Bishop Allen ? The Monitor. C F C F C F G C F Once a great ironworks C F Stood at the end of my street C And they hauled in The Monitor F Fit her with armor G For to save the union fleet C F The River James was on fire C F As The Merrimack thundered and raged C F And she seemed so colossal and so unstoppable G Until the two engaged Am And inside the sound Em G C A deafening din, round after round, again and again F C F C F G Shattering down, shattering down, shattering down The neighborhood?s quiet at night But sometimes my ears still ring And you think I?d understand That a rock-n-roll band Doesn?t mean a blessed thing But I picture the poor crew stunned When the cannons did finally subside How they stand on the deck With the sun at their neck And they wonder if they?re still alive And I try to shout But none of them hear They?re moving their mouths But the blood in their ears Is running down, running down, running down C G And we?re singing la da da da da da C G And we?re singing la da da da da da F G And we?re singing la da da da da da C But what then? It?s stunning to know I?ve survived But I?m not sure what I?m fighting for anymore And when I break another string And continue to sing Is that courage? I?m not sure. When the ironclads drifted apart Still blue and still gray The men shoveled in the coal And worked the pumps in the hull Just like every other day And none of them knew Oh, none of them cared How much it just changed right then and right there They just carried on, carried on, carried on And we?re singing la da da da da da And we?re singing la da da da da da And we?re singing la da da da da da But what then? And we?re singing la da da da da da And we?re singing la da da da da da And we?re singing la da da da da da But what then?
