Dm C Dm Jesus was a working man C Dm And a hero you will hear C Dm Am Born in the town of Bethlehem Dm Gm At the turning of the year A7 Dm At the turning of the year When Jesus was a little lad Streets rang with his name For he argued with the older men And put them all to shame He put them all to shame He became a wandering journeyman And he traveled far and wide And he noticed how wealth and poverty Live always side by side Live always side by side So he said "Come you working men Farmers and weavers too If you would only stand as one This world belongs to you This world belongs to you" When the rich men heard what the carpenter had done To the Roman troops they ran Saying put this rebel Jesus down He's a menace to God and man He's a menace to God and man The commander of the occupying troops Just laughed and then he said "There's a cross to spare on Calvaries hill By the weekend he'll be dead By the weekend he'll be dead" Now Jesus walked among the poor For the poor were his own kind And they'd never let them get near enough To take him from behind To take him from behind So they hired one of the traders trade And an informer was he And he sold his brother to the butchers men For a fistful of silver money For a fistful of silver money And Jesus sat in the prison cell And they beat him and offered him bribes To desert the cause of his fellow man And work for the rich men's tribe, To work for the rich men's tribe And the sweat stood out on Jesus' brow And the blood was in his eye When they nailed his body to the Roman cross And they laughed as they watched him die They laughed as they watched him die Two thousand years have passed and gone Many a hero too But the dream of this poor carpenter Remains in the hands of you Remains in the hands of you
Cody tells me that Phil left out some verses and changed some words, so here are the original lyrics:
Jesus was a working man, A hero as you shall hear. Born in the slums of Bethle-(Am)hem At the turning of the year, Yes, the turning of the year. When Jesus was a little lad. The streets rang with his name, For he argued with the aldermen And he put them all to shame. Yes he... He became a wandering journeyman And he wandered far and wide, And he saw how wealth and poverty Lived always side by side, Yes... He said, "Come all you working men, You farmers and weavers, too. If you will only organize, This world belongs to you, Yes... When the rich men heard what the carpenter had done, To the Roman troops they ran. Saying "Put this rebel Jesus down, He's a menace to god and man, Yes... Jesus walked among the poor For the poor were his own kind, And they wouldn't let the cops get near enough To take him from behind, Yes... So they hired one of the traitor's trade And a stool-pigeon was he And he sold his brother to the butcher's men For a fistful of silver money. Yes... When Jesus lay in the prisoner's cell, They beat him and offered him bribes To desert the cause of his own dear folk And work for the rich men's tribe, Yes... The commander of the occupying troops He laughed and then he said, "There's a cross to spare on Calvary Hill, By the weekend he'll be dead, Yes.. The sweat stood out upon his brow And the blood was in his eye, And they nailed his body to the Roman cross And they laughed as they watched him die, Yes.. Two thousand years have passed and gone, And many a hero too, But the dream of this poor carpenter At last it is coming true, Yes...
Chords supplied by Jim Lesses and corrected by Cody Gillespie-Lynch.
Last modified 20 Jul 02 by trent