An Irish Ballad --- Tom Lehrer
A-[Em]bout a maid I’ll sing a song, sing [Am]rickety-tickety-[Em]tin.
A-[Am]bout a maid I’ll [Em]sing a song, who [D]did not have her [Em]family long.
Not [Am]only did she [Em]do them [Am]wrong,
She [Em]did every [D]one of them [Em]in, them [D]in.
She [Em]did every [D]one of them [Em]in.
One [Em]morning in a fit of pique sing [Am]rickety-tickety-[Em]tin.
One [Am]morning in a [Em]fit of pique, she [D]drowned her father [Em]in the creek.
The [Am]water tasted [Em]bad for a [Am]week,
And we [Em]had to make [D]do with [Em]gin, with [D]gin.
We [Em]had to make [D]do with [Em]gin.
Her [Em]mother she could never stand, sing [Am]rickety-tickety-[Em]tin.
Her [Am]mother she could [Em]never stand, and [D]so a cyanide [Em]soup she planned.
Her [Am]mother died with the [Em]spoon in her [Am]hand,
And her [Em]face in a [D]hideous [Em]grin, a [D]grin.
Her [Em]face in a [D]hideous [Em]grin.
She [Em] set her sister’s hair on fire, sing [Am]rickety-tickety-[Em]tin.
She [Am] set her sister’s [Em]hair on fire, and [D] as the smoke and [Em]flame rose higher,
She [Am] danced around the [Em] funeral [Am] pyre.
[Em] Playin’ a [D] vio-[Em]lin, o-[D]lin.
[Em] Playin’ a [D]vio-[Em]lin.
She [Em]weighted her brother down with stones, sing [Am]rickety-tickety-[Em]tin.
She [Am]weighted her brother [Em]down with stones, and [D]sent him off to [Em]Davy Jones.
[Am]All they ever [Em]found were some [Am]bones,
And oc-[Em]casional [D]pieces of [Em]skin, of [D]skin.
Oc-[Em]casional [D]pieces of [Em]skin.
One [Em]day when she had nothiing to do, sing [Am]rickety-tickety-[Em]tin.
One [Am]day when she had [Em]nothing to do, she [D]cut her baby [Em]brother in two,
And [Am]served him up as an [Em]Irish [Am]stew.
And in-[Em]vited the [D]neighbours [Em]in, -bours [D]in.
In-[Em]vited the neigh-[D]bours [Em]in.
And [Em]when at last the police came by, sing [Am]rickety-tickety-[Em]tin.
And [Am]when at last the [Em]police came by, her [D]little pranks she [Em]did not deny.
To [Am]do so she would have [Em]had to [Am]lie.
And [Em]lying she [D]knew was a [Em]sin, a [D]sin.
[Em]Lying she [D]knew was a [Em]sin.
My [Em]tragic tale I won’t prolong, sing [Am]rickety-tickety-[Em]tin.
My [Am]tragic tale I [Em]won’t prolong, and [D]if you do not en-[Em]joy my song,
You’ve your-[Am]selves to blame if [Em]it’s too [Am]long.
You should [Em]never have [D]let me be-[Em]gin, be-[D]gin.
You should [Em]never have [D]let me be-[Em]gin.