As the Millenium ticked over the Dot-Coms were growing fat like leeches on a backpackers legs. Everyone was talking about them bursting and indeed there were a few signs to show that something was going to happen. I was studying for a degree in The Netherlands and one of my elective courses was in poetry. One of our assignments was to take an existing song and write new lyrics for it... This was my attempt and it was in fact optioned by The International Herald Tribune but never published. So just a few weeks before the internet bubble burst this was my offering...

 

THE DOT COM STORY
(Sing to the tune of Richard Corey)

With apologies to Simon and Garfunkel

 

They say the dot COM stories own one half of the Dow Jones
With Internet connections to spread the word around
Log in to wired society, surf, shop online
You can buy all a man can want, music, books and style

But why… A dot COM story?
Cos’I curse the life I'm living
Cos’I curse my poverty
And I wish that I could be,
Oh, I wish that I could be,
Oh, I wish that I could be
A dot COM story.

The pundits’ rave about the stocks most everywhere you go
Dot COM stories on the TV, Dot COM story at a show
And the rumour of the mergers raise the prices quite a lot
The brokers must be happy with everything they’ve got

But why… A dot COM story?
Cos’I curse the life I'm living
Cos’I curse my poverty
And I wish that I could be,
Oh, I wish that I could be,
Oh, I wish that I could be
A dot COM story.

Surf freely, give to charity, have sex without the touch,
Sites are grateful for your patronage for clicks, and views and such
Their minds will blow asunder when they hear the news just said
Dot COM stories server crashed last night and Internet stocks are dead

But why… A dot COM story?
Cos’I curse the life I'm living
Cos’I curse my poverty
And I wish that I could be,
Oh, I wish that I could be,
Oh, I wish that I could be
A dot COM story.

March 30^th 2000