All the rowboats, in the paintings
They keep trying to row away
And the captain's worried faces
Stay contorted and staring at the waves
They'll keep hanging, in their gold frames
For forever, forever and a day
All the rowboats, in the oil paintings
They keep trying to row away, row away

Hear them whispering, French and German
Dutch, Italian and Latin
When no one's looking, I touch a sculpture
Marble, gold, and soft as satin
But the most special are the most lonely
God, I pity the violins
In glass coffins, they keep coughin'
They've forgotten, forgotten how to sing, how to sing

First there's lights out, then there's lock up
Masterpieces serving maximum sentences
It's their own fault for being timeless
There's a price to pay, and a consequence
All the galleries and museums
"Here's your ticket, [bad word] to the tombs"
They're just public mausoleums--
The living dead fill every room
But the most special are the most lonely
God, I pity the violins
In glass coffins, they keep coughin'
They've forgotten, forgotten how to sing

They will hang there, in their gold frames
For forever, forever and a day
All the rowboats in the oil paintings
They keep trying to row away, row away

First there's lights out, then there's lock up
Masterpieces serving maximum sentences
It's their own fault for being timeless
There's a price to pay, and a consequence
All the galleries and museums
They will stay there forever and a day

All the rowboats in the oil paintings
They keep trying to row away, row away
All the rowboats in the oil paintings
They keep trying to row away, row away