The Corries – The Bantam Cock (Guitar)

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He was a fine upstanding bantam cock,

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So brisk and stiff and spry,

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With springy step and jaunty plume

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And a purposeful look in his eye,

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In his little black laughing eye,

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I took him to the coop and introduced him

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To my seventeen wide-eyed hens.

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He tupped and he tupped as a hero tups

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And he bowed to them all, and then

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He upped and he tupped 'em all again, he did.

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And then upon the peace of me ducks and me geese

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He boldly did intrude.

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With glazed eyes and open mouths

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They bore it all with fortitude

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And a little bit of gratitude, they did.

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He jumped my giggling guinea fowl

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He thrust his attentions upon

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My twenty hysterical turkeys and

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A visiting migrant swan.

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But the bantam thundered on, he did.

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He groped me fan-tailed pigeons and

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Me lily-white columbine,

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And as I was locking up the budgerigar

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He jumped my parrot from behind;

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Who was sitting on me shoulder at the time.

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But all of a sudden with a gasp and a gulp

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He clapped his hands to his head,

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Fell flat on his back with his feet in the air.

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My bantam cock lay dead

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And the vultures circled overhead.

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What a noble beast; what a champion cock;

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What a way to live and to die.

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I was diggin' him a grave to protect his bones

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From the hungry buzzards in the sky

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When the bantam opened up a sly little eye.

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He gave me a wink and a terrible grin

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The way that rapists do.

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He said, 'You see them silly daft buggers up there?

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They'll be down in a minute or two;

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They'll be down in a minute or two.'