Pogues Oretown Lyrics

The night stank of diesel
A stranger came to town
A cold wind blowing
And the rain pouring down

Street lights flicker
And the power lines moan
The moon beat down
On a river of bone

Someone put the lights out
No one make a sound
You won't find a thing
Down in Oretown

Foundry spits fire and smoke
Air's foul and choking
Sky is full of sulphur
Hills flat and broken

Black fogs and whirlwinds
The thunder and rain
Open drink madness
Purple mad pain

The circus is over
Exit the clowns
Nobody's laughing
Down in Oretown

The ship's in the harbor
Cargo's been pawned
Barrooms spilling sailors
All shipwrecked at dawn

Smelling of salt and rust
Uniform's torn
Came looking for flowers Only found thorns

Dreaming of mermaids
In pearly white gowns
Captain is sleeping
Down in Oretown

There's a man down on mainstreet
Eyes all aflame
Laughing in the thunder
Of the Number 9 train

Selling old postcards in rusty frames
A thousand views of Oretown
And they all look the same

Dressed up in sandals
A barbed wire crown
A lot of people lost their minds
Down in Oretown

Lock up the lawman
Let go the thief
Round up the grey men
Nail them to a tree

This town was a palace
This town was aglow
Well, the sky burned orange
And the iron river flowed

The night stank of diesel
A stranger came to town
The night folded over
Down in Oretown