SO LONG, IT'S BEEN GOOD TO KNOW YOU

(WOODY GUTHRIE) (Nov 10, 1942)


CISCO HOUSTON & WOODY GUTHRIE (c. 1944)

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WOODY GUTHRIE's World War II rewriting of his own "Dusty Old Dust," recorded by Woody Guthrie (with Cisco Houston; fourth stanza omitted) for Moses Asch, New York, NY, Apr 16-May 8, 1944; reissued on "Songs for Political Action," Bear Family Records BCD 15720 JL, 1996, Hard Travelin': The Asch Recordings Vol. 3, Smithsonian Folkways SF 40102, and That's Why We're Marching,
Smithsonian Folkways SF 40021

Promotional use of soundfiles by kind permission of Jeff Place, Smithsonian Folkways.

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Lyrics as reprinted in Robert Shelton (ed.), Woody Guthrie, Born to Win, New York, NY, 1976, pp. 249-250,
© 1965 The Guthrie Children's Trust Fund

I got the news that the war had begun
It was straight for the Army Hall that I run
And all of the people in my home town
Was a running up and a running down
Singing:

CHORUS:
So long, it's been good to know you
So long, it's been good to know you
So long, it's been good to know you
There's a mighty big war that's got to be won
And we'll get back together again.
The crowd was packed by the railroad track
People was yelling and patting my back
And while the engineer rung his bell
I hugged all the mothers and kissed all the gals,
Singing:

CHORUS

I got to the camp and I learnt how to fight
Fascists in daytime, mosquitoes at night
I got my orders to cross o'er the sea
So I waved "goodbye" to the girls I could see,
Singing:

CHORUS

I got on a boat and I started to float
My old pack-sack and my big wool coat
With ten thousand men we rode the foam
And sung this song to the people back home:

CHORUS

I landed somewhere on a fighting shore
With ten million soldiers and ten million more
And while we were chasing that Super Race
We sung this song in the chase.
It was:

CHORUS

So it won't be long till the fascists are gone
And all of their likes are finished and done
We'll throw the clods of dirt in their face
And walk away from that lonesome place
Singing:

CHORUS

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