Ewan McColl
I’m a freeborn man of the travelling people
Got no fixed abode with nomads I am numbered
Country lanes and byways were always my ways
I never fancied being lumbered
In the open ground we could stop and linger
For a month or two for time was not our master
Then we’d pack our load and be on the road
Nice and easy no need to go faster
I’ve known life hard and I’ve known life easy
And I’ve cursed the nights when winter winds were storming
But I’ve danced and sung through the whole night long
Watched the summer sun rise in the morning
We knew the woods and the resting places
And the small birds sang when winter time was over
Then I’d jog with my horse and dog
They were good old days for the rover
All you freeborn men of the travelling people
Every tinker, rolling stone and gypsy rover
Winds of change are blowing old ways are going
Your travelling days will soon be over