The band U2 pays tribute to The Dubliners’ late Luke Kelly in this great performance from 1987. This ballad was written by American folksinger Peggy Seeger and English singer Ewan McColl and recounts the story of the “1958 Bump” in Springhill, Nova Scotia.
The Ballad of Springhill
In the town of Springhill, Nova Scotia,
Down in the dark of the Cumberland Mine,
There’s blood on the coal,
And the miners lie,
In roads that never saw sun or sky,
Roads that never saw sun or sky
In the town of Springhill you don’t sleep easy,
Often the earth will tremble and roll,
When the earth is restless miners die,
Bone and blood is the price of coal,
Bone and blood is the price of coal.
In the town of Springhill, Nova Scotia,
Late in the year of ’58,
The day still comes and the sun still shines,
But it’s dark as the grave in the Cumberland mine,
Dark as the grave in the Cumberland Mine.
Song of the Isles 