Act I Skeleton Jack by The Weather Machine Lyrics
I was walking along
On one of those walks you take in the middle of the night
When you feel a little bit out of place and you’d like
To get out of sight
But who should stand up in my way
But a man with nothing left but bone
And that’s no metaphor, I don’t exaggerate
He said, “I’m Skeleton Jack and these roads are my home”
Well, oh rattle my bones
Rattle my bones
The name’s Skeleton Jack
Well, on his skull he wore a crooked, cracked crown
To go with a similar smile
And whenever he talked he did a little clattering jig
But despite being dead, Jack had style
He said, “I stole this crown from the Devil
But it stole my soul from me
And now each night I walk these roads one by one
Telling passing travelers my story”
Well oh rattle my bones
Here comes the story of Skeleton Jack
Hey, hey
“Oh, when I stole that golden egg from heaven
I thought I’d be fair and steal from hell as well
So I cut opened that old beanstalk and climbed right in
And went down through the roots seekin’ some sin
And at the end of the deepest of the thirteen roots
I found where the seventh circle begins
And around the other side of that fiery bend
I saw the devil’s palace off in the distance”
Well, oh rattle my bones
You can dance with the devil just don’t you dance too close
And “rattle my bones,” said Skeleton Jack
"You can dance with the Devil just might be tough to get back"
“Well the demons were easy to trick my way past
But I couldn’t say as much for the Prince of Pain’s palace
Though as these things go
I made my way up
To the tallest of the three of the towers of below
And I saw Mr. Lucifer sitting on his throne
Bent crooked over a silver guitar that he was playing
In place of a golden violin that he gambled away
Way-back-when
And the next thing I saw twinkled my eyes
And made the good lord cry
That golden circle sitting on Satan’s head
That crown, the Devil’s crown, it had to be mine”
Well, oh rattle my bones
You can dance with the devil just don’t you dance too close
And “rattle my bones,” said Skeleton Jack
"You can dance with the Devil just might be tough to get back"
“Well as I ran away I heard the Devil roar
It rumbled the ground and shook the Earth’s floor
But by the time he’d realized I’d stolen his crown
I was far, far away from the Devil’s town
But there was one little thing that I didn’t know
Was the curse that was put on my soul
You see the minute I touched that red gold to my head
Well I could never die even after I was dead!”
Well, oh rattle my bones
You can dance with the devil just don’t you dance too close
And “rattle my bones,” said Skeleton Jack
"You can dance with the Devil just might be tough to get back"
Hey, hey
Well there was a long silence after Jack’s story’s end
Then I said, “Jack, I won’t even pretend
To be able to do something even close to what you’ve done”
I said, “Jack you’re more clever than the Devil’s own son”
He said, “Boy, your words are too fine”
I said, “Jack don’t be modest, you’re one of a kind
And I know it was long ago but we won’t get another chance
So Jack will you dance with me a victory dance!”
So we danced and we shook and we sang and we rolled
And I’ll tell you, that night it never got old
But all along I was waiting for Jack to put his guard down
Then I knocked off, I knocked off Jack’s crown!
And he looked horror stricken as the crown flew away
And the bones crumbled down to the ground there to stay
And the crown hit the floor with a thundering crack
And then I put it on and said, “I’m the new Jack!”
God wants gratitude, Satan wants souls
Man wants material, and the dead are just bones
On one of those walks you take in the middle of the night
When you feel a little bit out of place and you’d like
To get out of sight
But who should stand up in my way
But a man with nothing left but bone
And that’s no metaphor, I don’t exaggerate
He said, “I’m Skeleton Jack and these roads are my home”
Well, oh rattle my bones
Rattle my bones
The name’s Skeleton Jack
Well, on his skull he wore a crooked, cracked crown
To go with a similar smile
And whenever he talked he did a little clattering jig
But despite being dead, Jack had style
He said, “I stole this crown from the Devil
But it stole my soul from me
And now each night I walk these roads one by one
Telling passing travelers my story”
Well oh rattle my bones
Here comes the story of Skeleton Jack
Hey, hey
“Oh, when I stole that golden egg from heaven
I thought I’d be fair and steal from hell as well
So I cut opened that old beanstalk and climbed right in
And went down through the roots seekin’ some sin
And at the end of the deepest of the thirteen roots
I found where the seventh circle begins
And around the other side of that fiery bend
I saw the devil’s palace off in the distance”
Well, oh rattle my bones
You can dance with the devil just don’t you dance too close
And “rattle my bones,” said Skeleton Jack
"You can dance with the Devil just might be tough to get back"
“Well the demons were easy to trick my way past
But I couldn’t say as much for the Prince of Pain’s palace
Though as these things go
I made my way up
To the tallest of the three of the towers of below
And I saw Mr. Lucifer sitting on his throne
Bent crooked over a silver guitar that he was playing
In place of a golden violin that he gambled away
Way-back-when
And the next thing I saw twinkled my eyes
And made the good lord cry
That golden circle sitting on Satan’s head
That crown, the Devil’s crown, it had to be mine”
Well, oh rattle my bones
You can dance with the devil just don’t you dance too close
And “rattle my bones,” said Skeleton Jack
"You can dance with the Devil just might be tough to get back"
“Well as I ran away I heard the Devil roar
It rumbled the ground and shook the Earth’s floor
But by the time he’d realized I’d stolen his crown
I was far, far away from the Devil’s town
But there was one little thing that I didn’t know
Was the curse that was put on my soul
You see the minute I touched that red gold to my head
Well I could never die even after I was dead!”
Well, oh rattle my bones
You can dance with the devil just don’t you dance too close
And “rattle my bones,” said Skeleton Jack
"You can dance with the Devil just might be tough to get back"
Hey, hey
Well there was a long silence after Jack’s story’s end
Then I said, “Jack, I won’t even pretend
To be able to do something even close to what you’ve done”
I said, “Jack you’re more clever than the Devil’s own son”
He said, “Boy, your words are too fine”
I said, “Jack don’t be modest, you’re one of a kind
And I know it was long ago but we won’t get another chance
So Jack will you dance with me a victory dance!”
So we danced and we shook and we sang and we rolled
And I’ll tell you, that night it never got old
But all along I was waiting for Jack to put his guard down
Then I knocked off, I knocked off Jack’s crown!
And he looked horror stricken as the crown flew away
And the bones crumbled down to the ground there to stay
And the crown hit the floor with a thundering crack
And then I put it on and said, “I’m the new Jack!”
God wants gratitude, Satan wants souls
Man wants material, and the dead are just bones