McMurtry, James - Ruins Of The Realm Lyrics






Standin' in the middle of a Roman street
Marble dust all over my feet
Bearded masses at the gates
Dancin' in the ruins while it's not too late

Drivin' a Rolls through old Bombay
Rickshaw driver's in my way
Well he'd better move over and he'd better move fast
Dancin' in the ruins of a golden past
Dancin' in the ruins of the Raj
Queen and country's noble cause

Standin' on banks of the river Seine
I ain't got tuppence to my name
Stand my ground and I cast my net
Dancin' in the ruins where the sun don't set
Dancin' in the ruins of the Crown
Enfield rifles keepin' us down

I got a thirty-ought-six and a premium load
In a shotgun shack on a two lane road
Smack in the middle of the bible belt
Dancin' in the ruins all by myself

We got the National Guard with the bayonets
We got the ten commandments on the State House steps
We shalt not steal and we shalt not kill
Dancin' in the ruins of our own free will
Dancin' in the ruins of the South
Confederate flag taped over my mouth

We thank thee lord for all we got
While the multi-nationals call the shots
So scrape them hides and clean that slate
Dancin' in the ruins of the nation-state

We'll fight 'em in the land, we'll fight 'em in the air
Little cowboy says we got to fight 'em over there
You ain't seen nothing like it since Saigon fell
Dancin' in the ruins 'cause we might as well
Dancin' in the ruins of the realm
A fool and a mad man at the helm
Dancin' in the ruins of the Reich
Down in the bunker on a hunger strike





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McMurtry, James Ruins Of The Realm Comments
  1. c.... z....

    Standin' in the middle of a Roman street
    Marble dust all over my feet
    Bearded masses at the gates
    Dancin' in the ruins while it's not too late

    Drivin' a Rolls through old Bombay
    Rickshaw driver's in my way
    Well he'd better move over and he'd better move fast
    Dancin' in the ruins of a golden past
    Dancin' in the ruins of the Raj
    Queen and country's noble cause

    Standin' on banks of the river Seine
    I ain't got tuppence to my name
    Stand my ground and I cast my net
    Dancin' in the ruins where the sun don't set
    Dancin' in the ruins of the Crown
    Enfield rifles keepin' us down

    I got a thirty-ought-six and a premium load
    In a shotgun shack on a two lane road
    Smack in the middle of the bible belt
    Dancin' in the ruins all by myself

    We got the National Guard with the bayonets
    We got the ten commandments on the State House steps
    We shalt not steal and we shalt not kill
    Dancin' in the ruins of our own free will
    Dancin' in the ruins of the South
    Confederate flag taped over my mouth

    We thank thee lord for all we got
    While the multi-nationals call the shots
    So scrape them hides and clean that slate
    Dancin' in the ruins of the nation-state

    We'll fight 'em in the land, we'll fight 'em in the air
    Little cowboy says we got to fight 'em over there
    You ain't seen nothing like it since Saigon fell
    Dancin' in the ruins 'cause we might as well
    Dancin' in the ruins of the realm
    A fool and a mad man at the helm
    Dancin' in the ruins of the Reich
    Down in the bunker on a hunger strike



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  2. M.... P....

    Great song! James is a genius. God bless for the truth.

  3. J.... F....

    It's a great song. It's off-putting to see people offended by it. It's not a protest song. He's singing about societies that have lost respect for humanity, and their resulting crumbling. He talks about the south, politics, events in history, but he's assigning blame to all of us. This is just his commentary as a historian, on the social, cultural, intellectual, and emotional milieu that shaped people's lives and actions in the past and relating them to the present.

    J.... F....

    Jeremy Fink wait are people really offended by this? It’s simply the truth, he’s got no spin on it.

  4. F.... P....

    Spectacular song, as usual from JMM.

  5. t.... ....

    Free the South... that's fucking FUNNY! Look up the term "welfare state". All those Red Southern states? Net recipients. All those Blue States, up North and on the Coasts? Net donors. The South isn't leaving anything, because they'd have to borrow the money to go.

    t.... ....

    Your statement is funny.  I think you should look up things before spouting off at the mouth. I believe you have your recipients and donors criss crossed.

  6. A.... P....

    McMurtry's one of the most articulate, observant, clever, and brilliant song smiths of our time. This is yet another one of his genius social commentary's, one among oh so many. Dancing in the ruins all by myself.....indeed.

  7. p.... e....

    Parallels of crumbling empires
    Who writes as sharp and brilliantly about things like this apart from JmM
    Genius

  8. g.... w....

    Damn here we go again. Cowboy said said we gotta fight over there. FUCKing cowboy!
    YOU?

  9. L.... ....

    feel better.....

  10. b.... ....

    The south is free to leave.

    b.... ....

    blatantmisconception if you don’t like McMurtry then the south no longer accepts you

  11. s.... m....

    civilization will see ruins of its own doing...eventually!!!

  12. S.... V....

    One of my favorites! Please keep writing music!

  13. R.... ....

    Awesome song!

  14. L.... ....

    FREE THE SOUTH......

    L.... ....

    Didn't know the south was not free!!!