Lyrics
Up the drain pipe, rapid he did sprout
Grey templates on us he had to inflict
TV documentary that it produced
When he whistled in the street
The men would turn around
In fear of being thought effete
Petty thief lout
Petty thief lout
Up the drain pipe, rapid he did sprout
Crime
Hides records in his drawer at home
Especially when they are rare
Never gives 'em out to every Tom, Dick and Harry
Who stole before from petty thief lout
Petty thief lout
Up the drain pipe, rapid he did sprout
Grey templates on us he had to inflict
Suburbia holds more than you care for
Suburbia holds more than you care for
Suburbia holds
One must make sure when leaving the house
Never to have white powder on the nose about
F-prints
F-prints on the fingers
Sprout
Sprout
Petty thief lout
Petty thief lout
Suburbia holds more than you care for
Great tempus onus
Suburbia holds more than you care for
Great tempus onus
Petty thief lout
Suburbia holds more than you care for
Suburbia holds more than you care for
Suburbia holds more than you care for
Suburbia holds more than you care for
Petty
Suburbia holds more than you care for
Thief
Suburbia holds more than you care for
Petty thief lout
Suburbia holds more than you care for
Petty thief lout
Commentary
< Post in progress >
Originally released on the 12″ version of the Couldn’t Get Ahead / Rollin’ Dany single. When it was included as a bonus track on the cassette version of This Nation’s Saving Grace, the title was rendered “Petty (Thief) Lout”.
Footnotes
Sources / Links
- The Annotated Fall: “Petty (Thief) Lout” [Archived]
- Ford, Simon (2003). Hip Priest: the story of Mark E Smith and The Fall. London: Quartet Books.
- Mackay, Tommy (2018). 40 Odd Years of The Fall. Place of publication unknown: Greg Moodie.
- Pringle, Steve (2022). You Must Get Them All: The Fall on Record. [paperback edition]. Pontefract: Route Publishing Ltd. [Online store]
- Smith, Mark E. (1985). The Fall Lyrik & Texte Von Mark E. Smith. In Deutsch & Englisch. With Drawings by Brix. Berlin: The Lough Press. [AKA The Orange Book. Available online in The Internet Archive]
- Smith, Mark E. (2008). vII. The Lough Press & AMarquisManipulationProductions. [AKA the Blue Lyrics Book]
- Smith Start, Brix (2016). The Rise, The Fall, and The Rise. London: Faber & Faber. [Text available online in archive.org]
- The Track Record: “Petty Thief Lout”
- Wolstencroft, Simon (2014). You Can Drum But You Can’t Hide: a memoir. Trowbridge: Strata Books. (2nd edition published by Route Publishing, 2017).
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