Turn on your TV now my son In north Hollywood I see the guns are blazing Just like a video game Well you can't believe it But you'd best believe it boy This is your USA today Turn up the radio now my son A car got jacked in Compton, news at 11 Just another day in the modern world But I still love this land, ok? Well you can't believe it But you'd best believe it This is your USA today Take a look and you might see far too much reality You'll cut your mind along the way On the pieces of a broken of a broken world today See the pretty news announcer, son? She looks so good with stories of decay and destruction Smiling like it was all a video game And every anchor looks the same Well you can't believe it But you'd best believe it This is your USA today Look too hard then you will see far too much reality You'll cut your mind along the way On the pieces of a broken world today See the wars so far from here Brought into my room so crystal clear Words and images like these have got me on my knees Turn up your TV now my son Nowhere left to hide, nowhere left to run This is your USA today Well you can't believe it But you'd best believe it This is your USA today
You want a perfect prefab world Where the boy always gets the girl But the world's not really like that Where knights in armor slay the beast And every peasant gets a feast But I don't want a world that's like that Cause if the beast has a heart and the peasant has none Your equalizer's come undone Now what's left to do when every wish always comes true? And what's great to me won't seem so great to you There'd be no saints if every heart was overflowing There'd be nothing to learn if everyone was all-knowing Well it's a worthy crusade, but I won't cheer the parade of the equalizer 100 smiles make a frown mean more There's no equalizer Off the lines in factory Cookie cutter mentality Well the world's already like that And I'm sorry if you don't agree but that's the point It takes a bit of piss to put the spice in victory Well it's a worthy crusade, but I won't cheer the parade of the equalizer 100 smiles make a frown mean more There's no equalizer You want a perfect prefab world Where the boy always gets the girl But I don't want a world that's like that And I'm sorry if you don't agree but that's the point It takes a bit of piss to put the spice in victory Well it's a worthy crusade, but I won't cheer the parade of the equalizer 100 smiles make a frown mean more There's a hundred reasons why i hate a uniform
Rejoice in your naivete boy cause it's all gone for me I know we lived on stupid dreams it was all we had you see But when the balance totters there's no time for starry eyes Clear your thoughts to earn the good life and then I'll call you wise Now in the end I predict that you'll be just like me Cause only the foolish or the blind don't want a new TV And you won't want to haunt the thrift stores when you're old and gray You'd better earn a packet now for all those lonely days I see the fire in your eyes and I wish you all the best But when it comes to life in my world put all of that to rest There it is, I've said it now the rest is up to you Things were great when we were young, now march with me, its through If you could only see things my way, then you'd know I'm right I believe you can hold on and live life in ways you choose Confusion and my desperation are far too dear to lose If all of this meant nothing then you've wasted all that time But I can't un-tattoo my life, and that's the bottom line I'm not stupid and I know that everyone plays the game But how far you go on prefab terms is where we're not the same Don't want to live my life today for when I'm 65 If we all make it that far, dear god I'll be surprised Anyway the point is this: I do wish you all the best But when I walk down city streets I don't feel like the rest Don't worry, I won't wave a red flag or march on the city square Somewhere between revolution and you, you'll find me there If you could only see things my way, then you'd know I'm right
Guns of '96, the guns of '96 The ones that never miss 96 guns in the schoolyard There's a mama with a broken heart When they promise in November But it's broken in December The man said boy things will change this year Boy let me tell you crystal clear That man is far away from here And I don't want to talk about it Or hear another word about it Year of the rat? It's the year of the gun Living in Tinsletown, USA Guns of '96 Now it's fully automatic He's gonna, let 'em have it 96 palm trees waved above the riot Now everybody wants to try it Hey brother can you spare a dime Has been replaced with a gleaming shine With a .44 and a .45 Tough kids walk the street tonight Shadows beneath a neon light If you got a six-shooter will you feel alright And the man in the blue box Stands above the fray But you'd better lie low Or you'll be coming home the horizontal way Tough kids walk the street tonight Shadows beneath a neon light They got a six-shooter and they feel alright Year of the rat? It's the year of the gun Living in Tinsletown, USA Guns of '96 The ones that never miss
With a rumble of boots and a soldier's suit They march through Irish land Fresh-faced boys turned to grim young men With a union jack in hand Look to the roofs for trouble boy And don't trust anyone You're a foreigner in a foreign land And you don't belong my son Get out, England, get out You know you don't belong Get out, England, get out Cause it's bloody and its wrong A beautiful people, proud and free You'll never keep them down How do you think they've made it through history Balls have a name and sound You say you stand for noble things So I don't understand The guns and the boots and the soldier's suits On green and noble land Get out, England, get out You know you don't belong Get out, England, get out Cause it's bloody and it's wrong Get out, England, get out It's time to put things right Get out, England, get out Cause this is not your fight Don't think this is a catholic thing You're wrong I'm a wasp just like you But I sing a different song There's not excuse to split a country Or think that you know best England I love you in so many ways But lets put this crap to rest Get out, England, get out You know you don't belong Get out, England, get out Cause it's bloody and it's wrong Get out, England, get out It's time to put things right Get out, England, get out Cause this is not your fight
Every now and then I feel this place is going down I'll catch the next train into town There's romance on the streets tonight And every lonely heart's alright And I think that I could find my way If I could find my way to you So many pathways I have roamed Will I ever feel at home? So many streets for a burning heart But fewer roads to get a brand new start I think that I could find my way If I could find my way to you I'm looking forward to not looking back Trying to find a way to get on track Sitting in this room all by myself Oh lonely boy, what you gonna do? And I think that I could find my way If I could find my way Every now and then I feel I'm a burning heart In a place where nothings real Pouring rain all around me but I don't care Have you got a hope for me to steal?
Knocking down your door It seems I couldn't even get arrested Though I tried & tried My best, well I was getting bested Everybody had some kind of interest that was vested Could it be the time for exclamation points is over Could it be the time for truths in semi colons Everybody smiled Apat on the head & oh what a nice boy Never took us seriously They were playing with their other toys But now I find I'm in demand & You'll find I've developed quite a voice Could it be the time for explanation points is over? Could it be the time for truths in semi colons? Just question marks and periods, period my friend No question marks, period, cause I think it's time to send Send it all back to you With a smile & and some ribbon bow too We're the best, at worst Now everybody told us so But you refuse to hear it Because you have got us pigeonholed Well I'm the joker in your hand We'll play 'til one of us has to fold Could it be the time for explanation points is over? Could it be the time for truths in semi colons? Just question marks and periods, period my friend No question marks, period, cause I think it's time to send Send it all back we're through With a smile & and some ribbon bow too
I think it began back in 1992 Flames and riots and my innocence was through The flames got put out but the hatred stayed so strong Burning up the streets like an urban napalm White boy white boy Why you gotta act so proud? Black black boy Why you gotta talk so loud? White boy white boy So afraid you buy a gun Black boy black boy So busy hating everyone That's when i said well Nothing comes free, nothing comes free And this town ain't half of what it used to be Nothing comes free, nothing comes free Do you hear the sound of the world burning down? I don't like fear and I don't like feeling danger Now I'm driving through this ghost town like a sad lone ranger Amid the ruins of all these urban sights and sounds Seeing those places sometimes it still brings me down White boy white boy You're so busy building fences Black boy black boy When you gonna come to your senses White boy white boy Anger shouldn't be your new song Black boy black boy If you hate because of color, you've got it all wrong That's when i said well Nothing comes free, nothing comes free And this town ain't half of what it used to be Nothing comes free, nothing comes free Do you hear the sound of the world burning down? Everything was so fucked up that day I don't like fear and I don't like feeling danger I'm driving through this ghost town like a sad lone ranger Amid the ruins of all these urban sights and sounds Seeing those places sometimes it still brings me down White boy white boy You're so busy building fences Black boy black boy When you gonna come to your senses That's when i said well Nothing comes free, nothing comes free And this town ain't half of what it used to be Nothing comes free, nothing comes free Do you hear the sound of the world burning down?
You are the happiest minute on a sunny day And a silly song, when no one is around I am a sorry sight on a Saturday night You know that if I'm fine I will soon be down But I know that you think I'm OK So that's all that matters anyway Yeah I'm the guy that forgets your kiss on valentines You know I'm a jerk but you let me off the hook I don't know what you see in me but I'm glad that you think so You're just too good for me and yet you're perfect company And I know that you think I'm OK And that's all the matters anyway You are the best thing that ever came to me And when forever ends together we will be
I remember a time when there was nothing but trees and green grass Now I look around in concrete times and stay behind the glass Crowds of people but I'm all alone Staring at the bill for the telephone Sometimes I miss those days, when the world was green and growing But there's too many people now too mean and too knowing They say you've got to be hard in a hard world Say goodbye to suburban boys, cause urban joy is hard to find What you gonna do? It's all around you Sounds of the street start to surround you What you gonna do? These are concrete times Now I know these memories are just my naivete And I know that boyhood's gone and this is where you stay But so much has changed that I can see Now I hear the sirens and turn up the TV I remember knowing every house and every name on our street Now I don't even know our next door neighbors Just the sound of their feet Cause your eyes are more open the older you get But the wide eyes of childhood are gone forever You see more and less What you gonna do? It's all around you Sounds of the street start to surround you What you gonna do? These are concrete times And school plays have been replaced And too many friends have joined the race The newspaper brings sad news through my door Acceptance and gritted teeth when you walk outside at night Guns and knives replaced the schoolyard fight Crowds of people but i'm all alone These are concrete times, this is my home Street lights blinking on and on, keep me up for hours Along with my thoughts, in a pretty concrete tower What you gonna do? It's all around you Sounds of the street start to surround you What you gonna do? These are concrete times
Wake up to the darkness of another day You're determined, today you'll get away But all too soon you find that your day is set And you haven't figured how to get out yet All the images are so confusing The thoughts in your head are so bruising Coffee table world is so alluring All the lines you drew once are blurring You once were the rebel, so full of hate Now it seems the suit doesn't fit so great View yourself a bit uneasily This wasn't how it was going to be You know that rationales are far too easy But you've got to pay the rent and stay warm Ideals battle with reality You view the world as you know it to be You once were the rebel, so full of hate Now it seems the suit doesn't fit so great View yourself a bit uneasily This wasn't how it was going to be You built a foundation But it's hard to stay Truth be told No one gets away You say of course things change Well I know things change But that doesn't make it easier To piss it all away All the images are so confusing The thoughts in your head are so bruising Coffee table world is so alluring All the lines you drew once are blurring You once were the rebel, so full of hate Now it seems the suit doesn't fit so great View yourself a bit uneasily This wasn't how it was going to be
1,000 letters I have written but will never send Here it is, another end And now we act like strangers, like we never met But I can't forget You said you were on the other line that day So I sat and waited for the callback that never came Now where can I dispel the memories of your crime? Where can I release the burn of bitterness inside? This is the last goodbye If that's what you want from me This is the last goodbye So that's what you get There's an astroplane of rage somewhere in the sky tonight I need to find it, to unburden, I got to find it, to set my head on right My heart feels hard even as the memories fade Soon I'll be able to smile at all the times you took away They say that I'll get stronger from this Dear god let them be right But I still see you when I close my eyes at night This is the last goodbye That's what you want from me This is your last goodbye So that's what you'll get
The working man is in my head now Cause in this world we're all together Trapped in a world he never made It's a steel and concrete place that lasts forever And no one smiles, it's the working class Who's got time for sympathy? He sees reality, it makes him close his eyes Wakes up in the morning and he feels cold Makes the commute to a faraway place But in his head he's even further away And no one smiles, it's the working class Who's got time for courtesy? For every working man who earns a working wage Who's gonna set us free? The working man is in my head In this world we're all together Remembering a girl he loved Now he knows she's gone for good For him everyday is just a cycle Gets home at night, turns on the color TV Staring at programs set in faraway lands But the gray world outside his window is all he can see And no one smiles, it's the working class Who's got time for courtesy? For every working man who earns a working wage Who's gonna set us free? Well if you've got a scream inside you better shout it Before the real world takes your breath away Ideals die fast now if you let them But where's the future in another factory day? It's easy to say it It's harder to live it But look around and choose Remember he's like you
This is a puzzle I don't seem to fit All the sounds they like just seem like shit I don't know if they're dumb or I'm getting old There's a fire inside of me And I wish that they could see There's more to this than what they seem to think You've got to feel it You've got to grow with it Don't forget the past but get out and explore It's not that I hate them but I don't fit in Though there was a day when I tried to Now I'm driving with my own song in my head Cutting edge traditionalist The cool guy with the biting wit But the cool crowd seems way ahead of me Or behind me You've got to feel it You've got to grow with it Don't forget the past but get out and explore No matter what people say there's always pressure But I can't be a slave to others' ideas I'm going to do what I want to Going to play what I want to So at the end of the day I can look back and laugh You've got to feel it You've got to grow with it Don't forget the past but get out and explore
You say you've got it all figured out You live life without a doubt You say you're looking for something deeper Tried to fix it, getting deeper (?) You can say it's everything I won't sit and watch it I won't march in time to the tune of self destruction Well I think it's time to make it on my own I'm gonna live life all alone Well open your eyes And I'll show you a big surprise Nobody makes it on their own Nothing is ever gonna change, you say And there's no way you'll every leave this code you follow today You say your rules are something deeper But I see lies, and they're getting deeper You say everything means nothing But I can't sit and watch it I won't march in time to the tune of self destruction Well I think it's time to make it on my own I'm gonna live life all alone Well open your eyes And I'll show you a big surprise Nobody makes it on their own You say you've got it figured out I'm wary of those who don't see a shadow of a doubt Come see me in 20 years, and I'll show you a host of change In the end, your inner spirit is all that will remain You can say it's everything I won't sit and watch it I won't march in time to the tune of self destructionTop