[Verse 1]

Well the train slipped into the station

A worn-out, steel blue soul

A relic from colonial days

When the French were still in control

Lorsque les Français ont été en contrôle

[Verse 2]

It's an outpost in transition

Where the faithful in the bar

Know from the whistle and the squeaking wheels

That the next stop is Dakar

La prochaine étape était Dakar

[Chorus 1]

Talk on the radio, talk on the street

Talk of men with money loco from the heat

Talk about the rail band pickin' up the beat

We lit that great reunion with the headlights on the jeep

[Verse 3]

And there's history on that jukebox

Where the spies and scoundrels dwell

It was the place to go in Bamako

Direction Buffet Hotel

Direction Buffet Hotel

[Verse 4]

Now we're lost in the Sahara

Four hours north of Tombouctou

Lookin' for a nomad who knows

Or maybe some wandering Jew

Allons a Essakane, Syndou

[Verse 5]

Then we heard that Tuareg combo

We had come so very far

And we were welcomed out of history

By the wind, the sand and the stars

J'ai commencé à le percevoir

[Chorus 2]

Sand in the couscous, sand in the wine

There was sand in my guitar case and stories in my mind

Machine guns on the hilltop, camels in my tent

Buried in a sandstorm as the music came and went

[Verse 6]

Well, we crawled out of that desert

And the storm erased our tracks

The Sahara showed her heart to us

And then she took it back

[Verse 7]

Well, we made it back to Bamako

Before that last call bell

We bought rounds for all our newfound friends

We owned Buffet Hotel

Nous avons eu Buffet Hôtel

[Outro]

I recall diplomats and hookers

I saw strangers diggin' wells

And for that one great night in Bamako

We owned Buffet Hotel