Strawbs - Alexander The Great lyrics

Cousins-Lambert They called him Alexander wth the best band in the land He'd topped the bill in Paris but in Venice it was banned A pile of dusty gold discs wre among his claims to fame There was no one over sixty who didn't know his name. Alexander you were great, the man the critics loved to hate You could have been as big as the Beatles or the Stones Alexander you became the lonely housewife's favourite name And you could have been the greatest of them all. The gig was held in honour of his golden jubilee He did not need the money, so he said he'd play for free He got the band together who'd been with him through the years They rehearsed the Alexander songs and shed nostalgic tears. Alexander you were great, the man the critics loved to hate You could have been as big as the Beatles or the Stones Alexander you became the lonely housewife's favourite name And you could have been the greatest of them all. The crowd rose to their feet when Alexander hit the stage His face had been rebuilt so that you could not tell his age He played all of the old songs and the crowd sang every word He danced like Margot Fonteyn and whistled like a bird. Alexander you were great, the man the critics loved to hate You could have been as big as the Beatles or the Stones Alexander you became the lonely housewife's favourite name And you could have been the greatest of them all. He came on for the encore but collapsed against the stand The crowd was hushed, the doctor came, there was panic in the band He diagnosed a broken heart, the critics had been fed Their reviews became obituary notices instead. Alexander you were great, the man the critics loved to hate You could have been as big as the Beatles or the Stones Alexander you became the lonely housewife's favourite name And you could have been the greatest of them all. Alexander you became the lonely housewife's favourite name And you could have been the greatest of them all.