This was a track from a series of songs Phil wrote for Broadside magazine (1963/64) so it isn't too surprising not to find a video of him performing it, thankfully this guy does a nice cover.
Oh, I am the Unknown Soldier who died in World War Two.
I didn't want to fight, it was the only thing to do.
I was the victim of a world that went insane
Will you show me that I didn't die in vain.
Remember me, when the crosses are a burnin',
Remember me, when the racists come around.
Remember me, when the tides of peace are turnin',
Remember me and please don't let me down.
On the South Pacific Islands and the Iwo Jima sands
We raised the flag of freedom over many distant lands
And every time I killed a man my own heart felt the pain
Will you show me that I didn't die in vain.
Remember me, when the crosses are a burnin',
Remember me, when the racists come around.
Remember me, when the tides of peace are turnin',
Remember me and please don't let me down.
And I carried my old rifle to the European shore
And every friend that died made me die a little more.
Have pity on the man who put a bullet through my brain
And show me that I didn't die in vain.
Remember me, when the crosses are a burnin',
Remember me, when the racists come around.
Remember me, when the tides of peace are turnin',
Remember me and please don't let me down.
When the Fascists started marching many millions had to pay;
We saw them rise to power but we looked the other way.
It happened once before and it can happen once again
Will you show me that I didn't die in vain.
Remember me, when the crosses are a burnin',
Remember me, when the racists come around.
Remember me, when the tides of peace are turnin',
Remember me and please don't let me down.
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Around 100,000 people lost their lives to the Hiroshima bomb and a three days later another 50,000 in Nagasaki. Sadly, the losses are always far greater to the people rather than to the people that send them to war in the first place - "It's always the old to lead us to the war, it's always the young to fall."
Not everyone that dies in war wants to be involved and not everyone that dies deserves that fate no matter what their beliefs.
Penderecki's ode to the dead ('threnody') is as haunting a tribute to the cries as you could find.
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