Doo-Wop Panda Warrior

Welcome to the Panda Lands
Welcome to the Panda Lands

Come come come to the panda lands
(Pan-da-la-pan-da-lands)
Come come come see how good it gets
(Pan-da-la-pan-da-lands)
We got the tea going and the sun is getting low
And there's nowhere in the world we gotta go

(Pan-da-pan-da-la-la-lands)
We're riding on a turtle through the sea
(Pan-da-pan-da-la-la-lands)
And that's the only ride we'll ever need

Welcome to the Panda Lands
Welcome to the Panda Lands

We train all morning on the hilltop in the breeze
Punch and kick and breathe and punch again
Then we sit down to a table in the shade
And we pour another round for all our friends
(Pour another round, pour another round)

Come come come to the panda lands
(Pan-da-la-pan-da-lands)
Come come come you will understand
(Pan-da-la-pan-da-lands)
We got a brewery and a garden and a view
And we never learned the word for feeling blue

Grandpa says the ocean used to end
Says there used to be a shore
I don't know what a shore is
But I know I've got everything
I ever wanted and a little more
(And a little more, and a little more)

Come come come to the panda lands
(Pan-da-la-pan-da-lands)
Come come come to the panda lands
(Pan-da-la-pan-da-lands)
The whole world is the turtle's job
And ours is just to live
(Pan-da-pan-da-la-la-lands)
And we've got so much living left to give

Welcome to the Panda Lands
Welcome to the Panda Lands

They say our world turtle got lost
A long long time ago
They say she used to know the way
But the way got up and went
And now she just keeps swimming slow

Our world turtle got lost
Our world turtle got lost
But she keeps on swimming
And we keep on living
So maybe lost is just another word
For free

My mama said don't worry
The turtle knows things that we don't
My papa said the ocean
Is the same in every direction anyway
So what's lost mean to a turtle
When there's nowhere left to go
(What's lost mean, what's lost mean)

Our world turtle got lost
Our world turtle got lost
But she keeps on swimming
And we keep on living
So maybe lost is just another word
For free

Sometimes at night I walk out
To the edge where her shell meets the sea
And I swear I can feel her breathing
Slow and deep and old
Older than my grandma's grandma's
Grandma's grandma's stories told
And I think maybe she's not lost
Maybe we just forgot
Where she was going

Our world turtle got lost
Our world turtle got lost
But she keeps on swimming
And we keep on living
So maybe lost is just another word
For free

But lately there's been something
On the edge of the water
Where there's never been something before
Birds we've never seen
And the current pulling different
And my grandma got real quiet
When I told her
And she walked out to the edge
And she stood there for a long time
And she said
I think we found it
I think we finally found it

Our world turtle got lost
Our world turtle got lost
But she keeps on swimming
And we keep on living
And maybe lost was just the long way home

I'm a roly poly panda warrior
(Panda warrior)
(Roly poly, roly poly)
I'm a roly poly panda warrior
(Panda warrior)
(Roly poly, roly poly)
Don't let the belly fool you baby
Don't let the fur misleed
I've been training since before I could walk
And my training never disagreed with me

I like my tea in the morning
And my brew when the sun goes down
And in between I'll knock you flat
With a smile and a spinning round and round
(Roundhouse kick, yer goin' down)

I like my noodles in a big bowl
And my naps in the afternoon
And if you think that makes me lazy
Honey, I've got news for your
(news for you, news for you)

I'm a roly poly panda warrior
(Panda warrior)
(Roly poly, roly poly)
I'm a roly poly panda warrior
(Panda warrior)
(Roly poly, roly poly)
Soft on the outside
Tough when I need to be
Round is just a shape
That lets me roll right over you for free

My grandma taught me how to fight
My papa taught me how to breathe
Put them both together right
And there's nothing I can't achieve
My belly taught me balance
And the brewery taught me soul
You can keep your sharp edges baby
Nothing hits like a roll
(Like a roll, like a roll)
(Roundhouse kick, yer goin' down)

I'm a roly poly panda warrior
(Roly poly, roly poly)
(Panda warrior)
I roll in, I roll out
I'll roll right through your day
I've got paws like thunder
And a heart like a dumpling
And I haven't met the fight yet
That a feast couldn't follow up okay

I'm a roly poly panda warrior
(Roly poly, roly poly)
I'm a roly poly panda warrior
(Roly poly, roly poly)
Round is just a shape, I must confess
That hasn't got a weakness
Try me
(Try me)

Fishing, cooking, cleaning
And keeping up the farm
(Keeping up the farm)
Cozy quests have their charm
(Cozy, cozy quests)
They said go save the world
I said the world can wait
I've got carrots coming in
And they're looking really great

I got a little plot of land
Between the hills and the breeze
A row of turnips on the left
And some cabbages to please
The soil here does what I ask
As long as I ask nice
And I've been out here since the morning
And I might go home twice
(Go home twice, go home twice)

Fishing, cooking, cleaning
And keeping up the farm
(Keeping up the farm)
(Cozy quests, cozy quests)
Cozy quests have their charm
Ain't no monster in a dungeon
Gonna do my crops no harm

I caught a fish this big
And then I caught one bigger
Fried them up with ginger and with spice
And my grandma's secret recipe
That took her half her life
I cook the way she taught me
Every pinch and every slice
(Every slice, every slice)

Fishing, cooking, cleaning
And keeping up the farm
(Keeping up the farm)
(Cozy quests, cozy quests)
Cozy quests have their charm
Fishing, cooking, cleaning
And keeping up the farm
(Keeping up the farm)
Cozy quests have their charm
(Cozy quests, cozy quests)
Heroes swing their swords around
I swing a hoe and rake
And at the end of every day
I've got a garden and a cake

There's a story on every corner
And a tale at every gate
And a hundred heroes running past
Too fast to hear a name
But I've got nowhere else to be
(Got the time, got the time)
Sit me down and tell me everything
Don't skip a single word
I didn't come all this way
To leave a story unheard

Hear every story
Hear every story
The long ones and the sad ones
And the ones that go nowhere
Hear every story
That's how you learn to care

There's an old man by the bridge
Who fought a war before I was born
And a woman in the market
Who remembers when the mountain wasn't torn
And a kid who lost a yak
And just needs someone to look
Heroes blaze right past him
Eyes locked on the next hook
But I'm already sitting down
(Sitting down, sitting down)

Hear every story
Hear every story
The long ones and the sad ones
And the ones that go nowhere
Hear every story
That's how you learn to care

They've got their swords and their missions
And their big important wars
They're chasing gold and glory
Through a hundred open doors
And that's fine, and that's fine
Everybody plays their way
But I'm still on this bench
Hearing what this farmer has to say

Some of them need a hero
And some of them just need a friend
Some of them don't have a point
They just start and then they end
But I'll sit here with my tea getting cold
Because the smallest story told
Is worth more than the fastest sword

Hear every story
Hear every story
The warriors rush past
Looking for the next fight
But I'm still sitting here
Learning what I'm fighting for

There's a house in the woods
Where nobody goes
(Nobody goes, nobody goes)
There's a house in the woods
Where the jade light glows
And the statues in the garden
Stand so still

They told me don't go up there
They told me let her be
But I'm a roly poly panda warrior
And I wanted to see

The jade witch, the jade witch
She lives where the green light hums
The jade witch, the jade witch
Look what the grieving's done

Her family went away
That's all anybody knows
And something in her broke
The way a green branch snaps
When the ice gets too cold
And she started turning everything to jade
The birds, the flowers, the trees
If it's jade it doesn't leave
If it's jade it doesn't change
If it's jade it stays right where she needs

The jade witch, the jade witch
She lives where the green light hums
The jade witch, the jade witch
Look what the grieving's done

She looked at me and I could see
She used to be like us
Warm and round and full of tea
And full of trust
But something ate the warmth away
And left this green and frozen thing
And the statues in her garden
Are the songs she'll never sing

I said come back to the village
I said come sit down with me
And she reached out
And where she touched my paw
My fur was turning green

The jade witch, the jade witch
She lives where the green light hums
The jade witch, the jade witch
Look what the grieving's done

And the green was climbing up my arm
And it was cold, so cold
And it whispered
Stay with me
Stay with me
Nothing has to change
Nothing has to go

And I thought about my farm
And I thought about my tea
And I thought about my grandma's voice
And I pulled my paw away
Shaking off (shaking off) the creeping green
(the creeping green)

The jade witch, the jade witch
She lives where the green light hums
The jade witch, the jade witch
Look what the grieving's done
And I walked away
But I kept looking back

(Bubble bubble, glub a lub)

They say there's a fish in the deepest pool
(Fish of silver, fish of gold)
They say if you catch it
It grants you a wish
That's the story I've been told
(Been told, been told)

I've been fishing every morning
I've been fishing every night
Fish of ruby, fish of pearl
Fish of copper gleaming bright
I've pulled up a hundred beauties
But I haven't found the one
The one that shimmers different
Like it swallowed up the sun

Fish of silver, fish of gold
Where you hiding
In the cold
Fish of silver, fish of gold
I've been looking since the story's
Been told

(Bubble bubble, glub a lub)
(Glub a lub)

I asked the old man by the bridge
He said patience, patience, child
I asked the woman in the market
She just laughed and shook her head and smiled
I've tried every bait I've got
Every lure and every trick
And the water keeps its secrets
And my line keeps coming back with sticks
(Back with sticks, back with sticks)

Fish of silver, fish of gold
Where you hiding
In the cold
Fish of silver, fish of gold
I've been looking since the story's
Been told

(Bubble bubble bubble bubble)
(Fizz fizz fizz)

Then one morning when I wasn't trying
When I'd almost given up the chase
I saw something in the water
Looking back at me
A little golden face

And it spoke to me
Or maybe not in words
More like bubbles with a feeling
More like something understood

(Bubble bubble, glub a lub)
(Glub a lub)
(Bubble bubble bubble bubble)
(Fizz fizz fizz)

It said what's your wish
What's your wish
I've been swimming here a thousand years
And nobody's ever fished this long

And I said I don't need gold
I don't need glory, I've been told
I just want you to come along with me
In your little bubble
Rolling by my side
Fish of silver, fish of gold
Won't you be mine
Won't you come along for the ride

Fish of silver, fish of gold
(Fish of silver, fish of gold)
Not a wish for fame or fortune
Just a friend to have and hold
Fish of silver, fish of gold
Swimming by my side
Every story's better
With a little golden light

(Bubble bubble bubble bubble)
(Glub a lub a lub)

Something's wrong on the mountain
Something's wrong in the air
The tea went cold for no reason
And my grandma stopped mid-prayer
(Something's wrong, something's wrong)

There's a black cloud on the mountain
And it's rolling down the hill
And everywhere it touches
Everything goes still

The black cloud
The black cloud
It doesn't roar, it doesn't rage
It just makes everything quiet
In the worst way

The farmers put their tools down
Not like resting, more like forgetting
Why they ever picked them up
The singers stopped their singing
Not like finishing
Like the song just left their mouths

There's a black cloud on the mountain
And it's rolling down the hill
And it got inside the village
And the village lost its will

The black cloud
The black cloud
You can't hit it with your fists
I tried
You can't kick it, you can't block it
It just wraps around your wrists

It found me in the garden
And it whispered
Why bother
Nothing grows forever
Nothing stays
And I felt my paws go heavy
And I felt my chest go gray
And my little golden fish
Dimmed in her bubble
And I couldn't remember
Why I wished for her

The black cloud
The black cloud
It doesn't burn like fire
It doesn't crush like stone
It just takes the color out of everything
And leaves you sitting there
Alone

And I thought about the jade witch
And I finally understood
She didn't choose the green and cold
It chose her
And it's choosing me

The black cloud
The black cloud
It's here
And I don't know how to fight
Something that fights like this

My little golden fish
Was barely glowing
But she was glowing
She was still glowing
And that was enough
To make me remember
There was something on the mountain
A flower that my grandma told me about
On a day I could barely recall

I dragged my heavy paws up the trail
And the black cloud whispered
Why bother, why bother
And I said I know
I know
But my fish is still glowing
So I'm still going

I found it growing in the rocks
Small and pale and stubborn
Like something that refused to quit
I brewed it slow the way my grandma taught
Every pinch and every slice
And I drank it in the gray
And it didn't fix the gray
But it gave the gray a crack

And through the crack
I felt my paws again
Not heavy anymore
Just ready
Just remembering what they're for

And I started swinging
Not at anything
Just swinging
Because my body knew a song
My mind had forgotten

Roly poly, roly poly
Punch and kick and breathe and spin
Roly poly, roly poly
Let the color back in

The black cloud said stop
And I said no
The black cloud said why
And I said I don't know
I just know my paws are moving
And the moving feels like me

Roly poly, roly poly
Punch and kick and breathe and spin
Roly poly, roly poly
Let the color back in

Every swing pushed the gray back an inch
Every spin made the fish glow brighter
Every kick was a word I couldn't say
Coming out a different way
My body was arguing with the darkness
And my body was winning

The tea cracked the gray
But the dance broke it open
The tea cracked the gray
But the joy broke it open

Roly poly, roly poly
Punch and kick and breathe and spin
Roly poly, roly poly
I'm a roly poly panda warrior
And I am not
Sitting
Down

Come down from the hills
Come in from the farms
(Come down, come in)
Put the tools away and bring a cup
Bring the biggest cup you've got

Tea for everyone
Tea for everyone
All the pandas dancing
In the afternoon sun
Tea for everyone

I brewed it from the flower on the mountain
The stubborn one that grows between the rocks
And one cup cracked the gray for me
So let's see what a hundred cups can do

Tea for everyone
Tea for everyone
Big round pandas spinning
And the party's just begun
Tea for everyone

The old man from the bridge is here
The woman from the market too
The kid who lost his yak
He found it and he brought it
And it's drinking from a bucket in the corner

(Everybody's here, everybody's here)

The farmers and the fishers
And the singers who forgot their songs
Are singing again
Quiet at first
The way a fire starts from almost nothing
But the pandas are already moving
Paws up, cups up, spinning in the sun

Tea for everyone
Tea for everyone
All the pandas dancing
In the afternoon sun
Tea for everyone

And then she came
Down from the woods
The jade witch
With her green hands shaking
And her eyes half green half something else
And she stood at the edge of the party
Like she'd forgotten what a crowd was for

And I poured her a cup
And I held out my paw
And I said come dance with me
Come dance with me
You've been standing still too long

And she drank it
And she closed her eyes
And somewhere in the woods
We heard the sound of stone
Becoming soft again

The statues in her garden
Started breathing
The birds flew off the branches
Where they'd been frozen mid-song
And they finished the song
Right there above the party
Like no time had passed at all

Tea for everyone
Tea for everyone
Not even her
Not anymore
Tea for everyone

And my little golden fish
Was blazing in her bubble
And the singers were all singing now
And the black cloud
The black cloud
Was lifting off the mountain
Like it couldn't stand the noise

And the sky went clear
From one edge of the shell
To the other
Bright blue and wide open
The kind of sky
That a turtle lost at sea
Has been swimming toward forever

Tea for everyone
Tea for everyone
All the pandas dancing
In the afternoon sun
Pour another round
Pour another round
(Pour another round, pour another round)
The whole world is the turtle's job
And ours is just to live
Tea for everyone

Stay a while in the panda lands
(Pan-da-la-pan-da-lands)
Stay a while in the panda lands
(Pan-da-la-pan-da-lands)

The tea is warm
The sky is clear
The turtle swims
And we are here

Stay a while in the panda lands
(Pan-da-la-pan-da-lands)
Stay forever in the panda lands
(Pan-da-la-pan-da-lands)

My fish is golden at my side
My paws know what they're for
Flowers grow between the rocks
And there's always room for one more

Stay a while in the panda lands
(Pan-da-la-pan-da-lands)
Make your home in the panda lands
(Pan-da-la-pan-da-lands)
Make your home in the panda lands
(Pan-da-la-pan-da-lands)

(Pan-da-la-pan-da-lands)
(Pan-da-la-pan-da-lands)
(Pan-da-la-pan-da-lands)