Which Side Are You On?: Then & Now

The 1st Lineman probably would've been familiar or, at least, appreciative of Florence Reese's 1931 union ballad, "Which Side Are You On?" which was covered and popularized by Pete Seeger in the 60s. This past week, Ani DiFranco released the album, ¿What Side Are You On? last week on Tuesday, January 17 which includes a version of the song.

Reese's original lyrics are below, as is video of Ani DiFranco and Bruce Cockburn covering Seeger's version in 2009:

Come all of you good workers,

Good news to you I’ll tell,

Of how that good old union

Has come in here to dwell.

Which side are you on?

Which side are you on?

Which side are you on?

Which side are you on?

My daddy was a miner,

And I’m a miner’s son,

And I’ll stick with the union,

Till every battle’s won.

They say in Harlan County,

There are no neutrals there.

You’ll either be a union man,

Or a thug for J.H. Blair.

Oh, workers can you stand it?

Oh, tell me how you can.

Will you be a lousy scab,

Or will you be a man ?

Don’t scab for the bosses,

Don’t listen to their lies.

Us poor folks haven’t got a chance,

Unless we organize.