Take that yellow ribbon off your car
Take that waving flag off of your door
Don’t act like you understand what we’ve been fighting for
Take that big concern off of your face
Take that handshake and just move along
Stop appreciating me for all that I’ve done wrong
And take that yellow ribbon off your car
You think that I went to liberate
So when I come home you celebrate
But you can’t bring back the dead by throwing a parade
You tell me I made my nation proud
I wish you wouldn’t say it so damn loud
My boots were on the ground while your head was in the clouds
So take that yellow ribbon off your car
Don’t pay for my meal
Don’t give me special deals
Unless you wanna hear all about the way I feel
Don’t make me your hero
Just lend me your ear, oh
And wipe the tears I cry
While I apologise
For that goddamn yellow ribbon on your car
If you want to show me that you care
Think about how things are over there
We’re bombing schools and hospitals
In case you weren’t aware
So when you tuck your children in at night
Don’t tell ‘em it’s for freedom that we fight
Let ‘em know that there’s a war on but don’t tell ‘em their side’s right
And take that yellow ribbon off your car
Don’t pay for my meal
Don’t give me special deals
Unless you wanna hear all about the way I feel
Don’t make me your hero
Just lend me your ear, oh
And wipe the tears I cry
While I apologise
For that goddamn yellow ribbon on your car
Take that waving flag off of your door
Don’t act like you understand what we’ve been fighting for
Take that big concern off of your face
Take that handshake and just move along
Stop appreciating me for all that I’ve done wrong
And take that yellow ribbon off your car
You think that I went to liberate
So when I come home you celebrate
But you can’t bring back the dead by throwing a parade
You tell me I made my nation proud
I wish you wouldn’t say it so damn loud
My boots were on the ground while your head was in the clouds
So take that yellow ribbon off your car
Don’t pay for my meal
Don’t give me special deals
Unless you wanna hear all about the way I feel
Don’t make me your hero
Just lend me your ear, oh
And wipe the tears I cry
While I apologise
For that goddamn yellow ribbon on your car
If you want to show me that you care
Think about how things are over there
We’re bombing schools and hospitals
In case you weren’t aware
So when you tuck your children in at night
Don’t tell ‘em it’s for freedom that we fight
Let ‘em know that there’s a war on but don’t tell ‘em their side’s right
And take that yellow ribbon off your car
Don’t pay for my meal
Don’t give me special deals
Unless you wanna hear all about the way I feel
Don’t make me your hero
Just lend me your ear, oh
And wipe the tears I cry
While I apologise
For that goddamn yellow ribbon on your car
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I wrote this song in early August (2013), following my umpteenth conversation with some fellow veterans about those yellow ribbon magnets everyone seems to have on their gas-guzzlers these days, and what, if anything, symbols like that seem to mean to the people who display them.
Emily Yates