MY STRONGEST SUIT

Overwear, underwear, anytime, anywhere

Now I believe in looking like my time on earth is cooking
Whether polka-dotted stripes or even checks
With some glamour guaranteeing every fiber of my being
Is displayed to quite remarkable effects
From your cradle via trousseau to your death bed you're on view so
Never compromise accept no substitute
I would rather wear a barrel than conservative apparel
For dress has always been my strongest suit

Overwear, underwear, anytime, anywhere

Staying in or hitting townwards, from the top and working downwards
I ensure that every stitch is stitched in time
Whether wig or hat or turban, whether clad boudoir or urban
Not to strut your stuff outrageously's a crime
And the few who are invited to my wardrobe are delighted
As they wander through my things to find en route
That in negligee or formal I am anything but normal
That dress has always been my strongest suit

Overwear, underwear, anytime, anywhere

Now you don't need a recital of the reasons why its vital
That tonight I simply have to look my best
That from coronet to sandal no one else is worth a candle
That I couldn't make more impact if I'm dressed
So bring me out my finest, most audacious, my divinest
Most revealing, most expensive and to boot
Most arresting, most heart-stopping, most free-flowing, most eye-popping
Because dress has always been my strongest suit

EASY AS LIFE

This is the moment when the gods expect me
To beg for help but I won't even try
I want nothing in the world but myself to protect me
But I won't lie down, roll over and die

All I have to do is to forget how much I love him
All I have to do is put my longing to one side
Tell myself that love's an ever-changing situation
Passion would have cooled and all the magic would have died

It's easy, it's easy

All I have to do is to pretend I never knew him
On those very rare occasions when he steals into my heart
Better to have lost him when the ties were barely binding
Better the contempt of the familiar cannot start

It's easy, it's easy

Until I think about him as he was when I last touched him
And how he would have been were I to be with him today
Those very rare occasions don't let up, they keep on coming
All I ever wanted and I'm throwing it away

It's easy, it's easy as life

And then I see the faces of a worn defeated people
A father and a nation who won't let a coward run
Is this how the gods reward the faithful through the ages
Forcing us to prove that all the hardest things we've done

Are easy, so easy

And though I'll think about him until the earth draws in around me
And though I choose to leave him for another kind of love
This is no denial, no betrayal, but redemption
Redeemed in my own eyes and in the pantheon above

It's easy, it's easy, it's easy as life

WRITTEN IN THE STARS

I am here to tell you we can never meet again
Simple really, isn't it, a word or two and then
A lifetime of not knowing where or how or why or when
You think of me or speak of me or wonder what befell
The someone you once loved so long ago so well

Never wonder what I'll feel as living shuffles by
You don't have to ask me and I need not reply
Every moment of my life from now until I die
I will think or dream of you and fail to understand
How a perfect love can be confounded out of hand

Is it written in the stars
Are we paying for some crime
Is that all that we are good for
Just a stretch of mortal time

Is this God's experiment
In which we have no say
In which we're given paradise
But only for a day

Nothing can be altered, there is nothing to decide
No escape, no change of heart, no anyplace to hide
You are all I'll ever want, but this I am denied
Sometimes in my darkest thoughts, I wish I'd never learned
What it is to be in love and have that love returned

ANOTHER PYRAMID

Sad to say our mighty ruler
Is not really in the pink
Hopes could not be minuscular
That he'll come back from the brink
Not to beat around the bush
He looks like heading for his box
At the risk of seeming pushy
We must plan for future shocks

According to the Hawk God Horus
Our most regal invalid
Is not that much longer for us
Build another pyramid

Build it, build it
Another pyramid
build it, build it

Though all doctors and physicians
Have been summoned to his bed
It'll soon be top morticians
We'll be calling for instead
With each wheeze the nation's humming
Egypt shakes with every cough
No two ways about what's coming
No discussion, bets are off

Soon our monarch will have filled the tomb
Just like his fathers did
Summon Egypt's greatest builder
Re: another pyramid

Build it, build it
Another pyramid
Build it, build it

We hate to depress the nation
But our leader has been told
He should scrub his next vacation
Even put tonight on hold
This is where his loyal priesthood
Has the chance to do him proud
Holy leaders at the least should
See him happy to his shroud

He must have a vault that's grand by
Any standards floor to lid
Put five thousand slaves on standby
Build another pyramid

WICKED DREAMS

It's written clear across the room
In silent words the blind could understand
I came here to relax and find
A sleep that soaks me up like surf and sand

And you appear as I descend
A soft outline all poised and feather light
I come into the darkness now
To conjure up a dream and close my eyes

Don't disturb me if you dare
And join me if you have the nerve
I'll show you where the best of me has been
Behind my eyes I'll wait for you
Imagine just what we could do
Come join me in my wicked dream

Don't send me back to real life
The daily grind just leaves me feeling numb
Leave me in my wicked dream
Where pressure cracks and beauty comes undone

I CAN'T STEER MY HEART CLEAR OF YOU

Take me for granted, I think that I could stand it
After all these rough seas
Left me reckless and abandoned
Say the spirit's willing, chance a new beginning
Break down the cold front
Give me peace and understanding

And you wait, and you wonder
Will she still beat the drum and bring the thunder
Will she still be the star to see me through
'Cause I can't steer my heart clear of you

No I can't steer my heart clear of you
It's the way it's been, ever since you sailed
Out of a storm and into view
And should I drift away, the compass holds the clue
You control the weather
And I can't steer my heart clear of you

Make me your penance, show me your innocence
Everything is history
From the aching to the pleasure
We enjoy the torture, the slow pain that it taught us
Everything gets twisted
Let me burn or bring me water

And you wait, and you wonder
Will she still beat the drum and bring the thunder
Will she still be the star to see me through
'Cause I can't steer my heart clear of you

You control the weather
And I can't steer my heart clear of you

JANUARY

Must have been the right month
Must have been a good time
Must have counted every cloud in the sky that night
Every single glass of wine

Must have learned some home truths
Sitting in that cool grass
Must have counted every blade in that emerald field
Every shooting star that passed

Should have had a talk with God
Sitting in the great unknown
Watching all the lovers in the world get together
Sitting in Heaven all alone
And we were love's knot after summer

Tied together in the dead of winter
Wrapped up with spring fever in the air
Bound together in the autumn
Every month means a little something
But January is the month that cares

Must have kissed you 'till I hurt you
Must have been a wild night
Must have rolled in the ashes at the break of day
Rag dolls in the morning light

Must have found a secret place
Hiding in our own world
Must have counted every smile on your sweet, sweet lips
Every single sound we heard

RECOVER YOUR SOUL

Baby you're missing something in the air
I got a name but it don't matter
What's going on, it's cold in here
You have a life but it's torn and tattered

Maybe you're losing pieces of your heart
You have a world but it stopped turning
You lose the day and gain the dark
Love was a fire but it stopped burning

Spare your heart, save your soul
Don't drag your love across the coals
Find your feet and your fortune can be told
Release, relax, let go
And hey now let's recover your soul

Lazy old sunset sinking like a tear
Alone at night in a losing battle
That perfect world is never clear
You have to fight for the things that matter

THE BIG PICTURE

On and on
The story of our lives goes on and on
The path of time
The sunsets up ahead roll along

In your eyes
The option of a warm embrace implies
You're my friend
Happy endings keep our love alive

And tell me do I fit in the big picture
Do I have a shot at the big part
'Cause I've been up all night looking at the big picture
I've got some good lines for my big star

Wanna be your main man in the big picture
What a deal to get a part like this

Day to day
The shifting wind just blows us on our way
Here and there
Our pockets full of things to say

Oh my love
I proudly represent you in this world
Little satellite
Brightest star tonight, oh my love

Hope I got a future in the big picture
At the last embrace from the first kiss

SOMETHING ABOUT THE WAY YOU LOOK TONIGHT

There was a time
I was everything and nothing all in one
When you found me
I was feeling like a cloud across the sun

I need to tell you
How you light up every second of the day
But in the moonlight
You just shine like a beacon on the bay

And I can't explain
But it's something about the way you look tonight
Takes my breath away
It's that feeling I get about you, deep inside
And I can't describe
But it's something about the way you look tonight
Takes my breath away
The way you look tonight

With a smile
You pull the deepest secrets from my heart
In all honesty
I'm speechless and I don't know where to start

LOVE'S GOT A LOT TO ANSWER FOR

Pull my coat around me
Feel the cold wind haunt me
Streets are empty just like me
The murmur of an echo
Seems to come from every window
Is loneliness the same as being free

I guess I must have been dreaming
To think that I believed in you at all
Now I just can't fight it
As the shadow of the night begins to fall

Love's got a lot to answer for
Oh I just can't sleep with this feeling anymore
Let the cold night air cool the heat
Of two hearts gone to war
For no matter who wins, in the end
Love's got a lot to answer for

All I need is darkness
The best of all protection
Freedom's like the stars in the sky
Alone and cold and burning
Each one keeps its distance
If only we were stars, you and I

Oh I guess I must have been dreaming
To think that I believed in you at all
Now I just can't fight it
As the shadow of the night begins to fall

No matter who wins, in the end

Love's got a lot to answer for

IF THE RIVER CAN BEND

I don't know what to say
I don't know where the light shines
It's a grey dawn rising on a green hill
And there's so much behind us

I don't know where we go
I sure feel there's something out there
There's a great awakening and a new morning
And your spirit's pounding loud and clear

If the river can bend
I'll find you waiting
Home at last from the wild sea
All the twists and turns
We've made together
All the boats you rocked
With your harmony

If the river can bend
If the river can bend
If the river can bend
If the river can bend

Come and embrace the struggle
But win or lose we live here
Build a new beginning on an old rock
Breathe deep of the sweet fresh air

THE END WILL COME

And when we start we say forever
We say we care, we need, we feel
We read the movement of our eyes
But in our hearts we still believe

The end will come, before we know
The silent rule of love applies
We light the fuse and let it burn out
We just accept that love must die

And so they say, the end will come for us
And so the world slows down to let us off
Just hang it up and let it go, accept it if I must
But I don't believe, I don't believe that the end will come for us
No I won't believe the end will come for us

The end will come like sudden rain
The end is never what it seems
We sink the ship before we sail
We just accept what failure means

LIVE LIKE HORSES

I can't control this flesh and blood
That's wrapped around my bones
It moves beneath me like a river
Into the great unknown

I stepped onto the moving stairs
Before I could tie my shoes
Pried a harp out the fingers of a renegade
Who lived and died the blues

And his promise made was never clear
It just carved itself in me
All I saw was frost inside my head
On the night he said to me

Someday we'll live like horses
Free rein from your old iron fences
There's more ways than one to regain your senses
Break out the stalls and we'll live like horses

We're the victims of the heartbreak
That kept us short of breath
Trapped above these bloodless streets
Without a safety net

I stood in line to join the tribe
One more customer of fate
Claimed a spoke in the wheel of the wagon train
On the road to the golden gate

On the flat cracked desert I jumped ship
It just made sense to me
I've spent too long in the belly of the beast
And now I shall be free

Someday, free reign from your old iron fences
There's more ways than one to regain your senses
Break out the stalls and we'll live like horses

LONG WAY FROM HAPPINESS

I guess you're okay
You seem to feel better these days
I've known you for so long
I've seen your brightness go from blue to grey

You know that's true
You can shake your head but I can prove
I've seen things through your eyes
You think you win but in the end you lose

And there's no second guess
We take no second bets
Chances are we're a long way from happiness
Don't cover up the road to love
With words that can't express
The truth implies you're high and dry
And you're a long way from happiness

I'm one step behind
Looking out for you all the time
I'll put my faith in you
And steer you clear of love that leaves you blind

BLESSED

Hey you, you're a child in my head
You haven't walked yet
Your first words have yet to be said
But I swear you'll be blessed

I know you're still just a dream
your eyes might be green
Or the bluest that I've ever seen
Anyway you'll be blessed

And you, you'll be blessed
You'll have the best
I promise you that
I'll pick a star from the sky
Pull your name from a hat
I promise you that, promise you that, promise you that
You'll be blessed

I need you before I'm too old
To have and to hold
To walk with you and watch you grow
And know that you're blessed

LIES

Some lie about who they love
Some lie about the truth
Some lie to save their lives
Some lie about their youth

Some lie about age and beauty
The conquest of sex
Most lie about the night before
A woman lies for a party dress

I've lied for a stolen moment
I've lied for one more clue
I've lied about most everything
But I never lied to you

And we lie, lie, lie on a streetcar named desire
Oh we lie, lie, lie for that sweet bird of youth
I could be great like Tennessee Williams
If I could only hear something that sounds like the truth

Some lie in the face of death
Some lie about their fame
Some kneel and lie to God
Some lie about their name

Some lie in words and speeches
With every living breath
The young lie with their guitars
The old lie for a little respect

I've lied to lie with danger
I've lied for a drug or two
I've lied about most everything
But I never lied to you

I've lied for a stolen moment
I've lied for one more clue
I've lied about most everything
But I never lied to you.

MAN

Man stands in all his glory
Sitting at the crossroads of the same old story
Man got his make-up, wears it like a mask
Hides inside a child, lives inside a glass
Man breathes his own deceit
Man worships his own defeat

Oh I'm a man, I know what it feels like
I'm a man, working on the living part of life
You see through me, I understand
But don't lose hope if you can
Have a little faith in man

Shakespeare's men got all the lines
Modern man lives back in time
Man got bravado in his big steel hands
Runs with the wolf, sleeps with the lamb
Man falls, cuts and bleeds
Man stumbles on his own belief

He's the hoax behind the thrill
The poison arrow, the bitter pill
Hard to swallow, hard to kill, hard to understand
He's the light behind the hill
The broken promise, the iron will
Hard to kill, hard to understand

PLEASE

We've been crippled in love, short changed, hung out to dry
We've chalked on the walls a slogan or two about life
Stood dazed in the doorway, the king and queen of clowns
We've been flipped like a coin, both of us landing face-down

So please, please, let me grow old with you
After everything we've been through, what's left to prove
so please, please, please, oh please let me grow old with you

We've been living with sorrow, been up, down and all around
We've buried our feelings a little too deep in the ground
Stood dazed in the doorway, the king and queen of clowns
We've been flipped like a coin, both of us landing face-down

But tied to the same track, the two of us look back
At oncoming trains ahead
How many more times can we lay on the line
Watching our love hang by a thread

LATITUDE

Grey London morning, wet London streets
Rain on the window, wind in the trees
It's my time to write, it's your time to call
There's something about distance that gets to us all

Dark clouds above me, little people below
All walk with a purpose with someplace to go
It's my place to paint my own selfish scene
On this cold lonely canvas, it's just the weather and me

And latitude
Fold back the morning and bring on the night
There's an alien moon
That hangs between darkness and light
Latitude between me and you
You're a straight line of distance
A cold stretch of black across blue
Latitude

Cracks in the sidewalks, dogs on the run
An old poster reading "Give us your sons"
Window frames capture moments in time
But latitude captures the heart and the mind

BELFAST

Deep inside my soul fights a war
I can't explain, I can't cross over any more
All I see are dirty faces
Rain and wire, and common sense in pieces
But I try to see through Irish eyes
Belfast

Look outside, summer's lost and gone
It's a long walk on a street of right and wrong
In every inch of sadness
Rocks and tanks go hand in hand with madness
But I never saw a braver place
Belfast

And it's sad when they sing, and hollow ears listen
Of smoking black roses, on the streets of Belfast
And so say your lovers from under the flowers
Every foot of this world needs an inch of Belfast

Who's to say on whom heaven smiles
Our different ways we try hard to recognise
No more enchanted evenings
The pubs are closed and all the ghosts are leaving
But you'll never let them shut you down
Belfast

The enemy is not at home
A jealous green streaks down this faulty diamond
No bloody boots or crucifix
Can ever hope to split this emerald island
But I never saw a braver place
Belfast

PAIN

What's your name, my name is Pain
Where do you live, I live anyplace
Where were you born, in the state of fear
How old are you, nineteen hundred and ninety four years

What's your plan, my plan is pain
When will you leave, I'll never go away
How will you breathe, you'll give me life
How will you see, sitting in the temple right between your eyes

My name is Pain, you belong to me
You're all I wanted, I'm all you'll ever be
From the beginning in a world without end
I am the air, I am Pain

Pain is love, Pain is pure
Pain is sickness, Pain is the cure
Pain is death, Pain is religion
Pain is life, Pain is television

Pain walks, Pain crawls
Pain is peace, Pain is war
Where were you born, in the state of fear
How old are you, nineteen hundred and ninety four years

My name is Pain, you belong to me
You're all I ever wanted, I'm all you'll ever be
From the beginning in a world without end
I am the air, I am Pain

COLD

You don't love him any more
He threw your rag doll out the door
I keep my distance, I held my breath
Love always ends up hanging by a thread

Love hurts so much
Love leaves a scar
'I don't love you' is like a stake
Being driven through your heart

But I don't care
I came back for you
Love is cruel, but I don't care
I wanted you, and I'm cold, cold, cold

You said don't cry to me
He said I'm a dead man if you leave
I have no feelings, I have no heart
Love always cuts out the warm and tender part

Love hurts so much
Love cuts so deep
It's a hot sweat and a cold shake
Like drowning in your sleep

HOUSE

This is my house
This is where I live
That is the winter
Those are the trees
I can hear them breathe
This is my bed
This is where I sleep
That was the dark
Those are my dreams
They belong to me

This is my floor
This is where I lie
This is a square room
That was a bright light
These are not my eyes
What is my soul
Where is my tired heart
That is the question
Where is the answer
Inside my house

And I sit by the window
And I wish I was rain
I want to fall from the sky
I want to get wet all over again

'Cause this is my house
It belongs to me
Inside my head
It's all that's left
This is my house
This is my bed
This is where I sleep
That was the dark
Those are my dreams
They belong to me

This is my house

MADE IN ENGLAND

I was made in England out of Cadillac muscle
I had a quit-me father, had a love-me mother
I had Little Richard and that black piano
Oh that sweet Georgia Peach and the boy from Tupelo

Oh, I was made in England
Oh, I was made in England

I was made in England out of Cadillac muscle
Face down on a playground crying God send me a brother
Not a bloody nose for Rock and Roll
Give me that sweet Georgia Peach and the boy from Tupelo

I was made in England like a blue Cortina
But a Yankee summer had a way about her
You had a scent for scandal, well here's my middle finger
I had forty years of pain and nothing to cling to

If you're made in England, you're built to last
You can still say 'homo' and everybody laughs
But the joke's on you, you never read the song
They all think they know but they all got it wrong

BELIEVE

I believe in love, it's all we got
Love has no boundaries, costs nothing to touch
War makes money, cancer sleeps
Curled up in my father and that means something to me
Churches and dictators, politics and papers
Everything crumbles sooner or later
But love, I believe in love

I believe in love, it's all we got
Love has no boundaries, no borders to cross
Love is simple, hate breeds
Those who think difference is the child of disease
Father and son make love and guns
Families together kill someone
Without love, I believe in love

Without love I wouldn't believe
In anything that lives and breathes
Without love I'd have no anger
I wouldn't believe in the right to stand here
Without love I wouldn't believe
I couldn't believe in you
And I wouldn't believe in me
Without love

I believe in love
I believe in love
I believe in love

CAN YOU FEEL THE LOVE TONIGHT

There's a calm surrender to the rush of day
When the heat of the rolling world can be turned away
An enchanted moment, and it sees me through
It's enough for this restless warrior just to be with you

And can you feel the love tonight
It is where we are
It's enough for this wide-eyed wanderer
That we got this far
And can you feel the love tonight
How it's laid to rest
It's enough to make kings and vagabonds
Believe the very best

There's a time for everyone if they only learn
That the twisting kaleidoscope moves us all in turn
There's a rhyme and reason to the wild outdoors
When the heart of this star-crossed voyager beats in time with yours

I JUST CAN'T WAIT TO BE KING

Way behind the water hole
A little down the line
The jungle and the plains and peaks
Are scheduled to be mine

I'm gonna be the ruler
Of most everything around
From the grandest of the mountains
To the humble common ground
My reign will be a super awesome thing
Oh, I just can't wait to be king

I'm gonna be a noble king
Unscrupulously fair
I only need a little time
Perhaps a little hair

I'm gonna be the mane event
Like no king was before
I'm brushing up on looking down
I'm working on my roar
The fauna and the flora gonna swing
Oh, I just can't wait to be king

No one saying do this
No one saying be there
No one saying stop that
No one saying see here
Free to run around all day
I'll be free to do it my way

The time has come as someone said
To talk of many things
This may be true
But I would rather stick to talking kings

It's easy to be royal if you're already leonine
It isn't just my right even my left will be divine
The monarchy is waiting to go zing
Oh I just can't wait to be king

CIRCLE OF LIFE

From the day we arrive on the planet
And blinking, step into the sun
There's more to be seen than can ever be seen
More to do than can ever be done

Some say eat or be eaten
Some say live and let live
But all are agreed as they join the stampede
You should never take more than you give

In the circle of life
It's the wheel of fortune
It's the leap of faith
It's the band of hope
Till we find our place
On the path unwinding
In the circle, the circle of life

Some of us fall by the wayside
And some of us soar to the stars
And some of us sail through our troubles
And some have to live with the scars

There's far too much to take in here
More to find than can ever be found
But the sun rolling high through the sapphire sky
Keeps great and small on the endless round

CAN YOU FEEL THE LOVE TONIGHT (Cast Version)

I can see whats happening
(What!)
And they dont have a clue
(Who!)
They'll fall in love and heres the bottom line
Our trios down to two
(Oh..)

The sweet caress of twilight
Theres magic, everywhere
And with all this romantic atmosphere
Disasters in the air!!!

Can you feel the love tonight ?
The peace the evening brings
The world for once, in perfect harmony
With all its living things

So many things to tell her
But how to make her see
The truth about my past ? Impossible!
She'd turn away from me

He's holding back, he's hiding
But what, I cant decide.
Why wont he be the king i know he is
The king I see inside?

Can you feel the love tonight ?
The peace the evening brings
The world for once, in perfect harmony
With all its living things

Can you feel the love tonight ?
You need'nt look too far
Stealing through the nights uncertanies
Love is where they are

And if he falls in love tonight
It can be assumed
His carefree days with us are history
In short, our pal...is doomed

HAKUNA MATATA (Cast Version)

Hakuna Matata!
What a wonderful phrase
Hakuna Matata!
Ain't no passing crazy

It means no worries
For the rest of your days
It's our problem-free philosophy
Hakuna Matata!

When he was a young warthog
When I was a young warthog
(-Very Nice)
(-Thanks)
He found his aroma lacked a certain appeal
He could clear the Savannah after every meal
I'm a sensitive soul though I seem thick-skinned
And it hurt that my friends never stood downwind

And, oh, the shame
'Thoughta changin' my name
And I got downhearted
Ev'rytime that I...

Hakuna Matata!
What a wonderful phrase
Hakuna Matata!
Ain't no passing craze

It means no worries
For the rest of your days
It's our problem-free philosophy
Hakuna Matata!

It means no worries
For the rest of your days
It's our problem-free philosophy

Hakuna Matata!

BE PREPARED (Cast Version)

I know that your powers of retention
Are as wet as a warthog's backside
But thick as you are, pay attention
My words are a matter of pride

It's clear from your vacant expressions
The lights are not all on upstairs
But we're talking kings and successions
Even you can't be caught unawares

So prepare for a chance of a lifetime
Be prepared for sensational news
A shining new era
Is tiptoeing nearer

And where do we feature?

Just listen to teacher
I know it sounds sordid
But you'll be rewarded
When at last I am given my dues!
And injustice deliciously squared
Be prepared!

---"Be prepared for what?
For the king's death!
Why? Is he sick?
No, you fool, we're going
to kill him... and Simba too!
Great idea! Who needs a king?
No king, No king, nah nah
nah nah nah nah!
Idiots! There will BE a king!
But you just said...
I'm gonna be king
Stick with me, and you'll
never be hungry again!
YEA!!!!!! Long live the king! "---

It's great that we'll soon be connected
With a king who'll be all-time adored


Of course, quid pro quo, you're expected
To take certain duties on board
The future is littered with prizes
And though I'm the main addressee
The point that I must emphasize is
You won't get a sniff without me

So prepare for the coup of the century
Be prepared for the murkiest scam
(Ooooh!)
Meticulous planning
(We'll have food!)
Tenacity spanning
(Lots of food)
Decades of denial
(We repeat)
Is simply why I'll
(Endless meat)
Be king undisputed
(Aaaaaaaaaah!)
Respected, saluted
(Aaaaaaaaaah!)
And seen for the wonder I am
(Aaaaaaaaaah!)

Yes my teeth and ambitions are bared
Be prepared!

Yes, our teeth and ambitions are bared
Be prepared!

I JUST CAN'T WAIT TO BE KING (Cast Version)

I'm gonna be a mighty king
So enemies beware!

Well, I've never seen a king of beasts
With quite so little hair

I'm gonna be the mane event
Like no king was before
I'm brushing up on looking down
I'm working on my ROAR

Thus far, a rather uninspiring thing

Oh, I just can't wait to be king!
(You've rather a long way to go, young master,
if you think...)

No one saying do this
(Now when I said that, I -)
No one saying be there
(What I meant was...)
No one saying stop that
(Look, what you don't realize...)
No one saying see here
(Now see here!)

Free to run around all day
(Well, that's definitely out...)
Free to do it all my way!

I think it's time that you and I
Arranged a heart to heart

Kings don't need advice
From little hornbills for a start

If this is where the monarchy is headed
Count me out!
Out of service, out of Africa
I wouldn't hang about
This child is getting wildly out of wing

Oh, I just can't wait to be king!

Everybody look left
Everybody look right
Everywhere you look I'm
Standing in the spotlight!

Not yet!

Let every creature go for broke and sing
Let's hear it in the herd and on the wing
It's gonna be King Simba's finest fling

Oh, I just can't wait to be king!
Oh, I just can't wait to be king!
Oh, I just can't waaaaaait ... to be king!

CIRCLE OF LIFE (Cast Version)

Nants ingonyama bagithi Baba (Here comes a lion, Father)
Sithi uhm ingonyama          (Oh yes, it's a lion)

Nants ingonyama bagithi baba
Sithi uhhmm ingonyama
Ingonyama

Siyo Nqoba                    (We're going to conquer)
Ingonyama
Ingonyama nengw' enamabala 
(A lion and a leopard come to this open place)


From the day we arrive on the planet
And blinking, step into the sun
There's more to see than can ever be seen
More to do than can ever be done
There's far too much to take in here
More to find than can ever be found
But the sun rolling high
Through the sapphire sky
Keeps great and small on the endless round

It's the Circle of Life
And it moves us all
Through despair and hope
Through faith and love
Till we find our place
On the path unwinding
In the Circle
The Circle of Life

It's the Circle of Life
And it moves us all
Through despair and hope
Through faith and love
Till we find our place
On the path unwinding
In the Circle
The Circle of Life

YELLOW RIVER

So long, boy you can take my place
I've got my papers, I've got my pay
So pack my bags and I'll be on my way
To Yellow River

Put my gun down, the war is won
Fill my glass high, the time has come
I'm going back to the place that I love
Yellow River

Yellow River
Yellow River is in my mind and in my eyes
Yellow River
Yellow River is in my blood, it's the place I love

Got no time for explanations
Got no time to lose
Tomorrow night you'll find me sleeping underneath the moon
At Yellow River

Cannon fire lingers in my mind
I'm so glad that I'm still alive
And I've been gone for such a long time
From Yellow River

I remember the nights were cool
I can still see the water pool
And I remember the girl that I knew
From Yellow River

IT'S ALL IN THE GAME

Many a tear has to fall
But it's all in the game
All in the wonderful game
That we know has love

You have words with him
And your future's looking kind of dim
But these things
Your heart can rise above

Once in a while he won't call
Oh but it's all in the game
Soon he'll be there at your side
With a sweet "OK"

And he'll kiss your lips
And caress your waiting fingertips
And your heart will fly away

Come on sing it now
Do-do-do-do-do do doo, oh yeah

And he'll kiss your lips
And caress your waiting fingertips
And your heart will fly away

SIGNED, SEALED, DELIVERED (I'm Yours)

Like a fool I went and stayed too long
Now I'm wondering if your love's still strong
Oo baby, here I am, signed, sealed, delivered, I'm yours

Then that time I went and said goodbye
Now I'm back and not ashamed to cry
Ooh baby, here I am, signed, sealed, delivered, I'm yours

Here I am baby
(signed, sealed delivered, I'm yours)
You've got the future in your hand
Here I am baby,
(signed, sealed, delivered, I'm yours)
You've got the future in your hand

I've done alot of foolish things
That I really didn't mean
Hey, baby, didn't I

I've seen a lot of things in this old world
When I touched them they did nothing girl
Ooh baby, here I am, signed, sealed, delivered, I'm yours

Oo-wee baby you set my soul on fire
That's why I know you're my one and only desire
Ooh baby, here I am, signed, sealed, delivered, I'm yours

I've done alot of foolish things
That I really didnt mean
I could be a broken man but here I am

LOVE OF THE COMMON PEOPLE

Living on free food tickets
Water in the milk from the hole in the roof
Where the rain came through
What can we do

Tears from your little sister
Crying 'cause she doesn't have a dress without a patch for the party to go
Oh but you know she'll get by

'Cause she's living in the love of the common people
Smiles from the heart of the family man
Daddy's gonna buy her a dream to cling to
Momma's gonna love her just as much as she can
And she can

It's a good thing you don't have bus fare
It would fall through the hole in your pocket
And you'll lose it in the snow on the ground
Out walking your dog to find a job

Trying to keep your hands warm
But the hole in your shoe lets the snow come through
And it chills you to the bone
You better go home where it's warm

You can live in the love of the common people
Smiles from the heart of the family man
Daddy's gonna buy her a dream to cling to
Momma's gonna love her just as much as she can
And she can

Living on dreams ain't easy
But the closer the knit the tighter the fit
And the chills stay away
You can take them in stride, for family pride

You know that faith in your foundation
And with a whole lot of love and a warm conversation
And a _______ prayer making you strong
Where you belong

Where you can live in the love of the common people
Smiles from the heart of the family man
Daddy's gonna buy her a dream to cling to
Momma's gonna love her just as much as she can
And she can

COME AND GET IT

If you want it, here it is, come and get it
Make your mind up fast
If you want it anytime, I can give it
But you better hurry 'cause it may not last

Did I hear you say that there must be a catch
Will you walk away from a fool and his money
If you want it here it is, come and get it
But you better hurry 'cause it's going fast

If you want it, here it is, come and get it
Make your mind up fast
If you want it anytime, I can give it
But you better hurry 'cause it may not last

Did I hear you say that there must be a catch
Will you walk away from a fool and his money, sonny
If you want it here it is, come and get it
But you better hurry 'cause it's going fast
You better hurry 'cause it's going fast
Fool and his money, sonny

If you want it here it is, come and get it
But you better hurry 'cause it's going fast
You better hurry 'cause it's going fast
You better hurry 'cause it's going fast

SHE SOLD ME MAGIC

Maybe
You're always maybe, maybe, maybe I love you
My thanks jaunty for the long time
Maybe, you're always maybe, maybe, maybe I love you
But I keep follow something out of sight

She sold me magic, she sold me magic
And all of the little things I needed every day
She sold me magic, she sold me magic
And all of the little things I needed every day

Maybe, you're always maybe, maybe, maybe I love you
My thanks jaunty for the long time
Maybe, maybe, maybe I love you
Maybe, you're always maybe, maybe, maybe I love you
But I keep following something out of sight

She said I'm in my better life time
She said my stars were matching her sign
She turns my ego on, before she was too strong
And ring the bell ___ she pushed me off the edge of love
Ring the bell ___ she pushed me off the edge of love

Maybe, you're always maybe, maybe, maybe I love you
My thanks jaunty for the long time
Maybe, maybe, maybe I love you
Maybe, you're always maybe, maybe, maybe I love you
But I keep follow something out of sight

Nanana...
Nanana...

NEANDERTHAL MAN

I'm a neanderthal man
You're a neanderthal girl
Let's make neanderthal love
In this neanderthal world

I'm a neanderthal man
You're a neanderthal girl
Let's make neanderthal love
In this neanderthal world

I'm a neanderthal man
You're a neanderthal girl
Let's make neanderthal love
In this neanderthal world

I'm a neanderthal man
You're a neanderthal girl
Let's make neanderthal love
In this neanderthal world

SNAKE IN THE GRASS

Beautiful morning, ahh
Down by the river, ahh
Without a warning, ahh
Who'd ever guess you'd come across a snake in the grass

Every day now, ahh
You take a walk here, ahh
What do you say now, ahh
If you should meet an evil-minded snake in the grass

Stop and watch where you're putting your feet, my sweet
I don't want to do anything bad
But you make me mad and I might bite your face, bite neck, bite arms, bite bite
'Cause I'm, oh, a snake in the grass, oh
A snake in the grass

Looking around you, ahh
You never see me, ahh
You'll get a surprise, ahh
Should you get entangled with a snake in the grass

Under my thick skin, ahh
I can be lonely, ahh
Please can I come in, ahh
And end my sad existence as a snake in the grass

Under my thick skin, ahh
I can be lonely, ahh
Please can I come in, ahh
And end my sad existence as a snake in the grass

UP AROUND THE BEND

There's a place up ahead and I'm going
Just as fast as my feet can fly
Come away, come away if you're going
Leave the sinking ships behind

Come on the rising wind
We're going up around the bend

Bring a song and a smile for the banjo
Better get while the getting's good
Hitch a ride to the end of the highway
Where the neon turn to wood

You can ponder perpetual motion
Fix your mind on a crystal day
Always time for a good conversation
There's an ear for what you say

Catch a ride to the end of the highway
And we'll meet by the big red tree
There's a place up ahead and I'm going
Come along, come along with me

IN THE SUMMERTIME

In the summertime when the weather is high
You can stretch right up and touch the sky
When the weather's fine
You got women, you got women on your mind
Have a drink, have a drive
Go out and see what you can find

If her daddy's rich, take her out for a meal
If her daddy's poor, just do what you feel
Speed along the lane, do a ton or a ton and twenty five
When the sun goes down, you can make it, make it good in a lay-by

We're not grey people, we're not dirty, we're not mean
We love everybody, but we do as we please
When the weather's fine, we go fishing or go swimming in the sea
We're always happy, life's for living, yeah that's our philosophy

Sing along with us, de de de-de-dee
Da da da-da-da, yeah we're hap-happy
Da da da-da-da-da-da da da-da da
Da da da-da-da-da-da da da-da da

When the winter's here, yeah it's party time
Bring you bottle, wear your bright clothes, it'll soon be summertime
And we'll sing again, we'll go driving, or maybe we'll settle down
If she's rich, if she's nice, bring your friends and we'll all go into town

YOUNG GIFT AND BLACK

Young, gifted and black
Oh what a lovely precious dream
To be young, gifted and black
Open your heart to what I mean

In the whole world you know
There's a million boys and girls
Who are young, gifted and black
And that's a fact

Young, gifted and black
We must begin to tell our young
There's a world waiting for you
This is a quest that's just begun

When you feel really low
Yeah, there's a great truth you should know
When you're young, gifted and black
Your soul's intact

Young, gifted and black
How I long to know the truth
There are times when I look back
And I am haunted by my youth

Oh but my joy of today
Is that we can all be proud to say
To be young, gifted and black
Is where it's at

GOOD MORNING FREEDOM

Good morning world, it's a brand new day
I'm packing my bags and I'm going away
I'm moving my legs and my city tired bones
I gotta get away from the busy man's phones

Gotta make a move where the living is wild and free
If you want to get happy them people come along with me
A fee fa fou fafafafa fouu

Run along boy, set a place for me
I'm getting so tired of the company
I'm getting _____ looks from the big white man
I gotta get away just as fast as I can

Good morning freedom
Gotta break away
Gotta break away
Gotta break away
Good morning freedom
It's another day
It's another day
It's another day
Good morning freedom
A fee fa fou fafafafa fouu

____________ is the same old game
A city tired living is the game to play
Loving thy neighbour is realize same
There's only one way to get the people to sing

I CAN'T TELL THE BOTTOM FROM THE TOP

And every time I get to thinking
Every thought of you I want to shout aloud
Then I think about the love I have inside me
How you brought what's inside out

Now love's made it to the outside
I want to tell the world of everthing I've found
Somehow your love released a spring wound up inside me
You turned my living upside down

And I can't tell the bottom from the top
Am I standing on my head or on my heels
Is it cloudy, is it bright
Is it day or is it night
Am I wrong or am I right
And is it real

Tell me where you learned the magic
The spell you used the day you made me fall
Maybe now I know that love is no illusion
I'm upside down but ten feet tall

On and on I've drifted with the tide
I didn't know that love could move me so
You fed my life with love and much more besides
And you showed me which way to go

TREVELLIN' BAND

737 coming out of the sky
Won't you take me down to Memphis on a midnight ride
I want to move, yeah
Playing in a travelling band, yeah
Well I'm flying across the land
Trying to get a hand
Playing in a travelling band

Take me to the hotel
Baggage gone, oh well
Come on, come on, won't you get me to the room
I want to move, yeah
Playing in a travelling band, yeah
Well I'm flying across the land
Trying to get a hand
Playing in a travelling band

Listen to the radio
Talking about the last show
Someone got excited, had to call the state militia
I want to move, yeah
Playing in a travelling band, yeah
Well I'm flying across the land
Trying to get a hand
Playing in a travelling band

Here we come again on a Saturday night
With your fussing and your fighting, won't you get me to the right
I want to move, yeah
Playing in a travelling band, yeah
Well I'm flying across the land
Trying to get a hand
Playing in a travelling band

Well I'm playing in a travelling band
Playing in a travelling band
Playing in a travelling band
Well I'm playing in a travelling band
Well I'm flying across the land
Trying to get a hand
Playing in a travelling band

SPIRIT IN THE SKY

When I die and they lay me to rest
Gonna go to the place that's the best
When they lay me down to die
Going up to the spirit in the sky

Going up to the spirit in the sky
That's where I'm gonna go when I die
When I die and they lay me to rest
Gonna go to the place that's the best

Prepare yourself, you know it's a must
Gotta have a friend in Jesus
So you know that when you die
He's gonna recommend you to the spirit in the sky

Gonna recommend you to the spirit in the sky
That's where you're gonna go when you die
When you die and they lay you to rest
You're gonna go to the place that's the best

Never been a sinner, I never sinned
I got a friend in Jesus
So you know that when I die
He's gonna set me up with the spirit in the sky

Oh set me up with the spirit in the sky
That's where I'm gonna go when I die
When I die and they lay me to rest
Gonna go to the place that's the best
Gonna go to the place that's the best

UNITED WE STAND

There's nowhere in the world that I would rather be
Than with you my love
And there's nothing in the world that I would rather see
Than your smile my love

For united we stand
Divided we fall
And if our backs should ever be against the wall
We'll be together, together, you and I

For united we stand
Divided we fall
And if our backs should ever be against the wall
We'll be together, together, you and I

And if the world about you falls apart my love
Then I'll still be here
And if the going gets too hard along the way
Just you call, I'll hear

NATURAL SINNER

Sometimes I feel too old to work, too young to die
I'll drink wine and whisky, I'll keep smoking 'till I die
I wear a suit of sadness made by experience
for I believe that in the end time will heal what men can’t mend

I'm a natural sinner, born a sinner's son
Evil's been my motto, distrust everyone
I'm a natural sinner, born a sinner's son
Evil's been my motto, distrust everyone

Big men with small mind now , they're not hard to find
Now they ain’t got no good side, it plain greed that covers up what’s inside
Now ride the confusion, withhold your trust
Struck with your own hand when you think the cause is just

Na...na...na...

LADY D'ARBANVILLE

My Lady D'Arbanville
Why do you sleep so still
I'll wake you tomorrow
And you will be my fill, yes you will be my fill

My Lady D'Arbanville
Why does it grieve me so
But your heart seems so silent
Why do you breathe so low, why do you breathe so low

My Lady D'Arbanville
Why do you sleep so still
I'll wake you tomorrow
And you will be my fill, yes you will be my fill

My Lady D'Arbanville
You look so cold tonight
Your legs feel like winter
Your skin has turned to white, your skin has turned to white

My Lady D'Arbanville
Why do you sleep so still
I'll wake you tomorrow
And you will be my fill, yes you will be my fill

My Lady D'Arbanville
Why do you grieve me so
But your heart seems so silent
Why do you breathe so low, why do you breathe so low

I love you my lady
Though in your grave you lie
I'll always be with you
This rose will never die, this rose will never die

COTTONFIELDS

When I was a little bitty baby
My Momma done rocked me in the cradle
In them old cottonfields back home

It was back in Louisiana
Just about a mile from Texarkana
In them old cottonfields back home

Let me tell you now well I got me in a mess
I caught a nail in my tire doing lickety splits
I had to walk a long long way to town

Came along a nice old man
Well he had a hammer
Wait a minute mister, can you get me some direction
I'm gonna wanna be right off for home

Oh let them cotton balls get rotten
I got you baby, who needs cotton
In them old cottonfields back home

Well it sure feels good to breathe the air back home
You should have seen their faces when they seen how I'd grown
In them old cotton fields back home

MY BABY LOVES LOVIN'

My baby loves loving, my baby loves loving
She's got what it takes, and she knows how to use it
My baby loves loving, my baby loves loving
She's got what it takes, and she knows how to use it

I was lonely once in this great big world
Just a nowhere man without a girl
'Till that lucky day when she came my way
And she smiled at me as if to say

My baby loves loving, my baby loves loving
She's got what it takes, and she knows how to use it
My baby loves loving, my baby loves loving
She's got what it takes, and she knows how to use it

She's the only one, makes me feel so good
Can't believe my love so I knock on wood
All my silent fears seem to fly away
And she smiled at me as if to say

Your baby loves loving, my baby loves loving
She's got what it takes for me

No more lonely nights just waiting for the telephone to ring
No more lonely days, my baby's taking care of everything
I'm telling you people

My baby loves loving, my baby loves loving
She's got what it takes, and she knows how to use it
My baby loves loving, my baby loves loving
She's got what it takes, and she knows how to use it

She's the only one, makes me feel so good
Can't believe my love so I knock on wood
All my silent fears seem to fly away
And she looked at me as if to say

DUETS FOR ONE

Look at you, could I have been so foolish and so green
A face that smiled at every passing scene
Look at you, you're lost behind the web of woven time
When each emotion pinball in your mind

Look at me, I'm happy now I see your face and smile
I was the judge and jury at your trial
Look at me, I know the road ahead will twist and turn
Now I have the time to stand and learn

That you and I have come so far
With a shaken faith
From the pit of a broken heart
To a feeling great
Feel like life has just begun
No more singing duets for one

I hold your picture here beside my bed
You had a party raging in your head
Look at me, I look at you with vacancy and hurt
And here today all I can do is learn

Look at me, I'm happy now I see your face and smile
I was the judge and jury at your trial
Look at me, I know the road ahead will twist and turn
Now I have the time to stand and learn

I have this picture of me looking at you
Looking at me
And I would like to say
Goodbye sweet memory

BORN TO LOSE

Born to lose
I've lived my life in vain
Every dream has only brought me pain
All my life I've always been so blue
Born to lose
And now I'm losing you

Born to lose
Oh it seems so hard to bear
When I wake and find that you're not there
Ooh you've grown tired and now you say we're through
I'm born to lose
And now I'm losing you

Born to lose
I've lived my life in vain
Every dream has only brought me pain
All my life I've always been so blue
Born to lose
And now I'm losing you
Born to lose
And now Elton I'm losing you

LOVE LETTERS

Love letters straight from your heart
Keep us so near while apart
I'm not alone in the night
When I can have all the love you write

I memorize every line
And I kiss the name that you sign
And, darling, then I read again right from the start
Love letters straight from your heart

I memorize every line
And I kiss the name that you sign
And, darling, then I read again right from the start
Love letters straight from your heart
And, darling, then I read again right from the start
Love letters straight from your heart

I'M YOUR PUPPET

Pull the string and I'll wink at you, I'm your puppet
I'll do funny things if you want me to, I'm your puppet

I'm yours to have and to hold
Darling you've got full control of your puppet

Pull another string and I'll kiss your lips, I'm your puppet
Snap your finger and I'll turn you some flips, I'm your puppet

Your every wish is my command
All you gotta do is wiggle your little hand
I'm your puppet, I'm your puppet

I'm just a toy, just a funny boy
That makes you laugh when you're blue
I'll be wonderful, do just what I'm told
I'll do anything for you
I'm your puppet, I'm your puppet

Pull them little strings and I'll sing you a song, I'm your puppet
Make me do right or make me do wrong, I'm your puppet

Treat me good and I'll do anything
I'm just a puppet an you hold my string, I'm your puppet
Yeah, I'm your puppet

Walking, talking, living, loving puppet
I'm hanging on a string girl, I'll do anything now

I'm a walking, talking, living, loving puppet, and I love you

I'm a smiling happy face when you want me to
Even make you happy when you're feeling blue

AIN'T NOTHING LIKE THE REAL THING

Ain't nothing like the real thing, baby
Ain't nothing like the real thing
Ain't nothing like the real thing, baby
Ain't nothing like the real thing

I got your picture hanging on my wall
But it can't seem to come to me
When I call your name
I realized it's just a picture in a frame

I read your letters but you're not here
They don't move me, they don't groove me
Like when I hear
Your sweet voice whispering in my ear

I play my games of fantasy
I pretend I don't see reality
I need the shelter of your arms to comfort me

I got some memories to look back on
Though they help me when you're gone
I'm well aware
Nothing can take the place of you being there

No other sound is quite the same as your name
No touch can do half as much
To make me feel better
Let's stay together

I'm so
So glad we got the real thing, baby
So glad we got the real thing
Ain't nothing like the real thing, baby
Ain't nothing like the real thing

GO ON AND ON

On and On
On and On

She broke my heart, he hurt me too
That's something that only unworthy souls do
They say goodbye, we say hello
An introduction for a perfect love to grow

Let's stop thinking about the past
And start thinking about the future
So that love can go on and on
Let's stop thinking about the past
And start thinking about the future
So that love can go on and on

She said she'd stay, he said that too
So sad when you find out your love has found a new
She made me cry, he made me weep
But life has love in store for us that's ooh so sweet

On and On (love keeps going on)
On and On (they've got the whole of life)
On and On (love keeps going on)
On and

It's time to say goodbye to crying eyes and broken dreams
And get back to the joy that to each other we will bring
That starts from summer love to last through autumn, winter, spring
Our hearts will sing forever, love

OLD FRIEND

I want to be good, I want to be strong
But I treated him bad, I've done him wrong
I've taken his money, I've given him hell
And he takes it all 'cause he knows me well

We can say what we mean and mean what we say
We don't like to mess around
But we're there to pull each other up
When we're falling down

Just like an old friend
Putting me on my feet again
Giving me back my pride then
Letting me go
Just like an old friend
Putting me in my place again
Giving me back my hope then
Letting me know that he's an old friend

I don't suffer no fools I've testified
But he must be one for being by my side
I've broken his heart
I've shaken his tree
But still he doesn't want anything from a fool like me

We won't talk for a year or two
Maybe when we do we won't say much
Even so we know that out of mind is never out of touch

We're having a man-to-man
Don't want to get sentimental
But both of us understand
We'll never have to say goodbye, just see you later

A WOMAN'S NEEDS

Where have you been are you still on my side
Is that love or regret that I see in your eyes
How many years have we played out this game
Every time we come close the answer's always the same

I guess some souls get restless under the skin
There's a shortage by half of marrying men
You know that I love you but I love to be free
So tell me what do you want, yeah from a gypsy like me

I need a ring on my finger, champagne on ice
One man to show me the best part of life
Is that what you want
Yeah, that's what I need

A home and a family makes sense for us
A solid foundation built out of trust
Do you think you can find that with someone like me
Two arms to hold you, one place to be
Are just some of the things that a woman needs

I've been shortchanged and cheated so many times
But you're all that I've wanted For all of my life
I've searched for the reasons, known how I've felt
But what can I give you when I can't trust myself

IF YOU WERE ME

If you were me
And I was you
If you had to play my part out
What would you do
Two crazy stories
Two different views
If you were me
And I was you

If you were me
And I was you
What kind of crazy things
Would I have to do
Who likes to party
Who stays at home
If you were me
And I was you

Never like strangers
Though never the same
Two circus sideshows
That laughed in the rain
You stayed with the full moon
You searched for the stars
Thank God in His heaven
Here we both are

TRUE LOVE

Suntanned, windblown
Honeymooners at last alone
Feeling far above par
Oh, how lucky we are

While I give to you and you give to me
True love, true love
So on and on it will always be
True love, true love

For you and I have a guardian angel
On high, with nothing to do
But to give to you as you give to me
Love forever, true
Love forever, true

Give me more true love
Oh yeah
True love, true love

Gotta give me your true love
Oh yeah
True love, true love

SHAKEY GROUND

Lady luck and four leaf clovers
Won't ease this hurt I feel all over
My life was one special occasion
`Til your leaving dampened the situation

Well well well
Standing on shakey ground
Ever since you put me down
Standing on shakey ground
Ever since you put me down

My car got repossessed this morning
Harder times I haven't seen in years
Girl you better throw me a life preserver
`Cause I'm about to drown in my own tears

Well well well
Standing on shakey ground
Ever since you put me down
Standing on shakey ground
Ever since you put me down

Well well well
Standing on shakey ground
Ever since you put me down

Standing on shakey ground
Ever since you put me down
Standing on shakey ground
Ever since you put me down

Well well well
Standing on shakey ground
Shaking, shakey ground
Standing, standing
Standing on shakey ground

THE POWER

I have sold myself through and through
I have walked in the darkness too
Felt a red sun, the living proof
Washed my hands in the honest truth

I have carried this weight time after time
I have bettered the dumb and the blind
I've seen dignity fail and colours run
Seen justice denied by the voice of a gun

And we walk, yes we walk
And we walk with the power every day
Never letting the light slip away

Reaching out, reaching in
Touching truth and touching skin
Never letting the light slip away
And we walk with the power every day

If my faith is a fire then burn baby burn
We've held fire long enough to learn
Heat beneath hope is a healing light
Kept alive by the flames of night

Walk tall in the power day after day
Never, never, never lose sight of the way
See the dawn come and the dusk hang
See the power rise from an open hand

WHEN I THINK ABOUT LOVE (I Think About You)

Holding all the pictures that my life's drawn
I never find I'm missing love
Remembering all parades that had been rained on
But never cloudy leaving love

Ask me what it is that makes it special
Why it's so real to me
It's knowing who keeps their place in my heart
It's knowing how is it I can feel you
It's knowing never will I change my mind
When I think about love I think about you
When I think about love I think about you

Too many times I've turned my emotions on and off
Without realizing what it does
I know what's moved me and kept me going this far
But I never questioned what it was

TEARDROPS

Whenever I hear good-bye
Reminds me, baby, of you
I break down and cry
The next time I'll be true, yeah

Fever for lost romance
Reminds me, baby, of you
I took a crazy chance
The next time I'll be true, I'll be true

Footsteps on the dance floor
Remind me, baby, of you
Teardrops in my eyes
Next time I'll be true, yeah

Whispers in the back room
She cries on every tune, every tune

And the music don't feel like it did
When I felt it with you
Nothing that I do or feel ever feels
Like I felt it with you

When I'm dancing round
Reminds me, baby, of you
I won't let you down
The next time I'll be true, I'll be true

HOUSE OF CARDS

I hear tell some playboy has kidnapped your heart
With his plane and his plans for games after dark
Just a pain in his pocket, and the price of a room
Where the second hand sheets smell of stale perfume

If there's sharks in the water, don't swim where it's deep
For the taste of success can be bitter and sweet
It could be you're right that I act like a child
But you'll be the loser when the jokers run wild

You're just playing the game, but the stakes are too high
What will you do when the chips start to fly
When the deck's stacked against you, and the living gets hard
Oh it's four walls of madness in this house of cards

Common you call me, but I know there's time
In a handful of diamonds, a heart's hard to find
And your house of cards starts weighing you down
Your nights become restless when the clubs start to pound

HO! HO! HO! (Who'd Be A Turkey At Christmas)

Sitting here on Christmas Eve with a brandy in my hand
Oh I've had a few too many and it's getting hard to stand
I keep hearing noises from my fireplace
I must be going crazy or the brandy's won the race

And I keep hearing ho, ho, ho, guess who's here
Your fat and jolly friend draws near
Ho, ho, ho, surprise, surprise
The bearded weirdy's just arrived

Ho, ho, ho, guess who's here
Your fat and jolly friend draws near
Ho, ho, ho, surprise surprise
The bearded wierdy's just arrived

On my roof there's snorting sounds, and bells inside my head
My vision's blurred with colour, and all he sees is red
There's a pair of large sized wellies coming down my flue
And the smell of burning rubber, oh is filling up the room

LET ME BE YOUR CAR

I may not seem your ideal when you look into my eyes
I don't smoke, I don't tell jokes, I'm not the custom made size
But baby let me take you out on the highway for a while
I'll show yow where the man in me is when he doesn't hide
Well he's cruising in the fast lane, stuck behind the wheel
Jekyll and Hyde going on inside when I'm your automobile

Let me be your car for a while child
Shift me into gear and I'll be there
Fill me up with five star gasoline girl
I'll be your car, I'll take you anywhere

Let me be your car, come on and drive me
I'm a speedy little boy down deep inside
I got bucket seats and two speed window cleaners
Just let me be your car, oh come on and ride

I can't dance, I don't dig it, I can't see it at all
You say I'm just a specimen, and baby I can crawl
Well my physique don't look the way the physiques really should
But then again I've got an engine underneath my hood

When I'm cutting up the road with a sports car on my tail
Frankenstein's inside my mind, and the wind's inside my sails

ROCK ME WHEN HE'S GONE

Warm the wine and give it to me one more time again
I'm just a rolling stone who needs a drop of rain
And to taste your honey, Mona is like licking on the sun
My truck's hid in the back yard so come here and give me some

Said lady, that's the way
You've gotta rock me when he's gone
You make me feel like a diesel train going home
We got so much to give each other
And we've only just begun
So take me baby, break me lady
Gotta rock me when he's gone

Break the bread in two and you can give me half
I've ridden hard and fast just to make you laugh
To make you laugh I've stood knee-deep in mud outside your door
Clutching in my hand a border rose from Baltimore

I MEANT TO DO MY WORK TODAY (A Day In The Country)

I meant to do my work today
But a brown bird sang in the apple tree
I know that one too
And a buttefly flitted across the field
And all the leaves were calling me
And the buttercups nodded their smiling heads
Greeting the bees who came to call
And I asked the lizard the time of day
As he sunned himself on a moss grove
And the wind went sighing over the land
Tossing the grasses to and fro
And a rainbow held out its shining hand
So what could I do but laugh and go
My mother died when I was born
I live with my father on our own
And we had a cottage where we'd go
And he died too, now I'm alone

HONEY ROLL

Do you want to drive to ride mount on your pony
Loosen up my tie to help me breathe
Insisting that I pay my alimony
Each and every day is the same old scene

Come on do the roll, do the roll with me
Come on do the roll, do the roll with me
I said honey, I said honey
I said honey, I said honey
Come on do the honey roll with me

Well I want to say that I'm your mister funky
Singing this song is taking up your time
I did the donkey now I'm your funky monkey
Sing it children, sing it on your mind

SEASONS

For our world, the circle turns again
Throughout the year we've seen the seasons change
It's meant a lot to me to start anew
Oh the winter's cold but I'm so warm with you

Out there there's not a sound to be heard
And the seasons seem to sleep upon their words
As the waters freeze up with the summer's end

Oh it's funny how young lovers start as friends
Yes it's funny how young lovers start as friends

MICHELLE'S SONG

Cast a pebble on the water
Watch the ripples gently spreading
Tiny daughter of the Camargue
We were meant to be together
We were made for one another
In a time it takes to grow up
If only we were old enough
Then they might leave us both alone

So take my hand in your hand
Say it's great to be alive
No one's going to find us
No matter how they try
No one's going to find us
It's wonderful so wild beneath the sky

Sleeping in the open
See the shadows softly moving
Take a train towards the southlands
Our time was never better
We shall pass the sights of splendor
On the door of a new life
It had to happen soon I guess
Whether it is wrong or it is right

We learned to be so graceful
Watching wild horses running
And from those agile angels
We knew the tide was turning
For we watched as on the skyway
The herons circled slowly
While we mere mortals watched them fly
Our sleepless eyes grew heavy

HERE'S TO THE NEXT TIME

Like I said baby
If you go astray
Well then go on
Go your own sweet way
I thought you knew by now
You do just what you please
And here's to the next time
Here's to the next time

How many times
Have you gone before
And how many times
Have I forgiven you once more
Never had to wait
Like I waited for you
And here's to the next time
Here's to the next time

When you're gone
The time drags by
I wish you'd learn
Not to make me cry
To make me cry

So if you're gonna leave me
Never to come back
Break it to me gently
Or my world will crack
So be sure to let me know
That I'll never say
Here's to the next time
Here's to the next time
Here's to the next time

I'VE BEEN LOVING YOU

I didn't mean to hurt you
You know it's just my way
Those things that I said yesterday
Were things I shouldn't say
Although you're blue
Just one thing I want you to do
Just forget all those things
That I said about you

`Cause I've been loving you baby
Loving you baby for a long time
And if you go away
I just won't know what to do

Yes I've been loving you baby
Loving you baby for a long time
And you know in your heart
That I'll always worship you

I couldn't bear to see you go
Oh no no no no
So don't you feel sad
It's not the thing to do
Because I worry
If I know you're feeling blue
Please put your tears away
So nobody can see
`Cause the last thing I want
Is for you to cry over me

FAT BOYS AND UGLY GIRLS

Fat boys cry when ugly girls sing
About the way the world would be if they were thin
And ugly girls turn their heads when fat boys laugh
About the handsome kid next door who broke their heart
Who broke their heart
Broke their heart

And fat boys lie when ugly girls ask
About the size an apple pie looks through a magnifying glass
And ugly girls dream at night when fat boys sleep
About the way the mirrors lie when beauty's only skin deep
Beauty's only skin deep
Skin deep

But it's the fat boy's world for an ugly girl
And ugly girls love that fat boy joy
Who needs the worries of a perfect world
Hear the early birds make that spring time come
When a fat boy falls in love with an ugly girl
When a fat boy falls in love with an ugly girl

Fat boys dance when ugly girls shout
That a waltz is not the dance for the boy who's stout
And ugly girls dream at night when fat boys sleep
About the way the mirrors lie when beauty's only skin deep
Beauty's only skin deep
Skin deep

Fat boys and ugly girls

SUIT OF WOLVES

Looking back in anger
On this dirty little town
It stained your dress carved up my face
Put a wedge between our state of grace

Somethings so young and pretty
Should never be released
We place our bets we take our pick
They wind up in the belly of the beast

And when you can't get what you want
You take anything you can
So I wear this suit of wolves at night
I slip it on how come it feels so right

I get a hungry man
When I can't get what I want
I take anything I can
I wear a suit of wolves

Just across from Friday
The weekend circus rolls
I cross my heart turn on the charm
I say my prayers between two hungry arms

There's a string of dangerous flowers
All around my bed
There's some want rings and some just want
And those who'd like to see me dead

THE LAST SONG

Yesterday you came to lift me up
As light as straw and brittle as a bird
Today I weigh less than a shadow on the wall
Just one more whisper of a voice unheard

Tomorrow leave the windows open
As fear grows please hold me in your arms
Won't you help me if you can to shake this anger
I need your gentle hands to keep me calm

`Cause I never thought I'd lose
I only thought I'd win
I never dreamed I'd feel
This fire beneath my skin
I can't believe you love me
I never thought you'd come
I guess I misjudged love
Between a father and his son

Things we never said come together
The hidden truth no longer haunting me
Tonight we touched on the things that were never spoken
That kind of understanding sets me free

UNDERSTANDING WOMEN

Rolling over trying to sleep
And understanding women
Thinking of you out there somewhere
Looking for a new beginning

Just let me be the final word
In the book we haven't written
I won't be another page
In understanding women

I could drive to Mexico
On understanding women
Throw myself against the waves
And answer up to heaven

How come her heart's so stubborn
And what's so wrong with giving
Ask the big sky talking
About understanding women

And I'm not just anyone who ever stood outside your door
And I'm not any man you've ever known before
Don't judge this picture by the frame
Every man is not the same
Some men reach beyond the pain
Of understanding women

ON DARK STREET

I'm staring down a mile of disappearing track
Is this the best that we could do
I'm leaning through the rain but you ain't looking back
What did I ever have to prove

`Cause it feels like electricity hitting an open field
When am I ever gonna to learn
Married life's two people trying to grab the wheel

Oh and we must have got lost
Living on Dark Street
Looking for an exit
Sleeping on the concrete
You can't see it with your eyes
You can't find it with your feet
All I know is that we're lost baby
And we're living on Dark Street

All the layoffs and the pay cuts cripple me inside
I pay the price for living everyday
Trying to keep us all together along with a little pride
What'll it take to make you stay

But I've dreamed about an island
And all I got's a bucket of sand
I'd give my eyes to give you all your dreams
Now I get to see my family slipping through my hands

EMILY

The church bells ring out morning glory
When summer bends to the winter's rage
Emily walks through the cemetery
Passed a dog in an unmarked grave
The old girl hobbles, nylons sagging
Talks to her sisters in the ground
I saw a lie in the mirror this morning
I heard a prophesy all around

And Emily they come and go
The shadows and the distant sounds
But Emily don't be afraid
When the weight of angels weighs you down

Emily prays to a faded hero
In a little frame clutched to her gown
Hears the voice of promise in his memory
Tonight's the night they let the ladder down
In a cage sits a gold canary
By a wicker chair and a rosewood loom
As a soul ascends abord the evening
Canary sings to an empty room

And Emily they come and go
The shadows and the distant sounds
But Emily don't be afraid
When the weight of angels weighs you down

WHEN A WOMAN DOESN'T WANT YOU

She may be lost
She may be out of bounds
All her tenderness and charms could be something
A man like me has never found
But in her woman's way
She's still a little girl
The things that she wants, the things that she needs
Oh well the choice is hers

`Cause you can't take a woman
When she doesn't want you
And you can't be a man
If you're blind to reason
Man might be strong
But true love is stronger
You gotta play it straight
When a woman doesn't want you

Her voice invites
Her eyes say more than words
But her needs and complications
Can tear away the memory of last night's girl
And if you're weak
Yeah we're all weak sometime
The best things can wait
The best times they come
Oh when strength is kind

And if you can't read her
Leave her alone
And if you don't know by now
She's not someone's prize
And you can't take her home

THE NORTH

Have you seen the North
That cold grey place
Don't want its shadow anymore
On my face
A man grows bitter
We're a bitter race
Some of us never get to see
A better place

In the Northern Skies
There was a steel cloud
It used to follow me around
But I don't see it now
There's a farm in the rain
And a little farmhouse
There were a young man's eyes
Looking south

The North was my mother
But I no longer need her
You trade your roots and your dust
For a face in the river

And a driven rain that washes you
To a different shore
There's a North in us all
But my North can't hold me anymore

WHITEWASH COUNTY

Tonight it's hot down here
I can almost smell the rain
And I can almost taste the fear
Behind your name
Fans turning on the ceiling
I feel sticky as a chili dog
White boys howling in the evening
On that hollow log

Tall tales down the river
Say we aim to bury the truth
But the right hand just delivered
The devil in a suit

And he talks big in Whitewash County
Talks sweet as sugar cane
Got a past that's filled with lightning
Got a future filled with rain

Bug buzzing in an empty glass
Fiddle scratching some lazy tune
We're just some place that history passed
New dust, new broom
And it's a high hot buttered moon
He's got a shiny new wax face
Swears the South's gonna rise again soon
All over the place

Rain down on Whitewash County
Smell the air coming up the line
Well you've changed your face so often
But you never change your mind

RUNAWAY TRAIN

There's a hungry road I can only hope's
Gonna eat me up inside
There's a drifting spirit coming clean
In the eye of a lifelong fire
Tell Monday I'll be around next week
I'm running ahead of my days
In the shotgun chance that scattered us
I've seen the error of my ways

Well we've wrapped ourselves in golden crowns
Like sun gods spitting rain
Found a way home written on this map
Like red dye in my veins
In the hardest times that come around
The fear of losing grows
I've lost and seen the world shut down
It's a darkness no one knows

And I've poured out the pleasure and dealt with the pain
Standing in a station waiting in the rain
I'm starting to feel a little muscle again
But love is lost like a runaway train
Oh I'm out of control and out of my hands
I'm tearing like a demon through no man's land
Trying to get a grip on my life again
Nothing hits harder than a runaway train

SWEAT IT OUT

No ceiling on hard living
Peace keepers keep on breathing
Can't deny eye for eye
It's open season
Dictate to my reason
She devils ruling Britain
Hey girl stick it in your purse
Call it treason

Band aids on dead doorways
No heroes in the Bat Cave
Don't give me Tears For Fears
Give me tears of rage
Fires burn with black smoke
Oil slicks put us on the ropes
Man it's hard to handle
When the bank's broke

Don't kow-tow, don't bow down
Loosen up, get the lead out
Backs up let them shout
Backs up sweat it out
When your back's up, sweat it out
Backs up, sweat it out

Hope froze in the cold weather
No ice on a greasy river
Liberty and John Doe
Stand and Shiver
War waits when the lines form
The baby sitter in a uniform
Knocking down your door
For your rice and corn

THE ONE

I saw you dancing out the ocean
Running fast along the sand
A spirit born of earth and water
Fire flying from your hands

In the instant that you love someone
In the second that the hammer hits
Reality runs up your spine
And the pieces finally fit

And all I ever needed was the one
Like freedom fields where wild horses run
When stars collide like you and I
No shadows block the sun
You're all I've ever needed
Baby you're the one

There are caravans we follow
Drunken nights in dark hotels
When chances breathe between the silence
Where sex and love no longer gel

For each man in his time is Cain
Until he walks along the beach
And sees his future in the water
A long lost heart within his reach

SIMPLE LIFE

There's a breakdown on the runway
And the timeless flights are gone
I'm a year ahead of myself these days
And I'm locomotive strong
My city spread like cannon fire
In a yellow nervous state
I can't cut the ties that bind me
To horoscopes and fate

And I won't break and I won't bend
But someday soon we'll sail away
To innocence and the bitter end
And I won't break and I won't bend
And with the last breath we ever take
We're gonna get back to the simple life again

When we break out of this blindfold
I'm gonna take you from this place
Until we're free from this ball and chain
I'm still hard behind the eight
My city beats like hammered steel
On a shallow cruel rock
If we could walk proud after midnight
We'd never have to stop

I SWEAR I HEARD THE NIGHT TALKIN'

In the nicotine glare of a cold naked light
I drag my body from the covers and down forty flights
I run out the front door into the center of the street
I scream out your name as the steam just swells around my feet

I hear you after midnight from the inner city
As every Cinderella turns to drop dead pretty
We were built out of the darkness into this West Side Story
We came together in the shadows but the moon just steals our glory

Well this is my battleground baby
This is my plaything
The only thing I've ever known
Outside of a wedding ring

And I swear I heard the night talking
Cursing me for being a little more than hopeless
Telling me we're running lonely, loose and broken
Stronger now on passion but haven't we really spoken
And all we ever do is listen to the night talking

On the burden of insanity we can't find the cause
On a flatbed truck well the home girl she paints her claws
There's a coward who gets his courage undercover of the dark
And it's a strange breed of devil freeze at night to go walking in the park