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Blood Upon The Risers | Military Cadence
(Lyrics & History)

Since WWII, the U.S. Military has used cadences - Drill Sergeant-led call-and-response songs that coordinate troops' movements at 120 BPM for marching and 180 BPM for running.

Lyrics

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He was just a rookie trooper and he surely shook with fright

He packed up his equipment and made sure his pack was tight

He had to sit and listen to those awful engines roar

And he ain’t gonna jump no more

 

(Gory, gory, what a hell of a way to die!

Gory, gory what a hell of a way to die!

Gory, gory what a hell of a way to die!

He ain’t gonna jump no more!)

 

“Is everybody happy?” cried the Sergeant looking up

Our hero answered bravely, “yes!” and then they stood him up

He leaped right out into the blast, his static line unhooked

He ain’t gonna jump no more

 

(Gory, gory, what a hell of a way to die!

Gory, gory what a hell of a way to die!

Gory, gory what a hell of a way to die!

He ain’t gonna jump no more!)

 

He counted long, he counted loud, he waited for the shock

He felt the wind, he felt that clouds, he felt the awful drop

He jerked his cord, the silk spilt out and wrapped around his legs

And he ain’t gonna jump no more

 

(Gory, gory, what a hell of a way to die!

Gory, gory what a hell of a way to die!

Gory, gory what a hell of a way to die!

He ain’t gonna jump no more!)

 

The risers wrapped around his neck, connectors cracked his dome

The lines were snarled and tied in knots around his skinny bones

The canopy became his shroud, he hurtled to the ground

He ain’t gonna jump no more

 

(Gory, gory, what a hell of a way to die!

Gory, gory what a hell of a way to die!

Gory, gory what a hell of a way to die!

He ain’t gonna jump no more!)

 

The days he’d lived and loved and laughed kept running though his mind

He thought about the girl back home, the one he’d left behind

He thought about the medics and wondered what they’d find

He ain’t gonna jump no more

 

(Gory, gory, what a hell of a way to die!

Gory, gory what a hell of a way to die!

Gory, gory what a hell of a way to die!

He ain’t gonna jump no more!)

 

The ambulance was on the spot, the jeeps were running wild

The medics jumped and screamed with glee, they rolled their sleeves and smiled

For it had been a week or more since last a chute had failed

He ain’t gonna jump no more

 

(Gory, gory, what a hell of a way to die!

Gory, gory what a hell of a way to die!

Gory, gory what a hell of a way to die!

He ain’t gonna jump no more!)

 

He hit the ground, the sound was splat, his blood went spurting high

His comrades were then heard to say, “a hell of a way to die!”

He lay there rolling ‘round in the welter of his gore

He ain’t gonna jump no more

 

(Gory, gory, what a hell of a way to die!

Gory, gory what a hell of a way to die!

Gory, gory what a hell of a way to die!

He ain’t gonna jump no more!)

 

There was blood upon the risers, there were brains upon the chute

Intestines were a-danglin’ from his paratrooper’s suit

They picked him up, still in the suit, and poured him from his boots

And he ain’t gonna jump no more

 

(Gory, gory, what a hell of a way to die!

Gory, gory what a hell of a way to die!

Gory, gory what a hell of a way to die!

He ain’t gonna jump no more!)

Related Products

Listen to this cadence:

Song Name: Blood Upon The Risers
Album Name: Cadences Volume 3
by Jonathan Michael Fleming

DISCLAIMERS:

The lyrics and music to the above cadence are not original to me. To the best of my knowledge, the song is in the public domain, as the author is unknown and has simply been handed down generation-to-generation within the US military.

The views and opinions presented herein are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of DoD or its Components. Appearance of, or reference to, any commercial products or services does not constitute DoD endorsement of those products or services. The appearance of external hyperlinks does not constitute DoD endorsement of the linked websites, or the information, products or services therein.

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