To get the meaning of my verse
 You don't have to die and go to hell
 To feel the devil's curse

 Well I thought my life was a photograph
 On the family Christmas card
 Kids all dressed in buttons and bows
 And lined up in the yard
 Were the golden days of childhood
 So lyrical and warm
 Or did the picture start to fade
 On the day that I was born

 I've seen them light the candles
 I've heard them bang the drum
 And I've cried Mama, I'm cold as ice!
 And I got no place to run

 Let the night begin there's a pop of skin
 And the sudden rush of scarlet
 There's a little boy riding on a goat's head
 And a little girl playing the harlot
 There's a sacrifice in an empty church
 Of sweet li'l baby Rose
 And a man in a mask from Mexico
 Is peeling off my clothes

 I've seen them light the candles
 I've heard them bang the drum
 And I've cried Mama, I'm cold as ice!
 And I got no place to run

 So I'm paying for protection
 Smoking out the truth
 Chasing recollections
 Nailing down the proof

 You don't have to play me backwards
 To get the meaning of my verse
 You don't have to die and go to hell
 To feel the devil's curse
 I'll stand before your altar
 And tell everything I know
 I've come to claim my childhood
 At the chapel of baby Rose

 I've seen them light the candles
 I've heard them bang the drum
 I've seen them light the candles
 I've heard them bang the drum