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Mesopotamia Lyrics
Turn your watch, turn your watch back,
about a hundred thousand years.
A hundred thousand years.
I'll meet you by the third pyramid
I'll meet you by the third pyramid
Ah come on, that's what I want, we'll meet
in Mesopotamia. oh oh oh
(We're goin' down to meet) I ain't no student,
(Feel those vibrations) of ancient culture
(I know a neat excavation) Before I talk
I should read a book.
But there's one thing I do know,
There's a lot of ruins in Mesopotamia.
Six or eight thousand years ago
They laid down the law. Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha ha haa
Six or eight thousand years ago
They laid down the law. Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha ha haa
I'll meet you by the third pyramid
I'll meet you by the third pyramid
Ah come on, that's what I want, we'll meet
in Mesopotamia. oh oh oh
(We're goin' down to meet) Now I ain't no student,
(Feel those vibrations) of ancient culture
(I know a neat excavation) Before I talk
I should read a book. (Mesopotamia, that's where I wanna go)
But there's one thing that I do know, (Mesopotamia, that's where I wanna go)
There's a lot of ruins in Mesopotamia.
Six or eight thousand years ago
They laid down the law. Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha ha haa
Six or eight thousand years ago
They laid down the law. Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha ha haa
In Mesopotamia. Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha ha haa
They laid down the law. Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha ha haa
In Mesopotamia. Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha ha haa
about a hundred thousand years.
A hundred thousand years.
I'll meet you by the third pyramid
Ah come on, that's what I want, we'll meet
in Mesopotamia. oh oh oh
(Feel those vibrations) of ancient culture
(I know a neat excavation) Before I talk
I should read a book.
But there's one thing I do know,
There's a lot of ruins in Mesopotamia.
They laid down the law. Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha ha haa
Six or eight thousand years ago
They laid down the law. Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha ha haa
I'll meet you by the third pyramid
Ah come on, that's what I want, we'll meet
in Mesopotamia. oh oh oh
(Feel those vibrations) of ancient culture
(I know a neat excavation) Before I talk
I should read a book. (Mesopotamia, that's where I wanna go)
But there's one thing that I do know, (Mesopotamia, that's where I wanna go)
There's a lot of ruins in Mesopotamia.
They laid down the law. Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha ha haa
Six or eight thousand years ago
They laid down the law. Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha ha haa
In Mesopotamia. Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha ha haa
They laid down the law. Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha ha haa
In Mesopotamia. Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha ha haa
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one of my favorite b-52's songs no one can really say what this band's songs are about or why they were such strange people but i love them
when i listen to this song i feel the connotation that they are saying that this code of law is so old that it's in ruins and relegated to books that people don't even know that much about. like, why are we still living according to values established 6,000 years ago? the b-52's are a pretty socially progressive band so i could see it being a comment on 80s conservatism.
yeah. they're pretty great.
i love this song. my social studies teacher in grade school played this song when we were learning about ancient mesopotamia. although the lyrics are really goofy i think they are pretty straight forward. mesopotamia is the "craddle of civilization" there were ziggurat pyramids there and those ruins still exist. laying down the law probably refers to 'hammurabi's code' which is the first text of laws ever recorded that dates from that time period. ha im such a dork!
i love this song. my social studies teacher in grade school played this song when we were learning about ancient mesopotamia. although the lyrics are really goofy i think they are pretty straight forward. mesopotamia is the "craddle of civilization" there were ziggurat pyramids there and those ruins still exist. laying down the law probably refers to 'hammurabi's code' which is the first text of laws ever recorded that dates from that time period. ha im such a dork!
great song great band!
great song great band!
How can it be that only 2 people have commented on this song? It is easily one of the B-52's best. Forget all that crap they put out once they made it to "hit radio". Love Shack sucks. This song is AWESOME!!!
I agree that this song is awesome and should have way more comments however I disagree your opinion about "all that crap they put out once they made it to "hit radio"."
I agree that this song is awesome and should have way more comments however I disagree your opinion about "all that crap they put out once they made it to "hit radio"."
When they do this live (and they almost always do), Fred says in his second verse, "Now I ain't no A student/Of ancient culture/Before this fool [or dolt, dum-dum, etc.] talks/He should read a book".
Very funny song, with the singer self-effacing in his awareness that he doesn't know much about the topic.
One bit of actual history in the song: "They laid down the law" is a reference to the Code of Hammurabi, which is actually a bit less than 4,000 years old, not "6 or 8 thousand years" old. Still funny in that "laid down the law" has a modern colloquial sense of being assertive, whereas Hammurabi literally laid down the law.
The album cover art looks like it's not very faithful to art from Mesopotamia, but that's what happens when you're no student of ancient cultures.