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lyrics

CANDIDE - VOLTAIRE

Candide, completely bewildered, had not yet figured out quite what was meant by his being a hero. On fine Spring day he took it into his head to go for a long walk, simply by putting one foot in front of the other, in the belief that it was a privilege of the human as of the animal species to use its legs as it pleases.He had not covered two leagues when he was caught up by four other heros, each over six foot tall, who tied him up and marched him off to the cells.

He was asked at his court-martial which he preferred: to be flogged by the entire regiment thirty-six times, or receive twelve lead bullets in his skull simultaneously. In vain did he remonstrate with them about freedom of the will, and protest that he preferred neither the one option nor the other; a choice had to be made; he determined, by virtue of that gift of God called freedom, to run the gauntlet thirty-six times.

He endured two runs. The regiment numbered two thousand men, which for Candide added up to four thousand strokes, which in turn laid bare the muscles and sinews from the nap of his neck to his buttocks. As they were lining up for the third run, Candide, who could take no more, politely asked if they would instead be so kind as to cave his head in; the plea was granted; he was blindfolded and made to kneel. At this moment the King of the Bulgars was passing by, and inquired as to the condemned man’s crime;

Being a king of rare genius, he understood from everything he learned about Candide that here was a young metaphysician entirely unschooled in the ways of the world, and he granted him his pardon with a clemency whose praises will be sung in all the newspapers for all the ages.

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from Broken Soldier: Live at the Valley Forge Remembrance Society's Summer Reading Events, released August 1, 2018

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Broken Soldier Portland, Oregon

Broken Soldier is a one-man band. A fictional duo featuring Jeff Betz and his nameless companion known only as The Soldier.

Together they create works of musical fiction that purport to be Live performances but which are in fact home recordings made in a small studio apartment in Portland, Oregon.

Jeff Betz: Vocals, Guitars and all other instruments and Field Recordings. ... more

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