Once upon a time
And not so long ago
When things were much more simple
And time would travel slow
There came a righteous stranger
With a bible in his hand
To educate the sinners
And liberate their land

CHORUS
The sins of the fathers
Are visited from old
In a never ending circle
Of people bought & sold
So the wretched of the earth
Will huddle from the cold
As the ship of fools goes sailing
On an ocean black as gold

So come & sit beside me
And let my tale unfold
Of a land of milk & honey
Where the truth must not be told
As men of rhyme & reason
Let the devil take their soul
For greed & fame & fortune
And a river black as gold

CHORUS

And all the non-believers
Were hiding from the light
As a thousand burning crosses
Were scattered in the night
The thieves & the vagabonds
Were sinking in the sand
As the righteous lord & master
Stretches out a helping hand

CHORUS

And those who had to suffer
The sick, the young, the old
Were sacrificed to fortune
And left out in the cold
So in this new arrangement
The leaders sold their soul
For bangles, beads & baubles
And a river black as gold

CHORUS