Russian Ballerina by Michelle Gurevich (Chinawoman)
[Intro]
Em
[Verse 1]
Em
It takes ten years just to get
Em Am B
Your stinking leg up
Em
Then five more to make it
Em Am B
Not look like shit
[Bridge]
Am
Soviet children form a crowd
Am
Sized and tested
Am Em
Who will be a star
Am
Hero of passion of whom they'll say
Am B
She took her final breath in grand plie
[Chorus]
Em
O! My mother! Russian Ballerina!
Em Am B
You were a swan but now you're swimming in the Carribean
Em
O! My mother! Russian Ballerina!
Em Am B
Nobody knows how you can live without the love of your life
[Verse 2]
Em
Everybody's asking me
Em Am B
Where is Mary?
Em
I don't see her at the theatre
Em Am B
Or the parties
[Bridge]
Am
That's right, because she's carving bamboo
Am Em
Far from the artistic millieu
Am B
Never thought she'd live without allegiance to a life of art
[Chorus]
Em
O! My mother! Russian Ballerina!
Em Am B
You were a swan but now you're swimming in the Carribean
Em
O! My mother! Russian Ballerina!
Em Am B
Nobody knows how you can live without the love of your life
[Solo]
Em
La la la, la la la la la
Am
La la la, la la la la la
[Verse 3]
Em
Life changes
Em
One day its eggshells and bread
Em
Married to an intellect
Em Am B
The next you drive a corvette
[Verse 4]
Em
Things change
Em
You live your life for the stage
Em
Til your kidney floats away
Em Am B
Thrown in a car accident
[Bridge]
Am
A time for art, a time for living
Am Em
Sometimes the two can be conflicting
Am
And mama I'll meet you at Caribana
Am B
Together we're the highest form of art
[Chorus]
Em
O My mother! Russian Ballerina!
Em Am B
You were a swan but now you're swimming in the Carribean
Em
O! My mother! Russian Ballerina!
Em Am B
Nobody knows how you can live without the love of your life
Em
O! My mother! Russian Ballerina!
Em Am B
Too bad your priuettes now look almost as bad as mine
Em
O! My mother! Russian Ballerina!
Em Am B
Who needs that bullshit we can drink at the casino all night (Everybody now!)
[Solo]
Em
La la la, la la la la la
Am
La la la, la la la la la