Come Away Melinda

Fred Hellerman

Transposer:

"Mommy Mommy come and look, And see what I have found. A little way away from here while digging in the ground." "Come away Melinda, come in and close the door, It's nothing but a picture book They had before the war." "Mommy, Mommy, come and see, Oh Mommy, come and look. There's four or five Melinda girls inside this picture book." "Come away Melinda, come in and close the door. There were lots of little girls like you before they had the war." "Mommy, Mommy, come and see, Oh Mommy hurry do. Here's someone grown up very tall who doesn't look like you." "Come away Melinda, come in and close the door, Your father was a man like that before they had the war." "Mommy, Mommy, come and see such things I've never seen. There's happy faces all around and all the ground is green." "Come away Melinda, Come in and close the door, That's just the way it used to be before they had the war." "Mommy, Mommy, come and see And tell me if you can. Why can't it be the way it was before the war began ?" "Come away Melinda, come in and close the door. The answer lies in yesterday before they had the war."

La chanson évoque une petite fille, Melinda, qui découvre des souvenirs d’un passé paisible et insouciant en feuilletant un livre illustré. Elle appelle sa mère pour lui montrer les images de fillettes souriantes et de moments heureux, mais sa mère lui demande de quitter ces souvenirs, car ces temps-là appartiennent à une époque avant la guerre. À travers les dialogues, on ressent la nostalgie d'une vie joyeuse devenue impossible à cause des conflits. Le contexte de la chanson renvoie à la perte d'innocence et au choc des réalités engendrées par la guerre, en rappelant à quel point la paix et le bonheur peuvent être éphémères. Cette réflexion sur le passé interroge l'avenir et le désir de retourner à des journées plus sereines, lorsque la vie semblait plus simple.