Tom T. Hall - The Promise And The Dream lyrics

There's a sadness in your singing
I have never heard before
There's a dying in your living that
Exists from shore to shore
There's a coward in your character
That I have never seen
America, what happened to the
Promise and the dream

The promise was that men could live
And worship as they please
The dream was for the huddled
Masses yearning to breathe free
We closed so many doors and banned
The prayers on many scenes
America, what happened to the
Promise and the dream

There's a numbness in your feeling
For the disadvantaged poor
There's a weakness in your strength
Because your leaders are unsure
There are shadows in the light
That once was freedom's brightest beam
America, what happened to the
Promise and the dream

There's a hating in your loving
For the permanence of vows
Tomorrow doesn't matter it's all for
The here and now
Your most important word called love
Is now a dirty thing
America, what happened to the
Promise and the dream