In Memory Of The Martyrs

Album: Turn of the Tide (1981)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • This John Lees composition has a double meaning, both of them sad. It was performed live for the first time at the band's famous open air Berlin concert of August 30, 1980, and is about those who lost their lives crossing the Berlin Wall - all from East to West. It would be another nine years before the Wall would be torn down by the people of - now United - Germany.
  • The song is dedicated to Philip John Ireland, who was killed in a road accident in Germany; he and Lees were cousins. Lees saw a parallel between his death and that of the victims of the Berlin Wall. It was intended originally to be a double A side with "Life Is For Living", but it runs to nearly eight minutes, and it was felt that a radio edit would lose its essence. >>>
    Suggestion credit:
    Alexander Baron - London, England, for above 2

Comments: 1

  • Steve from Torrance, CaThis is the greatest song the band ever did! Yes, it's better than "Hymn" and "Mockingbird"! Absolutely awe-inspiring in its almost orchestral sweep and scope! Turn of the Tide is also the band's best album!
see more comments

Editor's Picks

Loudon Wainwright III

Loudon Wainwright IIISongwriter Interviews

"Dead Skunk" became a stinker for Loudon when he felt pressure to make another hit - his latest songs deal with mortality, his son Rufus, and picking up poop.

Julian Lennon

Julian LennonSongwriter Interviews

Julian tells the stories behind his hits "Valotte" and "Too Late for Goodbyes," and fills us in on his many non-musical pursuits. Also: what MTV meant to his career.

Edie Brickell

Edie BrickellSongwriter Interviews

Edie Brickell on her collaborations with Paul Simon, Steve Martin and Willie Nelson, and her 2021 album with the New Bohemians.

Shawn Mullins

Shawn MullinsSongwriter Interviews

"Lullaby" singer Shawn Mullins on "Beautiful Wreck," beating the Devil, and his writing credit on the Zac Brown Band song "Toes."

Van Dyke Parks

Van Dyke ParksSongwriter Interviews

U2, Carly Simon, Joanna Newsom, Brian Wilson and Fiona Apple have all gone to Van Dyke Parks to make their songs exceptional.

In The Cards

In The CardsSong Writing

Songwriters have used cards and card games to make sense of heartache, togetherness, and even Gonorrhea.