Tank engines roared like distant thunder
The soldiers charged and some fell dead
The medics carried young commander
And blood was pouring from his head

The tank was hit with armor piercer
So say goodbye to fellow crew
Just four more corpses in the hillside
Will add to fair morning view

Cause now the vehicle is burning
The shells are gonna detonate
You push the hatch to see this morning
But you're too weak and it's too late

They'll dig our bodies from the wreckage
And put our coffins in the clay
While blasts of fire from the cannons
Will see us on our final way

And then the letters will go flying
To tell our friends and families
That their good son is never coming
And never getting any leave

The mother's wailing in the corner
The father swats a creeping tear
Young girl will never know for certain
What fate befell her tanker dear

And then - just photo on the bookshelf
Collecting dust for years on end.
In uniform, with epaulets on...
And he will never be her man.

(translation partly sourced from old Youtube comment threads)

Song performed by Свитанок from Нефтеюганск, source:
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This is still an extremely popular "vodka+guitar" party song around former USSR. There are a number of versions in a number of genres, from the original folk version to rock or pop. I translated it to use as a reference in an article, but it's good in its own right.

The things it refers to are pretty self-explanatory, but here are the technical details:
WWII tanks had noticeably poor visibility, especially on the move and in combat, so when attacking they couldn't generally see who was shooting them, and the whole thing was basically a huge game of Russian roulette, hoping that the enemy would miss, the shell would glance off, etc.

If the tank got hit, the shells generally had a bursting charge, meaning they exploded inside the tank, usually not killing everyone but severely stunning and setting everything on fire. From that point, the disabled crew had seconds to get out before burning alive - that's why there are so many photos of tanks with driver's burnt body hanging from the front hatch.

Also:
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