The boys set a fire out in the field
And they burned down the crops and their father’s yield
And the men stood speechless at the sight
And the boys stood staring right by their side

Some boys set a fire out on the hill
And the deadwood cotton is burning still
And the people stand and they all hold hands
They sing together

We will shake hands with the Devil and fate
We’ll bow to the keeper of the gate
We will pray forgiveness for all that we’ve done
Realised then we could never have won

Some boys set a fire out in the trees
The wind turned the furnace and fired the leaves
The smoke was a warning, lost in a breeze
We all born with the same disease

Some boys set a fire out on the hill
And the deadwood cotton is burning still
And the people stand and they all hold hands
They sing together

We will shake hands with the Devil and fate
We’ll bow to the keeper of the gate
We will pray forgiveness for all that we’ve done
Realised then we could never have won

There’s a riot on the streets of England
There’s a riot on the streets of England
There’s a riot on the streets of England
Tonight

Our lives will never be the same, we will never forget this day
The sins of our father turned us to this pyre
We set the mountain on fire

We will shake hands with the Devil and fate
We’ll bow to the keeper of the gate
We will pray forgiveness for all that we’ve done
Realised then you should never have won

There’s a riot on the streets of England
There’s a riot on the streets of England
There’s a riot on the streets of England
Tonight

There’s a riot on the streets of England
There’s a riot on the streets of England
There’s a riot on the streets of England
Tonight