I live in a town called Millhaven
And it’s small and it’s mean and it’s cold
But if you come around just as the sun goes down
You can watch the whole town turn to gold
It’s around about then that I used to go a-roaming
Singing La la la la La la la lie
All God’s children they all gotta die
My name is Loretta but I prefer Lottie
I’m closing in on my fifteenth year
And if you think you have seen a pair of eyes more green
Then you sure didn’t see them round here
My hair is yellow and I’m always a-combing
La la la la La la la lie
Mama often told me we all have to die
You must have heard about The Curse Of Millhaven
How last Christmas Bill Blake’s little boy didn’t come home
They found him next week in One Mile Creek
His head bashed in and his pockets full of stones
Well, just imagine the wailing and moaning
La la la la La la la lie
Even little Billy Blake, he had to die
Then Professor O’Rye from Millhaven High
Found nailed to his door, his prize-winning terrier
The next day the old fool brought little Biko to school
And we all had to watch as he buried her
His eulogy to Biko had all the tears a-flowing
La la la la La la la lie
Even God’s little creatures, they have to die
Our little town fell into a state of shock
A lot of people were saying things that made little sense
Then the next thing you know the head of Handyman Joe
Was found in the fountain of the Mayor’s residence
Foul play can really get a small town going
La la la la La la la lie
All God’s children all have to die
Then, in a cruel twist of fate, old Mrs Colgate
Was stabbed but the job was not complete
The last thing she said before the cops pronounced her dead
Was, “My killer is Loretta and she lives across the street!”
Twenty cops burst through my door without even phoning
La la la la La la la lie
The young ones, the old ones, they all gotta die
Yes, it is I, Lottie. The curse of Millhaven
I’ve struck horror in the heart of this town
Like my eyes ain’t green and my hair ain’t yellow
It’s more like the other way around
I gotta pretty little mouth underneath all the foaming
La la la la La la la lie
Sooner or later we all gotta die
Since I was no bigger than a weavil they’ve been saying I was evil
That if “bad” was a boot then I’d fit it
That I’m a wicked young lady, but I’ve been trying hard lately
O fuck it! I’m a monster! I admit it!
It makes me so mad my blood really starts a-going
La la la la La la la lie
Mama always told me that we all gotta die
Yeah, I drowned the Blakey kid, stabbed Mrs. Colgate, I admit
Did the handyman with his circular saw in his garden shed
But I never crucified little Biko, that was two junior high school psychos
Stinky Bohoon and his friend with the pumpkin-sized head
I’ll sing to the lot, now you got me going
La la la la La la la lie
All God’s children have all gotta die
There were all of the others, all our sisters and brothers
You assumed were accidents, best forgotten
Recall the children who broke through the ice on Lake Tahoo?
Everyone assumed the “Warning” signs had followed them to the bottom
Well, they’re underneath the house where I do quite a bit of stowing
La la la la La la la lie
Even twenty little children, they had to die
And the fire of ‘91 that razed the Bella Vista slum
There was the biggest shit-fight this country’s ever seen
Insurance companies ruined, land lords getting sued
All cause of a wee little girl with a can of gasoline
Those flames really roared when the wind started blowing
La la la la La la la lie
Rich man, poor man, all got to die
Well I confessed to all these crimes and then they put me on trial
I was laughing when they took me away
Off to the asylum in an old black Mariah
It ain’t home, but you know, it’s fucking better than jail
It ain’t such a bad old place to have a home in
La la la la La la la lie
All God’s children they all gotta die
Now I got shrinks that will not rest with their endless Rorschach tests
I keep telling them they’re out to get me
They ask me if I feel remorse and I answer, “Why of course!
There is so much more I could have done if they’d let me!”
So it’s Rorschach and Prozac and everything is groovy
Singing La la la la La la la lie
All God’s children have all gotta die
La la la la La la la lie
I’m happy as a lark and everything is fine
Singing La la la la La la la lie
Yeah, everything is groovy and everything is fine
Singing La la la la La la la lie
All God’s children they all gotta die

Come in, babe
Across these purple fields
The sun has sunk behind you
Across these purple fields
That idiot-boy in the corner
Is speaking deviated truths
Come on, admit it, babe
It’s a wonderful life
If you can find it
It’s a wonderful life that you bring
Ooh it’s a wonderful thing
Speak our secret into your hands
And hold it in between
Plunge your hands into the water
And drown it in the sea
There will be nothing between us, baby
But the air that we breathe
Don’t cry
We can build our dungeons in the air
And sit and cry the blues
We can stomp across this world
With nails hammered through our shoes
We can join that troubled chorus
Who criticise and accuse
It don’t matter much
We got nothing much to lose
But this wonderful life
Sometimes our secrets are all we’ve got
With our lives we must defend
Sometimes the air between us, babe
Is unbearably thin
Sometimes it’s wise to lay down your gloves
And just give in
Come in, come in
To this wonderful life
If you can find it
And if you find it
It’s a wonderful life that you bring
It’s a wonderful, wonderful thing

She sat in a wicker chair, her eyes they were downcast
She breathed in the future, by breathing out the past
The die is done, the die is shook, the die is duly cast
There’s a dead man in my bed, she said
That smile you see upon his face
It’s been there for many days
There’s a dead man in my bed
I ain’t been feeling that good too much no more, she said, I swear
She pointed at the bedroom door and said I ain’t going in there
She leaped out of her seat and screamed someone’s not concentrating here
There’s a dead man in my bed, she said
I ain’t speaking metaphorically
His eyes are open but he cannot see
There’s a dead man in my bed
Then leaves outside the window waved, all brown, they were, and falling
Even I could tell the atmosphere in here was utterly appalling
The phone it rand incessantly but nobody was calling
There’s a dead man in my bed, she said
And though he keeps on taking notes
I swear this ain’t some kind of hoax
There’s a dead man in my bed
Now she’s in the kitchen rattling those pots and pans
I’d cook him something nice, she said, but he refuses to wash his hands
He used to be so good to me, but now he smells so fucking bad
There is a dead man in my bed, she says
I keep poking at him with my stick
But his skin is just so fucking thick
There’s a dead man in my bed

Orpheus sat gloomy in his garden shed
Wondering what to do
With a lump of wood, a piece of wire
And a little pot of glue
O Mamma O Mamma
He sawed at the wood with half a heart
And glued it top to bottom
He strung a wire in between
He was feeling something rotten
O Mamma O Mamma
Orpheus looked at his instrument
And he gave the wire a pluck
He heard a sound so beautiful
He gasped and said O my God
O Mamma O Mamma
He rushed inside to tell his wife
He went racing down the halls
Eurydice was still asleep in bed
Like a sack of cannonballs
O Mamma O Mamma
Look what I’ve made, cried Orpheus
And he plucked a gentle note
Eurydice’s eyes popped from their sockets
And her tongue burst through her throat
O Mamma O Mamma
O God, what have I done, he said
As her blood pooled in the sheets
But in his heart he felt a bliss
With which nothing could compete
O Mamma O Mamma
Orpheus went leaping through the fields
Strumming as hard as he did please
Birdies detonated in the sky
Bunnies dashed their brains out on the trees
O Mamma O Mamma
Orpheus strummed till his fingers bled
He hit a G minor 7
He woke up God from a deep, deep sleep
God was a major player in heaven
O Mamma O Mamma
God picked up a giant hammer
And He threw it with a thunderous yell
It smashed down hard on Orpheus’ head
And knocked him down a well
O Mamma O Mamma
The well went down very deep
Very deep went down the well
The well went down so very deep
Well, the well went down to hell
O Mamma O Mamma
Poor Orpheus woke up with a start
All amongst the rotting dead
His lyre tucked safe under his arm
His brains all down his head
O Mamma O Mamma
Eurydice appeared brindled in blood
And she said to Orpheus
If you play that fucking thing down here
I’ll stick it up your orifice!
O Mamma O Mamma
This lyre lark is for the birds, said Orpheus
It’s enough to send you bats
Let’s stay down here, Eurydice, dear
And we’ll have a bunch of screaming brats
O Mamma O Mamma
Orpheus picked up his lyre for the last time
He was on a real low down bummer
And stared deep into the abyss and said
This one is for Mamma
O Mamma O Mamma

It’s up in the morning and on the downs
Little white clouds like gambolling lambs
And I am breathless over you
And the red-breasted robin beats his wings
His throat it trembles when he sings
For he is helpless before you
The happy hooded bluebells bow
And bend their heads all a-down
Heavied by the early morning dew
At the whispering stream, at the bubbling brook
The fishes leap up to take a look
For they are breathless over you
The wind circles among the trees
And it bangs about the new-made leaves
For it is breathless without you
The fox chases the rabbit round
The rabbit hides beneath the ground
For he is defenceless without you
The sky of daytime dies away
And all the earthly things they stop to play
For we are all breathless without you
I listen to my juddering bones
The blood in my veins and the wind in my lungs
And I am breathless without you
Still your hands
And still your heart
For still your face comes shining through
And all the morning glows anew
Still your soul
Still your mind
Still, the fire of love is true
And I am breathless without you

Pass me that lovely little gun
My dear, my darling one
The cleaners are coming, one by one
You don’t even want to let them start
They are knocking now upon your door
They measure the room, they know the score
They’re mopping up the butcher’s floor
Of your broken little hearts
O children
Forgive us now for what we’ve done
It started out as a bit of fun
Here, take these before we run away
The keys to the gulag
O children
Lift up your voice, lift up your voice
Children
Rejoice, rejoice
Here comes Frank and poor old Jim
They’re gathering round with all my friends
We’re older now, the light is dim
And you are only just beginning
O children
We have the answer to all your fears
It’s short, it’s simple, it’s crystal clear
It’s round about, it’s somewhere here
Lost amongst our winnings
O children
Lift up your voice, lift up your voice
Children
Rejoice, rejoice
The cleaners have done their job on you
They’re hip to it, man, they’re in the groove
They’ve hosed you down, you’re good as new
They’re lining up to inspect you
O children
Poor old Jim’s white as a ghost
He’s found the answer that was lost
We’re all weeping now, weeping because
There ain’t nothing we can do to protect you
O children
Lift up your voice, lift up your voice
Children
Rejoice, rejoice
Hey little train!We are all jumping on
The train that goes to the Kingdom
We’re happy, Ma, we’re having fun
And the train ain’t even left the station
Hey, little train! Wait for me!
I once was blind but now I see
Have you left a seat for me?
Is that such a stretch of the imagination?
Hey little train! Wait for me!
I was held in chains but now I’m free
I’m hanging in there, don’t you see
In this process of elimination
Hey little train! We are all jumping on
The train that goes to the Kingdom
We’re happy, Ma, we’re having fun
It’s beyond my wildest expectation

What we once thought we had we didn't,
and what we have now will never be that way again
So we call upon the author to explain
Our myxomatosis kids spraddle
the streets, we've shunned them from the greasy-grind
The poor little things, they look so sad and old
as they mount us from behind
I ask them to desist and to refrain
And then we call upon the author to explain
Rosary clutched in his hand, he died with tubes up his nose
And a cabal of angels with finger cymbals
chanted his name in code
We shook our fists at the punishing rain
And we call upon the author to explain
He said everything is messed up around here,
everything is banal and jejune
There is a planetary conspiracy against the likes of you and me
in this idiot constituency of the moon
Well, he knew exactly who to blame
And we call upon the author to explain
Prolix! Prolix!
Nothing a pair of scissors can't fix!
Well, I go guruing down the street, young people
gather round my feet
Ask me things, but I don'r know where to start
They ignite the power-trail straight to my father's heart
And once again I call upon the author to explain
Who is this great burdensome slavering dog-thing
that mediocres my every thought?
I feel like a vacuum cleaner, a complete sucker,
it's fucked up and he is a fucker
But what an enormous and encyclopaedic brain
I call upon the author to explain
Oh rampant discrimination, mass poverty,
third world debt, infectious diseease
Global inequality and deepening
socio-economic divisions
Well, it does in your brain
And we call upon the author to explain
Now hang on, my friend Doug is tapping on the window
(Hey Doug, how you been?)
Brings me back a book on holocaust poetry complete
with pictures
Then tells me to get ready for the rain
And we call upon the author to explain
I say prolix! Prolix!
Something a pair of scissors can fix
Bukowski was a jerk!
Berryman was best!
He wrote like wet papier mache,
went the Heming-way
weirdly on wings and with maximum pain
We call upon the author to explain
Down in my bolthole I see they've published
another volume of unreconstructed rubbish
"The waves, the waves were soldiers moving".
Well, thank you, thank you, thank you
And again I call upon the author to explain

I stepped out of the St. James Hotel,
I'd left you behind curled up like a child
A change is gonna come,
And as the door whispered shut
I walked on down the high-windowed hall
You lay sleeping on the unmade bed,
The weatherman on the television
In the St. James Hotel said
That the rains are gonna come
And I stepped out on the streets all sparkling clean with the early morning dew
Maybe it was you or maybe it was me?
You came on like a punch in the heart
You lying there with the light on your hair
Like a Jesus on the moon
A Jesus of the planets and the stars
Well, I kept thinking about what the weatherman said
And if the voices of the living can be heard by the dead
Well, the day is gonna come when we find out
And in some kinda way I take a little comfort from that
now and then
Cause people often talk about being scared of change
But for me I'm more afraid of things staying the same
Cause the game is never won by standing in any one place
For too long
Maybe it was you or maybe it was me?
But there was a chord in you I could not find to strike
You lying there with all the light in your hair
Like a Jesus of the moon
A Jesus of the planets and the stars
I see the many girls walking down the empty streets
And maybe once or twice one of them smiles at me
You can't blame anyone for saying hello
I say: «hey», I say: «hello», I say: «hello»
Will it be me or will it be you?
One must stay and one depart
You lying there in a St. James Hotel bed
Like a Jesus of the moon
A Jesus of the planets and the stars

I was ridin', I was ridin', oh
The sun, the sun, the sun was rising from the field
I got a feeling I just can't shake
I got a feeling that just won't go away
You've got it, just keep on pushing and, keep on
pushing and push the sky away
And if your friends think that you should do it different
And if they think that you should do it the same
You've got it, just keep on pushing and, keep on
pushing and push the sky away
And if you feel you got everything you came for
If you got everything and you don't want no more
You've got it, just keep on pushing and, keep on
pushing and push the sky away
And some people say it's just rock 'n' roll
Aw, but it gets you right down to your soul
You've got it, just keep on pushing and, keep on
pushing and push the sky away

Let us go now, my one true love
Call the gasman, cut the power out
We can set out, we can set out for the distant skies
Watch the sun, watch it rising in your eyes
Let us go now, my darling companion
Set out for the distant skies
See the sun, see it rising
See it rising, rising in your eyes
They told us our gods would outlive us
They told us our dreams would outlive us
But they lied
Let us go now, my only companion
Set out for the distant skies
Soon the children will be rising, will be rising
This is not for our eyes