“In Memory of The Martyrs” by Barclay James Harvest
As this track’s title implies, the songwriter pays tribute to the people that died while seeking a particular change in their world. Inspired by the deaths of people who tried to cross the Berlin Wall, the writer talks about the fragility of life.
The songwriter sarcastically identifies with how people ought to just go through life doing what society expects of them, such as adoring beauty and ignoring problems. He goes on to reference the Berlin Wall by talking about prisoners without reason on one side and a guardian wall.
In the final parts of the song, he talks about how green grass, representing time and development, gradually grows to cover the bodies of martyrs who died while fighting for a cause. As they are often left forgotten, the writer chooses not to be part of this system. He therefore decides to honor their memories with these lines.
Barclay James Harvest included this track as the tenth off their 1981 album titled Turn of the Tide.
People who died trying to cross the Berlin Wall
At least 239 out of about 5,000 escapees, who tried to cross the Berlin Wall during the regime of the German Democratic Republic, died. According to reports, 130 out of the total deaths were either shot, killed accidentally, or committed suicide while trying to escape. Eight were said to be border guards at the wall. Researchers have also indicated that half of the total number of deaths were recorded within the first five years of the wall’s existence.
