And the crabs are crazy, they scuttle back and forth   The sand is burning   And the fish take flight and scatter from the sight   Their courses turning      As the seagulls rest on the cold cannon nest   The sea is churning   The marines have landed on the shores   Of Santo Domingo      The fishermen sweat, they're pausing at their nets   The day's a-burning   As the warships sway and thunder in the bay   Loud the morning      But the boy on the shore is throwing pebbles no more   He runs a-warning   That the the marines have landed on the shores   Of Santo Domingo      The streets are still, there's silence in the hills   The town is sleeping   And the farmers yawn in the gray silver dawn   The fields they're keeping      As the first troops land and step into the sand   The flags are weaving   The marines have landed on the shores   Of Santo Domingo      The unsmiling sun is shining down upon   The singing soldiers   In the cloud dust whirl they whistle at the girls   They're getting bolder      The old women sigh, think of memories gone by   They shrug their shoulders   The marines have landed on the shores   Of Santo Domingo      Ready for the tricks, their bayonets are fixed   Now they are rolling   And the tanks make tracks past the trembling shacks   Where fear is unfolding      All the young wives afraid, turn their backs on the parade   With babes they're holding   The marines have landed on the shores   Of Santo Domingo      A bullet cracks the sound, the army hit the ground   The sniper is callin'   So they open their guns, a thousand to one   No sense in stalling      He clutches at his head and totters on the edge   Look how he's falling   The marines have landed on the shores   Of Santo Domingo      In the red plaza square, the crowds come to stare   The heat is leaning   And the eyes of the dead are turning every head   To the widows screaming      But the soldiers make a bid, giving candy to the kids   Their teeth are gleaming   The marines have landed on the shores   Of Santo Domingo      Up and down the coed, the generals drink a toast   The wheel is spinning   And the cowards and the whores are peeking   Through the doors to see who's winning      But the traitors will pretend that it's getting near the end   When it's beginning   The marines have landed on the shores   Of Santo Domingo      And the crabs are crazy, they scuttle back and forth   The sand is burning   And the fish take flight and scatter from the sight   Their courses turning      As the seagulls rest on the cold cannon nest   The sea is churning   The marines have landed on the shores   Of Santo Domingo