• Song:

    Salute To A Switchblade

  • Artist:

    Tom T. Hall

  • Album:

    The Essential: Story So...

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E 
Me and Yates, an Army buddy of mine  
      A                    B7             E  
We?re doing three years in Germany at the time  
   E 
We came upon these Frauleins in a bar  
             A                B7                   E 
Yates said, "Darf Ich sie begleiten?"; they said, "Ya."  
B7                                    E 
(And "Darf Ich sie begleiten?" means, "Can we sit with you all?") 
 
Oh, we must have drunk ten quarts of German beer  
My conscience and my sinuses were clear  
I asked that Fraulein if she was a spy  
She said, "Nein, but Du bist ein bissel high."  
(A condition not uncommon to the American soldier)  
 
Well, later on I went to be excused  
When I returned I was a bit confused  
Yates and his Fraulein had hit the air  
Another guy was sitting in my chair  
(A young soldier whom we shall get to know better)  
 
I said, "Excuse me mister that's my seat  
I'd like to have it back sir if you please  
That girl's a nurse and I've been awful sick."  
The man looked up at me and said, "Mox Nix"  
(Which means that he was not overly concerned with my health)  
 
 
Key of F ( F/ Bb/ C7 ) 
 
Next thing I knew he had a switchblade knife  
Lord, I didn't know that Fraulein was his wife  
I took off through that Gasthaus like a fool  
Behind me I heard the crashing stools  
(As the police would say, he was in hot pursuit)  
 
Well, the waitress yelled, "There's MPs on the way!"  
That's one more reason I didn't want to stay  
As I went out the window something went "Swish"  
And I giggled all the way home knowing he'd missed  
(At the time it seemed like a laughing matter)  
 
But next morning my coat was lying there on the bunk  
And when I saw that coat it made me jump  
That man had cut my coat right down the back  
A little bit more and they'd-a-been playing me Taps  
(And knowing the sad nature of that song, I would decline it)  
 
Well, later on I heard that guy got stabbed  
They sent him home and didn't that make me glad  
On love and marriage I want to say one thing  
Oh, lady if you're married wear that ring  
 
And the Army has a new policy: If you can't move it, paint it  
If it has a switchblade knife, salute it  
Not necessarily an incident one would want to write Mother about  
Germany being full of good soldiers, and good people
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