Paid in Blood

[Verse 1]
He signed his name in a courthouse line
Said it wouldn’t be for long
They told him he’d defend what’s right
And that his country made him strong

Now his picture hangs in a hallway frame
With a ribbon pinned in red
And the ones who sent him overseas
Still sleep in their own beds


[Pre-Chorus]
They talk about honor
They talk about pride
But they never stand
On the other side


[Chorus]
How many sons have to die
Before we finally see
That the price of pride and power
Is paid in blood, not victory?

How many lives must fall
For another line on a screen?
How many sons have to die
Before we call it what it means?


[Verse 2]
Different war, different flag
Different desert sky
Different speech about freedom
Different reason why

But the mothers look the same
And the tears don’t change
And the sound of a folded flag
Still echoes just the same


[Pre-Chorus 2]
They talk about glory
They talk about fate
But the ones who decide
Are the ones who wait


[Chorus]
How many sons have to die
Before we finally see
That the price of pride and power
Is paid in blood, not victory?

How many lives must fall
For another line on a screen?
How many sons have to die
Before we call it what it means?


[Bridge - intensiv, nearly spoken]
You can dress it up in medals
You can wrap it in a lie
But you can’t erase the silence
When another mother cries


[Final Chorus]
How many sons have to die
Before we finally see
That the price of pride and power
Is paid in blood, not victory?

How many lives must fall
For another line on a screen?
How many sons have to die
Before we call it what it means?

60s Folk, Protest Folk, Acoustic Ballad, Singer-Songwriter, Minimal Arrangement, Social Commentary