We tripped the light Fandango And turned cartwheels 'cross the floor I was feeling kind of seasick But the crowd called out for more The room was humming harder As the ceiling flew away When we called out for another drink The waiter brought a tray So it was that later As the miller told his tale That her face at first just ghostly Turned a whiter shade of pale She said, "There is no reason, And the truth is plain to see" But I wandered through my playin' cards And would not let her be One of sixteen vestal virgins Who were leaving for the coast And although my eyes were open They might have just as well have been closed So it was that later As the miller told his tale That her face at first just ghostly Turned a whiter shade of pale She said, "I'm here on a shore leave; Though we were miles at sea" I pointed out this detail And forced her to agree, Saying, "You must be the mermaid Who took King Neptune for a ride" And she smiled at me so sweetly That my anger straightway died. And so it was that later As the miller told his tale That her face at first just ghostly Turned a whiter shade of pale