Christmas Truce through music

(Lyrics & Music Mike Harding)
Christmas Eve in 1914, stars were burning, burning bright
And all along the Western front guns were lying still and quiet
Men lay dozing in the trenches, in the cold and in the dark
Far away behind the lines a village dog began to bark

Some lay thinking of their families, some sang songs while others were quiet
Rolling fags and playing brag  to pass away this Christmas night
As we watched the German trenches, something moved in no man's land
Through the dark there came a soldier carrying a white flag in his hand

Then from both sides men came running, crossing into no man's land
through the barbed wire, mud and shell-holes, shyly stood there shaking hands
Fritz brought out cigars and brandy, Tommy brought corned beef and fags
Stood there talking, laughing, singing, the moon shone down on no man's land

Christmas Day we all played football in the mud of no man's land
Tommy brought some Christmas pudding, Fritz brought out a German band
when they beat us at the football we shared all our grub and drink
Then Fritz showed me a fainted photo of a brown-haired girl back in Berlin

Four days after no one fired, not one shell disturbed the night
For old Fritz and Tommy Atkins, they'd both lost their will to fight
So they withdrew us from the trenches, sent us far behind the lines
Sent fresh troops to take our places and told the guns, Prepare to fire

The next day in 1914, flak was beaming, beaming bright
The message came, Prepare offensive! Over the top we're going tonight
And men stood waiting in the trenches, looked out across our football park
And all along the Western front the Christmas guns began to bark