Album: Blue Öyster Cult (1972)

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• Parched land no desert sand, sun is just a dot
  And a little bit of water goes a long way, 'cause it's hot
  Three good buddies were laughin' and smoking
  In the back of a rented Ford
  They couldn't know they weren't going far
  
  Each one with the money in his pocket
  Could go out and buy himself a brand new car
  But they all held the money they had
  Money they hoped would take them very far
  
  Sky's bright, the traffic light, now and then a truck
  And they hadn't seen a cop around all day (what luck)
  They brought everything they needed
  Bags and scales to weigh the stuff
  The driver said the border's just over the bluff
  
  It wasn't until the car suddenly stopped
  In the middle of a cold and barren place
  And the other guy turned and spilled
  Three boys blood, did they know a trap had been laid?
  
  They're okay the last days of May, but I'll be breathin' dry air
  I'm leaving soon, the others are already there (all there)
  You wouldn't be interested in coming along, instead of staying here?
  It's said the West is nice this time of year, that's what they say Writer/s: Donald Roeser
  Publisher: Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
  Lyrics licensed and provided by LyricFind

Comments: 9

• Flip from Mountains Of Western MdHeard snippets of this tune driving in the mountains thru bad static. Pulled over and the DJ said it was BOC and song name. Was happy to get home and see I have the album but long forgot about this tune. Spun the whole LP and man what a scary tune knowing it is true. What great guitar!
• Bocswu from Florida Now. Long Island Is In My Rear View.Ralph, that's a great page you created for the 'complete story' of Then Came The Last Days Of May. I kind of always knew I was right about the ending lyrics coming from one of the victims.
  One article I didn't see on your page is from the New York Daily News dated Sep 6, 1970. It is an article on "Burn" robberies, also known as Rip Off robberies. In the article there is a photo of Gast in the back seat and another photo of officers looking at Tait on the side of the road.
  
  http://bit.ly/3xGaNG1
  
  The three good buddies are: David Knowles Anderson Jr. 21 of Syosset and Stony Brook Student, William Ramsey Tait 3d 22 of Merrick and Stony Brook Student, & John George Gast 24 of Baltimore.
  The driver is Steve Lee Lewis and the other guy / the shooter is Derrell Lynn Doyal.
  David Anderson survived and was given immunity because, technically, he was commiting a crime. His testimony helped in the conviction.
  William Tait is the victim Buck knew.
  
  Copy and paste Ralph's link to read tons more about the First Days of July.
  http://bit.ly/3m05X3w
• Vladimir from BratislavaBut the driver was the other guy who killed them! It was somebody who drove three boys to take the stuff, and in one moment he stoped the car, turned back and "spilled three boys blood".
  And I think that Buck is just telling the story to somebody.
• RalphFull story here, plus Buck on the last verse:
  
  http://www.hotrails.co.uk/bociaq/features/ldom.htm
• Bocswu from Long IslandI think too many people confuse the outro. The last verse or the outro, "They're ok, the last days of May...", is sung by one of the victims. Think of it as a prologue. The whole beginning of the song takes place in Arizona during a drug deal gone bad in July. The title of the song is "Then Came the Last Days of May." One of the victims is asking the song writer, Buck Dharma, if he would like to go out west with them at the end of May. Thankfully he declines.
• Jm from VaAs I see it, the killer (the "other guy") is actually telling the story in the preceding verses (amazing how the storyteller knows a lot of details, right?). In the last verse, he switches to first person and is trying to entice another victim to take out west and kill. ("It's nice out West, I'm going, wanna come along?").
• Jkgman64I never knew the true events side of the lyrics until recently, but in my mind I always saw one of the three boys after being shot, crawling out of the car and lying in the desert near death, and in his delirium it was his way of saying he was about to die and join his friends who were already on the other side
• Michael H from UkFour verses are a straightforward telling of the story but the last verse is vague and cryptic.
  Any ideas about it's meaning ??
• Dryley from Indiana, U.s.What about the last verse? I am confused as to how it fits....

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