This song was created in the fall of 1991 shortly after I had graduated from college and was trying to figure out what I was going to do with the rest of my life. The first Gulf War had recently ended and the news was regularly filled with stories of misdeeds, corruption, and bureaucratic incompetence. Not so unlike our current times.
I had listened to some early hip hop in the 80’s but by 1991 rap was jumping genres and seeping into the mainstream. Red Hot Chili Peppers had just released Blood Sugar Sex Magic and the inclusion of rapping in their funk laden jams was particularly influential on my musical development.
I thought I would try to write a ‘rap’ song about the politics of the time, which was largely depressing. Of course I brought my own funk and jazzy influences to the proceedings, and couldn’t help myself drop some last second optimism to close out the final verse.
This was the first time I made a real attempt to play guitar on a recording. It’s sloppy, but I still enjoy the propulsion of the funk strumming. The horn hits are all baritone sax and the rest of the music is sequenced on the VFX. You’ll notice I say ‘immoliation’ instead of ‘immolation’. It had one more syllable which fit the phrase better, but truthfully I didn’t know how to spell the word at the time.
I made a cassette recording that I carried around with me and played for friends and random acquaintances. I was really proud of the mix of rap and singing, the political tone of the lyrics, and the fact that I had written, performed, engineered, and produced the entire thing by myself. Prince was another huge influence on my musical development and, like many others, I greatly admired his ability to play every role in the music production process.
In retrospect I don’t think the song holds up as well as some of my other compositions from this era. Yet I’m still proud of the work, even if it is clearly a product of its time.
Some smoke out of little glass pipes till they’re dead
The blues kill their neighbors, because they are red
We import the kilos from south of our town
And help out the rich men
I’d rather burn myself down
Down to the ground
Self immolation (fire and ash)
Only in desperation
They legislate changes they don’t understand
Appropriate money to ravage the land
Lobbies push and pull put pressure on
Big business bucks buy bills
I know that it’s wrong
I can tell by seeing good and bad
Please tell me what you are saying and I won’t say “why?”
Oh make clear your intentions
No amends will I require
Sneaky double dealing underhanded of the world
Won’t accept your reasons
An 80’s preacher has sex without his wife
Then gets blackmailed, and there goes his life
A TV preacher controversial man
Gets attention from the masses
But only as he takes the stand
Do you swear to tell the truth
The whole truth
And nothing but the truth
So help you, God?
I do
Educators pose and speak as though they know
But they are really bureaucrats, only a show
Tempted to deliver thought under institution
So I call their game a bluff
And ask for restitution
Paid my way through school
Please tell me what you are saying and I won’t say “why?”
Oh make clear your intentions
No amends will I require
Sneaky double dealing underhanded of the world
Won’t accept your reasons
The president sends troops without congressional permission
Speaks with foreign neighbors and builds a coalition
Time goes on as cracks begin to show the stress
Builders start to fight
Crazy, what a mess
Politicians fighting
Public fear igniting
military delighting
Media explaining
Must have hope remaining
Please tell me what you are asking and I won’t say “why?”
Oh make clear your intentions
No amends will I require
Sneaky double dealing underhanded of the world
Don’t accept your explanation whether boy or girl
