Artist & Tune
Version by Peter Paul and Mary
Version by Dave Brubeck
Version by Liederjan
Version by Elizabeth von Trapp
Reference
About the Song
This song is new lyrics written by Tom Glazer in 1948 to Bach's "Passion Chorale". Peter Paul & Mary recorded it in 1965 on their "See What Tomorrow Brings" using Glazer's original lyrics.
Glazer's original lyrics used "brothers" and "men" to refer to all people. Peter (Blood) wrote new lyrics that removed these sexist usages in the 1970s, which were printed in the RUS "prequel" Winds of the People.
When he & Annie Patterson were creating Rise Up Singing they wrote to Glazer and asked if it was ok to use these new lyrics. Glazer wrote back and said that he agreed that the original gender usage was outdated, but he preferred to write his own version. His new lyrics appeared in Rise Up Singing.
Others including the classical arranger Robert Cormier have made other minor changes in the lyrics, for example changing "Until all tyrants perish" to "'Til tyrants are unseated..."