I am almost moved to tears reading this. And I wonder if the greedy men that orchestrated that carnage slept soundly in their beds....I hope not!

I suppose you could argue that killing and warfare is the way of the human race, it's a wonder we haven't gone the way of the dinosaur?

You've captured in words a great story with feeling and eloquence. It must have been awful losing his brother, surviving the war only to die of TB later.

Some great songs from you and Jim today

Trevor that is one powerful song well writen sung and played perfectly your lyrics move me.. That war impacted us here in the South Pacific in a big way also.
Your lyrics are spot on.
Joseph Farnes stands etched with many names upon a wall,
lost distant memories of a cruel and bloody war
Sometimes I sit and wonder how he would view our world today
Would he still pick up his gun and give his life that way

Joseph Farnes stands etched with many names upon a wall. Beneath those pastures of Flanders  where he also fought still lie tens of thousands -  even hundreds of thousands, it has been estimated - of young men cut down in the bloodiest of bloody wars and most of whose bodies have never been recovered.
Even today some bodies are still being found. For every life lost there is a story. Author Rudyard Kipling lost his only son John on his first day in battle over there. Kipling spent three years looking for his son's body which was found only after Rudyard's death.
From Flanders came the poppy.
The red poppy has become a symbol of war remembrance the world over. People in many countries wear the poppy to remember those who died in war or who still serve. In many countries, the poppy is worn around Armistice Day (11 November), but in New Zealand it is most commonly seen around Anzac Day, 25 April.The red or Flanders poppy has been linked with battlefield deaths since the time of the Great War (1914–18). The plant was one of the first to grow and bloom in the mud and soil of Flanders. The connection was made, most famously, by the  Canadian,  Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae in his poem 'In Flanders fields'.

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders field

For the Fallen

Poem by Robert Laurence Binyon (1869-1943)
With proud thanksgiving, a mother for her children,
England mourns for her dead across the sea.
Flesh of her flesh they were, spirit of her spirit,
Fallen in the cause of the free.
Solemn the drums thrill: Death august and royal
Sings sorrow up into immortal spheres.
There is music in the midst of desolation
And a glory that shines upon our tears.
They went with songs to the battle, they were young,
Straight of limb, true of eye, steady and aglow.
They were staunch to the end against odds uncounted,
They fell with their faces to the foe.
They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.
They mingle not with their laughing comrades again;
They sit no more at familiar tables of home;
They have no lot in our labour of the day-time;
They sleep beyond England's foam.
But where our desires are and our hopes profound,
Felt as a well-spring that is hidden from sight,
To the innermost heart of their own land they are known
As the stars are known to the Night;
As the stars that shall be bright when we are dust,
Moving in marches upon the heavenly plain,
As the stars that are starry in the time of our darkness,
To the end, to the end, they remain.

Laurence said in 1939 that the four lines of the fourth stanza came to him first. These words of the fourth stanza have become especially familiar and famous, having been adopted by the Royal British Legion as an Exhortation for ceremonies of Remembrance to commemorate fallen Servicemen and women.
We here in New Zealand use that that forth stanza to remember those of our nation who have fallen in war

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning,
We will remember them.

Our day of rememeberance here in New Zealand  is ANZAC day held on the 25th April every year,
Gallipoli - Memorial at Anzac Cove Turkey  has these words by Ataturk on it.
"Those heroes that shed their blood and lost their lives…
You are now lying in the soil of a friendly country. Therefore rest in peace. There is no difference between the Johnnies and the Mehmets to us where they lie side by side here in this country of ours…
You, the mothers, who sent their sons from faraway countries wipe away your tears; your sons are now lying in our bosom and are in peace, after having lost their lives on this land they have become our sons as well."
Mustafa Kemal Atatürk who words  are used on the Memorial  was  a past President of Turkey.
The significance of the Gallipoli Campaign in the first world war is felt strongly in both New Zealand and Australia, 
The  Gallipoli Campaign  is often considered to be the beginning of Australian and New Zealand national consciousness; 25 April, the anniversary of the landings, is known as "Anzac Day", the most significant commemoration of military casualties and veterans in the two countries, surpassing Remembrance Day (Armistice Day).     
Gallipoli was a costly failure for the Allies: 44,000 Allied soldiers died, including more than 8700 Australians. Among the dead were 2779 New Zealanders – about a sixth of those who fought on the peninsula. Victory came at a high price for the Ottoman Empire, which lost 87,000 men during that campaign.
Eric Bogle – And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda is about Gallipoli and what happened to the guy in that song. It also mentions ANZAC Day.

Thank you Jim , My aunt has been looking into the past family members and had left a folder with my Father with all the  infomation she had found out. In there was a page written called the fighting Farnes as I read it these words stuck in my head "The lone tree" (the actual tree was cut up for keepsakes but they planted a replacement on the very spot) I said to my dad I'm gonna go home and write a song for Joseph and this is the result. It is something that touches the heart and soul of every European also some from other parts of the world that fought along side us.  I just hope I've done him justice.

You can learn a lot from TV. I have seen many documentaries about Gallipoli and other wastes of life brought about by our so called leaders?
I think it was Haig who was in charge at Gallipoli, the ANZACS were meant to charge in after the bombardment ended keeping the Turk gunners heads down, but the bombardment ended early but Haig insisted they went in anyway! We all know the result. I don't blame the Turks I blame Haig who was safely hidden miles away from the killing ground. And he was the celebrated hero???? Give me strength

A very moving song ctech well sung and played.
As my grandfather served and thankfully survived all of the WW1 this song was particularly moving for me.
I remember sitting on his bed listening to his stories of life in the trenches and to my shame being bored by them at time (I was a stupid teenager)
Now much older and hopefully more wiser I understand what we owe these brave men.
My father served in WW2 and thankfully I took notice of his stories and experiences and I have an almost complete record of his times during the conflict.
They are both gone now but I'm so proud of what they did.

Excellent song Trevor. Very emotional. Thanks for sharing.

I wrote one a few years ago about my great-grandfather who was ambushed and killed January 12, 1865, while returning from the battle of Saltville in southwest Virginia.  He was the last battle casualty of the 39th KY mounted infantry before the American Civil War ended. He left my great-grandmother Joanna alone with 4 children to care for.

Peatle,  " In Flander's Fields" is a poem every grade school kid had to memorize back when I was young. After 60 years I can still recite it. Thanks for jogging my memory.

DE

That is absolutely amazing, CTECH ... this deserves a place amongst some of the best songs there are about human conflict.

However it's phrased, war seems to always be started by some monster wanting to impose his will on another people, and to take their stuff in the process. The rest of us can then either (a) let the monster do it, or (b) defend those who can't defend themselves.

How do we answer that? It's something I constantly wrestle with. The first step is to be on guard that I don't become the monster.

i missed this some how, great story Cteck

Cheers mojo01 it was a pain to write, fitting the story in without over doing it . I think I got It right and it was also weird writing a song without a chorus.