years ago a shift in powers
came when toppled turgid towers
the world redrawn, although rough hewn
and liberties away were strewn
amid the flags that we yet waved
came call that lives here must be saved
and so suffice some sacrifice
that liberty is freedom's price

and in ironic times like those
'tis pointless to rely on prose
or rule of law, when feel of gut
knows who should keep their big yap shut
there came in power such a man
for whom scripture served as plan
and like his sacred screed the bible
saw use in speaking lies and libel

twas in this time to me came call
to play less music for y'all
to serve my country swelled my heart
and swiftly secret did depart
i guess this was spring '04
i landed on the cuban shore
and there i found a sweet PA
strings, tuners and a 58
soundman swathed in dessert camo
bartenders with M-1 ammo
the patrons all decked out in orange
were, to a man all brown and foreign*
Though sometimes jumpsuits were neglected
and naked pyramids erected

though through it all, i was heroic
i sang my songs profane and stoic
as to allah, men did plead
i blew out a g-harp reed
in farsi, and in arabic
they tried in vain to stop my schtick
though no cunning linguist, I
i think i heard a few decry
Allah, please to show your mercy
this whiny infidel voice hurts me
200 songs on one theme which is
all his exes, psycho-bitches
make him stop by your sweet grace
please pour the water on my face

'twas patriotic heady time
but now there's talk of it as crime
with the sheriff new in town
it looks like someone must fall down
and though i was but serving country
hist'ry shows, 'tis elementry
the puppies have turned doberman
shep smith concurs with olberman
but i'll not shirk, deny my crime
'neath stacks of legal briefs sublime
if given, process that i'm due
i'm one step up on those crooned to
and if my whiny strums are crim'nal
i'll remove them from my hymnal
and stoic serve, my time deprived
known i maybe saved some lives

on our Republic's soil i stand
un like, my brown and naked fans
so my guilt must first be proved
until that time you'd be behooved
to jump at chance to see the dork
for in him, soon may be put fork

tis in this spirit, i've consented
to take the stage and be presented
on saturday the twenty fifth
of april i'll be playing with
Chris Huebner and Dani Mari
Jason Cohn, Chris Schutz and me
some of us accompanied
while others solo it will be

to find the show will not be hard
it's Murph's in Fishtown, on Girard
The stage, it seems i take to last
but come out early, time goes fast
when music tickles tiny drums
and tapping feet and fender hums
'tis just a scurry out my hole
but thought i should in case y'know
i end up facing hard flung shoes
or worse, the folsom prison blues.

*HA i did it again.