PIE IN THE SKY

This phrase, which translates as 'pie in the sky', comes from the famous song 'The Preacher and the Slave', written in 1911 by Joe Hill, a popular American composer and organizer of the Industrial Workers' Union of the World. He wrote in the song:

You will eat, bye and bye,In the glorious land above the sky!Work and pray, live on hay,You'll get PIE IN THE SKY when you die! holy place to dine. Work and pray, live on hay,You'll get PIE IN THE SKY when you die! Pray! Live on hay! You'll get PIE IN THE SKY when you die!) These lyrics were quoted by Joe Hill from the American Salvation Army anthem to satirize this religious organization, to expose its deception and hypocrisy, and to awaken the masses of oppressed slaves. Later, people used pie in the sky as a metaphor for 'little hope' and 'promises that can't be guaranteed to be fulfilled'.