I was an English boy
I was brought up right
You cold hold me down
And I would bite
I knew no fear
I served with joy
I was proud to be here
An English boy

You spray like a tomcat
Piss like a stray dog
Swear like a sailor
Speaking in gang tongues
Kicking in chorus
Stabbing to order
Slashing like a blind man
Lost like a soldier

I was an English boy
Precisely made
You could pin me down
I was not afraid
I showed no fear
I served with joy
I was so proud to be here
An English boy

Blurred like a movie
Grey under streetlights
Grey in the sunshine
Black on the tube line
Red on the touchline
Moving like a fever
Spreading like an oil slick
Thicker than a house brick

I was an English boy
I was brought up right
If you raised your dress
Then I would bite
My voice was clear
I had perfect poise
Was good to be down here
With all the English boys

And I don't know where I am now
Or where I'm going to go
I keep going round and round on the circle line
Like some demented kid of a fool in the mirror
Trying to avoid paying for my ticket
I'm a lost soul
I read about myself in the newspapers
I'm a pig
I'm a thug
I've got nowhere to go but down
Stand up when I'm talking to you boy
Stand up, stand up, stand up!

Slow like a prejudice
Broken like a hatred
Kicking at a dead man
Cut pieces to pieces
Marking your territory
Freezing the future
Stopping the stopwatch
I am despairing

I was an English boy
I was brought up right
You could hold me down
And I would bite
I knew no fear
I served with joy
I was proud to be here
An English boy

I was an English boy

Writer : PETE TOWNSHEND
Copyright : Lyrics © WINDSWEPT HOLDINGS LLC