The Orphan of Zhao

All songs written by Stephin Merritt.

Theme from The Orphan of Zhao
Instrumental

In This Rain...

In this rain, one can't even see the garden... My poor flowers! But what can be done?

Has the World Gone Insane?

Wind and rain... perfectly in season, everything in its place, down to the pot one pees in, and yet here am I, the great soldier, a cat among mice; me, guarding this babe like a storm guarding one grain of rice! The enemy baby, with enemy milk on his chin, I guard, not to keep people out, but to keep baby in!

Han Jue Sings a Lullaby

Two great big eyes and one tiny nose, hundreds of fingers and thousands of toes.

All of This I Give You...

All of this I give you... you will be remembered. You will die with honor for a child in danger. What is taken from you is a life of sorrow. All the birds of morning will be singing for you.

Tai Ping in the Spring
Instrumental

Gongsun Sings a Lullaby

Two great big eyes and one tiny nose, hundreds of fingers and thousands of toes.

Little Clouds Go By

Are the autumn leaves falling still on Yellow Mountain? Little clouds go by and are never seen again...

In the Spring, When I Was Young

In the spring, when I was young, blossoms frail from all trees hung. They are faded now. They have all faded now.

What a Fucking Lovely Day!

What a fucking lovely day! Everything has gone my way. All my flags are unfurled, I'm the king of the world, and, to think! It's only May. It's my favorite time of year for a spree of crime and fear. It's a joy just to breathe, and to scheme, and to seethe. What a fucking lovely day! Ah, the smell of despair! Is that blood in my hair? I don't care, I don't care. What a fucking lovely day!

Train Song
Instrumental

Enter the Orphan of Zhao
Instrumental

The Song of the Assassin

My son, it's important to remember people when they're gone. One can set aside an hour or two for them. Oh, the red and purple men were rivals at court. The red one thought of life as a violent sport where the losing guy deserves to die... so he hired an assassin to do the deed, but an honest man can't be killed for greed. (Heaven does not like preemptive strike...) But the killer had an order that he would not dare disobey, so he found an oak tree where he could bash his head, and now he's dead...

The Song of the Humble Serf

Oh, the humble serf of Ling Zhe, whose lord sent him away, was starving, so he lay, his mouth open, all day beneath a mulberry tree, just in case a berry fell. For how long, who can tell? He was not looking well, and the tree had crummy aim. The man in purple came and asked Ling Zhe his name and gave him grog and game and little cakes and some tea. The end.

The Man in the Purple Dashed Out of the Castle

Oh, the man in the purple dashed out of the castle to see his carriage sag on just one wheel and only two horses when, from the crowd, there sprang a burly vassal who grabbed the reins to drag the carriage off. With all his resources, acting as both wheel and steed, the man began to lead the horses and to bleed to death, but he carried the man in purple home free. How he made that carriage fly! As he laid down to die, the man was heard to cry, "Remember me! 'Twas I beneath the mulberry tree, my lord."

The Story So Far

The red man killed three hundred, discontinuing the Zhao clan, but left one called Zhao Shuo (the pride of Jin, offspring of Zhao Dun), and his royal wife. But then came a command, a forgery, in the emperor's hand, which read, "Hi. Pick the dagger, rope, or sword, because you must die." So Zhao Shuo chose the dagger and, as ordered, laid himself low. But the princess had a new bundle of joy... she choked herself to save the boy. A person secreted the child away (we'll call him Someone). The red man sent his general, Han Jue, to guard the Zhao clan. This Han Jue turned out to be a guy you'd like: he spilled his guts to save the tyke. The Someone took the little kid to Tai Ping to see Gongsun, and he thought of a way Someone and foundling wouldn't be caught, and Gongsun would take the Someone son instead, and that red guy would have his head. The red man killed the baby, Someone's son... I am Someone. The red man is Tu An-Gu. The Orphan of the Zhao is you.

The World Is Not Made of Flowers

Though I will be your judge and jury, crushing your skull won't quell my fury. The world is not made of flowers, is it? Neither am I. If you smell a bullet passing through your nose, red as a rose, let it be mine. The world is not made of music, is it? Neither am I. If you hear an arrow passing through your ear and out your rear, let it be mine. The world is not made of sunlight, is it? Neither am I. If you see a dagger passing through your eye, and then you die, let it be mine. And while my anger still increases, I'll piss on all your little pieces.

Revenge of the Orphan of Zhao
Instrumental