Free Software Song

The Free Software Song is a song by Richard Stallman about free software. The song belongs to the genre of filk and uses the melody of the Bulgarian folk song Sadi Moma.

Formation

According to Richard Stallman, the song was written at a science fiction convention which probably took place in early 1991. There, Stallman took about twenty other people at a " bardic circle" part, where each participant after the series had the opportunity to sing a song or to ask someone else about it. Stallman wrote then spontaneously the Free Software Song, as to his knowledge no one had written a filk song about free software and it would therefore be at the time.

Text

The lyrics of the song is public domain and is:

Join us now and share the software; You'll be free, hackers, you'll be free. Join us now and share the software; You'll be free, hackers, you'll be free. Hoarders can get piles of money, That is true, hackers, that is true did. But They can not help Their neighbors; That's not good, hackers, that's not good. When we have enough free software At our call, hackers, at our call, We'll kick out Those dirty licenses Ever more, hackers, ever more. Join us now and share the software; You'll be free, hackers, you'll be free. Join us now and share the software; You'll be free, hackers, you'll be free.

Reception

Over time, many cover versions and interpretations emerged. For example, there is a death metal and a techno version. In the documentation Revolution OS and Codename: Linux the Free Software Song occurs.