C  F  C  Dm  (4x)

[Verse 1]
N.C.       F        G      C    
I took the children by the hand
F           Em        Dm              F
Promised to show them all that we had planned
     Am      F          G     Am
It's sad but true, this moral maze
  Em            C               G
Betrays the innocence of bygone days


[Chorus]
               Dm       G        Dm
You can't hold back the march of time, I said
              F        G        F
We can't hold back the march of time
                   G                       C
This blood stained desert road on which we stand
   F    Em      Dm        G      C 
Is testament to man, this barren land


[Interlude]
C  F  C  F  C  F  C


[Verse 2]
N.C.        F        G      C    F  C
Our song of joy, the countryside
F       Em         Dm               F
Radiant fields, forever glowed with pride
     Am        F          G      Am
That once were blessed as golden shires
    Em             C                G
Now bear the sad remains of funeral pyres


[Chorus]
              Dm       G        Dm
We can't hold back the march of time, I said
               F        G        F    C  Dm
You can't hold back the march of time
            G                      C
This wicked wilderness in which we stand
   F    Em      Dm        G      C 
Is testament to man, this barren land


[Lead Break]


[Chorus]
              Am       D        Am
We can't hold back the march of time, I said
               C        D        C   
You can't hold back the march of time
            D                     G
This way of no return on which we stand
   C    Bm      Am        D      G 
Is testament to man, this barren land


[Verse 3]
N.C.      C         D        G    
On sullen shores we make our peace
   C             Bm      Am                C
We pray that the howling wind will someday cease
    Em       C         D     Em
The waves of power can never bend
     Bm              G                D
They ever take their course until the end


[Chorus]
              Am       D        Am
We can't hold back the march of time, I said
               C        D        C    G  Am
You can't hold back the march of time
     D                                    G
This crumbling cliff-top path on which we stand
   C    Bm      Am        D      G 
Is testament to man, this barren land
   C    Bm      Am        D      G 
Is testament to man, this barren land