To the tune of last winter was a hard one

Dm F C

This summer’s been a hard one, Out on the picket line

Dm F C

In the kitchen and infirmary they’ve also served the time 

Dm F C

Four months now we’ve been striking, the Teamsters and the rest

Dm F C Dm 

Four months now we’ve been striking and they haven’t beat us yet

Chorus: 

F C Dm
So rise up for the union, don’t give away to gloom

Dm F C

Can’t you hear the marching feet, they’re beating out their doom

Dm F C 

Hear the young ones crying, neither sigh nor pine 

Dm F C Dm 

We’ll see that times get better when we hold that picket line 

When first that I moved out here after serving in the war

They said there’s work for every hand you never need be poor 

But the winter found us standing asking work beside the wall

There’s scarce enough to go around to keep a home at all

 

Remember how last winter the coal yards won their share 

And on that day back in May we won the market square 

Now they’ve got us in the holding pens to try to keep us down

They can hold us in the stockade but they’ll never hold the town

 

Those Citizens Alliance boys, God damn them all to hell

Likewise to Olson’s guardsmen and the city cops as well

Who shot down Ness and Belor out on the market way 

I wish I had a rifle, I would give them all the same 

 

The winter’s coming fast now, the stores are getting thin

Each passing dawn that’s coming on we’re closer to the win

No Legion vigilantes, no scabs anymore

We’ll win ourselves a union town this year of ‘34