Folk Rock

First on stage with the first song at the Woodstock festival on August 15, 1969, was Richie Havens with “Handsome Johnny.” Havens began the Woodstock festival and held the crowd for three hours, as they were waiting for other musicians to arrive and set up. The performance helped to launch his career. The anti-war song “Handsome Johnny” was written by Havens and Louis Gossett.

Known professionally as Richie Havens, he was born Richard Pierce Havens in Brooklyn, New York, the oldest of nine children. He was of Blackfoot descent on his father’s side and British West Indian descent on his mother’s side. Havens was a songwriter, singer and guitarist known for his percussive style. His work encompassed a number of genres, including folk, folk rock, funk blues, and soul.

Here are the lyrics to “Handsome Johnny” by Richie Havens:

Hey, looka yonder, tell me what’s that you see
Marching to the fields of Concord?
Looks like Handsome Johnny with a musket in his hand
Marching to the Concord war, hey, marching to the Concord war

Hey, looka yonder, tell me what’s that you see
Marching to the fields of Gettysburg?
Looks like Handsome Johnny with a flintlock in his hand
Marching to the Gettysburg war, hey, marching to the Gettysburg war

Hey, looka yonder, tell me what you see
Marching to the fields of Dunkirk?
Looks like Handsome Johnny with a carbine in his hand
Marching to the Dunkirk war, hey, marching to the Dunkirk war

Hey, looka yonder, tell me what you see
Marching to the fields of Korea?
Looks like Handsome Johnny with an M1 in his hand
Marching to the Korean war, hey, marching to the Korean war

Hey, it’s a long hard road, it’s a long hard road
It’s a long hard road, hey, before we’ll be free
Hey, before we’ll be free

Hey, looka yonder, tell me what you see
Marching to the fields of Vietnam?
Looks like Handsome Johnny with an M15
Marching to the Vietnam war, hey, marching to the Vietnam war

Hey, looka yonder, tell me what you see
Marching to the fields of Birmingham?
Looks like Handsome Johnny with his hand rolled in a fist
Marching to the Birmingham war, hey, marching to the Birmingham war

Hey, what’s the use of singing this song
Some of you are not even listening
Tell me what it is we’ve got to do, wait for our fields to start glistening
Hey, wait for the bullets to start whistling

Hey, here comes a hydrogen bomb and here comes a guided missile
Here comes a hydrogen bomb, I can almost hear its whistle
I can almost hear its whistle

Check Out The Groove Pad for More 1960s Music

The Pass the Paisley Groove Pad is a resting stop, a place to chill out and listen to the featured song on the stereo. If the mood strikes you, click on the juke box to access and listen to the 50+ free online songs there. The TV has several channels, with selections updated twice a week. Every now and then, Pass the Paisley hosts an all-request of 1960s and 1970s songs for a Be-In at the juke box in the Groove Pad. Keep on truckin’. Hope you enjoyed “Handsome Johnny” by Richie Havens.