Three Sheets to Kishkiyya · Track 24 · middle
Off One's Trolley
VOLUME I — being gloriously, world-tilting DRUNK (the night at full tilt). The idiom and the song's title hook: "Off One's Trolley". Its true history: UK, early 20th c. — like a derailed trolley car, careening and out of control from drink. Render this beat of the night as the band's affectionate, funny, celebratory tribute — the idiom itself is the chorus hook.
Lyrics
[Intro] We've lost the wire! We've lost the wire! [Verse 1] I was walking a straight and sensible line Just a pint at the bar, I was doing alright But the floor took a tilt and the ceiling began To spin like a wheel from a desperate hand And somebody yelled that the damage is done! [Chorus] We are off! Off one's trolley, the sparks in the air The conductor is gone and we don't really care It's iron on stone and the brakes have been cut The carriage is loose and the doors are all shut We are off the trolley tonight! [Verse 2] Oh, the early 20th century crowds Watched the 1914 electric cables pull down When the pole slips the wire with a flash in the dark And the whole heavy chassis goes rogue in the park Just momentum and gravity pulling us fast The wildest disaster is here at last! [Chorus] 'Cause we are off! Off one's trolley, the sparks in the air The conductor is gone and we don't really care It's iron on stone and the brakes have been cut The carriage is loose and the doors are all shut We are off the trolley tonight! [Bridge] Hold onto the brass! Hold onto the wood! The logic is gone and it's doing no good I'm leaning too far to the edge of the street I've completely forgotten the names of my feet [Chorus] We are off! Off one's trolley, the sparks in the air The conductor is gone and we don't really care It's iron on stone and the brakes have been cut The carriage is loose and the doors are all shut We are off the trolley tonight! [Outro] Sparks on the cobbles. No brakes at all. Look out for the... wait, where did the floor go? Just rolling away.