The King Blues - What if Punk Never Happened lyrics
[The King Blues - What if Punk Never Happened lyrics]
When on a cold Tuesday morning I
Was walking in the town
I had my headphones blaring
I didn't notice what was around
I crossed the road, a car swerved
Nearly ran me down
I looked in the driver’s seat
I swear to God it was Doc Brown
He said, "are you Michael J Fox?"
I said, "no, I’m Johnny Fox"
He said, "yeah, that's close enough
You best get inside
Cause, I’m taking you with me
To see another time
A place you could only have
Dreamed of in your mind
It's an alternative reality situated
Just outside of Clapham
So strap yourself in cause where we’re
Going you don’t need roads
To get to where punk never happened"
We landed in a concrete desert
Rubble as far as the eye could see
I says to Doc, "where we going?"
Doc says he’s following me
We found the only building in the
City that was left standing
It was my local venue
I know cause I recognized the landing
And there’s a gig on tonight
This town ain’t so bad
I got everything I need right
Here in this pad so I pulled out a bottle
And took a heroic swig
Made myself comfortable and got
Ready for the gig
Well, an hour after doors and
There was still no-one there
The sound man was on acid
The fucking long hair
And the bands never showed cause
They didn't see the point
When all the kids are at
Home still smoking a joint
They won’t go out and do nothing, man
Not on your nelly
They’re just watching the telly and
Then their feeding their belly
Their parents listen to The Beatles
While they listen to Nirvana
Green Day and The Pistols, well
They never heard either
They got long sleeve T-shirts
They never shower
Man, they still believe in flower power
Yeah, the hippy dream’s faded
But they got nothing new
So they wear flares and slippers
And burn incense sticks too
The kids would rather skate than go
Out and smash the state
While their parents sit still and meditate
Man, action’s at a low when
People just don’t care
They zoned out to their surroundings
The anger’s not there
And I’m stuck in this hippy, grunge reality
Where the buildings are crumbling
Down from apathy
Yeah they grab you at school
When you’ve just turned 13
And show you your brand new
Life long routine
You can sleep and work, and work and sleep
So you can save up the money
To buy a new Jeep
So you can sleep and work, and work and sleep
Then sleep then work then work then sleep
I pulled a fanzine out my back pocket
Held it in my hands
And watched the colors slowly fade away
The words bled right off of the pages
Til it had nothing left to say
I banged on the jukebox but it was useless
It had no good records on
Not even something weak like
‘The Best Punk Album In
The Worldever! Volume 1’
And outside the windows
I saw the excavators coming to
Tear the place down no-one stopped them
For there is no community left in this town
There’s no-one around to
Fight Margaret Thatcher
The power of the flower
Just couldn’t match her
Too strong was the will of
Parliament to cause damage
That with no punk rock
Everything went unchallenged
Land got knocked down to build more land
That got knocked down again for
A couple more grand
With no punk the protests were full
Of throwbacks calling each other comrade
Of course the young folks’
Attendance started to fade
So it was easy for the police to move in
They were trusted and that’s when the whole
Damn town got busted
They moved CCTV cameras in everywhere
But the people were too apathetic to care
They made them carry ID cards
To state where they’re from
As if by being born they
Had done something wrong
They shipped all the poor folk to
Live out in the edges
So the rich folk could move in
And peer over their hedges
"But before you leave
You’d better build our homes
There, we’ve done you a favor
Now you’re on your own
This ain’t your home no more
Go find somewhere new
I know you ain’t got the money
Cause it’s me who employs you
I know everything about you, what you eat
How you dress your hobbies, your turn-ons
And your email address
While I had you working in the dark
You didn’t realize
That I completely stopped your
Ability to organize
I didn’t let you have a reason to communicate
I banned punk rock knowing you hippies
Would seal your own fate
I controlled everything you wrote
Everything you created
I distracted you with advertisements so
You forgot what you hated
I fed your dark side
Kept you consuming and competing
And like a dog that doesn’t
Know when to stop eating
You took it all, oh
And long was it my intention
You could have beat me if
Punk rock was your invention"
Instead the city will be sold
To the highest bids
If only Sham 69 had of united the kids
If only the 4 Skins had told us ACAB
If only The Ramones had let us
Know we were a happy family
If only The Buzzcocks had shown us
How to do it ourself
If only Crass had shown us there
Are things more important than wealth
If only The Vandals had shown us
It was OK to smile
If only The Dead Kennedys had helped
Us put our government on trial
If only Rancid had played live
And brought with them that vibe
If we had Sick Of It All and Madball
We could put them all on the frontline
If we had GG Allin we’d have
Learned it’s OK to be hated
If we’d have had The Refused
Then we could have innovated
If we’d had Poison Idea then
They couldn’t push us over
If we’d had Minor Threat then we
Could have done it sober
If we’d have had Against Me we
Could have done it unplugged
If we’d had Operation Ivy we could
Have done it then fucked off
If we had The Blitz, The Clash, Disorder
Propagandhi
The Exploited, NOFX and anyone that’s handy
There’s a lesson to be learned
One that I will take home
When I return to my normal reality zone
Punk rock has the power to change the world
It lies in every single punk
Rock boy and girl
So don’t let anyone tell you
You’re not worth the earth
These streets are your streets
This turf is your turf
Don’t let anyone tell you that
You’ve got to give in
Cause you can make a difference
You can change everything
Let your dreams be your pilot
Your imagination your fuel
Tear up the book and write
Your own damn rules use all that heart
Hope and soul that you’ve got
And the love and the rage that
You feel in your gut
And realize that the other world
That you’re always looking for
Lies right here in front of us
Just outside the door
And it’s up to you to go
Out there and paint the canvas after all
You were put on the earth to do this
So shine your light so bright
That all can see
Take pride in being whoever the
Fuck you want to be
Throw your fist in the air in solidarity
And shout, "viva la punk, just one life
Anarchy"
Was walking in the town
I had my headphones blaring
I didn't notice what was around
I crossed the road, a car swerved
Nearly ran me down
I looked in the driver’s seat
I swear to God it was Doc Brown
He said, "are you Michael J Fox?"
I said, "no, I’m Johnny Fox"
He said, "yeah, that's close enough
You best get inside
Cause, I’m taking you with me
To see another time
A place you could only have
Dreamed of in your mind
It's an alternative reality situated
Just outside of Clapham
So strap yourself in cause where we’re
Going you don’t need roads
To get to where punk never happened"
We landed in a concrete desert
Rubble as far as the eye could see
I says to Doc, "where we going?"
Doc says he’s following me
We found the only building in the
City that was left standing
It was my local venue
I know cause I recognized the landing
And there’s a gig on tonight
This town ain’t so bad
I got everything I need right
Here in this pad so I pulled out a bottle
And took a heroic swig
Made myself comfortable and got
Ready for the gig
Well, an hour after doors and
There was still no-one there
The sound man was on acid
The fucking long hair
And the bands never showed cause
They didn't see the point
When all the kids are at
Home still smoking a joint
They won’t go out and do nothing, man
Not on your nelly
They’re just watching the telly and
Then their feeding their belly
Their parents listen to The Beatles
While they listen to Nirvana
Green Day and The Pistols, well
They never heard either
They got long sleeve T-shirts
They never shower
Man, they still believe in flower power
Yeah, the hippy dream’s faded
But they got nothing new
So they wear flares and slippers
And burn incense sticks too
The kids would rather skate than go
Out and smash the state
While their parents sit still and meditate
Man, action’s at a low when
People just don’t care
They zoned out to their surroundings
The anger’s not there
And I’m stuck in this hippy, grunge reality
Where the buildings are crumbling
Down from apathy
Yeah they grab you at school
When you’ve just turned 13
And show you your brand new
Life long routine
You can sleep and work, and work and sleep
So you can save up the money
To buy a new Jeep
So you can sleep and work, and work and sleep
Then sleep then work then work then sleep
I pulled a fanzine out my back pocket
Held it in my hands
And watched the colors slowly fade away
The words bled right off of the pages
Til it had nothing left to say
I banged on the jukebox but it was useless
It had no good records on
Not even something weak like
‘The Best Punk Album In
The Worldever! Volume 1’
And outside the windows
I saw the excavators coming to
Tear the place down no-one stopped them
For there is no community left in this town
There’s no-one around to
Fight Margaret Thatcher
The power of the flower
Just couldn’t match her
Too strong was the will of
Parliament to cause damage
That with no punk rock
Everything went unchallenged
Land got knocked down to build more land
That got knocked down again for
A couple more grand
With no punk the protests were full
Of throwbacks calling each other comrade
Of course the young folks’
Attendance started to fade
So it was easy for the police to move in
They were trusted and that’s when the whole
Damn town got busted
They moved CCTV cameras in everywhere
But the people were too apathetic to care
They made them carry ID cards
To state where they’re from
As if by being born they
Had done something wrong
They shipped all the poor folk to
Live out in the edges
So the rich folk could move in
And peer over their hedges
"But before you leave
You’d better build our homes
There, we’ve done you a favor
Now you’re on your own
This ain’t your home no more
Go find somewhere new
I know you ain’t got the money
Cause it’s me who employs you
I know everything about you, what you eat
How you dress your hobbies, your turn-ons
And your email address
While I had you working in the dark
You didn’t realize
That I completely stopped your
Ability to organize
I didn’t let you have a reason to communicate
I banned punk rock knowing you hippies
Would seal your own fate
I controlled everything you wrote
Everything you created
I distracted you with advertisements so
You forgot what you hated
I fed your dark side
Kept you consuming and competing
And like a dog that doesn’t
Know when to stop eating
You took it all, oh
And long was it my intention
You could have beat me if
Punk rock was your invention"
Instead the city will be sold
To the highest bids
If only Sham 69 had of united the kids
If only the 4 Skins had told us ACAB
If only The Ramones had let us
Know we were a happy family
If only The Buzzcocks had shown us
How to do it ourself
If only Crass had shown us there
Are things more important than wealth
If only The Vandals had shown us
It was OK to smile
If only The Dead Kennedys had helped
Us put our government on trial
If only Rancid had played live
And brought with them that vibe
If we had Sick Of It All and Madball
We could put them all on the frontline
If we had GG Allin we’d have
Learned it’s OK to be hated
If we’d have had The Refused
Then we could have innovated
If we’d had Poison Idea then
They couldn’t push us over
If we’d had Minor Threat then we
Could have done it sober
If we’d have had Against Me we
Could have done it unplugged
If we’d had Operation Ivy we could
Have done it then fucked off
If we had The Blitz, The Clash, Disorder
Propagandhi
The Exploited, NOFX and anyone that’s handy
There’s a lesson to be learned
One that I will take home
When I return to my normal reality zone
Punk rock has the power to change the world
It lies in every single punk
Rock boy and girl
So don’t let anyone tell you
You’re not worth the earth
These streets are your streets
This turf is your turf
Don’t let anyone tell you that
You’ve got to give in
Cause you can make a difference
You can change everything
Let your dreams be your pilot
Your imagination your fuel
Tear up the book and write
Your own damn rules use all that heart
Hope and soul that you’ve got
And the love and the rage that
You feel in your gut
And realize that the other world
That you’re always looking for
Lies right here in front of us
Just outside the door
And it’s up to you to go
Out there and paint the canvas after all
You were put on the earth to do this
So shine your light so bright
That all can see
Take pride in being whoever the
Fuck you want to be
Throw your fist in the air in solidarity
And shout, "viva la punk, just one life
Anarchy"