The monkey sat on a pile of stone
And stared at the broken bone in his hand
Strains of a Viennese quartet rang out across the land
And the monkey looked up at the stars
And he thought to himself
Memory is a stranger
History is for fools
And he cleaned his hands in a pool of holy writing
Turned his back on the garden and set out for the nearest town
Hold on hold on soldier
When you add it all up
The tears and the marrowbone
There's an ounce of gold
And an ounce of pride in each ledger
And the Germans killed the Jews
And the Jews killed the Arabs
And the Arabs killed the hostages
And that is the news
And is it any wonder that the monkey's confused
He said Mama, the President's a fool
Why do I have to keep reading these technical manuals
And the joint c***fs of staff
And the brokers on Wall Street said
Don't make us laugh, you're a smart kid
Time is linear
Memory is a stranger
History is for fools
Man is a tool in the hands
Of the great God Almighty
And they gave him command of a nuclear submarine
And sent him back in search of the Garden of Eden
And stared at the broken bone in his hand
Strains of a Viennese quartet rang out across the land
And the monkey looked up at the stars
And he thought to himself
Memory is a stranger
History is for fools
And he cleaned his hands in a pool of holy writing
Turned his back on the garden and set out for the nearest town
Hold on hold on soldier
When you add it all up
The tears and the marrowbone
There's an ounce of gold
And an ounce of pride in each ledger
And the Germans killed the Jews
And the Jews killed the Arabs
And the Arabs killed the hostages
And that is the news
And is it any wonder that the monkey's confused
He said Mama, the President's a fool
Why do I have to keep reading these technical manuals
And the joint c***fs of staff
And the brokers on Wall Street said
Don't make us laugh, you're a smart kid
Time is linear
Memory is a stranger
History is for fools
Man is a tool in the hands
Of the great God Almighty
And they gave him command of a nuclear submarine
And sent him back in search of the Garden of Eden