The Decapitation Blues (Revisited) - Original Lyrical Song

A consideration of capital (i.e. "of or pertaining to the head") punishment, looking at some historical and some literary incidents.

The lyrics:

The Decapitation Blues

Marie Antoinette was forced to put on a white dress although
She rather would have worn the one in black
They cut off all her hair and tried to make her say a prayer while
Being jeered at with her hands behind her back
Standing at the guillotine the convicted former queen
Appeared composed and accepting of her fate
Then her blood was shed as the blade cut off her head
Everybody in the crowd was eating cake

Alice met some cards that were working fast and hard
To paint the roses in the garden red
Because the Queen preferred them so and if they weren’t you know
She would bellow to her guards “Off with their heads!”
The vicious Queen of Hearts, that murderous playing card,
Although aggressive never carried out the act
She preferred to play croquet, and spent her time that way
So the cards and Alice kept their heads intact

Blackbeard was a pirate with a firey fighting spirit
Whose appearance was designed to terrify
Burning fuses in his hair and an intimidating stare
He howled a horrid and alarming battle cry
Bristling with pistols, he seemed the very devil
As he boarded ships and forced them to submit
But he finally met his match and was summarily despatched
His severed head impaled upon the ship’s bowsprit

The Headless Horseman rides and will not be denied
He’s looking for the head he lost in battle
When a cannonball was shot directly at his skull and brought
Him to the dirt, falling headless from his saddle
He was buried in the ground, but his head was never found
So he rises from the grave to ride and seek
His shattered shot off head. He sure is a sight to dread
In the dead of night to the thunder of hoofbeats

Mary Queen of Scots was surely doublecrossed
By her cousin Queen Elizabeth the First
Mary came looking for protection, at Elizabeth’s direction
She was denied, confined, decried and then coerced
Into denouncing the throne and becoming an unknown
Then was found guilty of a plot against the Crown
Condemned to the death, with her very last breath
She said a prayer as the axe came swinging down

Sydney Carton had misspent his time on earth and went
His way as just a pessimistic drunkard
At least that seemed his part, but in his secret heart
Love wounded him and made him feel encumbered
But in the worst of times he did something so sublime
He took Charles Darnay’s place at execution
It was a far, far better thing, it was soul purifying
As the guillotine brought on his absolution

Capital punishment by gangs or governments
Has been carried out from ancient times on down
Hanging, firing squad all in the name of God
Public stoning, blindfolded and bound
Burning at the stake for revenge’s sake
Electrocution done cold-bloodedly
Death by lethal gas, observed through airtight glass
Beheading has distinguished company