Paul Valdemar Horsdal, known professionally as Valdy, is a Canadian folk musician who has been writing songs and performing for more than forty years. I remember discovering his “Country Man” album in the seventies and the couple of times I saw him in concert I was amazed with how this one man and his guitar could keep an audience engaged for hours. He is also one of the original artists who spoke out against the damage humans were causing to our environment.
His song entitled “MM-MM-MM-MM” is all but forgotten now (perhaps partly owing to the strange title) but has a great message of warning. The song envisions a future in which air pollution has reached such extremes that the people of earth have never seen the sun in the sky. In 1972 this was a vision that was easy to imagine. Due to the work of environmentalists and folk singers, air quality in such cities as Los Angeles has vastly improved since the seventies but air pollution is still a major health concern in rapidly developing cities such as Ulan Bator, Mongolia.
Valdy’s words are still an important warning to the people of our planet. I looked for these lyrics online and could not find them so I offer them here in this blog.
MM-MM-MM-MM
(Listen to the song here.)
Valdy (from the album “Country Man,” 1972; also released as the B side of the single: “A Good Song.”)And I’ll say mm-mm-mm-mm
That’s not the way things oughta be
And I’ll say mm-mm-mm-mm excuse me
I’m on the outside being freeRun to your houses and dally no more
Close up your windows and lock your doors
The sunlight is comin’ the sunlight is comin’
Close all your curtains and lie on the floorThey had never seen the sunlight before they were sore afraid
They had never seen the sunlight before so they all obeyedAnd I’ll say mm-mm-mm-mm
That’s not the way things oughta be
And I’ll say mm-mm-mm-mm excuse me
I’m on the outside being freeWhy, the last time the sun came out in full
Four men were trapped out on the moors
Now they’ve all four gone stir crazy
Cause they won’t come back indoorsThey say the sky is gonna break and turn some colour of blue
They’re all nuts they said the trees looked green
Do you want that to happen to you?And I’ll say mm-mm-mm-mm
That’s not the way things oughta be
And I’ll say mm-mm-mm-mm excuse me
I’m on the outside being free