One Night In Bangkok

"One Night in Bangkok" is a song originally sung by Murray Head on the 1984 concept album for the musical Chess. Its music was composed by former ABBA members Björn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson, with lyrics written by Tim Rice. The song's lyrics contain a number of Bangkok-related references, among them the "muddy old river" (the Chao Phraya River), the "reclining Buddha" (the Wat Pho statue) and Yul Brynner (who played the King of Siam in The King and I).

[Verse 1] Bangkok - Oriental setting And the city don't know What the city is getting The creme de la creme of The chess world in a show With everything But Yul Brynner Times flies - Doesn't seem a minute Since the Tirolean Spa Had the chess boards in it All change - don't you know that when you play at this level There's no ordinary venue It's Iceland or the Philippines or Hastings or... Or this place! [Hook] One night in Bangkok and the world's your oyster The bars are temples but the pearls ain't free You'll find a god in every golden cloister And if you're lucky then the God's a she I can feel an angel sliding up to me [Verse 2] One town's very like another When your head's down over your pieces, brother It's a drag, it's a bore It's really such a pity To be looking at the board not looking at the city Whaddya mean? You've seen one crowded, polluted, stinking town Tea girls Warm and sweet (warm, sweet) Some are set up in the Somerset Maugham suite Get Thai'd! You're talking to a tourist Whose every moves's among the purest I get my kicks above the waistline, sunshine [Hook] One night in Bangkok makes a hard man humble Not much between despair and ecstasy One night in Bangkok and the tough guys tumble Can't be too careful with your company I can feel the devil walkin' next to me [Verse 3] Siam's gonna be the witness To the ultimate test of cerebral fitness This grips me more than would a muddy old river Or reclining Buddah And thank God I'm only watching the game Controlling it I don't see you guys rating the kind of mate I'm contemplating I'd let you watch I would invite you But the queens we use would not excite you So you'd better go back to your bars Your temples, your massage parlors [Hook] One night in Bangkok and the world's your oyster The bars are temples but the pearls ain't free You'll find a God in every golden cloister A little flesh, a little history I can feel an angel sliding up to me One night in Bangkok makes a hard man humble Not much between despair and ecstasy One night in Bangkok and the tough guys tumble Can't be too careful with your company I can feel the devil walkin' next to me