Polyushko Pole

"Polyushko Pole" (Russian spelling: Полюшко Поле) is a Russian song. It is claimed that the song was originally written during the Russian Civil War and was sung by the Red Army.

For the Soviet variant of the song, the music was by Lev Knipper, with lyrics by Viktor Gusev. Knipper's song was part of the symphony with chorus (lyrics by Gusev) "A Poem about a Komsomol Soldier" (Поэма о бойце-комсомольце) composed in 1934. It was covered many times by many artists in the Soviet Union, including a well-known rock version made from the "Singing Guitars" ( _ru. Поющие гитáры), released c. 1967

Several Western arrangements of the tune are known under the title "The Cossack Patrol", particularly a version by Ivan Rebroff, and some under other titles including "Meadowland", "Cavalry of the Steppes" and "Gone with the Wind". "Tanz Brüderchen" by Hyperactive, an authorised rave remix of Rebroff's performance, is well-known in some online communities for its inclusion in the Flash cartoon at rathergood.com (See links below).

The tune is still popular, including ringtones and a dance track by the British electro duo, SilverSpirit. It was used to very dramatic effect in the 1967 film "The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming". Michael Palin notably performed the song with the choir of the Russian Pacific Fleet in the television series "Full Circle with Michael Palin" [http://www.palinstravels.co.uk/book-808] . The song can be heard in the background of the movie "Cast Away" and in an episode in "Airwolf" ("Proof Through The Night"); and is the opening title of Aki Kaurismäki's film "Leningrad Cowboys Go America". The song is also covered instrumentally on Hammond organ by Steven Stills on Jefferson Airplane's 1969 album "Volunteers" as an interlude between A Song For All Seasons and the title track.

David Markish has a novel "Polyushko-Polye" about Nestor Makhno; and Boris Mozhayev, a Soviet writer of "rustic style" wrote his "Polyushko-Polye" about kolkhoz life. There also was a 1956 movie with this name.

The song is also the basis for a Glenn Miller and Jerry Gray song called "Russian Patrol" or "The Red Cavalry March".

Ritchie Blackmore's "Gone with the Wind" (1999) is presumably the most recent adaptation of "Polyushko-Pole".

The song "Polyushko-Pole" has also been used in the recent tralier for the 2008 video game ""

Lyrics

Russian lyric

Полюшко-поле, полюшко, широко поле,
Eдут по полю герои,
Эх, да красной армии герои.

Девушки плачут,
Девушкам сегодня грустно,
Милый надолго уехал,
Эх, да милый в армию уехал.

Девушки, гляньте,
Гляньте на дорогу нашу,
Вьётся дальняя дорога,
Эх, да развесёлая дорога.

Только мы видим,
Видим мы седую тучу,
Вражья злоба из-за леса,
Эх, да вражья злоба, словно туча.

Эх, девушки, гляньте,
Мы врага принять готовы,
Наши кони быстроноги,
Эх, да наши танки быстроходны.

Эх, пусть же в колхозе
Дружная кипит работа,
Мы дозорные сегодня,
Эх, да мы сегодня часовые.

Transliteration

Polyushko-pole, polyushko, shiroko
pole,
Edut po polyu geroi,
Ekh, da krasnoy armii geroi.

Devushki plachut,
Devushkam segodnya grustno,
Milyy nadolgo uekhal,
Ekh, da milyy v armiyu uekhal.

Devushki, glyan'te,
Glyan'te na dorogu nashu,
V'yotsya dal'nyaya doroga,
Ekh, da razvesyolaya doroga.

Tol'ko my vidim,
Vidim my seduyu tuchu,
Vrazh'ya zloba iz-za lesa,
Ekh, da vrazh'ya zloba, slovno tucha.

Ekh, devushki, glyan'te,
My vraga prinyat' gotovy,
Nashi koni bystronogi,
Ekh, da nashi tanki bystrokhodny.

Ekh, pust' zhe v kolkhoze
Druzhnaya kipit rabota,
My dozornye segodnya,
Ekh, da my segodnya chasovye.

English translation

Meadowlands, wide meadowlands,

Heroes cross the fields,
Hey, heroes of the Red Army.
Girls are crying,
Today the girls are downhearted,
Their dear ones have gone away,
Hey, away to the army.

Girls, look there,
Look there, out on our road,
The distant road is pulsing,
Hey, the jolly road.

But out there we see,
We see a grey storm-cloud,
The enemy's evil in the forest,
Hey, the enemy's evil, like a storm-cloud.

Hey, girls, look there,
We're ready to take the enemy,
Our quick-legged steeds,
Hey, our quick-moving tanks.

Hey, let the work
Bubble gaily in the kolkhozy,
We're supervisors today,
Hey, today we're sentries.

External links

* [http://richka.com/redarmy/ppolye.ram Polyushka Polye sung by the Soviet Red Army Chorus] (RealAudio)
* [http://www.rathergood.com/vid "A Frightened Boy" at Rathergood.com]