Don't Ask
Frank Hayes Lyrics

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The orders come down, and they march us away;
There's a battle to fight, and we join in the fray.
God, it's hell when you know this could be your last day ...
But it's better than working for Xerox!

So march,
March,
April, May, June, July,

August, September, we'll fight ev'ry day.
And it's fare thee well, all vestige of modesty:
All of the Dorsai are singing.

Some go for the glory, some just like to fight,
But the truth is we Dorsai are not very bright.
We'll steal or we'll screw what we can't shoot on sight --
God, it's hell to encounter a fireplug.

So march,
March,
April, May, June, July,
August, September, we'll fight ev'ry day.
And it's fare thee well, all vestige of harmony --
All of the Dorsai are drinking.

We Dorsai have Honor. We always fight fair --
Except when we're losing, and then we don't care.
For defeat is disgrace that we never could bear ...
And we only get paid when we're winning.

So march,
March,
April, May, June, July,
August, September, we'll fight ev'ry day.
And it's fare thee well, all vestige of honesty:
All of the Dorsai are cheating.

When the battle is over, and the fighting is done,
If ten of us made it, we figure we've won.
'Cause we count the survivors, and count them by one two three
Four five six sev'n eight nine ... many.

So march,
March,
April, May, June, July,
August, September, we'll fight ev'ry day.

And it's fare thee well, all vestige of comedy:
All of the Dorsai are counting.

Overall Meaning

Frank Hayes's song "Don't Ask" is a satirical commentary on war and soldiers. The lyrics reflect on the experience of a group of soldiers who are sent to fight in a battle. The soldiers know that they may not survive, but they are still glad to go to war, as it is better than the alternative of working a mundane office job. The repetition of the word "march" creates a sense of monotony and emphasizes the routine of being a soldier.

The lyrics also highlight the violent and sometimes immoral behavior of soldiers. The Dorsai soldiers, in particular, are portrayed as not being very bright and resorting to theft and promiscuity when they are unable to succeed in combat. However, despite their questionable behavior, they still adhere to the concept of Honor and fighting fair (except when they're losing).

The song ends with a humorous moment, as the soldiers count the survivors of the battle, noting that even if only ten make it out alive, they consider it a victory. The final line of the song ("All of the Dorsai are counting") reveals that these soldiers are not just soldiers, but survivors, who celebrate the fact that they are still alive.

Overall, "Don't Ask" is a clever, satirical take on war and military culture, highlighting both the tragedy and absurdity of the soldier's experience.

Line by Line Meaning

The orders come down, and they march us away;
We are given orders and commanded to leave for battle.

There's a battle to fight, and we join in the fray.
We engage in the battle and join the chaos of combat.

God, it's hell when you know this could be your last day ...
It is a daunting task to face death in the possibility that this battle could be our last.

But it's better than working for Xerox!
Although it is a harrowing challenge, it is believed that fighting in battle is more tolerable than working at Xerox.

March,
We continue on our journey forward.

April, May, June, July,
The months go by as we continue fighting.

August, September, we'll fight ev'ry day.
We continue the battle every day until the months of August and September.

And it's fare thee well, all vestige of modesty:
We disregard all modesty.

All of the Dorsai are singing.
The Dorsai sing and celebrate despite our lack of modesty.

Some go for the glory, some just like to fight,
Some of us fight for the glory while others enjoy the fight itself.

But the truth is we Dorsai are not very bright.
We are not very intelligent as Dorsai.

We'll steal or we'll screw what we can't shoot on sight --
If we cannot shoot something on sight, we will resort to stealing or trickery to obtain it.

God, it's hell to encounter a fireplug.
It is difficult to encounter unexpected obstacles or challenges.

And it's fare thee well, all vestige of harmony --
We abandon all notions of harmony and order.

All of the Dorsai are drinking.
We celebrate and indulge after disregarding harmony.

We Dorsai have Honor. We always fight fair --
As Dorsai, we always maintain a sense of honor and fight with integrity.

Except when we're losing, and then we don't care.
We only disregard our honor when we are losing the battle.

For defeat is disgrace that we never could bear ...
We find defeat to be shameful and unacceptable.

And we only get paid when we're winning.
We only receive financial compensation when we win the battle.

So march,
We continue to march forward and fight.

March,
We continue to march forward and fight.

April, May, June, July,
We continue fighting throughout the months.

August, September, we'll fight ev'ry day.
We will fight every day until August and September.

And it's fare thee well, all vestige of honesty:
We abandon all honesty and integrity.

All of the Dorsai are cheating.
We resort to cheating and dishonesty in battle.

When the battle is over, and the fighting is done,
Once the battle has ended, and fighting has ceased,

If ten of us made it, we figure we've won.
If even ten of us remain, we consider it a victory.

'Cause we count the survivors, and count them by one two three Four five six sev'n eight nine ... many.
We only value those who survive, and we count them in succession, regardless of how many.

So march,
We continue onward from this battle.

March,
We continue onward from this battle.

April, May, June, July,
We move forward through time.

August, September, we'll fight ev'ry day.
We prepare to fight again every day until August and September.

And it's fare thee well, all vestige of comedy:
We abandon any sense of humor or comedy in our circumstances.

All of the Dorsai are counting.
All of the Dorsai count and calculate their losses and successes.

Contributed by Taylor H. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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