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"Oi, get your filthy hands off my desert!"
"What 'e say?"
Brezhnev took Afghanistan.
Begin took Beirut.
Galtieri took the Union Jack.
And Maggie, over lunch one day,
Took a cruiser with all hands.
Apparently, to make him give it back
"What 'e say?"
Brezhnev took Afghanistan.
Begin took Beirut.
Galtieri took the Union Jack.
And Maggie, over lunch one day,
Took a cruiser with all hands.
Apparently, to make him give it back
Lyrics submitted by Demau Senae
Track duration: 01:17
"Get Your Filthy Hands Off My Desert" as written by Roger Waters
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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Everyone is just scanning the surface of this song!!
Do you think Roger Waters would waste a track to give us an obscure history lesson?? This is an important album track!
Look CAREFULLY at the diction he uses, (or listen, you'll hear it too!): "And maggie,over lunch one day, took a cruiser [croissant] with both hands, and didn't give it back."
COMEON people look at the title. Desert is a commonly misread word. It is confused with Dessert! (two s's). By doing this parallel, Waters is showing how taking over a desert has become as trivial as stealing someones lunch dessert!! Its just a political move to gain advantage in war, and now, we as people completely ignore the cultural upheavals we create as a result of our 'chess moves.'
"Get your filthy hands off my dessert/desert" applies to both meanings, and it has EXTREMELY ironic connotations when applied to someone 'taking' a desert,' like they would a croissant. The way the melody is played almost hints that this song cannot be taken literally and reeks of dry British sarcasm. This is surely how Roger Waters feels about the war!
After he says this, still on this track, he hums the reprise from the first song which goes "what have we done". What have we, as human beings, done that we have such low regard for human life. It's not like the real reason we are fighting is to control a barren wasteland.
This song is NOT suppose to focus on taking a cruiser in the 4th line (although that's what it LITERALLY says and is historically accurate.)
Rogers is discussing the irony of war and asks them again "what have we done?" The theme of the album
The whole album gives Waters a chance to denounce the militarism of the Thatcher/Reagan/Breznev era. No wonder Waters has such little tolerance for W now.
Second, this was written in 1982, so it has to do with fighting around that time.
Third, it is definitely about the Falkland Islands war between Britain and Argentina.
Fourth, the line about Brezhnev took Afghanistan had to do with Russia invading that country. (Which the Americans, in turn, boycotted the 1980 Olympics in Russia, as well as gave weapons and training to the Afghans... Who, as we now know, had a young man named Osama Bin Laden fighting for them...)
What a WEIRD name for a song!