Al Stewart - Roads To Moscow Lyrics

I was at DLI in '84-'85. U. S. Navy. From the barracks to the classrooms, did you guys also call it the "Ho Chi Minh Trail?"

This is such a beautiful song, in terms of music. Describing such a bitter and evil crime. Done by Nazi Deutschland, my ancestors. Although I feel not being guilty I feel the need to apologize.

Please forgive my Country.

Putin is not he best one to lead Russia.
Despite the differences between Russia and Germany, I hope that all German politicians do their best to stay in contact with Russia.
They have to behave so, there is no other way

We do not have to behave as the USA wants us to do.
We do not own them anything. Fuck America. They do not care about us, why should we care about them?

The Trump administration and Trump itself is nothing more than a groaner.

"In the kingdom of hope, there is no winter."
Proverb
<- Disputed Origins
.
They crossed over the border, the hour before dawn
Moving in lines through the day
Most of our planes were destroyed on the ground where they lay
Waiting for orders we held in the wood
Word from the front never came
By evening the sound of the gunfire was miles away
Ah, softly we move through the shadows, slip away through the trees
Crossing their lines in the mists in the fields on our hands and on our knees
And all that I ever
Was able to see
The fire in the air glowing red
Silhouetting the smoke on the breeze
All summer they drove us back through the Ukraine
Smolensk and Viasma soon fell
By autumn we stood with our backs to the town of Orel
Closer and closer to Moscow they come
Riding the wind like a bell
General Guderian stands at the crest of the hill
Winter brought with her the rains, oceans of mud filled the roads
Gluing the tracks of their tanks to the ground while the sky filled with snow
And all that I ever
Was able to see
The fire in the air glowing red
Silhouetting the snow on the breeze
In the footsteps of Napoleon the shadow figures stagger through the winter
Falling back before the gates of Moscow, standing in the wings like an avenger
And far away behind their lines the partisans are stirring in the forest
Coming unexpectedly upon their outposts, growing like a promise
You'll never know, you'll never know which way to turn, which way to look you'll never see us
As we're stealing through the blackness of the night
You'll never know, you'll never hear us
And the evening sings in a voice of amber, the dawn is surely coming
The morning roads lead to Stalingrad, and the sky is softly humming
Two broken Tigers on fire in the night
Flicker their souls to the wind
We wait in the lines for the final approach to begin
It's been almost four years that I've carried a gun
At home it will almost be spring
The flames of the Tigers are lighting the road to Berlin
Ah, quickly we move through the ruins that bow to the ground
The old men and children they send out to face us, they can't slow us down
And all that I ever
Was able to see
The eyes of the city are opening
Now it's the end of the dream
I'm coming home, I'm coming home, now you can taste it in the wind, the war is over
And I listen to the clicking of the train-wheels as we roll across the border
And now they ask me of the time that I was caught behind their lines and taken prisoner
"They only held me for a day, a lucky break, " I say they turn and listen closer
I'll never know, I'll never know why I was taken from the line and all the others
To board a special train and journey deep into the heart of holy Russia
And it's cold and damp in the transit camp, and the air is still and sullen
And the pale sun of October whispers the snow will soon be coming
And I wonder when I'll be home again and the morning answers "Never"
And the evening sighs, and the steely Russian skies go on forever...
.
.
.
Wil

Must congratulate you for such a detailed history lesson to accompany a song that to this day gives me chills.

My gf (later wife)I had a Halloween party and someone stole this album (PP&F) and I'm still pissed
Forgiven but not forgotten

Ed .....
You have done a wonderful job in putting this together.

You pay honor to the men and women who sacrificed so much in that bloody and violent chapter of the world's history.

I can tell you put a lot of your HEART into this work....much the same way Mr. Stewart put his HEART into crafting the notes and lyrics of this song.
The two of you pay tremendous tribute and homage to the historical subject matter.
Thank you for sharing your work with us!

Man's inhumanity to man in song

Отличная песня. Прочитал про эту песню в статье и сразу нашел ее в интернете. I remember from childhood veterans crippled by the war. We have always revered them. I myself helped organize holidays for veterans. None of them did not sit, although there were repressions, my grandfather was shot on denunciation in 1937. but after Stalin there were no repressions.

Well done

Oh my goodness....

Such an amazing song.

One important detail left out of the visuals: The song is from the POV of Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn. He was a Soviet Soldier in WWII who fought against the Nazis during their invasion of Russia and was later part of the attack on Berlin at the end of the war. He was captured for one day by the Nazis and was released. The Soviets killed or imprisoned Russian soldiers who were released by the enemy because they were considered "contaminated". So when the war ended he was imprisoned in a Gulag.

Hence the line: "And I wonder when I'll be home again and the morning never answers never". He never did go home after the war. He was tortured in a Gulag until 1953 but was eventually exiled to Birlik where he later died. During his time in Birlik he wrote several books, including "The Gulag Archipeligo" which was banned in the USSR until the Soviet Union fell. The lyrics are based on passages from that book.

Great info, thanks.

Millions and millions of people died for one man's sick dreams of ultra-nationalism and racial purity. Nationalism is not the same thing as patriotism - it is a savage perversion of patriotism. Nazism was an evil cult built around the belief that, as Germany's "savior", Hitler could do no wrong. People who follow someone like Hitler and ignore his racism, lies, and broken promises (sounds familiar?) for the sake of national pride are courting their own doom.

Bingo. Nailed it.

Beautifully done, Ed. I studied Soviet history in the 1960s and 1970s. Couldn't believe this song when I first heard it in mid-70s. Just incredible, both musically and historically. First few times listening to it on my system at home it tore my heart out. In time I could listen without so much disturbing emotion.
Again. Congratulations on an excellent depiction of events.

Glorious song that I first heard from an old charity shop vinyl record.. Glad it's greatly loved..

Roads to Moscow ~ Al Stewart 

They crossed over the border, the hour before dawn
Moving in lines through the day
Most of our planes were destroyed on the ground where they lay
Waiting for orders we held in the wood
Word from the front never came
By evening the sound of the gunfire was miles away
Ah, softly we move through the shadows, slip away through the trees
Crossing their lines in the mists in the fields on our hands and on our knees
And all that I ever
Was able to see
The fire in the air glowing red
Silhouetting the smoke on the breeze

All summer they drove us back through the Ukraine
Smolensk and Viasma soon fell
By autumn we stood with our backs to the town of Orel
Closer and closer to Moscow they come
Riding the wind like a bell
General Guderian stands at the crest of the hill
Winter brought with her the rains, oceans of mud filled the roads
Gluing the tracks of their tanks to the ground while the sky filled with snow
And all that I ever
Was able to see
The fire in the air glowing red
Silhouetting the snow on the breeze

In the footsteps of Napoleon the shadow figures stagger through the winter
Falling back before the gates of Moscow, standing in the wings like an avenger
And far away behind their lines the partisans are stirring in the forest
Coming unexpectedly upon their outposts, growing like a promise
You'll never know, you'll never know which way to turn, which way to look you'll never see us
As we're stealing through the blackness of the night
You'll never know, you'll never hear us
And the evening sings in a voice of amber, the dawn is surely coming
The morning roads lead to Stalingrad, and the sky is softly humming

Two broken Tigers on fire in the night
Flicker their souls to the wind
We wait in the lines for the final approach to begin
It's been almost four years that I've carried a gun
At home it will almost be spring
The flames of the Tigers are lighting the road to Berlin
Ah, quickly we move through the ruins that bow to the ground
The old men and children they send out to face us, they can't slow us down
And all that I ever
Was able to see
The eyes of the city are opening
Now it's the end of the dream

I'm coming home, I'm coming home, now you can taste it in the wind, the war is over
And I listen to the clicking of the train-wheels as we roll across the border
And now they ask me of the time that I was caught behind their lines and taken prisoner
"They only held me for a day, a lucky break, " I say they turn and listen closer
I'll never know, I'll never know why I was taken from the line and all the others
To board a special train and journey deep into the heart of holy Russia
And it's cold and damp in the transit camp, and the air is still and sullen
And the pale sun of October whispers the snow will soon be coming
And I wonder when I'll be home again and the morning answers "Never"
And the evening sighs, and the steely Russian skies go on forever

Songwriters: Alistair Ian Stewart
Roads to Moscow lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group

Great job Ed. I had not heard this song in a while. I remember when the album came out with this on it. As you know, Al was a historian, but add that with the music and lyrics (masterful), and your touch makes it that more dramatic. I'm glad I clicked on your version. Now off to Nostradamus!

If I had a picture of Hitler I would play this song and stare into Hitler's eyes for at least five hours. This probably makes you think I'm another Kylo Ren, the way he held up Vader's burned helmet.

"In the footsteps of Napoleon..... the shadowed figures stagger throgh the winter."

The German army in W.W II followed the path that Napoleon had taken in his quest to conquer Russia over one hundred years ealier and suffered the same defeat by the Russian army and the bitter cold winter.

Part of the communiststrategy was developed during WWII when the alliance which took on the Nazi'sput Soviet Russia and the free nation of United States on the same side. Was the defeat of Hitler a win for American freedom or Communist subversion? Americans have been swimming in this confusion ever since, even perpetuating the myth that Hitler’s National Socialist Party was 'rightwing'. This alliance provided the communists the inroads it needed to infiltrate American institutions, influencing its war strategies and eventually transforming its culture and people to accept their deadly collectivist system.

This is, and from my childhood no different, clearly the most brilliant song ever to have been written about the Second World War.

I love listening to this song in the dark and taking in the lyrics. Such a wonderfully written song through and through.

IMHO I've always thought Stalin had those soldiers, like this song's protagonist, sent to Siberia because he knew his Russian history. After Napoleon's defeat, Russian officers returned from a Europe filled with pluralistic governments and constitutional monarchies. Some of those officers became the Decembrists, trying to force that model on Russia. Needless to say, they didn't succeed.

Part of the communist strategy was developed during WWII when the alliance which took on the Nazi's put Soviet Russia and the free nation of United States on the same side. Was the defeat of Hitler a win for American freedom or Communist subversion? Americans have been swimming in this confusion ever since, even perpetuating the myth that Hitler’s National Socialist Party was 'rightwing'. This alliance provided the communists the inroads it needed to infiltrate American institutions, influencing its war strategies and eventually transforming its culture and people to accept their deadly collectivist system.

@Jay James um, if Hitler's Nazi regime was actually "left wing" then why were they fighting the Communists, who themselves were "left wing"? The Nazis and the Communists were such bitter enemies precisely because their stated ideologies were so diametrically opposed to one another-- one being extreme "right wing" (Nazism) and one being extreme "left wing" (Communism). Within Germany, Hitler was doing everything he could to stamp out any kind of left wing, pluralistic, inclusive ideology. Nazi fantasies about being the "superior race" are as far from "left wing" as you can possibly get.

Of course, in reality both Nazi Germany and Stalinist Russia were authoritarian dictatorships (just dictatorships with different stated ideologies). But as we know, all dictatorships end up acting in the same way no matter what their stated ideology is. That is, they oppress anyone that is not actively supporting the current regime/ideology... and they end up being places without freedom.

America's system works well because it is not extreme right wing or extreme left wing, it is somewhere in the middle-- and let's hope it stays that way.

Awesome Ballad

https://www.cvltnation.com/brutal-drawings-from-the-gulag/

http://www.whale.to/b/war.html

Remember the Russian soldiers who fought to defend the Rodina. 78th anniversary of Barbarossa Day. June 22 2019.

AOC LISTEN TO THIS SONG.
YOUR MICROSCOPIC BRAIN MIGHT LEARN SOMETHING.

This song is about false blame, accusations and hatred. Stalin took the Russian soldiers and sent many of them to the gulags to die a horrible death. Listen again.Speak truthfully, Hate less.

@billbrovold Stop being a useful idiot, Arthur is correct. Part of the communist strategy was developed during WWII when the alliance which took on the Nazi's put Soviet Russia and the free nation of United States on the same side. Was the defeat of Hitler a win for American freedom or Communist subversion? Americans have been swimming in this confusion ever since, even perpetuating the myth that Hitler’s National Socialist Party was 'rightwing'. This alliance provided the communists the inroads it needed to infiltrate American institutions, influencing its war strategies and eventually transforming its culture and people to accept their deadly collectivist system.

@Jay James Where did I say anything hateful ? She wasn't around when Ronald Reagan (With Pope John Paul II's help) called them what they were, The Evil Empire. And I'm thankful he put the Soviets out of business. I've met so many Poles & Hungarians who had to as schoolchildren look to Lenin before "Class" began. A biology teacher who waited 7 years for a new "car". Why do you think China & Putin hate liberty? I hear AOC saying NOTHING about Hong Kong saying ENOUGH to China. Communism is an end unto itself. They have to conquer & steal technology (Starting with STEALING a B29 @ the end of WW II) to stay afloat because they can't be competitive. Why? Because communism & socialism kill incentives. Everything is the state to AOC. Sweden had to be extremely prosperous before they developed the welfare state. Tell Bernie Sanders the news!
WELL EXPLAINED JAY JAMES !!!

So being against obscene wealth disparity means you're a Stalin fan? lol What kind of bullshit is that? Can you even hear yourself talk? The only one here with a microscopic brain is you.

ABSOLUTELY INCREDIBLE.

Excellent pictures to go with the song. My hat's off to you.

This is an epic masterpiece. Thank You!!!

Yes it is. It is far better than the trash that passes for music today.

The "final solution" and the "GULAG ARCHIPELAGO" (at the end of this song) were THE SAME CONSEQUENCE to both ideologies! WTF?

Two Ultra Radical IDEOLOGIES existing on extreme opposite ends of the political spectrum fighting each other to the death,,,,,, AND ,,,, YET,,,, the imprisonment of the innocent was the ACTUAL FINAL RESULT of BOTH!!!!!

but we owe so much to th Russians and Stalin for their efforts -- horrible irony

@jay Roberge Both Nazis' and Communists are from the political Left. Part of the communist strategy was developed during WWII when the alliance which took on the Nazi's put Soviet Russia and the free nation of United States on the same side. Was the defeat of Hitler a win for American freedom or Communist subversion? Americans have been swimming in this confusion ever since, even perpetuating the myth that Hitler’s National Socialist Party was 'rightwing'. This alliance provided the communists the inroads it needed to infiltrate American institutions, influencing its war strategies and eventually transforming its culture and people to accept their deadly collectivist system.

Wow,,, you are right,,, the wall street bankers financed the Bolshies in the Russian revolution and Hitler's rise to power and now they are financing Antifa, SPLC, and all the SOROS companies that all promote Communist ideologies.

@Jay James Nazi is of the far right.

@Jay James um, if Hitler's Nazi regime was actually "left wing" then why were they fighting the Communists, who themselves were "left wing"? The Nazis and the Communists were such bitter enemies precisely because their stated ideologies were so diametrically opposed to one another-- one being extreme "right wing" (Nazism) and one being extreme "left wing" (Communism). Within Germany, Hitler was doing everything he could to stamp out any kind of left wing, pluralistic, inclusive ideology. Nazi fantasies about being the "superior race" are as far from "left wing" as you can possibly get.

Of course, in reality both Nazi Germany and Stalinist Russia were authoritarian dictatorships (just dictatorships with different stated ideologies). But as we know, all dictatorships end up acting in the same way no matter what their stated ideology is. That is, they oppress anyone that is not actively supporting the current regime/ideology... and they end up being places without freedom.

America's system works well because it is not extreme right wing or extreme left wing, it is somewhere in the middle-- and let's hope it stays that way.

Barbarossa is only incidental to the ACTUAL object of this song!!! The Gulag Archipelago is the main inspiration here! And true to form,,, the indoctrinated are blind to reality! The radical left imprisons the innocent for thought crimes against the state!

If Hillary had won, this would have been a reality in the United States. I fear that it would have started a civil war. I thank God every day that she lost and Trump won. Pray for him.

@Lisa B We're being led into world conflict. WW1 and WW2 led to the globalist plan ramping up. Now we live in the nightmare. How we'll get out who knows. Young people can't learn from history. They are not taught. I fear for the future of the West. Generations that came before us would be appalled at what our countries have become. President Trump is carrying a heavy burden.

jay Roberge, Canadian?

A. Salmon I completely agree with you here. The left hates Trump because he is the speed bump in their plans for a one world government that will enslave ALL of mankind. They hate him because he was not the one (Hillary Clinton) that was preselected to lead us down the path of enslavement. This battle is spiritual. I don’t know if Trump knows this, but I thank God for him every day and pray for his safety and that God will grant him wisdom. I have put my faith in God and His son Jesus so I am not worried about my soul, but I do expect that we will see more and more persecution against Christians and observant Jews. If Trump does not get re-elected (there will be MASSIVE voter fraud), the persecution will be immediate and horrifying. We all need to start praying now. God bless.

The GULAG Archipelago of THE WEST will be exponentially more cruel and scientifically constructed to 1 hide it's very existence and 2 extract maximum pain from the residents.

A very moving introduction to the "GULAG Archipelago",, The novel of which may indeed have been the inspiration for this beautifully emotive song.

It wasn't a novel!

@Steve Sheldon OK mister ass hole, proffessor BULL SHIT,, technically it was a HISTORY LESSON in the form of a series of books written to both teach and entertain!!

Solzhenitsyn IS THE soldier in this song!

Gulag Archipelago is the novel that takes over from the story of this soldiers unjust arbitrary imprisonment at the end of this song and illustrates our coming reality in the once free west!

"GULAG Archipelago" is the novel that takes over explaining the soldiers as a result from the soldiers imprisonment by Stalin at end of this song

Solzhenitsyn's ACTUAL EXPERIENCE!!!!

Used to hear this song a lot on KMET in LA in the mid seventies. Was a contemporary of "The Edmund Fitzgerald". And the war was hidden (rather it was seldom mentioned in the news) in the US but not Europe. Britain was PLEADING with us for 2 years for our help bc they KNEW for a certainty that the Nazis were on their way. Germany would have over-run England just like the rest of Europe except Russia. If troops had begun their advance a few months earlier, the war would have gone on a good deal longer and possibly with a world-changing outcome. Americans who say they don't like Russians (for whatever excuse they think justifies it) don't know the history of the regular citizen's struggles in that place of much harshness and profound unfairness. In this current era, they're a lot more like us than about 90% of native-born Americans realize.

Many Americans think D-Day won the war. Not to take anything away from the bravery of our soldiers, but it was small potatoes compared toe the Battle of Kursk and Battle of Stalingrad. It reminds you of John Lennon's lyric in A Day in the Life: I saw a film today, oh boy / The English Army had just won the war

@Mark Kelly Considering the total number of people who died in that worldwide war, it was likely equivalent to an actual small lake of blood and involved a mountain of corpses. People talk about how bad war is today (and it IS horrible of course), but the further one looks back in history the more they must realize how insanely brutal it was before firearms were invented. A lot of the battling was done with hand-held implements and involved hacking and bashing and chopping at one another.

@Wayne Cameron total US military and civilian deaths in WWII: 418,800 - Total Soviet military and civilian deaths in the Battle of Stalingrad alone; 1,140,000


See the difference?

@Mark Kelly I wasn't replying concerning any differences.

Part of the communist strategy was developed during WWII when the alliance which took on the Nazi's put Soviet Russia and the free nation of United States on the same side. Was the defeat of Hitler a win for American freedom or Communist subversion? Americans have been swimming in this confusion ever since, even perpetuating the myth that Hitler’s National Socialist Party was 'rightwing'. This alliance provided the communists the inroads it needed to infiltrate American institutions, influencing its war strategies and eventually transforming its culture and people to accept their deadly collectivist system.

Makes you wonder how many Soviet soldiers never saw home after fighting well, enduring capture and ultimately surviving the war. Tragic ending.

Estimates run between 2 and 5 million Soviet soldiers were sent to the gulags at the end of the war and between 1 and 3 million didn't make it home after that to say Stalin was a cruel man doesn't even begin to describe his evil.

Part of the communist strategy was developed during WWII when the alliance which took on the Nazi's put Soviet Russia and the free nation of United States on the same side. Was the defeat of Hitler a win for American freedom or Communist subversion? Americans have been swimming in this confusion ever since, even perpetuating the myth that the National Socialist Party was 'rightwing'. This alliance provided the communists the inroads it needed to infiltrate American institutions, influencing its war strategies and eventually transforming its culture and people to accept their deadly collectivist system.

They dig remains of the fallen defenders of Stalingrad every year. That and soldier remains from both sides of the lines are found and given a proper burial. There's lots of vids here on YouTube.

@Jay James um, if Hitler's Nazi regime was actually "left wing" then why were they fighting the Communists, who themselves were "left wing"? The Nazis and the Communists were such bitter enemies precisely because their stated ideologies were so diametrically opposed to one another-- one being extreme "right wing" (Nazism) and one being extreme "left wing" (Communism). Within Germany, Hitler was doing everything he could to stamp out any kind of left wing, pluralistic, inclusive ideology. Nazi fantasies about being the "superior race" are as far from "left wing" as you can possibly get.

Of course, in reality both Nazi Germany and Stalinist Russia were authoritarian dictatorships (just dictatorships with different stated ideologies). But as we know, all dictatorships end up acting in the same way no matter what their stated ideology is. That is, they oppress anyone that is not actively supporting the current regime/ideology... and they end up being places without freedom.

America's system works well because it is not extreme right wing or extreme left wing, it is somewhere in the middle-- and let's hope it stays that way.

Well done! Great video.

I'm coming home, I'm coming home, now you can taste it in the wind, the war is over
And I listen to the clicking of the train-wheels as we roll across the border
And now they ask me of the time that I was caught behind their lines and taken prisoner
"They only held me for a day, a lucky break, " I say they turn and listen closer
I'll never know, I'll never know why I was taken from the line and all the others
To board a special train and journey deep into the heart of holy Russia
And it's cold and damp in the transit camp, and the air is still and sullen
And the pale sun of October whispers the snow will soon be coming
And I wonder when I'll be home again and the morning answers "Never"
And the evening sighs, and the steely Russian skies go on forever


Roads to Moscow by Al Stewart

Yeah, Man! You can never really go home.

Nicely done

Beautiful historical song!

What type of leader sends old men and children to fight a war? After the Germans pledged their souls to remain loyal to the Führer, he blamed them for the failure.

When the rest are dead the young and old are sent in. They had no choice.

@rutabagasteu They did surrender they just wouldn't do it.

They were brainwashed... that, and they knew the Russian soldiers were going to exact harsh revenge.

Funny; listened to this as a kid, never thought a lot about the lyrics.
Now, after the last few years of studying the great war, the cold war, the great patriotic war, you realize just how much al stewart put into this song.

I read that he studies WW II and Russian history for 7 years while writing this song.

Vielen Dank

Gern geschehen

In the mid 70s, I attended the Defense Language Institute in Monterey, CA to become a Russian linguist. During one of our class sessions, we played this song for our teachers who were very moved by the song and its accuracy. The teachers were Russian and some were descendants of soldiers who had been imprisoned by Stalin after the war. The stories they shared with us that day were as haunting as this song. It has been one of my favorites ever since.

@Almis Peter Salcius No. Ft Ord was across the bay, and the Naval School was another location. When I was there in the early 70s, the school was at the Presidio of Monterrey. The NCO club was at the bottom of the hill overlooking the bay, and the classrooms were around halfway up the hill. In the past, all of it may have been Ft. Hood. One of the more interesting experiences of my life.

i was slated to attend this great institute but was unable to do so. how ive so regretted this for so many years. lord bless you for sharing this and thank you for your service.

im fr. nathan brooks+ a jail chaplain

That's an amazing story.

In 1976, I used this as an introduction to my Operation Barbarossa paper presentation. The class was Political Science. Instructor was Cletus Lynch. I got an A. He was very impressed. I researched the information about the operation and I couldn't believe the parallels. I felt like it was meant to be.

great job with the graphics

This piece has been introduced to me a few weeks ago, it speaks to my soul at a deep level. Are their other's who preform this besides A Stewart? Cheryl

Wow! Great job Ed.

Thanks Bruce. It was a bit of hard work to get things just right. I still think the written parts are too long, but without knowing what was happening, it would just be pictures.

@Ed Ireland I really like the work you did for this video, but agree, the commentary is rather cumbersome-perhaps shortened snippets like "tweets" would convey the back story of the war without detracting from the story line so much.

This musical masterpiece has obviously inspired so many who have heard it. I am glad you have taken pains to find images that so accurately portray each step of the story.

I used to listen over 40 years ago on the radio...now I can see what he was describing in song.

Outstanding production! Thank you! In 2017, it bears a striking resemblance to the war in Syria. Humanity's inhumane atrocities continue; only the players have changed. Such is history.

I believe that Al Stewart's ballad writing is his greatest asset. "Roads to Moscow" is his crowning glory.

@Arthur F. Scaltrito
1812. The US invasion of Canada.

@sirderam1 Before or after the White House was burned to the ground?

@Arthur F. Scaltrito
Before - that's why the White House was burned to the ground.

Check out: Don't Let The Bastards Get You Down, by Kris Kristofferson.

I have always wondered about the true story behind this hauntingly, beautiful song. Thank you for doing all this work to explain it. It is one of those songs you just can't turn away from when it starts to play; it captures you and won't let you go until the very last note fades away; your video does the same.  Wonderful job!

Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

I believe Al Stewart took 7 years to research the history before writing this song. Time well spent.

@armadillotoe He said he read 40 books on the subject.

Thanks Terri...I wasn't really expecting any comments but I'm glad you liked it. It's always been a favorite song of mine.

Fair dues to you but you must have but a lot of work into that. Loved some of the old footage and how you mixed it with the words of the song. Have to say it is one masterpiece for a real gem really fit for a song that we just don't often enough.
Thank you