Strawbs - Alexander The Great lyrics

rate me

They called him Alexander<br />

With the best band in the land<br />

He'd topped the bill in Paris<br />

But in Venice it was banned<br />

A pile of dusty gold discs<br />

Were among his claims to fame<br />

There was no-one over sixty<br />

Who didn't know his name.<br />

<br />

Alexander you were great<br />

The man the critics loved to hate<br />

You could have been as big as the Beatles or the Stones<br />

Alexander you became<br />

The lonely housewife's favourite name<br />

You could have been the greatest of them all.<br />

<br />

The gig was held in honour <br />

Of his golden jubilee<br />

He did not need the money<br />

So he said he'd play for free<br />

He got the band together<br />

Who'd been with him through the years<br />

They rehearsed the Alexander songs<br />

And shed nostalgic tears.<br />

<br />

The crowd rose to their feet<br />

When Alexander hit the stage<br />

His face had been rebuilt<br />

So that you could not tell his age<br />

He played all of the old songs<br />

And the crowd sang every word<br />

He danced like Margot Fonteyn<br />

And whistled like a bird.<br />

<br />

He came on for the encore<br />

But collapsed against the stand<br />

The crowd was hushed, the doctor came<br />

There was panic in the band<br />

He diagnosed a broken heart<br />

The critics had been fed<br />

Their reviews became<br />

Obituary notices instead