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12-string Guitar: Down In The Coal Mine (Including lyrics and chords)

3,073 views · Published 26 April 2010 · 2:57 · Indexed 21 September 2026

Channel: threelegsoman · 2010 · Education

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I am having an Ian Campbell Folk Group day. This is the third of his songs I have recorded today. Again it is about a group of workers who were once essential to the prosperity of Britain until the 1980s when the mines were cut back and thousands of miners were laid off. Bitter times for all concerned! 
I was always fascinated by the tune to this song as it was the same tune used by The Dubliners for one of their songs, Here Come The Navvies. Of course I now know it to be a traditional Irish Air called The Red Haired Boy.

Down In The Coal Mine
Traditional
No capo

D                                                                             G     
I am a jovial collier lad as blithe as blithe can be
        D                                                        A7                      C       
And let the times be good or bad it's all the same to me
D                                                                                    G
It's little of the world I know and care less for its ways
       D                                                                            A7              D     
For where the Dog Star never glows it's there, I spend my days

C                                                                    G                   
Down in the coalmine, underneath the ground
D                                               A7                   C
Where a gleam of sunshine never can be found
D                                                                                 G
Digging up the dusky diamonds all the seasons round
D                                                            A7             D
Deep down in the coalmine, underneath the ground

Me hands are horny, hard and black through working in the vein
And like the clothes upon me back me speech is rough and plain
And if I stumble with me tongue, I've one excuse to say
It's not the collier's heart that's wrong it's his head that goes astray

How little do the great ones care who sit at home secure
What hidden dangers collier's dare what hardships they endure
The very fire they sit beside to cheer themselves and wives
Mayhap was kindled up at cost of jovial miners lives

Then cheer up lads and make the most of every joy you can
And always make your Murphy’s such as best befits a man
For let the times be good or bad we'll still be jovial souls
For where would Britain be without the lads who look for coals


I have just produced a book of songs under the title "50 Songs from the 'threelegsoman' collection". It is available as a printed book or as an eBook and can be found at:

http://store.blurb.com/ebooks/316519-50-songs-from-the-threelegsoman-collection

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