Last night I went to an excellent talk/performance by Will Kaufman, an academic authority on American protest singers, particularly Woody Guthrie, and at the same time a folk singer in his own right. There I learned the origin of the phrase “Pie in the sky”.
Nowadays it generally means a thing that would be rather nice, but isn't very likely to happen. But it comes from a biting satire, “The Preacher and the Slave” written in 1911 by the union organiser Joe Hill.
The tune is “In the Sweet By and By” and the words begin
“Long-haired preachers come out every night Try to tell you what’s wrong and what’s right But when asked about something to eat They will answer in voices so sweet
CHORUS: You will eat, bye and bye In that glorious land above the sky Work and pray, live on hay You’ll get pie in the sky when you die (that’s a lie)”
“Pie in the sky”
Last night I went to an excellent talk/performance by Will Kaufman, an academic authority on American protest singers, particularly Woody Guthrie, and at the same time a folk singer in his own right. There I learned the origin of the phrase “Pie in the sky”.
Nowadays it generally means a thing that would be rather nice, but isn't very likely to happen. But it comes from a biting satire, “The Preacher and the Slave” written in 1911 by the union organiser Joe Hill.
The tune is “In the Sweet By and By” and the words begin
“Long-haired preachers come out every night
Try to tell you what’s wrong and what’s right
But when asked about something to eat
They will answer in voices so sweet
CHORUS:
You will eat, bye and bye
In that glorious land above the sky
Work and pray, live on hay
You’ll get pie in the sky when you die (that’s a lie)”