Odin's Daughter
There are definitely not enough songs about female warriors. So I wrote Odin's Daughter.
Oddly, I wrote this song before I moved to Iceland, but it had a wonderful reception while I was there.
You can perform the chorus after each verse, but I prefer to add it at the natural break-points marked below. YMMV.
This is intended to be a fast-paced, martial song, telling the story of a Norse maiden
in a village attacked by bandits. In the end, she is rewarded for her courage and faith
with the sweetest gift Odin can offer:
Vengeance.
I.
The plains of the northlands are harsh and hard-hearted
As deadly as ice and as cold as the grave
The men-folk sail out for a long season's fishing
Leaving daughters and wives at the edge of the waves.
A fire's no comfort when the marriage-bed's empty
A cook-pot's no father; a loom guards no homes
Wolves howl at night and the bandits are raiding
'Til the longships return, we must manage alone.
Chorus:
They say battle's no place for a woman
A spindle and distaff, not a shield and a spear
A daughter must carry her courage in silence
And watch for a sail from the cold, storm-torn pier.
Thieves in the forest, they're gathering courage
The village is sleeping, the fires are low
In darkness they creep from the rough, rocky hilltops
Their footsteps are silent in new-fallen snow
The door cannot hold against cruel-wielded axeblades
A roof gives no shelter when fighting's begun
The storm winds have swallowed the screams of the women
They flee to the lodge with their daughters and sons.
II.
The oak doors break open and raiders surround them
Looting, and killing, and burning the lands
One brave maiden stands between brigands and children
Her father's old sword clenched in her shaking hands.
Surrounded by death, she must conquer her fear o'er
The cries of the dying, the innocent slain
Her simple words whisper in stalwart devotion
Odin, let me die bravely - let them die in pain.
Chorus:
They say battle's no place for a woman
A spindle and distaff, not a shield and a spear
A daughter must carry her courage in silence
And watch for a sail from the cold, storm-torn pier.
The bandits, they bait her and mock at her bravery
She knows not of swords or of skilled battle-play
A thief's dagger snuffs out her flame like a candle's
Her blood on the bare floor, her life ebbs away.
A Valkyrie in Asgard now stands before Odin
Her eyes pale and cold as the sun on the fjord
Clad in bright armor, her heart filled with vengeance
And in her mailed fist is that old rusted sword.
III.
Two gifts she prayed for and two gifts are granted
Thieves offered no mercy - no mercy returned
The Valkyrie has given them pain for their payment
They died on their knees like the cowards they were.
The tide brings the men back; the tale becomes legend
The maiden's name writ with the heroes of lore
For Odin loves those with the heart of a warrior
Though they sail on the longships, or walk on the shore.
End Chorus: (note changes)
They say battle's no place for a woman
But her heart is her shield, and her spirit's a spear
A daughter can carry her courage in silence
And rise to the skies from a cold, storm-torn pier
(slowly)
A daughter can carry her courage in silence
And rise to the skies from a cold, storm-torn pier.