Tune: Red Wing, by Kerry Mills and Thurland Chattaway, 1907; new union lyrics by Woody Guthrie, 1940; new verse 3 lyrics by Nancy Katz (date unknown); performed by Pete Seeger and Arlo Guthrie - From the album, Hard Travelin' Soundtrack, 2000
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Lyrics:
There once was a union maid.
She never was afraid
Of goons and ginks and company finks
And the deputy sheriffs that maid the raid.
She went to the union hall
When a meeting it was called.
And when the company boys came ’round,
She always stood her ground.
No, you can’t scare me! I’m sticking to the union!
I’m sticking to the union! I’m sticking to the union!
Oh, you can’t scare me! I’m sticking to the union!
I’m sticking to the union till the day I die.
This union maid was wise
To the tricks of company spies.
She couldn’t be fooled by company stools.
She’d always organize the guys.
She’d always get her way
When she struck for higher pay.
She’d show her card to the National Guard,
And this is what she’d say:
No, you can’t scare me! I’m sticking to the union!
I’m sticking to the union! I’m sticking to the union!
Oh, you can’t scare me! I’m sticking to the union!
I’m sticking to the union till the day I die.
A woman’s struggle is hard [You girls who want to be free]*
Even with a union card, [Just take a tip from me.]
She’s got to stand on her own two feet [Get you a man who’s a union man]
And not be a servant of a male elite. [And join the Ladies’ Auxiliary.]
It’s time to take a stand, [Married life ain’t hard]
Keep working hand in hand. [When you’ve got a union card.]
There is a job that’s got to be done [A union man has a happy life]
And a fight that’s got to be won. [When he’s got a union wife.]
No, you can’t scare me! I’m sticking to the union!
I’m sticking to the union! I’m sticking to the union!
Oh, you can’t scare me! I’m sticking to the union!
I’m sticking to the union till the day I die.
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It's almost certainly the case that Guthrie's song inspired Richard Hudson and John Ford, members of the English folk-rock band, The Strawbs, to write their own, albeit uncredited, homage, Part of the Union, from the band's 1973 album, Bursting at the Seams:
Lyrics to Part of the Union
Now I'm a union man
Amazed at what I am
I say what I think, that the company stinks
Yes I'm a union man
When we meet in the local hall
I'll be voting with them all
With a hell of a shout, it's "Out brothers, out!"
And the rise of the factory's fall
Oh, you don't get me, I'm part of the union
You don't get me, I'm part of the union
You don't get me, I'm part of the union
Till the day I die, till the day I die
As a union man I'm wise
To the lies of the company spies
And I don't get fooled by the factory rules
'Cause I always read between the lines
And I always get my way
If I strike for higher pay
When I show my card to the Scotland Yard
And this is what I say
Oh, oh, you don't get me, I'm part of the union
You don't get me, I'm part of the union
You don't get me, I'm part of the union
Till the day I die, till the day I die
Before the union did appear
My life was half as clear
Now I've got the power to the working hour
And every other day of the year
So though I'm a working man
I can ruin the government's plan
And I'm not hard, the sight of my card
Makes me some kind of superman
Oh, oh, oh, you don't get me, I'm part of the union
You don't get me, I'm part of the union
You don't get me, I'm part of the union
Till the day I die, till the day I die
You don't get me, I'm part of the union
You don't get me, I'm part of the union
You don't get me, I'm part of the union
Till the day I die, till the day I die
Note:
* The [bracketed] lyrics represent Guthrie's original (culturally dated, to put it mildly) verse three lyrics, which Nancy Katz updated for obvious reasons.