Bits of songs and broken drums Are all he could recall So he spoke to me In a ba*tard tongue Carried on the silence of the guns "it's been a long long time Since they first came And marched through our village They taught us to forget our past And live the future in their image" Chorus They said 'you should learn to speak a little bit of english Don't be scared of a suit and tie. Learn to walk in the dreams of the foreigner -- I am a third world child The outworld's dreams are the currency That grip the city streets I live them out But I have my own Hidden somewhere deep inside of me In between my father's fields And the citadels of the rule Lies a no-man's land which I must cross
To find my stolen j**el. They said 'you should learn to speak a little bit of english Maybe practise birth control Keep away from controversial politics So to save my third world soul Chorus They said 'you should learn to speak a little bit of english Don't be scared of a suit and tie. Learn to walk in the dreams of the foreigner -- I am a third world child Wo! ilanga lobunzima Nalo liyashona Ukuthini asazi Mus' ukukhala Mntanami (oh! we don't know when this sun of hardship will set. Don't cry, my child.) Bits of songs and broken drums Are all he could recall But the future calls his name Out loud Carried on the violence of the guns