Clif West and the Sheriff Brown have a conversation followed by another Reggae classic done with a western feel and with touch of ska.
lyrics
(Sound of car driving over gravel)
NARRATOR: In the distance we hear the gravel crunching as Sheriff John Brown drives his county SUV up the remote and private driveway belonging to Cliff West
CLIFF: What are you doing up here, Sheriff?
SHERIFF: Well that didn’t sound too friendly. And to think you were once such a good boy. Why I remember you and my son Nate, God rest his soul, always together- thick as thieves, on all the teams. In fact, it was you, Nate, and the Spencer brothers that brought home that state championship. I was real proud of you then.
Nowadays, you spend more time down at Lucky’s than you do out here on you land. But I am not here to reminisce, I am here to give you a piece of fatherly advice, and a little advice from the law.
I know you are out here growing weed and it’s legal and all these days but you gotta dot those i’s and cross those t’s or you could lose this land. Now, gas corps is offering you a good money for just a small easement nad you get to keep you land. You do that and I don’t think there’s gonna be any problem with you growing pot up here. No, not at all. Don’t lose this land that’s been in you family for generations gosh, I reckon all the way back to the Rogue Indian war, right? Yeah, don’t risk it, Cliff!
CLIFF: What good is this pipeline going to do me OR our town?
Sounds to me like it’s profit for a few and maybe fill up the coffers for the county and state government. Yeah, I don’t want that pipeline through here. You see that stand of trees over there? Imagine natural gas running through there and catching on fire. We got enough problems with forest fires as it is now. And then it goes down through my creek, they are gonna tear that whole thing up. It’s alive! Then across my best farm land. Heck, the export facility is on a fault line and in a Tsunami zone. It’s a disaster waiting to happen.
Nah, you know, gascorps was out here yesterday with a couple of their freshly bought deputies accompanied by the Spencer Brothers. They all told me to sell. I’ll tell you the same thing I told them: Get off my land... and another thing:
DAN: Just gonna change harmonicas here and a sip of water
CLIFF: And another thing:
Well they tell me of a pie up in the sky
Waiting for me when I die
But between the day you're born and when you die
They never seem to hear even your cry
So as sure as the sun will shine
I'm going to hang on hard to this world of mine
And then the harder they come
The harder they'll fall, one and all
Ooh the harder they come
The harder they'll fall, one and all
Well this guild of thieves is trying to bring me down
Trying to drive me in to the ground
And they think that they have got the battle won
I say forgive them Lord
They know not what they've done
And I’ll keep on fighting for this land were on
Even though I know that when im dead im gone
But I'd rather be a free man in my grave
Than living as a puppet or a slave
SHERIFF - A free man in your grave, eh?? We’ll that can be arranged -
credits
from The Complete Requiem for the Rogue - A Modern Western Opera,
released August 3, 2019
Narration and dialog by Dan Kaufman
Composed by Jimmy Cliff
Originally Recorded by Jimmy Cliff
Produced for Requiem for the Rogue by Dan Kaufman
Engineered and co-produced by Pyata Penedo
Bass, Guitar, Harmonica, Vocals: Dan Kaufman
Drums: David Nuding
Mandolin: Tim Connell
Percussion, Vocals: Pyata Penedo:
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