Radiohead releases song in tribute to WWI veteran

Radiohead announced the release a very emotional new song on their website today. “Harry Patch (In Memory Of)” was inspired by Harry Patch, the last living WWI veteran, who just recently died last month at age 111. Thom Yorke wrote the song after hearing an interview with Patch on BBC in 2005. Yorke announced the release of the new song today, explaining on their website,

“Recently the last remaining UK veteran of the 1st world war Harry Patch died at the age of 111. I had heard a very emotional interview with him a few years ago on the Today program on Radio4. The way he talked about war had a profound effect on me. It became the inspiration for a song that we happened to record a few weeks before his death. It was done live in an abbey. The strings were arranged by Jonny.

I very much hope the song does justice to his memory as the last survivor. It would be very easy for our generation to forget the true horror of war, without the likes of Harry to remind us. I hope we do not forget. As Harry himself said, ‘Irrespective of the uniforms we wore, we were all victims.’”

Today on BBC, the Today program played the song for the first time. The download is available for one pound, or about $1.70 at http://download.waste.uk.com/Store/did.html. Yorke has promised that the proceeds from the song will go to the British Legion. Yorke posted some of the lyrics from the song on the website.

"I am the only one that got through

the others died where ever they fell

it was an ambush

they came up from all sides

give your leaders each a gun and then let them fight it out themselves

I've seen devils coming up from the ground

I’ve seen hell upon this earth

the next will be chemical but they will never learn"

-Laurie Moot

Currently listening to "Daring Night" by Van Morrison

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