Cowboys And Indians – English Lyrics

• By: The Cross

Lyrics & Translation

[English]

It's a long fast dance

Well the long fast dance of progress

And the long slow waltz of decay

Made such a natural born couple

They settled down right here in the USA

Dream home for two in the USA

Hot jazz, cool blues, we got country

We get rock and roll all day

Like to dance, come on down get funky

That's the way, that's the way

That's the way, hey hey, in the USA

There's still cowboys and indians (indians) at home on the range

But the cowboys and indians have changed - they've changed

Cowboys and indians have changed

We've got James Dean on the silver screen

We've got James Brown he won't let you down

Now Elvis was the king of rock and roll

We got preacher men who want to save your soul

Got the motorcity with the Motown beat

Get hip to the beat on the hip hop street

Stars and bars and the biggest cars

And a rocket ship take you up to Mars

There's the east coast trip where it's real uptight

Where you work all day and you play all night

And the west coast side with the laid back scene

When you just lay back and it seems like a dream

There's a lot of places in between

There's Hollywood and the city by the bay

And the whole damn south down Louisiana way

That's the way, that's the way, hey hey, in the USA

There's still cowboys and indians (indians) at home on the range

But the cowboys and indians have changed - they've changed

In the land of the free and the home of the brave

The cowboys and cowgirls and indians have changed

Baby baby baby

That's the way that's the way that's the way in the USA...

Cowboys and indians...

In the USA...

Key Grammar Structures

• It's a long fast dance

  ➔ Present simple (contraction)

  ➔ The word "It's" is a contraction of "It is". It is used in the present simple to describe a current state.

• They settled down right here in the USA

  ➔ Past simple with phrasal verb

  ➔ "settled down" is a phrasal verb meaning "to establish a home". The sentence uses the past simple to talk about a completed action.

• We get rock and roll all day

  ➔ Present simple for habitual action

  ➔ "get" is used in the present simple to indicate a regular or habitual activity: "We get rock and roll all day" means we regularly enjoy rock and roll.

• We've got James Dean on the silver screen

  ➔ Present perfect with "have got" meaning possession

  ➔ "We've got" = "We have got" = "We have". The present perfect emphasizes that the possession started in the past and continues now.

• Now Elvis was the king of rock and roll

  ➔ Past simple of "to be" for past identity

  ➔ "was" is the past simple form of "be". It states a fact about Elvis at a specific time in the past.

• We got preacher men who want to save your soul

  ➔ Relative clause with "who"

  ➔ "who want to save your soul" is a relative clause that describes "preacher men". "Who" refers to the men.

• There's a lot of places in between

  ➔ Existential "there is/are" + quantifier "a lot of"

  ➔ "There's" is a contraction of "There is". It introduces the existence of many places, with "a lot of" indicating a large quantity.

• That's the way, that's the way, hey hey, in the USA

  ➔ Demonstrative pronoun "that" + linking verb "is" (present simple)

  ➔ "That's" = "That is". The demonstrative "that" points to a previously mentioned idea, and "is" is the present simple linking verb.

• Get hip to the beat on the hip hop street

  ➔ Imperative mood

  ➔ "Get" is used as an imperative, giving a direct command or invitation: "Get hip to the beat".