They say that the dead live forever

And round here well they probably do

If you stand by the gates outside graceland

You can watch all the dead coming through

It's necropolis and welcome to it

It's an archaeological find

They'll be digging up this town forever

They'll be digging up this empty mine



The indians stand on the scaffold

They've taken the egyptians place

The pharaohs and the politicians

Are planning their perfect escape

So they build a memorial tower

Like the ancient texts said that they would

But stories aren't told by the victims

And that's why this story's so good



Have you seen the skyscrapers in memphis

Do you see how they rise like the sun

And the statues they look just like spacemen

Looking down on everyone

And there's art by the yard in the hallways

And our houses are made out of slime

But the skyscrapers almost touch heaven

Did we escape from the mud this time?



So look at the bar-chart skyline

And look at the graph on the wall

But don't you ignore the byline

When the headline says "empire falls"

The buildings get stranger and taller

Til we see that sphinx up on mars

So prepare your most pertinent questions

But please don't expect any answers



One last look round the museum

The one where the bullets still fly

But don't blink if you wish to see them

Puncture the mummy's good eye

As the lift hits the five figure numbers

The relics of ages long gone

The tomb of the unknown protest singer

The computer of king tutankhamun



Have you seen the skyscrapers in memphis

Do you see how they rise like the sun

And the statues they look just like spacemen

Looking down on