1917 lyrics

[Verse 1]
The strange young man who comes to me
A soldier on a three day spree
Who needs one night's cheap ecstasy
And a woman's arms to hide him

[Verse 2]
He greets me with a courtly bow
And hides his pain by acting proud
And he drinks too much and he laughs too loud
But how can I deny him?

[Chorus]
Let us dance beneath the moon
I'll sing to you "Claire de Lune"
The morning always comes too soon
But tonight the war is over

[Verse 3]
He speaks to me in schoolboy French
Of a soldier's life inside a trench
Of the look of death and the ghastly stench
I do my best to please him

[Verse 4]
He puts two roses in a vase
Two roses sadly out of place
Like the gallant smile on his haggard face
Playfully I tease him
[Chorus]
Hold me 'neath the Paris skies
Let's not talk of how or why
Tomorrow's soon enough to die
But tonight the war is over

[Verse 5]
We make love too hard, too fast
He falls asleep, his face a mask
And he wakes with the shakes and he drinks from his flask
I put my arms around him

[Verse 6]
They die in the trenches and they die in the air
In Belgium and France the dead are everywhere
And they die so fast there's no time to prepare
A decent grave to surround them

[Chorus]
Old world glory, old world fame
The old world's gone, gone up in flames
Nothing will ever be the same
And nothing lasts forever

[Verse 7]
Oh, I'd pray for him, but I've forgotten how
And there's nothing, nothing that can save him now
But there's always another with the same funny bow
And who am I to deny them?
[Chorus]
Lux æterna luceat eis, Domine
c*m Sanctis tuis in æternum
Quia pius es
Requiem æternam dona eis, Domine
Tonight the war is over
Quia pius es
Lux perpetua luceat eis, Domine
c*m Sanctis tuis in æternum
Quia pius es
Requiem æternam dona eis, Domine
Tonight the war is over

[Outro]
Ah