The British singer and songwriter Alan Price (born 1942) composed and recorded "The Jarrow Song", first released in 1974, and concerning the Jarrow Hunger March, also known as the Jarrow Crusade. This was a historical protest march against hunger and poverty that departed from the town of Jarrow, in the North East of England on January 5th, 1936, arriving in London on October 31st of the same year.

The matter was clearly dear to Price's heart, as he was born near to Jarrow himself, and came from a working class background. Despite the advent of the welfare state, many parts of Britain still faced poverty and unemployment in the 1970s, so the song still had a topical edge.

The song seems to divide into three parts. Initially Price takes on the persona of two of the marchers, Geordie Mcintyre and Billy White - fictional, but inspired by real marchers. It then morphs into a consideration of the contemporary conditions, and at this point the music also takes on a far more modern feel, rather than the brass band march of the beginning. Finally, Price returns to his original melody, but references himself as the subject matter.

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