One Tin Soldier
Gimp Lyrics


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Listen, children, to a story
That was written long ago,
About a kingdom on a mountain
And the valley-folk below.

On the mountain was a treasure
Buried deep beneath the stone,
And the valley-people swore
They'd have it for their very own.

Go ahead and hate your neighbour,
Go ahead and cheat a friend.
Do it in the name of Heaven,
You can justify it in the end.
There won't be any trumpets blowing
Come the judgement day,
On the bloody morning after…
One tin soldier rides away.

So the people of the valley
Sent a message up the hill,
Asking for the buried treasure,
Tons of gold for which they'd kill.

Came an answer from the kingdom,
"With our brothers we will share
All the secrets of our mountain,
All the riches buried there."

Go ahead and hate your neighbour,
Go ahead and cheat a friend.
Do it in the name of Heaven,
You can justify it in the end.
There won't be any trumpets blowing
Come the judgement day,
On the bloody morning after…
One tin soldier rides away.

So the people cried with anger,
"Mount your horses! Draw your swords!"
And they killed the mountain-people,
So they won their just reward.

Now they stood beside the treasure,
On the mountain, dark and red.
Turned the stone and looked beneath it…
"Peace on Earth" was all it said.

Go ahead and hate your neighbor,
Go ahead and cheat a friend.
Do it in the name of Heaven,
You can justify it in the end.
There won't be any trumpets blowing
Come the judgement day,




On the bloody morning after…
One tin soldier rides away.

Overall Meaning

The song "One Tin Soldier" by Gimp tells the story of a kingdom on a mountain and the valley-folk below. The mountain contains a valuable treasure that the valley-people are willing to kill for. They send a message to the kingdom asking for the treasure, but the kingdom responds by offering to share the riches with their brothers. However, the valley-people refuse and decide to attack the mountain-people. They eventually win the battle and claim the treasure, only to find that it reads "Peace on Earth" when they open it up. The song's chorus emphasizes that people should not hate their neighbors or cheat their friends in the name of Heaven, as there won't be any trumpets blowing on the judgment day.


This song highlights the dangers of greed and violence in society. The valley-people's desire for the mountain's treasure led them to attack and kill their fellow human beings, causing only sorrow and destruction. The irony in this story is that if the valley-people had accepted the kingdom's offer to share the riches, they wouldn't have had to endure bloodshed or suffer the consequences of their actions. The final revelation of the treasure as "Peace on Earth" suggests that we should prioritize striving for peace over coveting material possessions.


Line by Line Meaning

Listen, children, to a story
I have a story for all to hear


That was written long ago
It was written a long time ago


About a kingdom on a mountain
There once was a kingdom on a mountain


And the valley-folk below
And there were people living in the valley below


On the mountain was a treasure
On the mountain, there was a treasure hidden underground


Buried deep beneath the stone
It was buried very deeply beneath the stone


And the valley-people swore
The valley-people promised themselves


They'd have it for their very own
They would take the treasure for themselves


Go ahead and hate your neighbour
It's okay to hate others around you


Go ahead and cheat a friend
It's okay to cheat your friends


Do it in the name of Heaven
Justify your actions by saying it's for a religious purpose


You can justify it in the end
You'll be able to justify it later on


There won't be any trumpets blowing
There won't be any divine intervention


Come the judgement day
When it's time for judgement


On the bloody morning after…
After everything has happened and the sun has risen


One tin soldier rides away
One soldier will leave, alone and victorious


So the people of the valley
The people in the valley


Sent a message up the hill
Sent a message up to the top of the mountain


Asking for the buried treasure
Asking for the treasure that was buried


Tons of gold for which they'd kill
A lot of gold that they were willing to kill for


Came an answer from the kingdom
The kingdom sent a response


"With our brothers we will share
"We will share with our brothers


All the secrets of our mountain
All the secret knowledge that we possess about our mountain


All the riches buried there."
All of the valuable items that are hidden there"


So the people cried with anger
The people in the valley became angry


"Mount your horses! Draw your swords!"
"Get on your horses and draw your swords!"


And they killed the mountain-people
And they killed the people on the mountain


So they won their just reward.
So they believed that they deserved the treasure


Now they stood beside the treasure,
Now they stood next to the treasure


On the mountain, dark and red.
On the dark and bloody mountain


Turned the stone and looked beneath it…
They turned over the stone and looked underneath it


"Peace on Earth" was all it said.
"Peace on Earth" was written there




Contributed by Muhammad J. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
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Comments from YouTube:

@ricksanchez8225

He sings the melody of Day In/Day Out during the verse

@Wethand

Still here..

@buckethead3d

My toes are made of chewing gum and red tinfoil.

@somehominid

My feet are made of oil and grease

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