The history and politics of the English protest song

1966

Grey October

Tune: Original
Lyrics: Peggy Seeger, Charles Parker, and Ewan MacColl
Composer: Peggy Seeger, Charles Parker, and Ewan MacColl

Juxtaposing the horror of war in Vietnam with that of the Aberfan disaster, when the collapse of a coal tip killed 116 children and 28 adults, the song asks why the former evokes less outrage than the latter.