We’ve updated our Terms of Use to reflect our new entity name and address. You can review the changes here.
We’ve updated our Terms of Use. You can review the changes here.

Song of the Olive Tree

from Outsiders by Chris Foster

/

  • Compact Disc (CD) + Digital Album

    Chris' 6th solo album contains a mix of old traditional songs and ballads along with a few from the last 60 years. Comes in a beautifully designed 3 fold digipak with a booklet containing all song lyrics and featuring cover art by Chris. The album was a runner up in the 2008 fROOTS magazine, best folk / world music album of 2008.

    Includes unlimited streaming of Outsiders via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
    ships out within 7 days
    Purchasable with gift card

      £8 GBP or more 

     

  • Streaming + Download

    Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
    Purchasable with gift card

      £1 GBP  or more

     

  • Buy the Full Digital Album

about

Over the years I have sung quite a few of Leon Rosselson’s songs, quite simply because, in my opinion, he has consistently been one of the best songwriters in the English language since the 1960’s.

The dispossession and displacement from their homeland of the Palestinian people has been one of the major scandals and tragedies of
the past 60 years. The resulting destruction of thousands of olive trees strikes at the heart of the economy and culture of Palestinian society.
On a visit to Israel and Palestine in 2005, Leon was taken to the illegal settlement of Ma’ale Adumim, near Jerusalem, where he was shown
a row of ancient olive trees which had been uprooted from Palestinian land and replanted in the main street.

The Song of the Olive Tree vividly illustrates the tragedy, but also the resilience of the ordinary Palestinian people, despite the appalling situation of them being outsiders in their own land.

lyrics

My father’s father’s father planted here
In this now broken earth an olive tree
And as a child I sang to it my secrets
And as I grew I felt it part of me.

It’s branches gave me shelter from the sun.
Its grey green leaves shaded my young dreams.
The fruit it bore was like a gift of hope.
Of all the olive trees I loved this one.

The settlers came. They beat us black and blue.
They said “Next time we shoot you. Understand?”
But still we dared to come. We had no choice.
We came at night like thieves to our own land.

Like ghosts we came, men women young and old
To pick the crop as we have always done
For centuries we harvested in peace.
The oil we pressed was sweet, precious as gold.

Now look. This is a cemetery for trees.
Their great machines crushed hope into despair.
They ripped the heart from every living tree
Except for one. My tree they chose to spare.

They dug it up. They smuggled it away.
This ancient tree – they saw it as a prize
For some Israeli rich enough to pay.
Five thousand dollars’ worth, that’s what they say.

Do you believe in ghosts? Last night I dreamed
My father’s father’s father came to me.
He took my hand and held it in his own
And said “Take heart. Here is my olive tree.”

And when I woke, it was a kind of birth
And in my hand I found an olive stone
And in the field where once my tree had been
A thousand shapes rose out of the earth.

I saw their faces, women, children, men
And each hand held a perfect olive stone
And each heart held a vision of to come
When all our olive trees will rise again.

credits

from Outsiders, track released April 23, 2008
Chris foster - vocal & guitar

license

all rights reserved

tags

about

Chris Foster image

Chris Foster Reykjavik, Iceland

Chris Foster grew up in the south west of England. A master of his trade, he was recently described as “one of the finest singers and most inventive guitar accompanists of English folk songs, meriting legend status.” Over the past 40 years, he has toured throughout the UK, Europe, Canada and the USA. He has recorded six solo albums as well as working on many collaborative projects. ... more

contact / help

Contact Chris Foster

Streaming and
Download help

Shipping and returns

Report this track or account

Chris Foster recommends:

If you like Chris Foster, you may also like:

Bandcamp Daily  your guide to the world of Bandcamp

On Bandcamp Radio

Fabiana Palladino stops by to talk about her mesmeric debut LP.
listen now