The most powerful 9/11 tribute of all time.
In flames and screams,
Our hopes and dreams,
Came crashing to the ground.
The blackened skies,
The anguished cries,
Of loved ones all around.
The poem A World Gone Mad was conceived on the evening of the September 11, 2001 tragedy. As I watched the towers fall the first lines came to mind: “In flames and screams, our hopes an dreams, came crashing to the ground.” The rest just fell out. A couple days later I wrote lyrics for an up tempo companion song called American Spirit. It is about American pride and the enduring spirit of Americans to overcome tragedy. I decided that A World Gone Mad should be read by the voice of God. I found that voice in Greg Anthony. American Spirit was recorded by Sonny Geraci and Jennifer Lee.
Lyrics by Hal Pollock
Music by Bob Pelander
In flames and screams
Our hopes and dreams
Came crashing to the ground
The blackened skies
The anguished cries
Of loved ones all around
We opened our doors
And brought to our shores
A terror we never have known
And now they all say
It’s the price that we pay
For all of the seeds we have sown
What has become of the peace that we had?
Can we find hope when we feel so sad?
Now that we know
From a fiery glow
That we live in a world gone mad
We will remember the terrible pain
And we will remember the fire and rain
Forever changed
Our lives rearranged
We vow they did not die in vain
This is the land and the home of the free
Committed to peace and we always will be
We will survive
We will keep hope alive
We will conquer this great tragedy
To those left behind and whose loved ones are gone
The ones that so many depended upon
We hope and we pray
That with each passing day
God will give you the strength to go on
© 2001 Esquire Publishing, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Lyrics by Hal Pollock
Music by Tony Bodanza
America’s bravest
are going to war
To face the unknown
on a far distant shore
The forces of evil
are destined to fall
As American spirit
unites one and all
American spirit
American pride
Will never be conquered
Though many have tried
For love of our country
For those who have died
American spirit
Is burning inside
Now is this time
we are put to the test
Until victory’s ours
then we never can rest
America’s rivals
will all soon be found
Never again to set foot
on our ground
American spirit
American pride
Will never be conquered
Though many have tried
For love of our country
For those who have died
American spirit
Is burning inside
The voice of America
now will be heard
In canyons and deserts
by deed and by word
And those who would harm us
will all come to hear it
And know our resolve
the American spirit
© 2001 Esquire Publishing, Inc.
All Rights Reserved.
(The Song for America)
By Hal Pollock
For every man this land must be
A place of hope and liberty
Where each man can be truly free
To realize his destiny
For every woman let there be
An equal opportunity
To lead in our society
And still to raise a family
For every child in this land
We all must lend a helping hand
So they may come to understand
The dreams that make this country grand
For every man let freedom ring
For every woman let us sing
For every child in this land
These are the things for which we stand
With every morning that we rise
Pay homage to the flag that flies
The stars and stripes that symbolize
The peace we find in these fair skies
God bless this land that we hold dear
To which we come from far and near
In search of peace and without fear
For liberties that we find here
For every man let freedom ring
For every woman let us sing
For every child in this land
These are the things for which we stand
© 2001 Esquire Publishing, Inc. All Rights Reserved
By Hal Pollock
There is evil in this world
that is too hard to comprehend
That pits nation against nation
and a homeland to defend
We have seen this kind of evil
raise its ugly head before
And we swore that we would not allow
such evil any more
Now the people of Ukraine are faced
with terror at their door
A freedom loving people
who’ve faced tyranny before
They know that having freedom
is a thing worth fighting for
Now they’re showing all the world
who they are down at their core
Unbreakable
Though many bombs may fall
Unshakable
Through it all we’re standing tall
You may bomb all of our buildings
We’ll be answering the call
For our spirit will endure
And we will rise above it all
We will fight you in the fields
We will fight you in the streets
Till the last of us is standing
Till the last of you retreats
You can release the hounds of Hell
And we will spit right in your face
When the battle’s finally over
You will leave here in disgrace
You can kill a person’s body
Can commit a genocide
But the human spirit’s stronger
In this place where we reside
When it comes to love of country
When it comes to human pride
You can never kill the spirit
That a people hold inside
Till the enemy is vanquished
Here united we will stand
With the courage of a lion
We will drive you from our land
And until the battle’s won
We will be fighting until then
As we pay the cost of freedom
And are safe at home again
Unbreakable
Unshakable
The first line of defense
We give our lives for freedom
In a war that makes no sense
And though others
may be watching
From a safe and distant shore
You should know
if we don’t stop them here
They’re coming to your door
Let the people of the world
Hear the message that we send
Good will always conquer hate
And triumph in the end
And when the dust has settled
We’ll be stronger than before
And this must be the last time
That we all say never more
When the killing fields fall silent
When the healing shall begin
That’s when evil comes to know
It picked a fight it couldn’t win
For this was a war on freedom
We were just the first in line
All the world stands united
To protect what’s yours and mine
Unbreakable
Though many bombs may fall
Unshakable
Through it all we’re standing tall
You may bomb all of our buildings
We’ll be answering the call
For our spirit will endure
And we will rise above it all
© 2022 Esquire Publishing, Inc. All Rights Reserved
© 2022 Esquire Publishing. All Rights Reserved.