This song was originally written by a guy called Peter Gutteridge. He was one of the founders of the "Dunedin Sound" a musical scene in the south of New Zealand in the early 80s. From there it was covered by "The Clean" one of the early bands of that scene (he had originally been a member of in it's early days, writing a couple of their best early songs). The Dunedin sound, and the Clean became popular on american college radio in the mid to late 80s. I guess Yo La Tengo heard that version.
Great version of a great song,
I live in a town called Millhaven
And it's small and it's mean and it's cold
But if you come around just as the sun goes down
You can watch the whole thing turn to gold
It's around about then that I used to go a-roaming
A-la la la la la la lie
All God's children they all gotta die
My name is Loretta but I prefer Lottie
I'm closing in on my fifteenth year
And if you think you have seen a pair of eyes more green
Then you sure didn't see them around here
Well my hair is yellow and I'm always a-combing
La la la la la la la lie
Mama often told me that we all got to die
You must have heard about The Curse Of Millhaven
How last Christmas Bill Blake's little boy didn't come home
They found him next week up in One Mile Creek
With his head bashed in and his pockets full of stones
Well, just imagine all the wailing and moaning
La la la la la la la lie
Even Bill Blake's boy, he had to die
Then Professor O'Rye from Millhaven High
Found nailed to his door his prize-winning terrier
Then next day the old fool brought little Biko to school
And we all had to watch as he buried her
Well his eulogy to Biko had all the tears flowing
La la la la la la la lie
Even God's little creatures, they have to die
Our little town fell into a state of shock
A lot of people were saying things that made little sense
The next thing you know the head of Handyman Joe
Was found in the fountain of the Mayor's residence
Well foul play can really get a small town going
La la la la la la la lie
Even God's children they have to die
Then, in a cruel twist of fate, old Mrs Colgate
Was stabbed but the job was not complete
Well the last thing she said before the cops pronounced her dead
Was, "My killer is Loretta and she lives across the street!"
Twenty cops burst through my door without even phoning
La la la la la la la lie
The young ones, and the old ones, they all gotta die
"Yes, it is I, Lottie, The Curse Of Millhaven"
I've struck horror in the heart of this town
Like my eyes ain't green and my hair ain't yellow
It's more like the other way around
I gotta pretty little mouth underneath all the foaming
La la la la la la la lie
Sooner or later, we all gotta die
Since I was no bigger than a weavil they've been saying I was evil
That if "bad" was a boot that I'd fit it
That I'm a wicked young lady, but I've been trying hard lately
O fuck it! I'm a monster! I admit it!
Well it makes me so mad my blood really starts a-going
La la la la la la la lie
Mama always told me that we all gotta die
Well yeah, I drowned the Bailey kid, stabbed Mrs. Colgate, I admit
Did the handyman with his circular saw in his garden shed
But I never crucified little Biko, that was two junior high school psychos
Stinky Bohoon and his friend with the pumpkin-sized head
I'll sing to the lot, now that you got me going
La la la la la la la lie
All God's children have all gotta die
Then there were all of the others, all our sisters and brothers
You assumed were accidents, best forgotten
Recall the children who broke through the ice on Lake Tahoo?
Everyone assumed the "Warning" signs had followed them to the bottom
Well, they're underneath the house where I do quite a bit of stowing
La la la la la la la lie
Even twenty little children, they had to die
And the fire of '91 that razed the Bella Vista slum
That was the biggest shit-fire this country's ever seen
Insurance companies ruined, land lords getting sued
All cause of a wee little girl with a can of gasoline
Those flames really roared when the wind started blowing
La la la la la la la lie
Well the rich man, poor man, they all got to die
Well I confessed to all these crimes and they put me on trial
I was laughing when they took me away
Off to the asylum in an old black Mariah
Well it ain't home, but you know, it's fucking better than jail
It ain't such bad old place to have a home in
La la la la la la la lie
All God's children they all gotta die
Now I got shrinks that will not rest with their endless Rorschach tests
I keep telling them they're out to get me
They ask me if I feel remorse and I answer, "Why of course,
There is so much more I could have done if they'd let me!"
So it's Rorschach and Prozac and everything is groovy
La la la la, yes, la la la lie
Well all God's children they all have to die
La la la la la la la lie
I'm happy as a lark now, and everything is fine
La la la la la la la lie
Yeah, everything is groovy, everything is fine
La la la la la la la lie
Well all God's children they gotta die
And it's small and it's mean and it's cold
But if you come around just as the sun goes down
You can watch the whole thing turn to gold
It's around about then that I used to go a-roaming
A-la la la la la la lie
All God's children they all gotta die
My name is Loretta but I prefer Lottie
I'm closing in on my fifteenth year
And if you think you have seen a pair of eyes more green
Then you sure didn't see them around here
Well my hair is yellow and I'm always a-combing
La la la la la la la lie
Mama often told me that we all got to die
You must have heard about The Curse Of Millhaven
How last Christmas Bill Blake's little boy didn't come home
They found him next week up in One Mile Creek
With his head bashed in and his pockets full of stones
Well, just imagine all the wailing and moaning
La la la la la la la lie
Even Bill Blake's boy, he had to die
Then Professor O'Rye from Millhaven High
Found nailed to his door his prize-winning terrier
Then next day the old fool brought little Biko to school
And we all had to watch as he buried her
Well his eulogy to Biko had all the tears flowing
La la la la la la la lie
Even God's little creatures, they have to die
Our little town fell into a state of shock
A lot of people were saying things that made little sense
The next thing you know the head of Handyman Joe
Was found in the fountain of the Mayor's residence
Well foul play can really get a small town going
La la la la la la la lie
Even God's children they have to die
Then, in a cruel twist of fate, old Mrs Colgate
Was stabbed but the job was not complete
Well the last thing she said before the cops pronounced her dead
Was, "My killer is Loretta and she lives across the street!"
Twenty cops burst through my door without even phoning
La la la la la la la lie
The young ones, and the old ones, they all gotta die
"Yes, it is I, Lottie, The Curse Of Millhaven"
I've struck horror in the heart of this town
Like my eyes ain't green and my hair ain't yellow
It's more like the other way around
I gotta pretty little mouth underneath all the foaming
La la la la la la la lie
Sooner or later, we all gotta die
Since I was no bigger than a weavil they've been saying I was evil
That if "bad" was a boot that I'd fit it
That I'm a wicked young lady, but I've been trying hard lately
O fuck it! I'm a monster! I admit it!
Well it makes me so mad my blood really starts a-going
La la la la la la la lie
Mama always told me that we all gotta die
Well yeah, I drowned the Bailey kid, stabbed Mrs. Colgate, I admit
Did the handyman with his circular saw in his garden shed
But I never crucified little Biko, that was two junior high school psychos
Stinky Bohoon and his friend with the pumpkin-sized head
I'll sing to the lot, now that you got me going
La la la la la la la lie
All God's children have all gotta die
Then there were all of the others, all our sisters and brothers
You assumed were accidents, best forgotten
Recall the children who broke through the ice on Lake Tahoo?
Everyone assumed the "Warning" signs had followed them to the bottom
Well, they're underneath the house where I do quite a bit of stowing
La la la la la la la lie
Even twenty little children, they had to die
And the fire of '91 that razed the Bella Vista slum
That was the biggest shit-fire this country's ever seen
Insurance companies ruined, land lords getting sued
All cause of a wee little girl with a can of gasoline
Those flames really roared when the wind started blowing
La la la la la la la lie
Well the rich man, poor man, they all got to die
Well I confessed to all these crimes and they put me on trial
I was laughing when they took me away
Off to the asylum in an old black Mariah
Well it ain't home, but you know, it's fucking better than jail
It ain't such bad old place to have a home in
La la la la la la la lie
All God's children they all gotta die
Now I got shrinks that will not rest with their endless Rorschach tests
I keep telling them they're out to get me
They ask me if I feel remorse and I answer, "Why of course,
There is so much more I could have done if they'd let me!"
So it's Rorschach and Prozac and everything is groovy
La la la la, yes, la la la lie
Well all God's children they all have to die
La la la la la la la lie
I'm happy as a lark now, and everything is fine
La la la la la la la lie
Yeah, everything is groovy, everything is fine
La la la la la la la lie
Well all God's children they gotta die
Lyrics submitted by typo, edited by Archangel616
The Curse of Millhaven Lyrics as written by Nicholas Cave
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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I agree with Gummitch, if Im just having a bad day, I can put this song on and laugh my butt off.