EVE OF DESTRUCTION
The eastern world, it is explodin’
Violence flarin’, bullets loadin’
You’re old enough to kill, but not for votin’
You don’t believe in war, but what’s that gun you’re totin’
And even the Jordan River has bodies floatin’
But you tell me
Over and over and over again, my friend
Ah, you don’t believe
We’re on the eve
of destruction.
Don’t you understand what I’m tryin’ to say
Can’t you feel the fears I’m feelin’ today?
If the button is pushed, there’s no runnin’ away
There’ll be no one to save, with the world in a grave
Take a look around you boy
It’s bound to scare you boy
And you tell me
Over and over and over again, my friend
Ah, you don’t believe
We’re on the eve
of destruction.
Yeah, my blood’s so mad feels like coagulatin’
I’m sitting here just contemplatin’
I can’t twist the truth, it knows no regulation.
Handful of senators don’t pass legislation
And marches alone can’t bring integration
When human respect is disintegratin’
This whole crazy world is just too frustratin’
And you tell me
Over and over and over again, my friend
Ah, you don’t believe
We’re on the eve
of destruction.
Think of all the hate there is in Red China
Then take a look around to Selma, Alabama
You may leave here for 4 days in space
But when you return, it’s the same old place
The poundin’ of the drums, the pride and disgrace
You can bury your dead, but don’t leave a trace
Hate your next-door neighbor, but don’t forget to say grace
And… tell me over and over and over and over again, my friend
You don’t believe
We’re on the eve
Of destruction
Mm, no no, you don’t believe
We’re on the eve
of destruction.
After become reaquainted this song in March 2004 I took the time to see if I could contact Barry McGuire to hear what the song was all about. Surely this is a song that has "protest" written all over it. Barry kindly wrote back and here is a portion of what he had to say.
"For me The Eve of Destruction was never meant to be a protest song, even though that's what the media called it. To me it was nothing more than a diagnostic overview of our society. If you go to a doctor, and he tells you, you have a small malignant tumor, you wouldn't call him a protest doctor would you, and I'm sure you would take whatever steps necessary to get rid of the tumor.
The song had no answers, but it had very valid observations. I felt (naively) that if we could at least ask the right questions, we might come
up with some healthy answers. I always felt Eve was an exposure of our human hypocrises - educational hypocrisy, governmental hypocrisy, military hypocrisy, industrial hypocrisy, and spiritual hypocrisy.
When I was a little boy, my grandmother used to take care of me while my mother worked. My grandmother told me when I was about five years old that someday I would learn the truth and the truth would set me free. I always wanted to be free, and certainly lies have never set anyone free, they only further enslave us to our addictions. So, the search I was involved in when
I sang Eve, was for answers. You're right, the song is more valid today than it was in 1965. I still sing it every concert. There are more people being violently murdered every moment than there were then, there's more social unrest, political mistrust, racial violence, local as well as worldwide than there was in 1965.
The answer is still there, waiting for all to hear. Love God with all your heart and love your neighbor as yourself. Until we can forgive each other our trespasses, and forgive ourselves, the eve of destruction will become a reality, but with
forgiveness comes peace, and with peace comes hope and with hope comes health.
All the best to you and your class, and I pray you will find THE answer to your own personal eve of destructions, whatever they might be.
Barry"
