1.Check It Out
Million young poets
Screamin？out their words
To a world full of people
Just livin？to be heard
Future generations
Ridin惱n the highways that we built
I hope, that they have better understanding
Check it out
Goin to work on monday
Check it out
Got yourself a family
Check it out
All utility bills have been paid
You can愒 tell your best buddy
That you love him
So check it out
Where does our time go
Check it out
Got a brand new house in escrow
Check it out
Sleepin？with your back
To your loved one
This is all, we have learned
About happiness
Check it out,
Forgot to say hello to my neighbours
Check it out
Sometimes i question my own behavior
Check it out
Talkin？about the girls, we扉e
Seen on the sly
Just to tell our souls
We愉e still the young lions
So check it out
Gettin？too drunk on saturdays
Check it out
Playin？football with the kids
On sundays
Check it out
Soaring with the eagles all week long
And this is all, we have learned
About living
This is all, we have learned
About living
A million young poets
Screamin？out their words
Maybe someday
Those words will be heard
By future generations
Ridin？on the highways that we built
Maybe they惻l have a better understanding
Check it out
Maybe they惻l have a better understanding
Check it out
Maybe they惻l have a better understanding
Check it out
Maybe they惻l have a better understanding
Check it out
Hope they惻l have a better understanding
Check it out ...
2.Cherry Bomb
Well i lived on the outskirts of town
In an eight room farmhouse, baby
When my brothers and friends were around
There was always somethin？doin？had me a couple of real nice
girlfriends
Stopped by to see me every once in a while
When i think back about those days
All i can do is sit and smile
Chorus：
That愀 when sport was a sport
And groovin？was groovin？and dancin？meant everything
We were young and we were improvin？laughtin？laughtin？with our
friends
Holding hands meant somethin？baby
Outside the club 'cherry bomb'
Where our hearts were really thumpin？say yeah yeah yeah
Say yeah yeah yeah
The winter days they last forever
And the weekends went by so quick
We ridin？around this little country town
We were goin？nuts, girl, out in the stick
One night me with my big mouth
A couple guys had to put me in my place
When i see those guys these days
We just laugh and say
Remember when
Chorus：
That愀 when sport was a sport
And groovin？was groovin？and dancin？meant everything
We were young and we were improvin？laughtin？laughtin？with our
friends
Holding hands meant somethin？baby
Outside the club 'cherry bomb'
Where our hearts were really thumpin？say yeah yeah yeah
Say yeah yeah yeah
Seventeen has turned thirty-five
I惴 surprised that we愉e still livin？if we扉e done any wrong
I hope that we愉e forgiven
Got a few kids on my own
And some days i still don愒 know
What to do
I hope that they愉e not laughtin？too
Loud, when they hear me talkin？like this to you
Chorus：
That愀 when sport was a sport
And groovin？was groovin？and dancin？meant everything
We were young and we were improvin？laughtin？laughtin？with our
friends
Holding hands meant so much baby
Outside the club 'cherry bomb'
Where our hearts were really thumpin？say yeah yeah yeah
Say yeah yeah yeah
3.Down And Out In Paradise
Dear mr. president
I live in the suburbs
It愀 a long way from washington, d.c.
Had me a job
Working for wages
And they forgot about me
Can愒 draw unemployment
For some unknown reason
My kids are hungry
I扉e got four mouths to feed
I go out everyday lookin？for siutable
Employment
Do you think, there愀 something
You could do for me
Cause i惴
Chorus：
Down and out, here in paradise
Down and out, and i惴 on my knees
I惴 down and out, here in paradise
Looks like the milk and honey
Done run out on me
Dear mr. president
I used to be a dancer
Got a little bit too old
So i became a secretary
Married as man
In las vegas, nevada
And ten years later
He run out on the kids and me
Some said, i was pretty
But those days are over
Now, i扉e no place to live
And i惴 out on the streets
Oh, mr. president
Can i tell you a secret
I never ever thought, that this could
Happen to me
Cause i惴
Chorus：
Down and out, here in paradise,
Down and out, and i惴 on my knees
I惴 down and out, here in paradise
Looks like the milk and honey
Done run out on me
Dear mr. president
I惴 just a young kid
I惴 in the fourth grade
At riley elementary
My mom and dad愀 been actin？funny
I惴 not sure
If it ain愒 got someting to do with me
My daddy愀 always drunk
My mom愀 a babysitter
And i don愒 like the russians
Cause i hear, they hate me
Dear mr. president
Can i ask you one question？
When the bombs fall down
Will they hurt everyone in my family
Yeah, yeah
Chorus：
Down and out, here in paradise
Down and out, and i惴 on my knees
I惴 down and out, here in paradise
Looks like the milk and honey
Done run out on me
4.Empty Hands
In the shadows of the smokestacks
Through the black snow, that lay on the land
Walked home one winter morning
With my live savings in my hand
Maryanne, she愀 fixin？up some breakfast
Got the lights on, on the christmas tree
Sittin？there, lookin？up at an angel
With something dyin？inside of me
Grew up with great expectations
Heard the promise and i knew the plan
They say people get what they deserve
But lord, sometimes it愀 much worse than that
Maryanne, she takin？in some laundry
I got a part time job in a drive-in stand
Oh lord, what did i do
To deserve these empty hands？
Chorus：
Across the cities
Across this land
Through the valleys
And across the sand
Too many people standin？in line
Too many people with nothin？planned
There愀 too many people with
Empty hands
Now maryanne愀 been cryin？lord knows, i love her the best i can
When my pride is bruised and broken
She slips her hand into my empty hands
Without hope, without love
You扉e got nothing but pain
Just makes a man not give a dammn
That愀 no way for us to live
We扉e got to fill these empty hands
Chorus：
Across the cities
Across this land
Through the valleys
And across the sand
Too many people standin？in line
Too many people with nothin？planned
There愀 too many people with
Empty hands
5.Hard Times For An Honest Man
One man does his work
He愀 not satisfied not at all
Feels like that he愀 being used
His self respect starts to fall
His frustration
Runnin？very very high he takes it out
On the ones he loves, because it愀 safe
And who they gonna tell
And he hates that cold-bloodedness
That runs inside
Chorus：
Oh yes
It愀 hard times, for an honest man
Very very hard times
Hard times, for an honest man
Very very hard times
Sister,
She愀 got a lot of pride
You can see it when she walks into the room
But she愀 young
And she愀 unaware
Of what a brutal world can do to you
So she loves a man
He lies like a dog
Tears her little world all apart
So the walls go up
For the rest of her days
And there ain愒 no man can touch this
Girls heart
Chorus：
Oh yes.
It愀 hard times, for an honest man
Very very hard times
Hard times, for an honest man
Very very hard times
So we walk
From the front porch to the back yard
Just to laugh and say hello and
Say goodbye
But some days are hard, like a
Soldier愀 steel-toed boots
And the rent we pay to stay here
Gets high
Chorus：
Oh yes.
It愀 hard times, for an honest man
Very very hard times
Hard times, for an honest man
Very very hard times
6.Hotdogs And Hamburgers
Drivin？down a dry summer愀 day
Old route 66 and i was just a kid
Met a pretty little indian girl
Along the way
Get her into my car
And tried to give her a kiss
I惻l give you beads and wampum
Whatever it takes, girl
To make you trade.
She jumped into the back seat
And she kinda flipped her lid
She said, 'you愉e trying to get
Somethin？for nothin？like the pilgrims in the olden days'
We rode for a while
Till the sun went away
And i realized it was a sort of an honor
Bein徨round this girl
I felt embarassed
Of what i tried to do earlier that day
She was the saddest girl, i ever knew
She told me stories about the indian nations
And how the white man stole their lives away
And although she kinda liked me
She could never tust me
And when the sun comes up
We悲 go our different ways
Chorus：
Now everybody has got the choice
Between hotdogs and hamburgers
Every one of us has got to choose
Between right and wrong
And givin？up or holdin？on
So i dropped her off
At some railroad crossing in texas
An old indian man was waiting there
He smiled and thanked me
But he saw right through me
I could tell, he didn愒 like me
For my kind, he didn愒 care
Because to him, i was the white man
The one who sold him something
That he already owned
And it was like he悲 been ridin？in the
Car right there with us
And i felt ashamed of my actions
And the way the west was really won
So i drove down the highway
Till i came to los angeles
To the town of the angels
The best, this country can do
I got down on my knees
And i ask for forgiveness
I said, 'lord, forgive us
For we know not, what we do'
Chorus：
Now everybody has got the choice
Between hotdogs and hamburgers
Every one of us has got to choose
Between right and wrong
And givin？up or holdin？on
7.Paper In Fire
She had a dream
And boy it was a good one
So she chased after her dream
With much desire
But when she get too close
To her expectations
Well the dream burned up
Like paper in fire
Chorus：
Paper in fire
Stinkin？up the ashtrays
Paper in fire
Smokin？up the alleyways
Who愀 to say the way
A man should spend his days
Do you let them smolder
Like paper in fire
He wanted love
With no involvement
So he chased the wind
That愀 all his silly life required
And the days of vanity
Went on forever
And he saw his days burn up
Like paper in fire
Chorus：
Paper in fire
Stinkin？up the ashtrays
Paper in fire
Smokin？up the alleyways
Who愀 to say the way
A man should spend his days
Do you let them smolder
Like paper in fire
There愀 a good life
Right across the green fields
And each generation
Stares at it from afar
But we keep no check
On our appetites
So the green fields turn to brown
Like paper in fire
Chorus：
Paper in fire
Stinkin？up the ashtrays
Paper in fire
Smokin？up the alleyways
Who愀 to say the way
A man should spend his days
Do you let them smolder
Like paper in fire
8.Rooty Toot Toot
Got my hands on a little bit of dough
So i went to the crocery store
And got some steaks to go
Went by, and picked up my gal, teddi jo
We had ourselves a picnic
Beside a dirty road
Chorus：
Rooty toot toot
Rooty toot toot
We had it made in the shade
Like a bell through the hoop
Spinnin？and tumblin？inside this
Hoola hoop
Livin？and learnin？rooty toot toot
We laid out a blanket
And started a fire.
Had the radio playin？from inside the car
I took off my shirt
And kicked off my shoes
She read the paper
And told me the news
She said, 'there愀 a lot of
People out there
Who are at the end of their rope
Sometimes, baby
You扉e got to lay low'
Chorus：
Rooty toot toot
Rooty toot toot
We had it made in the shade
Like a bell through the hoop
Spinnin？and tumblin？inside this
Hoola hoop
Livin？and learnin？rooty toot toot
We stayed there all day
We both get us some real
Good suntans
I thought, that was ok
Sometimes life can be so grand
We were gettin？ready
To shake out that place
When the illinois state trooper
Got in my face
He said, 'you愉e on pirvate property'
But once he cooled down, he was ok
Sometimes you愉e golden, man
That愀 all i got to say
Chorus：
Rooty toot toot
Rooty toot toot
We had it made in the shade
Like a bell through the hoop
Spinnin？and tumblin？inside this
Hoola hoop
Livin？and learnin？rooty toot toot
9.The Real Life
Suzanne divorced her husband
She got the keys and the car and the home
But her friends were really his friens
No one stops by to see her much any more
So one night, she goes back down to
The old haunts
That once upon a time were her own
She didn愒 know nobody out there no
More
And the whole experience just made her
Feel so old
She says
I want to live the real life
I want to life my life close to the bone
Just because i惴 middle-aged that
Don愒 mean
I want to sit around my house and watch tv
I want the real life
I want to live the real life
Jackson jackson was a good kid
He had four years of college
And a bachelor愀 degree
Started workin, when he was 21
Got fed up and quit
When he was 43
He said, 'my whole life
I扉e done, what i supposed to do
Now i悲 like to maybe do something
For myself
And just as soon, i figure out what
That is
You can bet your live
I惴 gonna give it hell'
He says
I want to live the real life
I want to life my life close to the bone
Just because i惴 middle-aged that
Don愒 mean
I want to sit around my house and watch tv
I want the real life
I want to live the real life
I guess, it don愒 matter, how old you
Are
Or how old one lives to be
I guess, it boils down to what we did
With our lives
And how we deal with our own
Destinies
But something happens
When you reach a certain age
Particularly to to those ones, that are
Young at heart
It愀 a lonely proposition when you
Realize
That there愀 less days in front of the
Horse
Than riding in the back of this cart
I say
I want to live the real life
I want to life my life close to the bone
Just because i惴 middle-aged that
Don愒 mean
I want to sit around my house and watch tv
I want the real life
I want to live the real life.
10.We Are The People
If you愉e feeling shut down
May my thoughts be with you
If you愉e a black man bein？beat down
And shoved all around
May my thoughts be with you
If your world愀 gettin？a little too tough
You know, our thoughts bein？with you
Hey, i know, that it愀 crazy out there
And my thoughts are with you
Chorus：
We are the people
And we live forever
We are the people
And our future is written in the wind
On the wind
If you are one of the homeless
May my thoughts be with you
If you are scared and alone
You know, our thoughts are with you
If you are one of the fortunate ones
We all know, it愀 lonely up there
We understand, that nobody愀 got it
Made
So our thoughts are with you
Chorus：
We are the people
And we live forever
We are the people
And our future is written in the wind
On the wind
You see yourself as a leader
May my thoughts be with you.
If you try to divide and conquer
We惻l rise up against you
We know, only the strong will survive
But the meek will inherit
So if you got a coat of arms
Oh friend
I suggest, we wear it
Chorus：
We are the people
And we live forever
We are the people
And our future is written in the wind
On the wind
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