The Boomtown Rats
The Boomtown Rats
The Boomtown Rats
The Boomtown Rats
The Boomtown Rats
The Boomtown Rats
The Boomtown Rats
The Boomtown Rats
The Boomtown Rats
The Boomtown Rats
The Boomtown Rats
The Boomtown Rats
The Boomtown Rats
The Boomtown Rats
The Boomtown Rats
Geldof wrote the song in 1981 whilst in Miami with the rest of The Boomtown Rats. They had seen on the news that four policemen had killed a black insurance salesman. During the trial, the jury had found all four policemen innocent, with no justice served to the family of the victim.
The song notes...
Ooh, did you slip the noose when the beast broke loose?
The elephants graveyard ain't the place to be
And white turns black, dies of heart attack
The elephants graveyard needs a change of scene
You got the money, but who needs the tension
And fear's no cheaper on the old age pension
There's just one thing that I forgot to mention
What've you got to lose when you know
That you're guilty till proven guilty
Isn't that the law?
Guilty till proven guilty
That's what we all saw
Ooh, you do the Blue Ridge shuffle with the beach-boy muscle
The elephant's graveyard ain't the place to be
Waiting all your life for the golf-cart life
The elephant's graveyard needs a change of scene
You see the judge and then you check the jury
She does her hair and calls the lawyer Cutie
It's Disneyland under martial law
Twitch on the TV, tell me what you saw
They were guilty till proven guilty
Isn't that the law?
Guilty till proven guilty
That's what we all saw
Justice isn't blind
It just looks the other way
Not from want of trying
I have nothing left to say
(Ho) Sky burns white, twnty-four-hour night
The elephant's graveyard ain't the place to be
But you don't pay dead jurors when you're on the jury
The elephant's graveyard needs a change of scene
You came here lookin' for the peace and quiet
The healthy air and the healthy diet
The sea's so calm but the street's a riot
Taken years off your life when you've no years left to give
Yeah, they're
Guilty till proven guilty
Isn't that the law?
Guilty till proven guilty
That's what we all saw
That's what we saw
That's what we saw
That's what we saw
Shame shame, shimmy shame
Shame shame, shimmy shame
Shame shame, shimmy shame
Shame shame, shimmy shame
Shame shame, shimmy shame
Shame shame, shimmy shame
Shame shame, shimmy shame
Shame shame, shimmy shame
Shame shame, shimmy shame
Shame shame, shimmy shame
The Elephant’s Graveyard was written by Bob Geldof.
The Elephant’s Graveyard was produced by Tony Visconti & The Boomtown Rats.