The Half Man Half Biscuit Lyrics Project

Busking this at Embankment Tube tomorrow

149 pop songs picked over by pedants!

Windy Militant leads his Basque-like corn grinders to war

The Trumpton Riots probably remains HMHB’s most famous song to this day. Although associated with the band’s first album Back in the DHSS nowadays, the track wasn’t on it originally, coming out as a single/EP nearer the time of the second album, Back Again in the DHSS, on which it featured in the “7-in remix” format. However, the EP version was subsequently added onto the CD release of the first album, and the song reared its head for a third time in a live version on the ACD update of the second album. Someone may want to tell me if there are any lyrical differences between the three!

Other than that, having argued about the lyrics and just about settled on a consensus when we discussed the 2003 remake of the song here, I can now present the lyrics to the original version without, I hope, too much argument ensuing. There are some tiny differences between the two. The original handwritten lyrics, which aren’t quite correct, are published here.

See lyrics to The Trumpton Riots

3 Letters Sent:
  1. Bill Stow

    Line 4 – I’m pretty sure that it’s ‘to’ get rid of

    and the final chorus starts with an ‘oh’

  2. Hi Bill

    Cheers. I’ve always felt he misses out the “to” in “And the lads are going to launch a scheme (to) get rid of Captain Flack” even though it obviously should be there. Anyone else hear it? Always happy to be voted down.

    Chris

  3. Ben

    I’ve been singing “ANIMATE” instead of Elevate, and “on their toes” instead of “arm themselves” for 25 years.

    For shame.

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