Why would a clever boy
Leave school with a star
And walk out through the gates
Feeling worthless
Put the pennies that he saved
On a cheap sunburst guitar
Work his fingers to the bone
To be noticed.
Why would a clever boy
Take his schoolbooks and abscond
With his fear around his neck
Like a damaged halo
Be hounded out the gate
'cause he couldn't get beyond
The first line of
'tháinig long ó valparaiso'
Look at me, look at me
I can play, i can play
Look at me, look at me
Am i not worth lovin'
Look at me, look at me
I can play, i can play
The forty shades of green
And some slim whitman
Why would a clever boy
When all is said and done
Turn to every bauble stick
Become addicted
Tongue-tied, sad and blue
Forever on the run
Like a poor beast in the rain
Too blind to fix it.
We were damaged by the score
The clever and the dumb
With our scars we shunted into
Every siding
For the voiceless there are tears
And a million more to come
Will you tell me where in christ
Was jesus hiding.
Here's a postscript to make you smile
You know my valparaiso friend
For years i wondered how he wore
That halo
He was apprenticed did his time
Climbed the ladder in the end
Then one day he pulled a ticket
In the lotto.