And They're Off

Ponies in the sun
 The race is soon beginning
 My father bet the family fortune
 On a sleek, brown horse
 My father had a hunch
 We gave up lunch
 So Daddy could make a wager
 Ma would scoff
 She would scoff
 Hear her scoff
 And they're off!
 (La la la la la la la la la la)
 Yeah, they're off
 (La la la la la la la la la la)
 And they move in a herd
 Like a four-letter word
 And they're off (la la la la)
 Tickets flung
 To the ground
 And the band starts to play
 As the horses go 'round
 And they're off!
 Mommy sat and cried
 But Dad was... unaffected
 He said:
 Have you ever had a better two minutes
 In the last three years?
 She said:
 But, Joe, the dumb horse lost
 He said:
 Sometimes joy has a terrible cost
 I know that
 We would laugh
 We would sneer
 We would scoff
 And they're off!
 (La la la la la la la la la la)
 Yeah, they're off
 (La la la la la la la la la la)
 Mommy's biting his neck
 As they roll on the deck
 And they're off (la la la la)
 There is blood
 On the ground
 And the band starts to play
 As the horses go 'round
 And they're off!
 Isn't life funny?
 People lose money
 And have fun
 Betting, of course, is hell on the horses
 And on families where the betting is done
 It's a joke to believe someone's won
 All we did was fight
 Plus, they discussed the weather
 My father bet the family fourtune
 'Til it dissapeared
 We also laughed a lot
 That was a thing I often forgot to mention
 But it's true
 Yes, it's true
 It is true
 And he's off!
 (La la la la la la la la la la)
 Daddy's off!
 (La la la la la la la la la la)
 We get letters from Maine
 Where he tries to explain
 Why he's off (la la la la)
 What was lost
 Was not found
 And the band starts to play
 As the horses go round
 And they're off
 Then they're off!
 (I hear the band at the starting gates)
 They are off!
 (We're celebrating as they're movin', movin' down the tracks)
 And they move in a herd, like a four-letter word
 And they're off (comin' down the stretch)
 There is blood (there is blood)
 On the ground (on the ground)
 And the band starts to play
 As the horses go 'round
 And 'round (and 'round)
 And 'round (and 'round)
 And around (and around)
 And around (and around, and 'round)
 And 'round! (And 'round, and 'round, and 'round, and 'round, and around)
 And they're off!