Billy ran around with the rare old crew
And he knew an arsenal from Tottenham blue
We'd be a darn sight better of if we knew
Where Billy's bones are resting now
Billy saw a copper and he hit him in the knee
And he took him down from six foot to five foot three
Then he hit him fair and square in the do-re-mi
That copper won't be having any family

Hey Billy son where are you now
Don't you know that we need you now
With a ra-ta-ta and the old kow-tow
Where are Billy's bones resting now

Billy went away with the peace-keeping force
Cause he liked a bloody good fight of course
Went away in an old khaki van to the banks of the river Jordan
Billy saw the Arabs and he had 'em on the run
When he got 'em in the range of his sub-machine gun
Then he had the Israelis in his sights, went a ra-ta-ta
And they ran like Shiites

Hey Billy son where are you now
Don't you know that we need you now
With a ra-ta-ta and the old kow-tow
Where are Billy's bones resting now

One night Billy had a rare old time,
Laughing and singing on the Lebanon line
Came back to camp not looking too pretty
Never even got to see the holy city
Now Billy's out there in the desert sun
And his mother cries when the morning comes
And there's mothers crying all over this world
For their poor dead darling boys and girls

Hey Billy son where are you now
Don't you know that we need you now
With a ra-ta-ta and the old kow-tow
Where are Billy's bones resting now

Have a Billy holiday
Born on a Monday
Married on a Tuesday
Drunk on a Wednesday
Got plugged on a Thursday
Sick on a Friday
Died on a Saturday
Buried on a Sunday


Lyrics submitted by black_cow_of_death

Billy's Bones Lyrics as written by Shane Patrick Lysaght Macgowan

Lyrics © DOWNTOWN MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC, Universal Music Publishing Group

Lyrics powered by LyricFind

Billy's Bones song meanings
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5 Comments

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  • 0
    General Comment

    aw no one else likes this song? eh, i love it. anyway, its pretty explanatory. about goin to war. anyway, i just love this song. dkm did a pretty good cover of it too

    wackydeli3on January 25, 2005   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    Awesome song and band! This is my favorite from them. I really need the DKM cover, cause they rock, too.

    one_irish_roveron January 19, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    I just can't get enough of how he sings the line, 'For their poor dead darling boys and girls.' Don't worry, guys, there are more Billy's Bones fans out there than you would suspect!

    NellieWhiskeyon June 28, 2008   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    I love the line about Billy going away with a peace keeping force cause he loves a bloody good fight of course- i'm a big fan of the pogues

    xXRIOXxon May 10, 2010   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    This is an anti-war song that plays on the sad irony of it all:

    Billy went away with a peace-keeping force Cause he liked a bloody good fight of course

    And the very blunt and nonchalant way he sings about the harsh facts of war shows how we've all come to take for granted what it really means to go to war, as if it's just some jolly ride on a merry-go-round like when you play a war-themed video game with your pals and go out for beer and pizza afterwards.

    I think it's amazing, too. :)

    epiwooshon August 30, 2017   Link

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