The Purple Beaked Gnu

This is the story of the Purple-Beaked Gnu,
Yes, it is a strange old name, but its never heard of you,
It lives out in the jungle with a monkey and baboon,
But it's on the number thirty bus, it will be here quite soon.

The Purple Beak is lonely, you'll hear it in the rain,
It sings and strums its small guitar to illustrate its pain,
And when the moon is yellow, it hums a plaintive air,
And all the children leave their beds and come to stand and stare.

The Head of Important People said, I'm worried for the chap,
He sings to all and sundry, there's bound to be mishap,
So he rang the Lord of Jungle, said, I don't know what to do,
I need to solve the problem of the Purple-Beaked Gnu.

The Lord, he said, I have it, just callout Flanders & Swan,
And they will write a song for you before the break of dawn,
And that should put a breath of cheer into its melancholy,
It really will be worth it and won't cost you lots of lolly.
But alas, the pair were fully booked, and couldn't spare a date,
And the gnu he sang his sad old song, some said it was his fate.

Copyright © Max Scratchmann. All Rights Reserved