The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #102943 Message #2936176
Posted By: Rog Peek
28-Jun-10 - 03:49 PM
Thread Name: Songs for/about Phil Ochs
Subject: Lyr Add: REMEMBER PHIL OCHS (Voice of Reason)
REMEMBER PHIL OCHS (Voice of Reason)
One naked drunk in the rain feeling no pain I looked away Jumped in my car drove to the high school Friend called me up on the phone I wasn't home, left was a note The news is a nightmare how did it hit you And it seemed like a line from a song that I knew But I just couldn't place it so I didn't call 'til I knew
Chorus Remember Phil Ochs all his songs all his jokes And remember he cared for his brothers and sisters Remember he stood for the true and the good And his poetry spoke with a sensitive whisper To the tender resister
Out from the west like a flash, Siamese clash, protest at last He sang through the village stood in the front lines There but for fortune a hit, that's when he split kissed by a miss Moved to the West coast the island of gold mines Wrote some magical songs and recorded with care And the harbour still shines, but the top forty wasn't aware
Chorus
Just like a reporter with news of the highway He kept his mind open while feeding his soul But what more could he give when they looked at him sideways He'd given his best all in vain, where else could he go
He grew defensive and drunk, his writing was blocked, it seemed all was lost The ultimate gamble, he'd make them listen Exits create such a scene, the Kennedy dream, like Holly and Dean He hung in the closet to be a legend So I put on a tape, loop and went for a ride And the song that I heard was called 'Don't Give Up You've Still Got Time'
Chorus
Notes: Song included on "Voice of Reason", (Tomorrow Records TLP-21088, 1987). Assume the writer was one of the band, but have no names.