warren zevon • david lindell
From the third album of Warren William Zevon (1947–2003): "Excitable Boy"(1978). Fictional, of course, about mercenaries in and after the Congo Crisis during the late sixties, co-written by his friend David Lindell, who actually had been there. The headless norwegian mercenary became Zevon's last public performance before his death in 2003: on Late Show with David Letterman 30th of October 2002. The act used to be on YouTube, but Worldwide Pants Inc. has blocked it now ... Letterman is the owner of the company =:| so You have to watch the WHOLE show ...
Roland was a warrior from the Land of the Midnight Sun
with a Thompson gun for hire • fighting to be done
the deal was made in Denmark on a dark and stormy day
so he set out for Biafra to join the bloody fray
through sixty-six and seven they fought the Congo war
fingers on their triggers • knee-deep in gore
for days and nights they battled the Bantu to their knees
they killed to earn their living and to help out the Congolese
::/:: Roland the Thompson gunner ... ::/::
his comrades fought beside him : Van Owen and the rest
but of all the Thompson gunners Roland was the best
so the CIA decided they wanted Roland dead
that son-of-a-bitch Van Owen blew off Roland's head
Roland the headless Thompson gunner
Norway's bravest son
[Time time time for another peaceful war
but time stands still for Roland till he evens up the score]
... they can still see his headless body
stalking through the night
::/:: in the muzzle flash of Roland's Thompson gun ::/::
Roland searched the continent for the man who'd done him in
he found him in Mombassa in a barroom drinking gin
Roland aimed his Thompson gun : he didn't say a word
but he blew Van Owen's body from there to Johannesburg
::/:: Roland the headless Thompson gunner ... ::/::
the eternal Thompson gunner • still wandering through the night
now it's ten years later but he still keeps up the fight
in Ireland, in Lebanon, in Palestine and Berkeley
Patty Hearst heard the burst of Roland's Thompson gun
and bought it
khawaga, november 2024:
To honor Zevon, you might these days update the final verse:
the eternal Thompson gunner is still wandering through the night
now fifty years later he still keeps up the fight
in Palestine, in Lebanon and now in Ukraina:
Putin first heard the burst of Roland's Thompson gun
then bought it
For the following CHORD section, fullscreen/horizontal mobile is recommended.
Chords in brackets may be omitted.
Em G Cmaj7 Roland was a warrior from the Land of the Midnight Sun C G D with a Thompson gun for hire fighting to be done Em G Cmaj7 the deal was made in Denmark on a dark and stormy day C G D D6 Em so he set out for Biafra to join the bloody fray C G ...Am...Em Roland the Thompson gunner G D Cmaj7...C Roland the headless Thompson gunner G D Norway's bravest son Em D G they can still see his headless body D stalking through the night G D Em in the muzzle flash of Roland's Thompson gun C G Cmaj7...Em Roland the headless Thompson gunner C [!] C [!] C D ... Patty Hearst heard the burst of Roland's Thompson gun Em and bought it
