The Ballad of the Hulk

[Verse 1]
The cycle of life is here to see
In all of its fine simplicity
But the way we live it seems to be
Something very weird to me
And I cry out
Pettiness like lady's chatter
It seems to complicate the matter
I grit my teeth, my senses shatter
As nothing much makes me madder
And I leap out
For big or little, great or small
It really doesn't matter at all
The way we shuffle our feet and hem-and-haw
'Cause everyone's afraid they'll fall
Or else be left out
What's right for me or strange to you
Shouldn't make a damn on what you do
'Cause whether or not you make it through
I thought that you already knew
That I'll keep a-going on

[Chorus 1]
And the World War Three
And the World Series
Will make the same size
Headlines
In the news

[Verse 2]
From all I've seen of politics
It's just a greasy, big money stick
Geared to run on tongues so slick
To make you think this is all there is
You're got Humphrey
How they con the little middle man
Into thinkin' he has got a hand
To play in the future of the Promised Land
He owes himself to the destiny of man
Gets ridiculous
Cheap gangster can hire someone
To do his dirty work with a Tommy gun
While the President points at anyone
Says "I, your country, wants some killing done
"Go do it now boy"
But the war itself is bad enough
It can break you down no matter how tough
But the tragedy of hoopla stuff
It makes you think you can't do enough
For the shiny symbols

[Chorus 2]
And the other countries
They feel the same as we
And regret that I have
One country to give
For my life

[Verse 3]
Preacher stands in his holy shroud
Sayin' "God forgives if you do it now"
You come back when the chips are down
You find that they've all gone underground
To pray for you
And a homosexual, twisted priest
He feels that he can preach to me
The right way to go and raise a family
And I'm forced to look at him and mean to say
"You're guessing"
As the population is getting higher
The poverty poor, the pregnant tired
Are waiting on the Pope to be inspired
For some new contraceptive attire
Saying "It's cool now"
It's a ghost behind a one-way mirror
Listening tip-toed at the door to hear
If someone outside won't speak the year
Then they'll slip a note out how they feel
About pierced ear lobes

[Chorus 3]
But the rules made now
For the changing cows
Are a little late
And will be out of date
By tomorrow

[Verse 4]
Her mother played on virginity
She said it was the holy place to be
The things boys had were evilry
When it came time for matrimony
She froze and died there
Her sister at fourteen, very well known
She thought all kicks came lying there prone
But a fundamental fact not spoken at home
Left her feeling like a chewed-on bone
And why, she wondered
One chick who dug moving about
Very liberal-minded and often spoke out
How she was cool and understood, no doubt
With the blankets up and the lights turned out
And you're condescending
And a couple together for five or six years
A marriage license they'd never been near
But social pressure and loss of job fear
Got them married and divorced in half a year
They couldn't cut it

[Chorus 4]
It's all talked about
And then it's lived around
And what is right for me
Could be perversity
In any state law book

[Verse 5]
I'm told a minstrel at one time
Was allowed to sing and make his rhymes
To comment on the news of the times
Sayin' what's in people's minds
And he made tips for it
But today, try singin' on some street curb
Singin' the news in everyday words
The people pass by and laughin' is heard
Or else they hit you where it hurts
Boy, they keep their ears closed
One man said "Boy, I dig your stuff
"I want you to come play at my club
"I'll put your name in lights up above
"But just remember I got a club to run
"So don't you be too strong"
It's not the writers who sell us out
It's the damn censors who turn about
All your life learned adjectives and vowels
And say that my mouth is much too foul
To clearly speak to you

[Chorus 5]
But try to hit a nail
And if the hammer fails
Then the words you use
To describe that bruise
That's basic language!

[Verse 6]
I hitchhiked and sang the songs
That everybody knew and sang along
To amuse myself I wrote some songs
Speakin' 'bout what's right and wrong
And I'm a little different
So a record company you know well
Wanted to know if my song would sell
I said, "Yes, I like it very well
"If you don't sir, you can go to hell
"Somebody else change"
I kept hobo-ing and bummin' around
Singing to my friends who dig that sound
A few cats said "Won't you come to my town"
I asked fair bread to put me down
Their Caddie's mortgaged
I made one deal, like "It's you and me"
This guy said he'd be lots of use to me
But when I found he's puttin' the screws to me
I made it back out on the street
Singin' new folk songs

[Chorus 6]
And if there's time enough
And the hill ain't too rough
What I wrote today
I might someday play
And make some tips for it

[Outro]
Don't miss the next issue of the Hulk