Lyrics for One Night In Bangkok as interpreted by Petaphysika

One Night In Bangkok Lyrics
[THE AMERICAN:]
Bangkok, Oriental setting
And the city don't know that the city is getting
The creme de la creme of the chess world in a
Show with everything but Yul Brynner

Time flies -- doesn't seem a minute
Since the Tirolean spa had the chess boys in it
All change -- don't you know that when you
Play at this level there's no ordinary venue

It's Iceland -- or the Philippines -- or Hastings -- or --
or this place!

[COMPANY:]
One night in Bangkok and the world's your oyster
The bars are temples but the pearls ain't free
You'll find a god in every golden cloister
And if you're lucky then the god's a she
I can feel an angel sliding up to me

[THE AMERICAN:]
One town's very like another
When your head's down over your pieces, brother

[COMPANY:]
It's a drag, it's a bore, it's really such a pity
To be looking at the board, not looking at the city

[THE AMERICAN:]
Whaddya mean? Ya seen one crowded, polluted, stinking town --

[COMPANY:]
Tea, girls, warm, sweet
Some are set up in the Somerset Maugham suite

[THE AMERICAN:]
Get Thai'd! You're talking to a tourist
Whose every move's among the purest
I get my kicks above the waistline, sunshine

COMPANY:
One night in Bangkok makes a hard man humble
Not much between despair and ecstasy
One night in Bangkok and the tough guys tumble
Can't be too careful with your company
I can feel the devil walking next to me

THE AMERICAN:
Siam's gonna be the witness
To the ultimate test of cerebral fitness
This grips me more than would a
Muddy old river or reclining Buddha

And thank God I'm only watching the game -- controlling it --

I don't see you guys rating
The kind of mate I'm contemplating
I'd let you watch, I would invite you
But the queens we use would not excite you

So you better go back to your bars, your temples, your massage
parlours --

[COMPANY:]
One night in Bangkok and the world's your oyster
The bars are temples but the pearls ain't free
You'll find a god in every golden cloister
A little flesh, a little history
I can feel an angel sliding up to me

One night in Bangkok makes a hard man humble
Not much between despair and ecstasy
One night in Bangkok and the tough guys tumble
Can't be too careful with your company
I can feel the devil walking next to me
---
"One Night in Bangkok" as written by Tim Rice, Benny Goran Bror Andersson, Bjoern K. Ulvaeus
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
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Petaphysika
08-07-2002

 Rated  -1 
This song is part of the musical 'Chess' and the only song I know of Murray head anyway

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Esenthiel
04-11-2003

 Rated  -1 
The singing style is sort of interesting.

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PunKinDrubliC
04-11-2003

 Rated  -1 
Riiiiight...
Sort of interesting?

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J.J.
12-31-2004

 Rated  -1 
The character who narrates this song is the Chess champion from the play who is going to Bangkok, Thailand for a tournament.
Bangkok is well-known for being a city a haven for sex tourists, because it has so many prostitutes and brothels, etc. The guy in the song is essientially just saying "woah, I'm just here for the chess!"

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boxermom1004
07-11-2005

 Rated  -1 
I think this song is effing great. I never knew it was from a play. He's like so uptight and pure, and then the chorus is like trying to tempt him at every turn. It's like they're saying "you can try to resist, but we'll get you one way or another because there is temptation everywhere." Always been one of my favorite songs just cuz it's so fun.

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pinback
08-06-2005

 Rated  0 
The chess master (I forget his name) is very focused on the game. That is part of the plot in the musical. He ignores the woman he is traveling with who I believe is his alternate. She falls for the Soviet chess player. Anyhow, the song adds to the fact that all the American cares about is chess and winning and not about love and friendship.

"Tea, girls, warm and sweet, sweet)
(Some are set up in the Somerset Maugham suite"

I had to look deep to get this one. Somerset was a writer from the turn-of-the-century whose work was somewhat racey for its time (overly sexual perhaps). I tried reading one of his books and was bored to tears. It must have been more interesting in 1905.

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2 Replies  · 
kikikiwikiko
08-20-2005

 Rated  -1 
This song is awesome, my cousin & I love it. I never knew it was from a play either. Great song & w/ a great beat. 80's rocks.

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kikikiwikiko
08-20-2005

 Rated  -1 
This song is awesome, my cousin & I love it. I never knew it was from a play either. Great song & w/ a great beat.

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god_save_theQUEEN
08-04-2006

 Rated  -1 
apparently this guy did the lead vocals for the jesus christ superstar theme too

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joewalshfan
03-23-2007

 Rated  -1 
best song ever made! I sang this song with a friend of mine at karoke when I was drunk one night good times good times.

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LoyPiatt
05-10-2009

 Rated  0 
Where does Yul Bryner fit in, you ask? "The King And I" with Deborah Kerr. Rad movie - Siam.

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General Comment
shellydages
11-19-2009

 Rated  0 
while this song is obviously about a chess tournament, there could be a deeper meaning.

any person who is obsessed with a goal and won't be distracted may see the sex, drugs, love, etc. he'she will be so focused on that goal that the rest of life is missed.

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General Comment
Alastor
07-20-2010

 Rated  0 
As Shellydages hinted at, this song, and this play, have a deeper meaning.

Neither this song nor this play are about chess. They *feature* chess, but they are not *about* chess.

This song, and this play, is about the Cold War.

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General Comment
aleea03
03-08-2012

 Rated  0 
There are comments saying this song is sung by the Chess champion. It is NOT.

Freddie, (who sings this) is the ex-champion, he got defeated the previous year by the Russian, Sergievsky. Sergievsky left the Soviet Union and moved to the free world to be with florence, Freddie's ex-second. Sergievsky is playing another Russian who Molokov, his ex-second has trained up to try and defeat him as he's annoyed that he left to go to the free world.

Freddie is only there hosting/viewing thhe tournament hence the lyric, 'And thank God I'm only watching the game -- controlling it --'

There you go guys :)

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General Comment




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