And They're Off [Live]

Ponies in the sun, the race is soon beginning

My father bet the family fortune on a sleek brown horse

My father had a hunch

We gave up lunch so daddy could make a wager

Ma would scoff, she would scoff, hear her scoff

And they're off... they are off

And they move in a herd like a four letter word

And they're off

Tickets float to the ground and the band starts to play as the horses go round

And they're off

Mummy sat and cried, but dad was unaffected

He said: Have you ever had a better two minutes in the last three years?

We said: But dad, the dumb horse lost!

He said: Sometimes joy has a terrible cost, I know that!

Ma would scoff, she would scoff, hear her scoff

And they're off... yeah they're off

Mummy's biting his neck as they roll on the deck

And they're off

There is blood on the ground

And the band starts to play as the horses go round

And they're off

Isn't life funny, people loose money and have fun

Betting of course is hell on the horses

And the families where the betting is done

It's a joke to believe someone won

All they did was fight, plus they discussed the weather

My father bet the family fortune till it disappeared

They also laughed a lot

That was the thing I often forgot to tell you

But it's true, yes it's true, it is true

And he's off... daddy's off

We get letters from Maine where he tries to explain why he's off

What was lost was not found

And the band starts to play as the horses go round

And they're off

And they're off... yeah they're off

And they move in a herd like a four letter word

And they're off

There is blood on the ground

And the band starts to play as the horses go round

And round, and around, and around, and around, and around

And they're off