Ballad of Peter Pumpkinhead

About Ballad of Peter Pumpkinhead

"The Ballad of Peter Pumpkinhead" is a song written by Andy Partridge of XTC for their 1992 album Nonsuch. It was their second number one hit on the Modern Rock Tracks chart after "Mayor of Simpleton", and reached number 71 on the UK Singles Chart. The song tells the story of Peter Pumpkinhead, a man who comes to an unspecified town, "spreading wisdom and cash around." He is extremely popular with the public, but extremely unpopular with the government. In the end, he is nailed to wood by his enemies for "being too good". The song was inspired by a jack o'lantern Partridge had carved and placed on a fence post in his garden for Halloween. Afterward, Partridge walked past the pumpkin each day on the way to his composing shed and, feeling sorry for the increasingly decaying fruity head, decided to write a song about him. He said that he began thinking about "what would happen if there was somebody on Earth who was kind of perfect ... God, they'd make so many enemies!" more »

Year:

1992

5:01

116 Views

Playlists:

#1

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Let's begin

Peter Pumpkinhead came to town
Spreading wisdom and cash around
Fed the starving and housed the poor
Showed the Vatican what gold's for

But he made too many enemies
Of the people who would keep us on our knees
Hooray for Peter Pumpkin
Who'll pray for Peter Pumpkinhead?
Oh my!

Peter Pumpkinhead fooled them all
Emptied churches and shopping malls
When he spoke, it would raise the roof
Peter Pumpkinhead told the truth

But he made too many enemies
Of the people who would keep us on our knees
Hooray for Peter Pumpkin
Who'll pray for Peter Pumpkinhead?
Oh my!

Peter Pumpkinhead put to shame
Governments who would slur his name
Plots and sex scandals failed outright
Peter merely said
Any kind of love is alright

But he made too many enemies
Of the people who would keep us on our knees
Hooray for Peter Pumpkin
Who'll pray for Peter Pumpkinhead?

Peter Pumpkinhead was too good
Had him nailed to a chunk of wood
He died grinning on live TV
Hanging there he looked a lot like you
And an awful lot like me!

But he made too many enemies
Of the people who would keep us on our knees
Hooray for Peter Pumpkin
Who'll pray for Peter Pumpkinhead?

Hooray for Peter Pumpkin
Who'll pray for Peter Pumpkin
Hooray for Peter Pumpkinhead
Oh my oh my oh!
Don't it make you want to cry, oh

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XTC

XTC was a New Wave band from Swindon, England, active between 1977 and 2005. The band enjoyed some chart success, including the UK and Canadian hits "Making Plans for Nigel" (1979) and "Senses Working Overtime" (1982), but are perhaps even better known for their long-standing critical (rather than commercial) success. more »

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