Lyrics

This is the story of a powerful man and his palace known across the land
Built by masons and carpenters from afar
With stone arches and ceilings inlaid with stars
Its beauty they say surpassed sublime, as if it had been touched by the divine

The palace had a room for every desire, for sleeping and eating and sitting by the fire
But the grandest and most elegant by far
Was a steam bath built like a Syrian bazaar
He’d spend the whole day going room to room, he said it was like being in the womb

The smell of jasmine in the air, the smell of jasmine everywhere
The sweetest flower, the sweetest memory
The world was much simpler then, an oyster with its pearl my friend

This grand palace it shone indeed, it also was a testament to greed
Cedar from Lebanon, the finest wine from Spain
Tile from Morocco, the sweetest dates from Bahrain.
He took what he wanted both big and small, he was the Mighty Pasha after all

The servants toiled both night and day, to make his palace shine this way
But what of them do we find in this story
Is it just the Pasha we bathe in glory
He’d spend the whole day going room to room, he said it was like being in the womb

The smell of jasmine in the air, the smell of jasmine everywhere
The sweetest harvest, the sweetest seed
The world was much simpler then, an oyster with its pearl my friend

Then one day a darkness fell, the sky turned black, it began to hail
The servants muttered, shook their heads, and sighed
Was this an omen, was this a sign?
The Pasha said, “I will go to the bath. Surely that will soothe Allah’s wrath”

So, while the master enjoyed his steam, the servants plotted how to be redeemed
They’d do as they’d done their whole life long
Bring the finest food and sing the sweetest song
Then they locked him in the hottest room, left him there to steam in his tomb

The smell of jasmine in the air, the smell of jasmine everywhere
The sweetest flower, the sweetest memory, the sweetest harvest, the sweetest seed
The world was much simpler then, an oyster with its pearl my friend
The world was much simpler then, an oyster with its pearl my friend