Malvina Reynolds: Song Lyrics and Poems  

Napalm

Notes: words and music by Malvina Reynolds; copyright 1965 Schroder Music Company, renewed 1993. The lead sheet and copyright record for this song report Malvina as having authored both words and music, while the lyrics-only sheet says "music to the tune of Woody Guthrie's 'Slipknot.'" The latter instructions were probably given so that people could pick up the song quickly, singing it to something they knew. Malvina sometimes wrote tunes but suggested other tunes on several songs so they could be handed out at demonstrations and sung.

Lucy Baines, did you ever see that napalm?
Did you ever see a baby hit with napalm?
When they try to pull it loose why the flesh comes too,
And that's the way they do with that napalm.
That's the way they do with that napalm.

They have lots of fancy names for that napalm,
Like "escalation games," but it's napalm.
And they drop it from the sky,
And the people burn and die,
And the world wonders why we use napalm.

Well, your school is too refined to speak of napalm,
And the White House has no time to talk of napalm,
And the war is far away,
But it goes on night and day,
And it's your hand and mine that drops the napalm.

Lucy Baines, did you ever see that napalm?
Did you ever see a baby hit with napalm?
When they try to pull it loose why the flesh comes too.
And that's the way they do with that napalm.
That's the way they do with that napalm.

Malvina Reynolds songbook(s) in which the music to this song appears:
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Other place(s) where the music to this song appears:
---- Sing Out!, Volume 15(6) (1966), p. 21

Malvina Reynolds recording(s) on which this song is performed:
---- [none]