“Friends & Foes (Lyrical Collage),” by Professor Rex
This is for the one who swings the hammer, driving home the nail
Or the one behind the counter, ringing up the sale
Or the one who fights the fires, the one who brings the mail
For everyone who works behind the scenes
As we journey along, on life's wicked road
So selfish are we for silver and gold
The strange town that I was in, Was settled peaceful and nice
The rich got richer and the poor got poorer, And to me it didn't seem right
It's a rich man's game No matter what they call it
And you spend your life Puttin' money in his wallet
How many times have You heard someone say
If I had his money I could do things my way
But little they know That it's so hard to find
One rich man in ten With a satisfied mind
But I work to make a living and I work without a break
And I work when I am sleeping and I work when I'm awake
One man's friend is another man's foe, one man's Joesph is another man's Joe
One man's hammer is another man's nail, one man's freedom is another man's jail
Now Im stocking shirts in the Wal-Mart store, Just like the ones we made before
Cept this one came from Singapore, I guess we cant make it here anymore
Had me a job 'til the market fell out
Tried hard to borrow but there was no help
No money in my pocket, I'm roving around so flat
And soon I'll be strolling, Down that railroad track
Baby I know that we've got trouble in the fields
When the bankers swarm like locust out there turning away our yield
The starving children have been replaced by souls out on the street
We give a dollar when we pass, and hope our eyes don't meet
And when money talks for the very last time
And nobody walks a step behind, we shall be free
We must bring it all together, we must start right from the bottom
Back to helping one another when we can
'Cause if he's hungry and he's human and he's fighting for his freedom
Then he shouldn't be too hard to understand
One man's friend is another man's foe, one man's Joesph is another man's Joe
One man's hammer is another man's nail, one man's freedom is another man's jail
Cheat on your taxes don't be a fool, Now what was that they said about the golden rule
Never mind the rule just play to win And hate your neighbor for the shade of his skin
I had a friend in school, Running-back on a football team
They burned a cross in his front yard For asking out the home-coming queen
I thought about him today, Everybody who's seen what he's seen
From a woman on a bus, To a man with a dream.
And my brothers are all black and white, yellow too
And the red man is right to expect a little from you
Promise and then follow through, America
It's a sad sad story when a mother will teach her
Daughter that she ought to hate a perfect stranger
Make lots of noise, Kiss lots of boys
Or kiss lots of girls, If that's something you're into
Come on come one kiss away the ones who say the lust you feel is wrong
Now how bad could it be if you amuse yourself with me
How bad could it be sexuality
One man's friend is another man's foe, one man's Joesph is another man's Joe
One man's hammer is another man's nail, one man's freedom is another man's jail
Give us your tired and weak And we will make them strong
Bring us your foreign songs And we will sing along
The cost of war is somethin' out of sight
Lost a lotta heroes in the fight
Politicians do all the talkin', soldiers pay the dues
Suddenly the war is over, that's the news
This incubator is overused because you've kept it filled
The feeling good time's easy now since I've got the pill
What you wont find up in Heaven are Christian Coalition Right Wing Conservatives
Radio program directors and record executives
Make someone happy y'all now, Make someone smile
Let's all work together and make life worthwhile
Give me weed instead of roses
Give me whiskey instead of wine
Every puff, every shot, you're looking better all the time
In the fetal position with drool on my chin
We broke down and smoked weed with Willie again
One man's friend is another man's foe, one man's Joesph is another man's Joe
One man's hammer is another man's nail, one man's freedom is another man's jail
Footnotes
Alabama, 40 Hour Week
Hank Williams, Wealth Won't Save Your Soul
Bobby Bare, I Washed My Face in the Morning Dew
Dolly Parton, 9 to 5
Porter Wagoner, A Satisfied Mind
Johnny Cash, Smokey Factory Blues
Guy Clark, Hank Williams Said It Best
James McMurtry, We Can't Make It here
Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Workin Man
Jimmie Rodgers, Jimmie's Mean Mama Blues
Nancy Griffith, Trouble in the Fields
Mary Chapin Carpenter, Stones in the Road
Garth Brooks, We Shall Be Free
Kris Kristofferson, Jesse Jackson
Henson Cargill, Skip A Rope
Braid Paisley, Welcome to the Future
Waylon Jennings, America
Dixie Chicks, Not Ready to Make Nice
Kacey Musgraves, Follow Your Arrow
KD Lang, Sexuality
Willie Nelson, Living In the Promiseland
Merle Haggard, That's The News
Loretta Lynn, The Pill
Ray Wylie Hubbard, Conversation With the Devil
Dwight Yoakam, Let's Work Together
Ashley Monroe, Weed Instead of Roses
Toby Keith, Weed With Willie