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This traditional Confederate Civil War song from southern Appalachia is sung from the perspective of a defiant but seemingly sadly introspective southern soldier pining for his family and sweetheart, Polly.

The graphic nature of the violence of the time and the soldier’s surrender to his fate ‘If the Yankees don’t kill me I’ll live until I die’ paint a picture of a harsh conflict and a young man and his family who represent just a small fraction of those who suffered so grievously during those years of war.

lyrics

Polly oh Polly, It's for your sake alone,

I've left my old father, My country and my home,

I've left my old mother, To weep and to mourn



I am a rebel soldier

And far from my home.



It's grape shot and musket, And the cannons lumber loud,

There's many a mangled body, The blanket for their shroud,

There's many a mangled body, Left on the fields alone



I am a rebel soldier

And far from my home.



I'll eat when I'm hungry, I'll drink when I am dry,

If the Yankees don’t kill me, I'll live until I die,

If the Yankees don’t kill me, And cause me to mourn,



I am a rebel soldier

And far from my home.



Here's a good old cup of brandy, And a glass of nice wine,

You can drink to your true love, And I will drink to mine,

And you can drink to your true love, And I'll lament and mourn,



I am a rebel soldier

And far from my home.



I'll build me a castle, On some green mountain high,

Where I can see Polly, As she is passing by,

Where I can see Polly, And help her to mourn,



I am a rebel soldier

And far from my home.

credits

from Am I Born to Die?, released October 20, 2015

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The Ghosts of Johnson City Portland, Maine

Based in Maine with musical roots in Appalachia and the Deep South, The Ghosts of Johnson City present simple and soulful versions of old mountain music, Civil War songs, coal-mining melodies, disaster chronicles, haunting murder ballads and tunes of love and loss in times of poverty. ... more

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