The Dispatch Rider's Lament is adapted from the oldest RAF Squadron song The Airman's Lament, sung to the tune of The Tarpaulin Jacket. The original song came to the RFC, circa 1912 via the Air Battalion of the Royal Engineers, who had adapted it from a song devised by The Lancers. The original RFC version was sung throughout the RAF during WW2...
The Dispatch Rider's Lament
A poor dispatch rider lay dying,
At the end of a bright summer's day,
His comrades were gathered around him
To carry his fragments away.
He spat out a valve and a gasket,
And stirred in the sump where he lay,
And then to his wondering comrades
These brave parting words he did say.
Take the cylinder out of my kidneys,
The connecting rod out of my brain,
From the small of back get the camshaft,
And assemble the engine again.
Two valve springs you'll find in my stomach,
And the spark plug is safe in my lung,
The head stay is in pieces inside me,
To my fingers the throttle has clung.
Take the points plate out of my liver,
The magneto out of my thigh,
From the seat of my pants take the piston,
Then see if the old bike will fly.
Then get you two little white tombstones,
Put one at my head and my toe,
And get you a pen-knife and scratch there:
"Here lies a poor Don R below".
And get six brandies and sodas,
And set them all out in a row,
And get you six other good riders,
To drink to this Don R below.
The melody of The Tarpaulin Jacket can be found here: http://www.contemplator.com/england/tarpaulin.html
The Airman's Lament can be found in "Songs We Sang", edited by Eric Marsden, published by the Tangmere Military Aviation Museum
