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1. |
Stand And Defend
04:17
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Stand and Defend
© 2004, Jim Lesses. All Rights Reserved.
We hate what you’ve done to this country,
And we hate what you’ve done to our dreams.
We despise all your lies; the contempt in your eyes,
When you think we have swallowed your schemes.
You call on our sons and our daughters,
And you send them to fight in your wars.
But your daughters and sons, never carry the guns,
They are home, safe and warm behind doors.
CHORUS
We will stand and defend every freedom,
That so many have fought for before.
We will not be denied; there are more by our side,
And they will help bring an end to your war.
Weep crocodile tears for the fallen,
With a hand on your heart, call their names.
Then go back to your Boards; where you reap the rewards,
And treat us like pawns in your games.
But the blood of the dead is not fading,
Like a stain it is burnt on our hearts.
We remember each blow, and in time you will know,
We the people – demand a new start!
REPEAT CHORUS 2X
CODA:
We will not be denied; there are more by our side,
And they will help bring an end to your war.
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2. |
American Dream
03:47
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The American Dream
© 2003, Jim Lesses. All Rights Reserved
Man walks in to a down town store,
Waving a gun; people fall to the floor.
Fills up his bag, then he waits for the cops,
Today is the day, the rat race stops.
CHORUS
Big Mac, heart attack, anytime at all,
Sky high, penthouse, see the body fall.
Wall Street broker, hanging on a beam,
They’re all checking out of the American Dream.
(Oh, yeah, American Dream)
Girl on a corner; looking for tricks,
She’s got a habit; she just has to fix.
Pays for the deal; takes what she gets,
Dies in the alley; too late for regrets.
CHORUS
(Yeah, yeah, American Dream)
Man on a mountain; ready for attack.
Building a cabin, and he ain’t coming back.
Hides in the bushes; kills what he needs,
Down on the prairie the big city bleeds.
CHORUS
BRIDGE
The man with a pistol; the girl on the game.
High on the mountain; they’re part of the blame.
Wall Street broker; nobody is redeemed,
They’re all checking out of the American Dream.
(Oh, yeah, all checking out of the American Dream)
(Yeah, yeah, all checking out of the American Dream)
CHORUS
(Oh, yeah, all checking out of the American Dream)
(Yeah, yeah, all checking out of the American Dream)
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3. |
The Liberty Café
04:02
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The Liberty Café
© 2003, Jim Lesses. All Rights Reserved
She was working in a truck stop,
on the way to who knows where,
Flipping burgers; chopping onions;
washing grease out of her hair.
I could see she was unhappy;
it’s a look I won’t forget,
She was staring at the future
with a heart full of regret.
When she drifted into town, she said,
she was running from the past,
She was looking for some peace of mind,
but it never seemed to last.
So she stood behind the counter,
watching seconds rise and fall,
Measuring each wasted day,
by the clock nailed to the wall.
CHORUS
She said she had a husband,
there were kids, a picket fence,
But the view outside the window,
did not seem to make much sense.
She was looking for her freedom,
on the day she ran away,
Now she spends it taking orders,
in the Liberty Café.
As I left, I could see
she had tears in both her eyes,
She said, It must have been the onions,
they still take her by surprise.
But we both knew she was lying,
so she would not feel the pain,
While she waited for redemption,
and swept the floors again (…again)
CHORUS
CODA
Looking for her freedom,
on the day she ran away,
Now she spends it taking orders,
in the Liberty Café.
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4. |
Bitter Wine
03:47
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Bitter Wine
© 2002, Jim Lesses. All Rights Reserved.
A crimson dawn is bleeding out,
across the eastern sky,
Another thirty minutes,
and they take me down to die.
I killed a man in anger,
Now I'm paying for the crime,
Today I’ll drain the bottle
– but it’s a bitter wine.
CHORUS
They say revenge is sweet,
but friends, it’s just a bitter cup,
It tears at your humanity,
and slowly eats you up.
Burns you like a poison;
Laughs at your decline;
It will fill your glass forever
– but it’s a bitter wine.
I’m not here to beg your pardon;
plead for mercy; share the blame,
I have seen the guilty party,
and I know he bares my name.
I won’t bore you with a reason,
it’s too late to cross that line,
And now the ghosts have come to dance,
and share this bitter wine.
CHORUS
BRIDGE
So warden I am ready now,
to take my final sip,
And Jesus won’t you hold me,
as I raise it to my lip?
CHORUS
CODA
Burns you like a poison;
Laughs at your decline;
It will fill your glass forever
– but it’s a bitter wine.
It's a bitter wine...
It's a bitter wine.
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5. |
Shovel It In
02:42
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Shovel It In
© 2003, Jim Lesses. All Rights Reserved.
I went to see the doctor and he said with a grin,
I have to tell you sonny, you are looking too thin.
You have to give up dieting and exercise too,
So listen while I tell you what you’re going to do.
Buy up every carbohydrate that you can see,
Take it home and then you cook it up for your tea.
And if you think you don’t know when or how to begin,
Open up that orifice and shovel it in!
CHORUS #1
Shovel it in… Shovel it in…
Open up that orifice and shovel it in!
I went down to the supermarket there on the block,
The woman at the counter was in terminal shock.
‘Cos when I started buying - it was like a disease,
The first thing I ordered was a mountain of cheese.
I like potato salad so I said, What the hell?
You better send a truck load of potatoes as well.
The woman started screaming, and she said, It’s a sin,
I said, I don’t care - watch me shovel it in!
CHORUS #2
Shovel it in… Shovel it in…
I said, I don’t care - watch me shovel it in!
BRIDGE
A hundred weight of onions, and a keg of strong beer,
A cupboard full of pasta, leaves nothing to fear.
But a barrel full of cabbage and another of beans,
Is absolutely guaranteed to generate screams.
The only thing I never eat is Devon* or Fritz*,
‘Cos every time I do it always gives me the shits!
The last time I needed an industrial bin,
You should have heard them laugh when I fell right in!
(But I digress…)
Well, as you can imagine it was better than sex,
I bought a ton of pizza, and I still had some cheques.
Another ton of chocolate, and a barrel of cream,
Tonight, I said, I’m going to indulge every dream!
I bought three dozen burgers, and a vat full of fat,
If I run out of the chocolate I can always eat that.
This is one of those diets I’m determined to win,
So get out of the way, and let me shovel it in!
CHORUS #3
Shovel it in… Shovel it in…
Get out of the way, and let me shovel it in!
ENDS WITH –
Shovel it in… Shovel it in…
Get out of the way, and let me shovel it in!
Get out of the way, and let me shovel it in!
Get out of the way, and let me shovel it in!
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6. |
Struggle Town
02:43
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Struggle Town
© 2001, Jim Lesses
In Struggle Town there are tracks of blood,
Running up arms, across the mud.
They tell a tale of pain and grief,
Where life is short, and time a thief.
CHORUS
I want to tell you it’s a real hard sound,
When they drag those bodies across the ground.
But you don’t want to know what’s going down
In Struggle Town. Yes, in Struggle Town.
In Struggle Town there are kids and whores,
Selling their bodies outside your doors.
At seventeen they are already old,
Their arms are warm, but their hearts are cold.
CHORUS
BRIDGE
In Struggle Town they salute the flag,
Strut the stage, back-slap and brag.
Tell everybody there is nothing to fear,
But look around – Struggle Town is here!
Struggle Town is here!
CHORUS
FINAL CHORUS
I want to tell you it’s a real hard sound,
When they drag those bodies across the ground.
But you don’t want to know what’s going down
In Struggle Town. Yeah in Struggle Town.
That’s right, in Struggle Town.
Right here in Struggle Town.
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7. |
Who's Gonna Win?
03:59
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Who’s Gonna Win?
© 1999, Jim Lesses
There’s a schoolgirl standing on the corner,
I guess she wants to pay her way.
I suppose somebody ought to warn her,
But she just found a trick and turned away.
There’s a plastic tree in every window,
A man in a crazy hat who’s looking thin.
A fat man stuffed pillows says it’s Christmas;
I'm taking bets. Who’s Gonna Win?
There’s a young man drinking like it’s Friday,
A young girl looking for some coke.
I suppose if some one called out “Fire!”,
They’d only laugh and think it was a joke.
There’s a man eating chicken for his breakfast,
An old lady going through his bin.
A man with a pistol looking desperate;
I'm taking bets. Who’s gonna win?
BRIDGE
Who’s gonna win?
It’s a rat race, it’s a jungle, it’s a war.
As you battle through another day,
do you stop and ask, What For?
When you get up in the morning
and super glue your grin
Do you look into the mirror, and ask,
Who’s Gonna Win?
Well, the plastic trees are shining in the windows,
The crazy hat man shuffles with a grin.
The fat man dressed in red has lost his pillows,
And he now looks incredibly thin.
The schoolgirl she is having an abortion,
The lady with a cross said, “It’s a sin!”
I’m still standing on the corner,
Bets are off. Nobody wins.
Bets are off. Nobody wins.
Bets are off. Nobody wins.
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8. |
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Don’t Sell Us Pipe Dreams
© 1997, Jim Lesses. All Rights Reserved.
I was born in an age,
when a man had to work,
and work I did.
I worked hard for a wage,
tried to build a good life
for my wife and kids.
You know I took it for granted.
I never thought I would be,
Unemployed and unwanted.
Well, poor fool me!
They said, Choose a career,
learn a good trade,
and you can’t go wrong.
Buy a house and a car,
you've got nothing to fear,
it’s yours for a song.
You know I swallowed that story.
I took hook line and all.
And just like many before me,
I went down for a fall.
Sell me a pipe dream.
Sell me it all.
Sell me the future,
and watch as I fall.
I make the payments, and follow the plan,
But I’m treading water as fast as I can.
For too many years,
I have taken the bait,
and the lying schemes.
Now I stand in a line;
wait for a cheque,
counting broken dreams.
You know, Truth is a virtue.
Yes and Patience is too.
But I’m tired of waiting.
Well, how about you?
Work for a living.
Work for the dole.
Building a future.
Digging a hole.
I’m getting deeper and deeper in debt.
Searching for answers that I won’t regret.
Well the kids have all grown,
they’re out on their own,
trying to make or break.
And I’m hoping they learn,
to take what they earn,
not make my mistake.
You know it’s never been easy.
Sometimes you have to fight.
But it’s there for the taking,
and it’s yours by right.
Shoot for your own dreams.
Aim for them all.
Look to the future.
Maybe you’ll fall,
Taking control of your own life and fate,
Facing the challenge without fear and hate.
Don’t Sell Us Pipe Dreams.
Don’t sell us at all.
Give us a future.
We’ll rise to the call.
Taking control of our own lives and fate,
Facing the challenge without fear and hate.
Facing the challenge without fear and hate.
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9. |
A Modern Chief Executive
03:26
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A Modern Chief Executive
© 2003, Jim Lesses. All Rights Reserved.
I’m a modern chief executive,
I wear a pin-striped suit,
I’m full of deep compassion,
when I give someone the boot.
My I.Q. may be average,
(when compared to my pay),
But the last time some poor fool did that,
he was sacked without delay.
I’m a modern chief executive,
I listen and consult,
I’m open to suggestions
if it helps me get results.
And as long as you remember this,
we’ll get along just fine:
The idea may belong to you
– but the credit is all mine!
I’m a modern chief executive,
a leader through and through,
When ever there’s a job I hate,
I delegate to you!
If you can’t stand the pressure,
I know it won’t seem fair,
But at least when things go belly up
– the buck stops over there!
I’m a modern chief executive,
male, middle-class and white,
Of course, we have good women here,
but we keep them out of sight.
Except for my assistant,
without her where would I be?
She is just so indispensable,
and she makes perfect tea!
BREAK
I am the leader, I am the boss,
If you don't like it, I don't give a toss.
I’m a modern chief executive,
I get richer by the day,
My options are worth squillions,
while you get basic pay.
I know it must be difficult,
but tell someone who cares,
I’ve got better things to do
– like go and count my shares!
I’m a modern chief executive,
it really can be tough,
To make the hard decisions
when things are getting rough.
Especially when we cut back,
and we’ve got to trim the fat,
But I guarantee, it won’t be me,
you can be quite sure of that!
I’m a modern chief executive,
I’m really not that bad,
I had an awful dream last night
– you found out you’ve been had.
So if one day I fall from grace,
and you throw me out, what then?
I’ll simply find another job
– and do it all again!
I am the leader, I am the boss,
If you don't like it, I don't give a toss...
(I say, anyone for golf?)
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10. |
Junk Yard Dog
03:10
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Junk Yard Dog
© 2004, Jim Lesses. All Rights Reserved.
It’s 97º in the shade today,
But I keep working ‘cos I need the pay.
They say be happy that you have a job,
And keep on working like a junk yard dog.
Just keep on working like a junk yard dog.
The boss is sleeping underneath the trees,
But I have fallen down on to my knees.
I've never seen a man who's such a slob,
While I am working like a junk yard dog.
Yes I am working like a junk yard dog.
His daughter winks at me, and spreads her thighs,
She says she doesn’t, but I know she lies.
I heard her squealing like a slaughter hog,
While I was working like a junk yard dog.
While I was working like a junk yard dog.
She has a lover, calls him, Sugar Ray,
They made him foreman just the other day.
That man is meaner than a demagogue,
The way he treats me like a junk yard dog.
I swear he treats me like a junk yard dog.
One day you know I’m gonna have my say,
And that may not be very far away.
They’ll have to find somebody else to flog,
Nobody treats me like a junk yard dog.
Nobody treats me like a junk yard dog.
Yes, one day I am gonna have my say,
And that may not be very far away.
They’ll have to find somebody else to flog,
Nobody treats me like a junk yard dog.
Nobody treats me like a junk yard dog.
Nobody treats me like a ...
Nobody treats me like a …
Nobody treats me like a junk yard dog.
(You can take this job and shove it!)
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11. |
The Future Is Theirs
04:49
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The Future Is Theirs
© 1974 & 2005, Jim Lesses. All Rights Reserved.
In an age that is cursed by a system that’s burst,
and rotten through to the core.
That refuses to die and continues to try to govern,
rancid, and sore.
Expect nothing better than shackles and fetters
that hold you and keep you in check.
That seize and mistreat you, and thoroughly beat you,
a burden around your neck.
With a job to be done, find a man with a gun,
pay him well and he’ll do what he can.
Everywhere to be found, in the air, on the ground,
he can work very well to a plan.
With an army too quiet, prepare for a riot,
you’ve got to keep them amused.
Keep them happy today, and tomorrow they’ll play,
just hope they don’t rape and abuse.
In so many nations; death from starvation,
poverty is just for the poor.
Illiteracy rising, the master despising,
afraid they may ask for more.
Through puppets and whores, wage colonial wars
in the interests of profit and greed.
Repressed by the gun, there is death for the one
who dares to demand to be freed.
When democracy fails, you will find them in jails
and camps, surrounded by seas.
Using terror and torture, repression and murder
to beat people onto their knees.
In a thousand more ways, they control everyday,
you cry - there is nought you can do.
So just close your door, like you have done before,
you know they won’t come for you.
They will plan the demands,
and in place you will stand,
every minute means more to be made.
Whether young man or girl,
they will make your life hell,
and the younger - the less you are paid.
Exploitation and discrimination
are common enough to be rules,
They can take you and make you,
or leave you and break you,
because you are nothing but tools.
To help win the plan, every woman and man
is allotted their place in the sun.
Everything will be fine, if you stay in the line,
the target is there to be won.
When racism rumbles, the rational crumbles
and ignorance comes to the fore.
By division and rule, the wise man and fool
is kept from the rich mans door.
So wallow in violence, crime, sex, and drugs;
drink a bottle or two.
Stand on the corner kicking your heels, well,
what else is there to do?
You were taught in school to obey all the rules,
there is trouble for those who don’t bend.
So do not criticise, believe all the lies –
this wonderful system won’t end.
While you live in a vacuum, and rot in the backroom,
others are fighting the strife,
From a world of disorder, they’ll build one of order,
peace, progress, and life.
Where the colour of skin is a beauty, not sin,
and language is there to be heard,
Where life is for living, and pleasure for giving,
and poverty only a word.
Where education and leisure, are worth more than treasure,
and work is not governed by cares,
Where all folk hand in hand; united will stand,
and know – the future is theirs.
That's right. The future is Theirs.
The future is yours too.
The future is yours.
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12. |
We Stand Together
03:32
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We Stand Together
© 2002, Jim Lesses. All Rights Reserved.
When government and boss conspire,
(We Stand Together!)
We’ll greet them with a union fire,
(We Stand Together!)
When scabs and guards ignore our signs,
(We Stand Together!)
We’ll face them with our picket lines,
(We Stand Together!)
CHORUS
We Stand Together,
through the darkness and the light,
We Stand Together,
and we won’t give up the fight.
When workers struggle side by side,
to win their rightful share,
We proudly raise our banners high,
and join the union there.
When bosses try to cut our pay.,
(We Stand Together!)
United will we win the day, when
(We Stand Together!)
And when they shut the factories down,
(We Stand Together!)
We know our rights, we stand our ground, and
(We Stand Together!)
CHORUS
When workers heed the union call,
(We Stand Together!)
It’s all for one, and one for all, when
(We Stand Together!)
When workers of the world unite,
(We Stand Together!)
The world will tremble at the sight, when
(We Stand Together!)
CHORUS
CODA:
When workers struggle side by side,
to win their rightful share,
We proudly raise our banners high,
and join the union there.
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13. |
No Blood For Oil
03:08
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No Blood For Oil
© 2003, Jim Lesses. All Rights Reserved
You burn the truth at midnight;
The flames light up the sky.
You stand around and warm your hands,
and watch our freedoms die.
You start your wars for Mammon;
For capital and greed;
Start your wars for land and oil,
and watch our children bleed…
CHORUS
No blood for oil!
No oil for your ‘freedom’,
Your freedom is worthless;
When you pay with our lives.
No blood for oil!
No oil for your ‘freedom’,
Your freedom is worthless;
When you pay with our lives.
You shackle us with terror;
Blind us all with fear.
And all the while you tear away,
at all that we hold dear.
Turn neighbour against neighbour;
Breed hate beneath the sun.
Smash our doors; start your wars,
with a bible and a gun…
CHORUS
BRIDGE
And all around the world,
the calls for peace crash in like waves.
But you ignore our very cries,
and send us to our graves…
CHORUS
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Jim Lesses Adelaide, Australia
Late-bloomer, long-time lover of folk and rock music, singer, songwriter, composer, and world traveller. No longer performing, but still composing and creating. Favourite saying: Love The Life You Live - or Change It.
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