Lyrics If You Want To Die In Bed - Jonathan Pryce

If You Want To Die In Bed

(The ENGINEER is making his way furtively through the city.
SOLDIERS seem to be everywhere.)
ENGINEER
if you want to die in bed
follow my example
when you see a cloud ahead
it’s time to show your class
hit the door before
they make a target of your ass
if you want to die in bed
in times of revolution
when the flag they fly is red
let pride fill up your chest
meanwhile pack a sack
and take the first boat heading west
(he enters the abandoned backroom of what was once «Dreamland», opens
a trapdoor in the floor and removes a tin box. He opens it.)
my precious souvenirs
of all the golden years
Rolex watches in steel
that look practically real
I’ll need a little stock
to start me in Bangkok!
if you want to die in bed
forget about your karma
when your life hangs by a thread
don’t cry about the fates
grab a stash of cash
and plan a rest’rant in the States
let me stop for a bit
this was my greatest hit
Miss Saigon in her crown
I made queen of the town
I got 'em paying more
for just another whore
here I come
your next champ’s
on his way
for men will always be men
the rules are the same
for kings or for clerks
give me Francs, or Dollars or Yen
I’ll set up a game
I know how it works
why was I born of a race
that thinks only of rice
and hates entrepreneurs?
me I belong in a place
where a man sets his price
and you pay, and he’s yours
I should be… American!
where every promise lands
and every businessman knows where he stands
first stop Bangkok then I roam
cross that ocean white with foam
to the place that’s my heart’s true home
if you want to die in bed
en route to your nirvana
you grab a chance and plunge ahead
and go where people win
heaven’s there… oh, shit!
you need a visa to get in!