Balāde par gulbi (Ballad about the Swan) is a song by Latvian Rock band Pērkons, written by Māris Melgalvis (lyrics) and Juris Kulakovs (music). Written while Latvia was still part of USSR, it is noted for its anti-soviet subtext - most of the song analyses the stupidity of killing a swan, but in the end resolves that the swan is so red that it should be killed (consider that in beginning of the 1980s soviet leaders were dying one after another and were usually mourned by broadcasting Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake), while the opening part of the song deals with a crow with no sense of humor sitting on a fresh grave and forcing her opinion on everyone.

Lyrics

Kārna vārna

Uz slapa kapa

Man savu patiesību ķērc

Vai tiešām viņa neattapa ka viss tas - tikai joka pēc

Ak vai cik stulbi

Ir nosist gulbi

Bet stulbāk vēl ja vēlāk žēl

Tad ir tik velnišķīgi stulbi - ik rietā sarkans gulbis kvēl

Tik stulbi kvēl

Ka jāsit vēl

Translation:

A skinny crow

On a wet grave

Croaking her truth to me

Didn't she really realize that it all is just for fun ?

Oh, how stupid

It is to beat swan dead

But it is even stupider

If you feel sorry later

It is so devilishly stupid - in each (sun)set a red swan glows

So stupidly glows

That (one) must beat again