Lyrics to
Small Axe

This version of Small Axe was released by Bob Marley in 1973.

Our Decade Lyrics Bob Marley profile has all of the Small Axe lyrics from 1973 and many more songs from the Bob Marley discography that we have on file.

Here's more interesting things in songs and lyrics tied to Bob Marley or about the 1970s in general.

Why boasteth thyself
Oh, evil men
Playing smart
And not being clever?
I said, you’re working iniquity
To achieve vanity (if a-so a-so)
But the goodness of Jah, Jah
I-dureth for-I-ver

So if you are the big tree
We are the small axe
Ready to cut you down (well sharp)
To cut you down

These are the words
Of my master, keep on tellin’ me
No weak heart
Shall prosper
And whosoever diggeth a pit
Shall fall in it, fall in it
And whosoever diggeth a pit
Shall fall in it (… fall in it)

If you are the big tree, let me tell you that
We are the small axe, sharp and ready
Ready to cut you down (well sharp)
To cut you down

(To cut you down)

(To cut you down)

These are the words
Of my master, tellin’ me that
No weak heart
Shall prosper
And whosoever diggeth a pit
Shall fall in it, uh, bury in it
And whosoever diggeth a pit
Shall bury in it, uh (… bury in it)

If you are the big, big tree
We are the small axe
Ready to cut you down (well sharp)
To cut you down
If you are the big, big tree, let me tell you that
We are the small axe
Ready to cut you down (well sharp)
To cut you down
Sharpened …

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Want more lyrics and songs by Bob Marley?

Bob Marley has released many songs over the years besides Small Axe. Bob Marley released songs from 1973 to 1995 spanning across albums like Catch A Fire, Burnin', Natty Dread, Live!, Rastaman Vibration, Exodus, Kaya, Babylon By Bus, Survival, Uprising, Confrontation, Rebel Music, and Natural Mystic: The Legend Lives On. Decade Lyrics has over lyrics & songs by Bob Marley.

If you're a fan of lyrics from 1970s songs looking for more songs from 1973 or the 1970s overall, you've come to the right place!

About Lyrics and Small Axe by Bob Marley

The lyrics for Small Axe are defined as the words making up the song released by Bob Marley in 1973. It also includes the verses and words used by the background chorus in the song. Like many hit songs, the lyrics to Small Axe have different meanings to different people. While it is clear in some of the lyrics what the artist is trying to really say, only Bob Marley and those working with them know all of the meanings behind all of the lyrics to their songs.

Some folks are interested in word and phrase etymology. It is easy to understand the lyrics to Small Axe by Bob Marley if you think through it. The word "lyric" itself derives from the Latin word lyricus, with the actual English word lyrics applied to the definition "words set to music" listed in Stainer and Barrett's 1876 Dictionary of Musical Terms. Continuing the chain, the Latin word lyricus derives from the Greek word λυρικός or lyrikós. This somewhat means "poetry accompanied by the lyre" or "words set to music." You can easily see that by looking at the background of the word lyric, that the "lyrics to Small Axe" means the words set to the music of Small Axe, or poetry accompanied by the lyre played by Bob Marley. The singular form "lyric" is still used to mean the complete words to a song. However, the singular form lyric is also commonly used to refer to a specific line (or phrase) within a song's lyrics. Hence, by this analysis of word structure, you could say that the lyric to Small Axe and the lyrics to Small Axe are both one and the same thing. None of this talk about the word Lyrics is really relevant to fans of Bob Marley who came here looking just for the lyrics to Small Axe, but we feel it is still fun to learn what's behind commonly used words and lyrics in songs.

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