Don McLean - Babylon (restored 1971 vinyl LP "American Pie")

 

Don McLean - Babylon (restored 1971 vinyl LP "American Pie")

By the waters

The waters

Of Babylon

 

We lay down and wept

And wept

For thee Zion

 

We remember

Thee remember

Thee remember

Thee Zion

 

Don McLean – vocals, acoustic guitar, banjo

Lee Hays – arranger

West Forty Fourth Street Rhythm and Noise Choir – chorus

 

The song Babylon is from the 1971 LP "American Pie".  It's based on Psalm 137, a song of mourning the loss of Jerusalem to Babylon and the exile of the Jewish people around 600 BCE.  It describes how they would sit by the waters of Babylon — perhaps the rivers Tigris and Euphrates, perhaps the irrigation canals.  There, they would hang their harps in the trees in sorrow while they remember Zion.  Their Babylonian captors would mockingly demand that they sing one of their songs but the Israelites would not.  

 

Donald McLean (born October 2, 1945) is an American singer-songwriter, best known for his 1971 hit song "American Pie", an 8-and-a-half-minute folk rock "cultural touchstone" about the loss of innocence of the early rock and roll generation.

 

I do not own the copyright to the music, the recording and the photos.  (Images on this video were appropriated from the original album "American Pie".) This video is posted for educational use under Section 17 U.S. Code § 107. Limitations on exclusive rights: Fair use.

 

All posts are rendered in old school using restored vinyl LPs.  This channel does not use recordings from CDs.  As much as possible, I attempted to remove most of the pops and crackles from the original vinyl album.  Some remastering was applied to make the performance cut through within the confines of  the loudness wars.

 

Hope you enjoy. 

 

 

INXDS.   #folksong #vinylrecord #Psalm137