When the Church Burn'd Down

Hear the bells up in the steeple
See the sparks fly in the air
There’s a hundred people screamin’
Lord,
An’ runnin’
Ev’rywhere
Yeah,
Folks are scared
Faces full of worry an’ despair
There was some evil up on holy ground
When the church burn’d down

Gonna call up all the elders
Someone call the reverend’s son
You can call the fire department
But ya know they’ll never come
They won’ come out
“Nigga wat yew talkin’ about?”
They brought some evil up on holy ground
When the church burn’d down

There was a cross up by the alter
Where the saints could come to pray
Now
There’s a new cross in the churchyard
An’ it’s burnin’ up in flames
A cross of shame
Try to tell us things have changed
There was some evil up on holy ground
When the church burn’d down

Now some men got the wisdom
An’ some men,
They be rich
An’ some men jes’ a shovel
Diggin’
Someone else’s ditch
Oh yeah
This life is such a burden
Got to carry it too long
An’ they push you
‘Til your mind is cracked
An’ your heart is goin’ wrong
Yeah we try to be yo’ people
Let the river wash us clean
But it smells like burnin’ timbers
An’ a trace of kerosine
An’ the saints
They keep on prayin’
For the new day
Full of grace
Lord
Why you keep delayin’
When they burn’d my baby’s face?
They brought some evil up on holy ground
When the church burn’d down
Poured some evil on my holy ground
When they burn’d it down