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Streets of Sorrow/Birmingham Six Lyrics
Oh farewell you streets of sorrow
And farewell you streets of pain
I'll not return to feel more sorrow
Nor to see more young men slain
Through the last six years I've lived through terror
And in the darkened streets the pain
Oh how I long to find some solace
In my mind I curse the strain
So farewell you streets of sorrow
And farewell you streets of pain
No I'll not return to feel more sorrow
Nor to see more young men slain
There were six men in Birmingham
In Guildford there's four
That were picked up and tortured
And framed by the law
And the filth got promotion
But they're still doing time
For being Irish in the wrong place
And at the wrong time
In Ireland they'll put you away in the maze
In England they'll keep you for seven long days
God help you if ever you're caught on these shores
The coppers need someone
And they walk through that door
You'll be counting years
First five, then ten
Growing old in a lonely hell
Round the yard and the stinking cell
From wall to wall, and back again
A curse on the judges, the coppers and screws
Who tortured the innocent, wrongly accused
For the price of promotion
And justice to sell
May the judged by their judges when they rot down in hell
May the whores of the empire lie awake in their beds
And sweat as they count out the sins on their heads
While over in Ireland eight more men lie dead
Kicked down and shot in the back of the head
You'll be counting years
First five, then ten
Growing old in a freezing hell
Round the yard and the lousy cell
From wall to wall, and back again
And farewell you streets of pain
I'll not return to feel more sorrow
Nor to see more young men slain
Through the last six years I've lived through terror
And in the darkened streets the pain
Oh how I long to find some solace
In my mind I curse the strain
And farewell you streets of pain
No I'll not return to feel more sorrow
Nor to see more young men slain
In Guildford there's four
That were picked up and tortured
And framed by the law
And the filth got promotion
But they're still doing time
For being Irish in the wrong place
And at the wrong time
In Ireland they'll put you away in the maze
In England they'll keep you for seven long days
God help you if ever you're caught on these shores
The coppers need someone
And they walk through that door
First five, then ten
Growing old in a lonely hell
Round the yard and the stinking cell
From wall to wall, and back again
Who tortured the innocent, wrongly accused
For the price of promotion
And justice to sell
May the judged by their judges when they rot down in hell
And sweat as they count out the sins on their heads
While over in Ireland eight more men lie dead
Kicked down and shot in the back of the head
First five, then ten
Growing old in a freezing hell
Round the yard and the lousy cell
From wall to wall, and back again
Add your song meanings, interpretations, facts, memories & more to the community.
Long Kesh Prison (the Maze) was supposed to have been closed up as part of the peace agreement...but nah.
To me, this always seemed like two different songs about The Troubles, the first one being a man who's tired of all the fighting and has decided to leave, the second one someone who's Republican and angry over what he views as unlawful imprisonment.
Penned by Terry Woods this song relates to the wrongful arrest, conviction and inprisonment of suspected IRA terrorists in the 70's and 80's-They were to be subsequently aquitted and released
Actually, "Streets of Sorrow" is by Terry - "Birmingham Six" is by Shane.
Some of the "suspected Irish terrorists" were subsequently exonerated and released.
Some actually did it.
For those who are not aware, HMP Maze is a top security prison outside Belfast