B E
Russell Roman took his brand new bride
F#7 B
Across the threshold to their brand new life
E
With very little money in his jeans
F#7 B
And a hundred million dollars worth of dreams
B E
He took a job a the Congress Union Bank
F#7 B
Worked hard to get ahead but drew a blank
E
One day they paid him off and sent him home
F#7 B
Then he swore he'd build an empire of his own
E F#7 B
Through the years he worked and dreamed of a Roman empire
E F#7 B
And he left his pretty young wife all alone
E F#7 B
She didn't share his dreams of a Roman empire
E F#7 B
All she dreamed of was a family and a home
B E
Hard work and patience brought him wealth and fame
F#7 B
And he thought he was a winner in life's game
E
Their empire stretched from Maine to Mexico
F#7 B
She had everything but what she needed most
B E
When at last her loneliness had run it's coarse
F#7 B
The judge granted Mrs. Roman her divorce
E
Now Russell Roman's empire seemed so small
F#7 B
And as lifeless as the Rembrandts on the wall
E F#7 B
The rise and the fall of the Roman empire
E F#7 B
Is a lesson for the likes of you and me
E F#7 B
The rise and the fall of the Roman empire
E F#7 B
Is just another page in history
B E
Russell Roman took the same sweet bride
F#7 B
Across the threshold for the second time
E
With very little money in his jeans
F#7 B
And not one single dollar in his dreams
E F#7 B
That's the fall and the rise of the Roman empire
E F#7 B
He gave their fortune to an orphans home
E F#7 B
The fall and the rise of the Roman empire
E F#7 B
Now his empire is his family and his home