I echo the paternal relationship with Great Britain. I have often remarked the same about the States. You don't need a masters degree to climb on board. There are no apologies & why would there be? These years were hard fought & won. Yes soldiers from Australia & New Zealand were tossed into the fray. This whole topic makes me ponder how many conflicts/ wars/ terrorist attacks never existed. Fighting in the Vietnam War proved two things: The enemy realizes the length you'll go to protect your interests & where would you prefer to fight? Over there or over here?
I love the symmetry. Has Australia or America ever been invaded? I don't count the 1812 drubbing but we not only survived we went on to surpass the father. War hero turns president model was strong but waning in these modern days. A sad day when a kid can beat dad at whatever. Yet we are all still on the same side. A terrible & awesome power our country's leaders weild. How devoid life would seem without other people to remind us that the best time . . is now. = )
He was passing on the lessons of the desperate and divided years in hopes that they would not be forgotten years. The are not, and I know I'm lucky to live in a place and time where war is so rare that we actually consider regular people with guns to be abnormal and dangerous.