The marching band came down along mainstreet,
The soldier blues fell in behind.
I looked across and there I saw Billy,
Waiting to go join the line.
And with her head upon his shoulder,
His young and lovely fiancee.
And from where I stood I saw she was crying,
And through her tears I heard her say:
"Billy, don't go off to war. If you go to war you can f**ing consider yourself dropped,
because I'm not going to make love to you if you're an armless, legless corpse."
Billy don't be a hero,
Don't be a fool with your life.
Billy don't be a hero,
Come back and make me your wife.
And as Billy started to go,
She said "Keep your pretty head low."
Billy don't be a hero,
Come back to me.
The soldier blues were trapped on a hillside,
The battle raging all around.
The sergeant said "We've got to hang on boys.
We've go to hold this piece of ground.
I need a volunteer to ride up,
And bring us back some extra men."
And Billy's hand was up in a moment,
Forgetting all the words she said.
Billy don't be a hero,
Don't be a fool with your life.
Billy don't be a hero,
Come back and make me your wife.
And as Billy started to go,
She said "Where did Billy's head go?"
Billy don't be a hero,
Come back to me.
I heard his fiancee got a letter,
Saying how Billy died that day.
The letter said that he was a hero,
She should be proud he died that way.
I heard she threw the letter away.
And as the mailman started to go,
He said "Keep your pretty head low."
Billy don't be a hero come back to me.