This song was originally written by a guy called Peter Gutteridge. He was one of the founders of the "Dunedin Sound" a musical scene in the south of New Zealand in the early 80s. From there it was covered by "The Clean" one of the early bands of that scene (he had originally been a member of in it's early days, writing a couple of their best early songs). The Dunedin sound, and the Clean became popular on american college radio in the mid to late 80s. I guess Yo La Tengo heard that version.
Great version of a great song,
My grandmother came from Russia
A satchel on her knee
My grandfather had his father's cap
He brought from Italy
They'd heard about a country
Where life might let them win
They paid the fare to America
And there they melted in
Lovely Lady Liberty
With her book of recipes
And the finest one she's got
Is the great American melting pot
The great American melting pot
America was founded by the English
But also by the Germans, Dutch, and French
The principle still sticks
Our heritage is mixed
So any kid could be the president
You simply melt right in
It doesn't matter what your skin
It doesn't matter where you're from
Or your religion, you jump right in
To the great American melting pot
The great American melting pot
Oh, what a stew, red, white, and blue
America was the New World
And Europe was the Old
America was the land of hope
Or so the legend told
On steamboats by the millions
In search of honest pay
Those 19th-century immigrants sailed
To reach the U.S.A.
Lovely Lady Liberty
With her book of recipes
And the finest one she's got
Is the great American melting pot
The great American melting pot
What good ingredients
Liberty and immigrants
They brought the country's customs
Their language and their ways
They filled the factories, tilled the soil
Helped build the U.S.A.
Go on and ask your grandma
Hear what she has to tell
How great to be an American
And something else as well
Lovely Lady Liberty
With her book of recipes
And the finest one she's got
Is the great American melting pot
The great American melting pot
The great American melting pot
The great American melting pot
A satchel on her knee
My grandfather had his father's cap
He brought from Italy
They'd heard about a country
Where life might let them win
They paid the fare to America
And there they melted in
Lovely Lady Liberty
With her book of recipes
And the finest one she's got
Is the great American melting pot
The great American melting pot
America was founded by the English
But also by the Germans, Dutch, and French
The principle still sticks
Our heritage is mixed
So any kid could be the president
You simply melt right in
It doesn't matter what your skin
It doesn't matter where you're from
Or your religion, you jump right in
To the great American melting pot
The great American melting pot
Oh, what a stew, red, white, and blue
America was the New World
And Europe was the Old
America was the land of hope
Or so the legend told
On steamboats by the millions
In search of honest pay
Those 19th-century immigrants sailed
To reach the U.S.A.
Lovely Lady Liberty
With her book of recipes
And the finest one she's got
Is the great American melting pot
The great American melting pot
What good ingredients
Liberty and immigrants
They brought the country's customs
Their language and their ways
They filled the factories, tilled the soil
Helped build the U.S.A.
Go on and ask your grandma
Hear what she has to tell
How great to be an American
And something else as well
Lovely Lady Liberty
With her book of recipes
And the finest one she's got
Is the great American melting pot
The great American melting pot
The great American melting pot
The great American melting pot
Lyrics submitted by Mellow_Harsher
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