David Bowie
Lyric guide

Please Mr. Gravedigger

Read Please Mr. Gravedigger lyrics by David Bowie on LyroVerse, with linked artist context and related song paths.

David Bowie visibility2 visits Video on page
person Curated by Ethan Walker LyroVerse team
Reference snapshot

The page facts to cite before the commentary

Use this page for the lyric text, linked artist context, and any LyroVerse editor's note attached to the song. Listener comments remain user-generated and should not be treated as the primary source.

Page type: lyric reference Artist: David Bowie Canonical path: /david-bowie/please-mr-gravedigger Related lyric paths: 6 Video embedded: yes
Lyrics

Please Mr. Gravedigger

The lyric stays readable and compact here; the note and related paths sit nearby so you do not lose the song while looking for context.

There's a little churchyard just along the way

It used to be Lambeth's finest array

Of tombstones, epitaphs, wreaths, flowers all that jazz

Till the war came along and someone dropped a bomb on the lot

And in this little yard, there's a little old man

With a little shovel in his little bitty hand

He seems to spend all his days puffing fags and digging graves

He hates the reverend vicar and he lives all alone in his home

Ah-choo! Excuse me

Please Mr. Gravedigger, don't feel ashamed

As you dig little holes for the dead and the maimed

Please Mr. Gravedigger, I couldn't care

If you found a golden locket full of some girl's hair

And you put it in your pocket

God, it's pouring down

Her mother doesn't know about your sentimental joy

She thinks it's down below with the rest of her toys

And Ma wouldn't understand, so I won't tell

So keep your golden locket all safely hid away in your pocket

Yes, Mr. GD, you see me every day, st... Ah-choo!

Standing in the same spot by a certain grave

Mary Ann was only 10, full of life and, oh, so gay

And I was the wicked man who took her life away

Very selfish, Oh God

No, Mr. GD, you won't tell

And just to make sure that you keep it to yourself

I've started digging holes, my friend

And this one here's for you

Lifted our girl, she apparently doesn't know of it

Hello misses, thought she'd be a little girl

Bloody obscene, catch pneumonia or something in this rain

Quick answers

What this page can answer fast

Who performs "Please Mr. Gravedigger"?

David Bowie performs "Please Mr. Gravedigger", and this lyric page sits inside the David Bowie catalog on LyroVerse.

Are there related songs to explore after "Please Mr. Gravedigger"?

Yes. The related section below points to Let's Dance and Blackstar with a short reason for opening each page next.

Where can I find more songs by David Bowie?

Use the artist link near the top of the page or the related paths section below to keep moving through David Bowie's lyric pages.

Song Room

Interpretations, questions, and corrections for this song

Interpretations, questions, memories, and correction notes live together here. The room stays noindex while the best insights are reviewed.

Open Song Room
0 followers Selected insights only surface after moderation
Listener comments

What people are saying

0 comments
Add a short interpretation or memory

A strong comment here is specific: the phrase you keep hearing, the mood you come back for, or the reason this song stays in rotation.

Sign in to post the first listener note. Reporting stays open to everyone.

No listener comments on Please Mr. Gravedigger yet.