the powers we're commanding

Story Behind The Song

inspired by the last and ongoing war

Song Description

protest song about the futility of war

Song Length 3:05 Genre Folk - Contemporary, Folk - General
Tempo Medium Slow (91 - 110) Lead Vocal Male Vocal
Mood Moving, Poignant Subject General, Peace
Language English Era 2000 and later

Lyrics

THE POWERS WER'E COMMANDING
(c) Dennis Makepeace
It's a matter of opinion,
a choice to choose
Was the war worth winning
more than the lives you would lose,
Revenge for terror ,
evil to foil,
A fight for freedom
or a thirst for oil,
For innocents suffered,
our own had to die, Was the peace we recovered
worth the tears that we cried? chorus
One day there'll be peace,
hope and understanding,
Wisdom and love,
the powers we're commanding
repeat
Was it worth all the stories,
the white lies and spin,
Convincing the people
a war we must win,
Like guns against arrows,
or bombs against bows,
Superior weapons
destroyed our foes,
But innocents suffered,
our own had to die,
Was the peace we recovered
worth the tears that we cried?
chorus
One day there'll be peace,
hope and understanding,
Wisdom and love,
the powers we're commanding
repeat

I like the lyrics a lot, though they are complex to present musically. To a degree I can hear Paul Simon in the song, but also John Denver. See comments below.

Great lyrics ! Loved the question and answer theme .

Great job really love the sound on the guitar and wonderful musician ship in the performance. Lyrically enjoyable with a deeper meaning. Very well done.

The age-old philosophical theme that it is impossible to achieve peace by war ... A fair good song, a deep voice piercing the soul, a memorable beautiful melody.

soon to be a classic

nice vocal and guitar . sounds like a classic 70's folk anthem.

Great message. Kind of hits me as being Frampton-ish--that's a great thing!

I loved the guitar which was played with real verve and energy. I'm wondering whether you used a non-standard tuning? The guitar reminded me of some of Joni Mitchell's early work. Very well sung. Melodically strong.

so very much in keeping with the socio/political traditions of folk music (IE: Pete Seeger or Woody Guthrie) - this is a timeless story well told. kudos to the artist. . .

Very well written song with thoughtful lyrics. The vocals are excellent and well phrased and delivered. The guitars are nicely recorded and provide a strong rhythmic background to the melody. Well done - I enjoyed it much.

Oh, I hope you are right. It is good to hear a hopeful song. It is difficult to write a song like this without becoming maudlin, but you pull it off with the neutral music, which supports the lyrics and never overpowers the voice and the words. Bravo!

Great accoustic guitar!! Great chord changes!! Nice vocals!! Great message of hope and peace!!

This songs fits in another era. Maybe the 50's/60's when Folk Music was booming. The topic is definitely not original if one considers the rise of Folk Music fifty-some years ago, but it is very original for today..... It's done very well. Really like the acoustic guitar. Very strong rhythm playing. Nicely arranged also. Everything seems to blend together smoothly. In addition, I like the vocals. The sound fits the song. To me this sounds like a top shelf production. It's really strong material.

Very nice song. Great message. Solid lyrics. Really like the raspy-ness to your voice. Shades of Dave Mason....actually the whole song has a Dave Mason feel and THAT is a compliment. Solid guitar work. Also, although the song has a 70's feel to it, it is very contemporary because of the message.

Pretty melody. Smooth vocal with nice quality and pitch. Well performed rhythm guitar. Good lyrics. Nice sentiment. A good song.

Good vocal pitch and nice melody with a bit of a Gordon Giltrap feel about it.

Lyrics Dennis Makepeace Music Dennis Makepeace
Producer Dennis Makepeace Publisher (c) Dennis Makepeace
Performance Dennis Makepeace

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