The song lyrics were written by the band Van Halen, as they were asked to write a song for the 1979 movie "Over the Edge" starring Matt Dillon. The movie (and the lyrics, although more obliquely) are about bored, rebellious youth with nothing better to do than get into trouble. If you see the movie, these lyrics will make more sense. It's a great movie if you grew up in the 70s/80s you'll definitely remember some of these characters from your own life. Fun fact, after writing the song, Van Halen decided not to let the movie use it.
In a foreign town
In a foreign land
Reaping time had come
In fields of swaying rape
It could not happen here
Pushed to one side with the flick of a wrist
Out of sight
And out of mind
Fallng back in fields of rape
In yellow heads of blossom
Mothers babies bleeding
You stand there laughing
Unquestioning unconfronting
Poetic lines on the art of dying
Falling back in fields of rape
That was the way
Those were the horrors
As daddy went a-reaping
In nodding heads of rape
No mark on your spotless conscience
No blemish on your immaculate body
Untouched by sight or sound of misery
Close the eyes
Shift the responsibility
It was not you
It was not you
Falling back in fields of rape
My children
Falling back in fields of rape
It could not happen here
Pushed to one side with a flick of the wrist
Out of sight
And out of mind
Falling back in fields of rape
Poetic lines on the art of dying
Falling back in fields of rape
That was the way
And those were the horrors
As daddy went a-reaping
In nodding heads of rape
No mark on your spotless conscience
No blemish on your immaculate body
Untouched by sight or sound of misery
Close the eyes
Shift the responsibility
It wasn't you
Falling back in fields of rape
My children
Falling back in fields of rape
Here we go round the mulberry bush
The mulberry bush
The mulberry bush
Here we go round the mulberry bush
On a cold and frosty morning
In a foreign town
In a foreign land
Reaping time had come
Falling back in fields of rape
My love
And that was the way
And those were the horrors
As daddy went a-reaping
Falling back in fields of rape
My children
Crushed, crushed, crushed
In mud and wars
Mother children bleeding
You stand there laughing
Falling back in fields of rape
Never eating
Bags of bones dying quietly
Homeless
Drinking foul water
Sorting garbage
With flies in heat
Raped
Axed
Burned with acid
Locked away for thirty years
Thrown out of a helicopter
Forced to labour endlessly
Castrated
Burned alive
Killed so easily by firing squads
In a foreign town
In a foreign land
Reaping time has come
They're falling back
In fields of rape
In fields of rape
They're falling back
In fields of rape
My love
And this is our way
And these are the horrors
As we go a-reaping
They're falling back
In fields of rape
In fields of rape
They're falling back
In fields of rape
My darling
And crushed, crushed, crushed
In mud and wars
Still you stand there laughing
They're falling back in fields of rape
In fields of rape they're falling back
My lovers
In fields of rape the ravens
Descend. the yellow beak slashes
Corn, the sickles are sharpened
And the cattle bleed, and reaping
Time has come, our voices grow
Shriller, and our eyes glitter, but
In this last summer the Rapture
Descends, and father's mask has
Turned to grey, and mother's
Breasts are leper white, and
Children's laughter cracks, and
Reaping time has come, body and
Blood, body and blood, body and
Blood, body and mud, body and
Blood, body and mud, and
Christ's eyes, I am weary, and
Christ's eyes, I want to melt
Bleeding Jesus, be quick, be quick
(And what would you do, my gentlest
One...?)
Falling back in fields of rape
In a foreign land
Reaping time had come
In fields of swaying rape
It could not happen here
Pushed to one side with the flick of a wrist
Out of sight
And out of mind
Fallng back in fields of rape
In yellow heads of blossom
Mothers babies bleeding
You stand there laughing
Unquestioning unconfronting
Poetic lines on the art of dying
Falling back in fields of rape
That was the way
Those were the horrors
As daddy went a-reaping
In nodding heads of rape
No mark on your spotless conscience
No blemish on your immaculate body
Untouched by sight or sound of misery
Close the eyes
Shift the responsibility
It was not you
It was not you
Falling back in fields of rape
My children
Falling back in fields of rape
It could not happen here
Pushed to one side with a flick of the wrist
Out of sight
And out of mind
Falling back in fields of rape
Poetic lines on the art of dying
Falling back in fields of rape
That was the way
And those were the horrors
As daddy went a-reaping
In nodding heads of rape
No mark on your spotless conscience
No blemish on your immaculate body
Untouched by sight or sound of misery
Close the eyes
Shift the responsibility
It wasn't you
Falling back in fields of rape
My children
Falling back in fields of rape
Here we go round the mulberry bush
The mulberry bush
The mulberry bush
Here we go round the mulberry bush
On a cold and frosty morning
In a foreign town
In a foreign land
Reaping time had come
Falling back in fields of rape
My love
And that was the way
And those were the horrors
As daddy went a-reaping
Falling back in fields of rape
My children
Crushed, crushed, crushed
In mud and wars
Mother children bleeding
You stand there laughing
Falling back in fields of rape
Never eating
Bags of bones dying quietly
Homeless
Drinking foul water
Sorting garbage
With flies in heat
Raped
Axed
Burned with acid
Locked away for thirty years
Thrown out of a helicopter
Forced to labour endlessly
Castrated
Burned alive
Killed so easily by firing squads
In a foreign town
In a foreign land
Reaping time has come
They're falling back
In fields of rape
In fields of rape
They're falling back
In fields of rape
My love
And this is our way
And these are the horrors
As we go a-reaping
They're falling back
In fields of rape
In fields of rape
They're falling back
In fields of rape
My darling
And crushed, crushed, crushed
In mud and wars
Still you stand there laughing
They're falling back in fields of rape
In fields of rape they're falling back
My lovers
In fields of rape the ravens
Descend. the yellow beak slashes
Corn, the sickles are sharpened
And the cattle bleed, and reaping
Time has come, our voices grow
Shriller, and our eyes glitter, but
In this last summer the Rapture
Descends, and father's mask has
Turned to grey, and mother's
Breasts are leper white, and
Children's laughter cracks, and
Reaping time has come, body and
Blood, body and blood, body and
Blood, body and mud, body and
Blood, body and mud, and
Christ's eyes, I am weary, and
Christ's eyes, I want to melt
Bleeding Jesus, be quick, be quick
(And what would you do, my gentlest
One...?)
Falling back in fields of rape
Lyrics submitted by Cynothoglys
Falling Back in Fields of Rape Lyrics as written by
Lyrics © DOMINO PUBLISHING COMPANY
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Poor Pippin, deprived from Mr. Bunting poetic rambles. As somebody else stated, "rape" refers rapeseed, just as "gay" shows up throughout C93's discography plenty of times, always with its original meaning. And isn't C93 a Christian folk band after all? Keep rocking 4 Jesus.