Jud Caswell is a young singer-songwriter based in Maine that I've enjoyed watching develop over the last 5 years or so. He's won some national songwriting awards, which is not surprising to me. He's good and getting better. Last friday evening he filled up our coffeehouse to the brim and sang some of the songs off his new CD titled BLACKBERRY TIME and I was delighted with the sharp biting lyrics of "The Men Behind The Bushes." Well, if you voted for the Bushes the last two times around, this may not be the song for you. However, for growing numbers of people this song could become an anthem:

Words and music by Jud Caswell
Recorded on BLACKBERRY TIME, © 2007 Jud Caswell, Alderdown Songs (ASCAP)

THE MEN BEHIND THE BUSHES

Do you see what I see?
Up there on the right
Smiling like a cat and sliding out of sight
They've got Reagan's Teflon
And Richard Nixon's soul
They're slippery as oil
Mean as gasoline
Black as Christmas coal
Go hopping down the money trail
You find it always leads
To the Men Behind the Bushes…
Can't you smell the greed?

They've solved the problem
Of seeming too unkind
Use Jesus as a body shield
As you rob the country blind
Keep it simple, let's focus on the war
While the riptide of arrogance and influence
Drags the living wage offshore
You can close your eyes and tell yourself
They're looking out for you
But the Men Behind the Bushes…
Know that that's not true

Look me in the eye, tell me it's all right
And what we see is what we get
Can't you see the cretin king?
Can't you see the master's strings?
Can you see the puppeteer yet?

It's a whirlpool, anyone could drown
When the paranoia sucks you in
And pulls you down
You feel the outrage fading into numb
When you realize it only makes more sense
The more cynical you become
You can close your eyes and tell yourself
There's really no one there
But the Men Behind the Bushes…
Have got me scared.

Here's a link to Jud Caswell's website: Click here for website!

Cheerily,
Charley Noble