Tin Drum
Childs Toni Lyrics

There's an old man talking
An elderly person is speaking

To a young boy weeping
The old man is speaking to a young boy who is crying

To an old man shaking his head
The first old man is shaking his head in disapproval

There's a cool gentle breeze
A refreshing, calm wind is blowing

In the night full of light
The nighttime is illuminated with light

As the red glow wavers in the stead
A red light flickers and shimmers in the distance

There's a black man crying
A man of African descent is weeping

And a white man dying
A Caucasian man is passing away

And a black man's head in the air
The black man raises his head up high

The shock of life
The impact of living

Feeds the fight
Nurtures the spirit of struggle

The fight that's in my head
The internal battle within my mind

Holding tight in the stillness of the night
Clutching on firmly in the peacefulness of the evening

In the stillness of my thoughts
In the quietness of my mind

Yet, I know I've only started
However, I am aware that I have just begun

Beating on a tin drum marching to a sound
Playing a percussion instrument while moving to a beat

What is it I think?
What are my thoughts?

Am I beating on a tin drum marching to a cause
Am I striving for a purpose by playing this drum?

When I don't know what it is I believe
Even though I am uncertain of what I truly believe in

Lonely peeping chick
A young, alone bird chirping

Calling to his mother
Trying to communicate with its mother

Runs amuck
Scrambling about uncontrollably

In a sunken black ditch
Falling into a dark, low-lying depression

And Wilhelm's with the widow
Wilhelm is spending time with a grieving woman

While Martha's in the meadow
Martha is located in an open field

And the lamb is a laying in sick
The lamb is laying down, unwell

And the boy in back
A male teenager behind

Is talking some slack
Is speaking carelessly

To the king of auld lang syne
To the former ruler of a period long ago

And my heart goes out
My sympathy and compassion is extended

But I cannot spout what I do not know inside
But I am unable to express what I am unsure of

Holdin' to a tin drum, marching to a sound
Holding onto a metal drum and moving to music

What is it that I think?
What are my thoughts?

I'm beating on a tin drum, marching to a cause
I am playing percussion with purpose

When I don't know what it is I believe, I believe
Even though I am unsure of my beliefs

Beating on the drum beating on the drum
Continuing to play the drum

Beating on a cause
Playing for a purpose

It really is a lie
It is truly false

Am I beating on a drum?
Am I playing percussion?

Beating on a lie, a lie, a lie-ha-high!
Playing an instrument for a falsehood