A boy is born in hard time Mississippi
Surrounded by four walls that ain't so prettyHis parents give him love and affectionTo keep him strong, moving in the right directionLiving just enough, just enough for the city
His father works some days for fourteen hoursAnd you can bet, he barely makes a dollarHis mother goes to scrub the floors for manyAnd you'd best believe, she hardly gets a pennyLiving just enough, just enough for the city
His sister's black, but she is sho'nuff prettyHer skirt is short, but Lord her legs are sturdyTo walk to school, she's got to get up earlyHer clothes are old, but never are they dirtyLiving just enough, just enough for the city
Her brother's smart, he's got more sense than manyHis patience's long, but soon he won't have anyTo find a job is like a haystack needle'Cause where he lives they don't use colored peopleLiving just enough, just enough for the city, yeah
Everybody, city, yeah(Living just enough for the city, whoa) Ain't nothin' but the city(Living just enough for the city, whoa) Everybody, city, yeah(Living just enough for the city, whoa) Ain't nothin' but the city(Living just enough for the city, whoa) Living for the city, yeah(Living just enough, for the city, whoa) The funky, cryin' city(Living just enough, for the city, whoa) Living for the city
Ain't nothin' but the city(Living just enough, for the city, whoa) Everybody clap you hand together now(Living just enough, for the city, whoa) For the city(Living just enough, for the city, whoa) For the city, yeah, yeah(Living just enough, for the city, whoa)(Living just enough, for the city, whoa)
The bus for New York City!Hey bus driver, I'm getting on that, hold itThanks a lotWow, New York, just like I pictured itSkyscrapers and everything
Psst, hey, hey brother, hey come here slickHey you look, you look hip manHey, you wanna make yourself five bucks, man?Yeah, brotherLook here, run this across the street for me right quickOkay, run this across the street for me
What? (Up against that goddamn car!) Huh? (Let's go)I didn't know, what?Gimme your hands up, you punkI'm just going across the streetPut that leg up, shut your mouthHell no, what did I do?Okay, turn around, turn aroundPut your hands behind your back, let's go, lets go
A jury of your peers having found you guilty, ten yearsWhat?Come on, come on, get in that cell, niggerGod, Lord
His hair is long, his feet are hard and grittyHe spends the life walking the streets of New York CityHe's almost dead from breathing in air pollutionHe tried and fought, but to him there's no solutionLiving just enough, just enough for the city (yeah, yeah, yeah)
I hope you hear inside my voice of sorrowAnd that it motivates you to make a better tomorrowThis place is cruel, nowhere could be much colderIf we don't change, the world will soon be overLiving just enough, stop giving just enough for the city
2 comments:
Mr. Wonder nailed the crap outta this song. Yes enduring themes and virtuous songs manship.
Things really haven’t improved at all. Which is sad. This song is 50 years old and he talks about how things need to change. Sad to say it hasn’t started yet. Not really anyway. Sad. This whole album is awesome. My favorite is Mistra know it all. But this one is dam good too.
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