[1] Gotta Serve Somebody (B.Dylan) - 5:22
[2] Precious Angel (B.Dylan) - 6:27
[3] I Believe in You (B.Dylan) - 5:02
[4] Slow Train (B.Dylan) - 5:55
[5] Gonna Change My Way of Thinking (B.Dylan) - 5:25
[6] Do Right to Me Baby [Do Unto Others] (B.Dylan) - 3:50
[7] When You Gonna Wake Up (B.Dylan) - 5:25
[8] Man Gave Names to All the Animals (B.Dylan) - 4:23
[9] When He Returns (B.Dylan) - 4:30
BARRY BECKETT - Percussion, Keyboards
PICK WITHERS - Drums
TIM DRUMMOND - Bass
MARK KNOPFLER - Guitar
MICKEY BUCKINS - Percussion
MUSCLE SHOALS HORNS - Horn
HARRISON CALLOWAY - Arrangements
CAROLYN DENNIS - Background Vocals
HELENA SPRINGS - Background Vocals
REGINA HAVIS - Background Vocals
GREGG HAMM - Engineer
DAVID YATES - Assistant Engineer
PAUL WEXLER - Original Mastering Supervision
BOBBY HATTA - Original Mastering Engineer
JOE GASTWIRT - Digitally Remastered for Compact Disc
1979 CD Columbia CK-36120
1979 LP Columbia FC-36120
1979 CS Columbia PCT-36120
Recorded at Muscle Shoals Sound Studio
Perhaps it was inevitable that Dylan would change direction at the end
of the '70s, since he had dabbled in everything from full-on
repudiation of his legacy to a quiet embrace of it, to dipping his toe
into pure showmanship. Nobody really could have expected that he would
turn to Christianity, embracing a born-again philosophy with
enthusiasm. He has no problem in believing in a vengeful god —
you gotta serve somebody, after all — and this is pure brimstone
and fire throughout the record, even on such lovely testimonials as "I
Believe in You." The unexpected side-effect of his conversion is that
it gave Dylan a focus he hadn't had since Blood on the Tracks, and his
concentration carries over to the music, which is lean and direct in a
way that he hadn't been since, well, Blood on the Tracks. Focus isn't
necessarily the same thing as consistency, and this does suffer from
being a bit too dogmatic, not just in its religion, but in its musical
approach. Still, it's hard to deny that Dylan doesn't sound revitalized
here and the result is a modest success that at least works on its own
terms.
Staff Picks are personal recommendations from the music collections of
CDNOW's knowledgeable technical, administrative, marketing,
merchandising, customer service, and managerial staff. What do Shirley
Caesar, the Staples Singers, the Five Blind Boys of Alabama, and
Message Tribe all have in common? Well, ask them why they chose to
record a song from Bob Dylan's Slow Train Coming, and I think they'll
tell you the same thing: This album is loaded with exceptionally good
gospel music. From Bob Dylan's earliest days as a guitar-toting
folksinger up to the present, his interest and belief in the importance
of Biblical stories have been exemplified in his songs and concert
performances. He started arranging and incorporating early gospel songs
recorded by Blind Willie Johnson, Blind Willie McTell, and the Carter
Family into his folk repertoire from the beginning of his career. The
mass of songs that he would go on to write in the 1960s often touched
on religious imagery and he still performs traditional songs like
"Little Moses," "Mary on the Wild Moor," and "Hallelujah, I am Ready"
in his current sets. In 1979, however, Dylan fully immersed himself in
the subject of God and the result was Slow Train Coming. The leadoff
track, "Gotta Serve Somebody," with its thick organ riffs and razor
sharp implications, should be heard by everyone at least once in their
lifetime. It's no wonder Dylan won a 1979 Grammy for this performance.
His voice sounds reinvigorated and resonates with emotion. Other
standout cuts are "I Believe in You," "When He Returns," and the
quasi-title track, "Slow Train," one of Dylan's most powerful
performances ever recorded. It's not only the songs of Slow Train
Coming that make this a great album, but the sound of them. Dylan's
accompanied by top players including Dire Straits' Mark Knophler, the
Muscle Shoals Horns, and a mini choir featuring the stellar voices of
Carolyn Dennis, Helena Springs, and Regina Havis. Some of this
extraordinary sound has to do with the masterful production work by
Barry Becket and Jerry Wexler. Wexler, a recording legend who has
worked with dozens of artists including Aretha Franklin and Ray
Charles, helps create a sound that is sunny and clean; a pleasant
counterpart to Dylan's fiery musings on God, Righteousness, and
Apocalypse. Slow Train Coming still stands as one of Dylan's most
realized visions as a recorded work and one of the most accessible to a
wide-ranging audience. Although the songs deal with Dylan's conversion
to Christianity during this period of his life, they bellow with
universal themes and, like all Dylan albums, capture the intensity of
the times that we live in.
Faith is the message. Faith is the point. Faith is the key to understanding this record. Faith is finally all we have.
Because Bob Dylan had the power of insight and poetry early in his
career, he became an article of faith himself. He gave so much identity
and energy to so many people that eventually it could only blow up. And
it did. Which was bitter, disappointing and confusing to a lot of
people, including myself and, I think, also Dylan.
Within a very short period of time, forces came together that reversed
Dylan's musical strength and social weight. They were events of all
sorts—personal, professional, accidental: the inevitable pauses
and doubts that come with age and the kind of success Dylan had. There
were the times themselves—long, depressing years in which we all
became hopeless.
It takes only one listening to realize that Slow Train Coming (Columbia
Records) is the best album Bob Dylan has made since The Basement Tapes
(recorded with the Band in 1967 but not released until 1975). The more
I hear the new album — at least fifty times since early
July—the more I feel that it's one of the finest records Dylan
has ever made. In time, it is possible that it might even be considered
his greatest.
This claim will not go down easily, especially with all the "born
again" clamor. So much emotion has become invested in Dylan's public
image that the greater numbers of his critics and devotees torture
themselves before they will put aside their previous definitions of
him. In fairness, his followers have seen his work steadily weaken for
almost a decade and have legitimate reasons to be extremely rigid.
In the Seventies, Dylan's situation turned almost paralytic, both for
himself and his audience. Five or six superb songs weren't enough to
overcome this long, stagnant interval of doubt and reconsideration. As
the "spokesman" of a generation, Dylan created so many images and
expectations that he narrowed his room for maneuverability and finally
became unsure of his own instincts. Whatever his dilemmas, they were
tied up in the social and political themes of the last ten years. In
the hard times of confusion, just as in the easier times of conviction,
Dylan continued to reflect society.
A broadly drawn historical perspective is the most valid way to
consider Slow Train Coming, especially if it is important to understand
the old-time religion and evangelism woven into these songs. Before
anyone had even heard this album, the news that Dylan was doing a
little Bible reading stirred up great winds of cynicism and distrust: a
kind of controversy recalling the intensity of past debates about Dylan.
BOB Dylan has, at long last, come back into our lives and times, and it
is with the most commercial LP he's ever released. Slow Train Coming
has been made with a care and attention to detail that Dylan never gave
any of his earlier records. The decision to take such time and care
comes from a deep artistic and personal reevaluation. He wanted —
and after so many weak efforts and near failures, perhaps felt he had
no choice—a commercial success. He was also smart enough to see
that this thrust might even be the only road left for his return to
brilliance.
The musicians on this album are the best Dylan has worked with since
Highway 61 Revisited (1965), Blonde on Blonde (1966) and The Basement
Tapes (1967).
For the third time in his long career, Dylan has turned to a full-time
producer. (In the early Sixties, he used Tom Wilson; in the late
Sixties, Bob Johnston.) His choice for Slow Train Coming was an act of
instinctual genius: Jerry Wexler, the éminence grise and veteran
wise man inseparably connected with the classics of Ray Charles, Aretha
Franklin and Dusty Springfield, among many others. Like Dylan, Wexler
has his finest LP since those fabulous Sixties, one that ranks with his
greatest achievements. (Wexler shares his production credit with Barry
Beckett, the extraordinary pianist of the Muscle Shoals Rhythm
Section.*)
BOB Dylan once again has something urgent to sing. He's back in the
land of opportunity, fate and inexplicable twists. Slow Train Coming,
built on an accumulation of reluctant and arduous changes, is the
record that's been a long time coming, with an awesome, sudden stroke
of transcendent and cohesive vision. This is what makes it so
overwhelming.
Dylan's new songs are statements of strength and simplicity, and the
lyrics again equal his early classics. The words are rich with the
ambiguity of great art. Dylan has not self-consciously reached for the
colorful imagery and language of Highway 61 Revisited, symbols that, as
we look back, seem dated. Slow Train Coming's lyrics are timeless,
simple, yet rich in potential levels of meaning.
Dylan's apocalyptic visions and Biblical symbolism are wholly
consistent with the "protest" or "message" songs that are the
historical foundation of his work. We also recognize the characters and
the humor from earlier tunes: thieves, the rich and the poor. Instead
of dwarfs, we have bankers. And, as always, landlords.
"Gotta Serve Somebody," the opening cut, uses a religious allegory in
each chorus, but it's no different than the choice between good and
evil that Dylan has always sung about.
There is no letup in the power of the rhythm and arrangements from the
opening track through the last, because there's no letup in the
message. Over and over again, Dylan tells us that we have a choice of
doing good or doing bad.
"PRECIOUS Angel" is the most beautiful melody on the record, and it
matches the beauty of the lyric. It is a country-rock arrangement (a la
Nashville Skyline), and a Dylan trademark. There are numerous Biblical
references, but in no way do they overwhelm — or ever become
differentiated from — the undisguised passion of a lover's
question. The song has intensely sensuous words:
You're the queen of my flesh, girl You're my woman, you're my delight You're the lamp of my soul, girl You torch up the night.
The refrain — "Shine your light, shine your light on me/I just
can't make it by myself/I'm a little too blind to see" — tears
your heart out.
I am struck by two other lines: "Men will beg God to kill them/And they
won't be able to die"—a terrifying idea; and the verse that
starts, "Sister, let me tell you About a vision that I saw/You were
carrying water for your husband/You were suffering under the law,"
which is a clear essay on the rights of women.
"I Believe in You" is a story that shifts from the personal (love) to
the philosophic (the stranger) to the religious (the disciple), and may
even be a story about Jesus. In part, "I Believe in You" is about
someone who adopts unpopular beliefs (implicitly religious) and faces
an outcast's fate, yet the lines "I believe in you/Even on the morning
after" are a rather obvious clue to quite another, yet parallel
interpretation.
All of these tales — the outcast's, the believer's, the
lover's—are intended as one, because Dylan is finally saying only
one thing: "I believe in you." The power of this song is the discovery
of faith and belief, and the release and pleasure of accepting them.
"Slow Train" is unequivocally in the tradition of the "state of the
union" songs that Bob Dylan has put on every record he's ever done. But
for the first time since Highway 61 Revisited, the song that is his
boldest statement on the American condition is the title tune, which
signals the theme of the album.
The title track is nothing less than Dylan's most mature and profound
song about America. His patriotism is absolutely clear: it is a
statement filled with his belief in the American Dream, as well as
being infused with outrage, and with anger. I think it's his best
state-of-the-union song ever, because it's tempered and deepened by a
wiser understanding, which is where religion really does fit into this
album.
I find it devastating.
The image of a "slow train coming up around the bend" is thoroughly
American. The "train" is not just a suggestion, but it's an affirmation
of America's greatness. Dylan begins this song "wondering what's
happening to my companions," and verse after verse explains who his
companions are and what is happening to them. There's his "backwoods
girl from Alabama," undoubtedly a very personal companion. Then,
there's the nation itself—a people frustrated — because
they lately see themselves as powerless to affect their own national
destiny. "Look around you It's just bound to make you embarrassed."
Among other things, he says, "The enemy I see Wears a cloak of decency"
and "They talk about a life of brotherly love But show me someone who
knows how to live it." The solos by Mark Knopfler, Dire Straits' lead
writer and guitarist, like the lyrics, are angry. They suggest
vengeance and a desire to strike out.
In essence, "Slow Train" is a new kind of "Blowin' in the Wind" or
"Desolation Row." But the times are now more complicated and not as
easily open to broad strokes and simplistic insights. Only prophets and
those most personally involved are willing to risk definitions. This
has always been Bob Dylan's special link to his audience. On "Slow
Train," Dylan is stating that the way you see yourself is inseparable
and must be no different from the way you see others. Thus, the most
powerful lyric of them all:
My baby went to Illinois With some bad-talking boy she could destroy A real suicide case But there was nothing I could do to stop it I don't care about economy I don't care about astronomy But it sure does bother me To see my loved ones turning into puppets.
Set in a tough, relentless rhythm, "Gonna Change My Way of Thinking" is
a fire-and-brimstone sermon stripped of subtlety, though not of poetry.
Lines like these are priceless:
I got a God-fearing woman One I can easily afford She can do the Georgia crawl She can walk in the spirit of the Lord.
This piece of music comes as close as anything ever has to matching the
Rolling Stones. The horn arrangements and rhythm guitar bring to mind
"Bitch" and "Brown Sugar." For years, Dylan has implied that he could
outdo Mick Jagger, and if he ever wanted to prove the point, "Gonna
Change My Way of Thinking" is it. It's certainly as good as it gets.
Mark Knopfler tears into phrases and attacks with a fearsome skill.
(His licks on this song are derived mainly from Albert King.) He is
easily the best new guitarist in years. I'm a sucker for great guitar
work. My hat is off—and eaten.
Anyone who insists on seeing Slow Train Coming as some frightening or
worthless religious conversion should probably start with "Gonna Change
My Way of Thinking" as their evidence. The song is more than a direct
descendant of "With God on Our Side" and countless others in which
Dylan's warnings haven't much differed from the one used here:
apocalypse soon if you don't watch out. Now, the idea is developed with
a stridency that makes for maximum discomfort—and maximum rock
& roll.
"When You Gonna Wake Up" is another assessment of America. The tune is
a swinging, lowdown groove, which showcases the musicians, including
Dylan, whose singing is tough, full-voiced and urgent, sounding like a
zealot. Dylan's chorus, "Strengthen the things that remain," is the
sentiment of a deeply concerned citizen. The lyrics are more acidic
than practically anything found in rock music. I agree completely with
what Dylan says about Henry Kissinger, who was one of the great evils
of our times.
But neither the album itself, nor any firsthand reports from the usual
suspects, say that Dylan has been "born again." At the urging of
various personal friends, he went to Bible-study classes led by a
fundamentalist preacher. And boy, without a doubt, this record is
chapter and verse.
The album's religious content is pervasive; but more than anything,
Slow Train Coming comes directly from Dylan's own traditions: songs of
protest and patriotism; love songs — stories of romance,
adoration and friendship.
Dylan's longstanding philosophy is that personal and public conduct,
standards and ethical behavior, cannot be allowed to be separated from
each other. These are parables, more numerous and closely woven than
ever before, assembled with the judgmental and righteous morality that
has transfixed us on every great album and song Dylan has made.
Slow Train Coming is pure, true Dylan, probably the purest and truest
Dylan ever. The religious symbolism is a logical progression of Dylan's
Manichaean vision of life and his pain-filled struggle with good and
evil.
I am not so full of certainty about these times, our social standards
or the conduct of my companions that I can dismiss the validity of
Dylan's religiously phrased ideas. Maybe there is a personal and
communal text that offers explanations, laws and practical notions that
make sense where there has not been sense, and that can also give us
guidelines with which to do good.
I don't go to church or to a synagogue. I don't kneel beside my bed at
night. I don't think I will. I have yet to face the terror I read about
in all the great literature. But, since politics, economics and war
have failed to make us feel any better—as individuals or as a
nation—and we look back at long years of disrepair, then maybe
the time for religion has come again, and rather too
suddenly—"like a thief in the night."
"When He Returns," the most religious song on this album, is Dylan's
richest and most beautiful effort as a singer. Because he has been so
brilliant in the other areas of his craft, Dylan has never been fully
recognized as a singer. When he has a song and idea in which he
believes, as he does here, the power, richness and the beauty of his
voice are far greater than the words he uses. He sings with a sound
that needs no words because he has the sound of the soul itself.
Musically, this is probably Dylan's finest record, a rare coming
together of inspiration, desire and talent that completely fuse
strength, vision and art.
Bob Dylan is the greatest singer of our times. No one is better. No
one, in objective fact, is even very close. His versatility and vocal
skills are unmatched. His resonance and feeling are beyond those of any
of his contemporaries. More than his ability with words, and more than
his insight, his voice is God's greatest gift to him.
So when I listen to "When He Returns," the words finally don't matter
at all. They are as good as they ever were, maybe even better.
You may be an ambassador to England or France
You may like to gamble, you might like to dance
You may be the heavyweight champion of the world
You may be a socialite with a long string of pearls.
But you're gonna have to serve somebody, yes indeed
You're gonna have to serve somebody,
It may be the devil or it may be the Lord
But you're gonna have to serve somebody.
Might be a rock'n' roll adict prancing on the stage
Might have money and drugs at your commands, women in a cage
You may be a business man or some high degree thief
They may call you Doctor or they may call you Chief.
But you're gonna have to serve somebody, yes indeed
You're gonna have to serve somebody,
Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord
But you're gonna have to serve somebody.
You may be a state trooper, you might be an young turk
You may be the head of some big TV network
You may be rich or poor, you may be blind or lame
You may be living in another country under another name.
But you're gonna have to serve somebody, yes
You're gonna have to serve somebody,
Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord
But you're gonna have to serve somebody.
You may be a construction worker working on a home
You may be living in a mansion or you might live in a dome
You might own guns and you might even own tanks
You might be somebody's landlord you might even own banks.
But you're gonna have to serve somebody, yes
You're gonna have to serve somebody,
Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord
But you're gonna have to serve somebody.
You may be a preacher with your spiritual pride
You may be a city councilman taking bribes on the side
You may be working in a barbershop, you may know how to cut hair
You may be somebody's mistress, may be somebody's heir.
But you're gonna have to serve somebody, yes
You're gonna have to serve somebody,
Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord
But you're gonna have to serve somebody.
Might like to wear cotton, might like to wear silk
Might like to drink whiskey, might like to drink milk
You might like to eat caviar, you might like to eat bread
You may be sleeping on the floor, sleeping in a king-sized bed.
But you're gonna have to serve somebody, yes indeed
You're gonna have to serve somebody,
It may be the devil or it may be the Lord
But you're gonna have to serve somebody.
You may call me Terry, you may call me Jimmy
You may call me Bobby, you may call me Zimmy
You may call me R.J., you may call me Ray
You may call me anything but no matter what you say.
You're gonna have to serve somebody, yes indeed
You're gonna have to serve somebody,
Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord
But you're gonna have to serve somebody.
PRECIOUS ANGEL
Precious angel, under the sun
How was I to know you'd be the one
To show me I was blinded, to show me I was gone
How weak was the foundation I was standing upon ?
Now there's spiritual warfare and flesh and blood breaking down
Ya either got faith or ya got unbelief and there ain't neutral ground
The enemy is subtle, how be it we are so deceived
When the truth's in our hearts and we still don't believe ?
Shine you light, shine your light on me
Shine you light, shine your light on me
Shine you light, shine your light on me
Ya know I just couldn't make it by myself
I'm a little too blind to see.
My so called friends have fallen under a spell
They look me squarely in the eye and they say, "Well all is well'"
Can they imagine the darkness that will fall from on high
When men will beg God to kill them and they won't be able to die.
Sister, lemme tell you about a vision that I saw
You were drawing water for your husband, you were suffering under the law
You were telling him about Buddha, you were telling him about Mohammed in the same breath
You never mentioned one time the Man who came and died a criminal's death.
Shine you light, shine your light on me
Shine you light, shine your light on me
Shine you light, shine your light on me
Ya know I just couldn't make it by myself
I'm a little too blind to see.
Precious angel, you believe me when I say
What God has given to us no man can take away
We are covered in blood girl, you know our forefathers were slaves
Let us hope they've found mercy in their bone-filled graves.
You're the queen of my flesh, girl, you're my woman, you're my delight
You're the lamb of my soul, girl, and you touch up the night
But there's violence in the eyes, girl, so let us not be enticed
On the way out of Egypt, through Etopoia, to the judgement hall of Christ.
Shine you light, shine your light on me
Shine you light, shine your light on me
Shine you light, shine your light on me
Ya know I just couldn't make it by myself
I'm a little too blind to see.
I BELIEVE IN YOU
They ask me how I feel
And if my love is real
And how I know I'll make it through
And they, they look at me and frown
They'd like to drive me from this town
They don't want me around
'Cause I believe in you.
They show me to the door
They say don't come back no more
'Cause I don't be like they'd like me to
And I, I walk out on my own
A thousand miles from home
But I don't feel alone
'Cause I believe in you.
I believe in you even through the tears and the laughter
I believe in you even though we be apart
I believe in you even on the morning after
Oh, when the dawn is nearing
Oh, when the night is disappearing
Oh, this feeling is still here in my heart.
Don't let me drift too far
Keep me where you are
Where I will always be renewed
And that which you've given me today
Is worth more than I could pay
And no matter what they say
I believe in you.
I believe in you when winter turn to summer
I believe in you when white turn to black
I believe in you even though I be outnumbered
Oh, though the earth may shake me
Oh, though my friends forsake me
Oh, even that couldn't make me go back.
Don't let me change my heart
Keep me set apart
From all the plans they do pursue
And I, I don't mind the pain
Don't mind the driving rain
I know I will sustain
'Cause I believe in you.
SLOW TRAIN
Sometimes I feel so low-down and disgusted
Can't help but wonder what's happening to my companions
Are they lost or are they found, have they counted the cost it'll take to bring down
All their earthly principles they're gonna have to abandon ?
There's slow, slow train coming up around the bend.
I had a woman down in Alabama
She was a backwoods girl, but she sure was realistic
She said, Boy, without a doubt, have to quit your mess and straighten out
You could die down here, be just another accident statistic
There's slow, slow train coming up around the bend.
All that foreign oil controlling American soil
Look around you, it's just bound to make you embarrassed
Sheiks walking around like kings, wearing fancy jewels and nose rings
Deciding America's future from Amsterdam and to Paris
And there's slow, slow train coming up around the bend.
Man's ego is inflated, his laws are outdated, they don't apply no more
You can't rely no more to be standing around waiting
In the home of the brave, Jefferson turning over in his grave
Fools glorifying themselves, trying to manipulate Satan
And there's slow, slow train coming up around the bend.
Big-time negotiators, false healers and woman haters
Masters of the bluff and masters of the proposition
But the enemy I see wears a cloak of decency
All non-believers and men stealers talking in the name of religion
And there's slow, there's slow train coming up around the bend.
People starving and thirsting, grain elevators are bursting
Oh, you know it costs more to store the food than it do to give it
They say loose your inhibitions, follow your own ambitions
They talk about a life of brotherly love, show me someone who knows how to live it
There's slow, slow train coming up around the bend.
Well, my baby went to Illinois with some bad-talking boy she could destroy
A real suicide case, but there was nothing I could do to stop it
I don't care about economy, I don't care about astronomy
But it's sure do bother me to see my loved ones turning into puppets
There's slow, slow train coming up around the bend.
GONNA CHANGE MY WAY OF THINKING
Gonna change my way of thinking
Make myself a different set of rules
Gonna change my way of thinking
Make myself a different set of rules
Gonna put my good foot forward
And stop being influenced by fools.
So much oppression
Can't keep track of it no more
So much oppression
Can't keep track of it no more
Sons becoming husbands to their mothers
And old men turning young daughters into whores.
Stripes on your shoulders
Stripes on your back and on your hands
Stripes on your shoulders
Stripes on your back and on your hands
Swords piercing your side
Blood and water flowing through the land.
Well don't know which one is worse
Doing your own thing or just being cool
Well don't know which one is worse
Doing your own thing or just being cool
You remember only about the brass ring
You forget all about the golden rule.
You can mislead a man
You can take ahold of his heart with your eyes
You can mislead a man
You can take ahold of his heart with your eyes
But there's only one authority
And that's the authority on high.
I got a God-fearing woman
One I can easily afford
I got a God-fearing woman
One I can easily afford
She can do the Georgia crawl
She can walk in the spirit of the Lord.
Jesus said, "Be ready
For you know not the hour in which I come"
Jesus said, "Be ready
For you know not the hour in which I come"
He said, "He who is not for Me is against Me"
Just so you know where He's coming from.
There's a kingdom called Heaven
A place where there is no pain of birth
There's a kingdom called Heaven
A place where there is no pain of birth
Well the Lord created it, mister
About the same time He made the earth.
DO RIGHT TO ME BABY (DO UNTO OTHERS)
Don't wanna judge nobody, don't wanna be judged
Don't wanna touch nobody, don't wanna be touched
Don't wanna hurt nobody , don't wanna be hurt
Don't wanna treat nobody like they was dirt.
But if you do right to me baby
I'll do right to you too
Ya got to do unto others
Like you'd have them, like you'd have them, do unto you.
Don't wanna shoot nobody, don't wanna be shot
Don't wanna buy nobody, don't wanna be bought
Don't wanna bury nobody, don't wanna be buried
Don't wanna marry nobody, if they're already married.
But if you do right to me baby
I'll do right to you too
Ya got to do unto others
Like you'd have them, like you'd have them, do unto you.
Don't wanna burn nobody, don't wanna be burned
Don't wanna learn from nobody, what I gotta unlearn
Don't wanna cheat nobody, don't wanna be cheated
Don't wanna defeat nobody if they already been defeated.
But if you do right to me baby
I'll do right to you too
Ya got to do unto others
Like you'd have them, like you'd have them, do unto you.
Don't wanna wink at nobody, don't wanna be winked at
Don't wanna be used by nobody for a doormat
Don't wanna confuse nobody, don't wanna be confused
Don't wanna amuse nobody, don't wanna be amused.
But if you do right to me baby
I'll do right to you too
Ya got to do unto others
Like you'd have them, like you'd have them, do unto you.
Don't wanna betray nobody, don't wanna be betrayed
Don't wanna play with nobody, don't wanna be waylaid
Don't wanna miss nobody, don't wanna be missed
Don't put my faith in nobody, not even a scientist.
WHEN YOU GONNA WAKE UP ?
God don't make promises that He don't keep
You got some big dreams baby, but in order to dream you gotta still be asleep.
When you gonna wake up, when you gonna wake up
When you gonna wake up strengthen the things that remain ?
Counterfeited philosophies have polluted all of your thoughts
Karl Marx has got ya by the throat, Henry Kissinger's got you tied up in knots.
When you gonna wake up, when you gonna wake up
When you gonna wake up strengthen the things that remain ?
You got innocent men in jail, your insane asylums are filled
You got unrighteous doctors dealing drugs that'll never cure your ills.
When you gonna wake up, when you gonna wake up
When you gonna wake up strengthen the things that remain ?
You got men who can't hold their peace and woman who can't control their tongues
The rich seduce the poor and the old are seduced by the young.
When you gonna wake up, when you gonna wake up
When you gonna wake up strengthen the things that remain ?
Adulterers in churches and pornography in the schools
You got gangsters in power and lawbreakers making rules.
When you gonna wake up, when you gonna wake up
When you gonna wake up strengthen the things that remain ?
Spiritual advisors and gurus to guide your every move
Instant inner peace and every step you take has got to be approved.
When you gonna wake up, when you gonna wake up
When you gonna wake up strengthen the things that remain ?
Do you ever wonder just what God requires ?
You think He's just an errand boy to satisfy your wandering desires.
When you gonna wake up, when you gonna wake up
When you gonna wake up and strengthen the things that remain ?
You can't take it with you and you know that it's too worthless to be sold
They tell you, 'Time is money' as if your life was worth its weight in gold.
When you gonna wake up, when you gonna wake up
When you gonna wake up and strengthen the things that remain ?
There's a man up on a cross and He's been crucified for you
Believe in His power that's about all you got to do.
When you gonna wake up, when you gonna wake up
When you gonna wake up and strengthen the things that remain ?
MAN GAVE NAMES TO ALL THE ANIMALS
Man gave names to all the animals
In the beginning, in the beginning
Man gave names to all the animals
In the beginning, long time ago]
He saw an animal that liked to growl
Big furry paws and he liked to howl
Great big furry back and furry hair
"Ah, think I'll call it a bear".
Man gave names to all the animals
In the beginning, in the beginning
Man gave names to all the animals
In the beginning, long time ago.
He saw an animal up on a hill
Chewing up so much grass until she was filled
He saw milk coming out but he didn't know how
"Ah, think I'll call it a cow".
Man gave names to all the animals
In the beginning, in the beginning
Man gave names to all the animals
In the beginning, long time ago.
He saw an animal that liked to snort
Horns on his head and they weren't too short
It looked like there wasn't nothing that he couldn't pull
"Ah, I'll think I'll call it a bull".
Man gave names to all the animals
In the beginning, in the beginning
Man gave names to all the animals
In the beginning, long time ago.
He saw an animal leaving a muddy trail
Real dirty face and a curly trail
He wasn't too small and he wasn't too big
"Ah, think I'll call it a pig".
Man gave names to all the animals
In the beginning, in the beginning
Man gave names to all the animals
In the beginning, long time ago.
Next animal that he did meet
Had wool on his back and hooves on his feet
Eating grass on a mountainside so steep
"Ah, think I'll call it a sheep".
Man gave names to all the animals
In the beginning, in the beginning
Man gave names to all the animals
In the beginning, long time ago.
He saw an animal as smooth as glass
Slithering his way through the grass
Saw him dissappear by a tree near a lake .....
WHEN HE RETURNS
The iron hand it ain't no match for the iron rod
The strongest wall will crumble and fall to a mighty God
For all those who have eyes and all those who have ears
It is only He who can reduce me to tears
Don't you cry and don't you die and don't you burn
Like a thief in the night, he'll replace wrong with right
When he returns.
Truth is an arrow and the gate is narrow that is passes through
He unreleased His power at an unknown hour that no one knew
How long can I listen to the lies of prejudice ?
How long can I stay drunk on fear out in the wilderness ?
Can I cast it aside, all this loyalty and this pride ?
Will I ever learn that there'll be no peace, that the war won't cease
Until He returns ?
Surrender your crown on this blood-stained ground, take off your mask
He sees your deeds, He knows your needs even before you ask
How long can you falsily and deny what is real ?
How long can you hate yourself for the weakness you conceal ?
Of every earthly plan that be known to man, He is unconcerned
He's got plans of his own to set up His throne
When He return.