The narrator, possibly a young man, ruthlessly taunts a man on his way to work.
The song is a satire to the alternative youth culture –hippies, beatniks and such– making fun of the “grey little man” that is a pawn of the system.
The narrator thinks he is making the joke but he is actually the joke...
[Verse 1]
Golly, Mister
Where you going?
You'll be late for work
Careful or you'll drop your briefcase
Jesus, what a jerk!
There he goes
Down to the subway
Off to catch the train
Too bad for him
He forgot his umbrella
[Chorus 1]
Poor Mr. Sheep
You're wet, Mr. Sheep
Walk on, Mr. Sheep
Walk on
[Verse 2]
Tell me, how's your little family?
How's your little wife?
Are you going to live with those monsters
For the rest of your life?
Maybe you got a little girlfriend
Stashed somewhere in town
Maybe you ain't got a little girlfriend
Hahahahahaha!
[Chorus 2]
Poor Mr. Sheep
He's a lonely guy, too!
Walk on, Mr. Sheep
Walk on
[Bridge]
Dance, Mister!
Hey, he's doin' okay!
Uh oh!
Oh, he'll be all right!
Let him get up by himself
[Verse 3]
Now, I don't want to be too rough
And I don't want to be too mean
You're right, this world is awful tough
I know exactly what you mean
But I want you to know
Exactly how I feel
And to tell you the truth
Right now
I feel like going
I feel like going, "Baa!"
[Chorus 3]
Baa, Mr. Sheep
Careful, you're walking all over your own self now
Walk on, Mr. Sheep
Walk on, Mr. Sheep
Walk on, Mr. Sheep
Walk on!
Mr. Sheep was written by Randy Newman.
Mr. Sheep was produced by Russ Titelman & Lenny Waronker.
Randy Newman released Mr. Sheep on Sat Aug 18 1979.