The Day We Lost the America's Cup

On the day we lost the America’s Cup

And the glory slipped away

I went for a walk in the city

To see what the man in the street might say

I found a likely lookin’ chap

Who agreed to talk with me

He wore a beret and coal-black shades

And Billy go-go Tee

There’s news from Newport sir says I

I give it you to straight

Australia won the America’s Cup

We had too little too late

The little guy turns his lamps on me

All blood-shot red and blue

You say we lost the America’s cup

Did we lose the saucer too

He said, I did not know we lost the cup

I tell you one thing more

I didn’t know we had the cup

What the damn thing’s for

For sailing boats - you’re putting me on

And them Captain Andy hats

And they called that rub-a-dub-dub a race

Hell I could walk as fast that

You say Australia won the cup

You tell me what it cost

One thing you ain’t told me Jack

Is who it is that lost

Yeah, who are the souls who lost the cup

And had to let go

The New York Yacht Club did you say

Please tell me it ain’t so

So the New York Yacht Club blew the tin

And the flag at half-mast waves

Jack, please excuse my lack of tears

But some of them cats owned slaves

They got houses big as Rhode Island

They got blood as blue as the sky

And I hope they wore their Sunday best

To kiss the cup goodbye

We had the cup how long you say

A hundred and thirty-two years

And now Australia won the cup

And filled it with Foster beers

And now the yacht club’s dark and cold

And now it’s draped in black

I hope it takes ‘em it twice as long

To get the damn thing back

Yeah I feel for all them yacht club studs

Says the little guy to me

The sight of that empty trophy case

Will be a heavy sight to see

It must be hell to lose the cup

When you had it for so long....

He took his saxophone out of its case

And he played a sad little song.....

It went