Lyric of the Week: KICK THE BUMS OUT
Fiddling and diddling while the country burns and rots
The same old leopards run the show and they can’t change their spots
The few line their pockets and keep the many down
You wonder just how much they can suck out of our cities and towns
We can’t let these fools keep calling the shots
They don’t listen to our screams
They don’t care about our shouts
Let’s put our muscle where our mouth is
and leave ‘em with no doubt
Some direct action to let ‘em know what we’re about
Kick ‘em out, kick ‘em out, kick the bums out!
It’s been the same old bull for decades now
Tammany Hall’s got nothing on these clowns
The surrounding towns prosper while this place remains a dump
Ask the big shots why and they’ll act all stumped
We gotta set these guys loose no matter how
So let’s kick ‘em in the shins
Hit ‘em in the snout
Knock ‘em upside the head in a one-round bout
Let’s turn their silly victories into a complete rout
Kick ‘em out, kick ‘em out, kick the bums out!
This silly soap opera called politics
Is just old dogs up to their tired old tricks
It all looks new and different but it’s really all the same
It’s about time for new attitudes, faces, and names
‘Cause this business-as-usual has made us all sick
Well we ain’t just gonna whimper
We ain’t just gonna pout
We’re gonna hiss and howl, and holler and shout
Let’s give ‘em a slap, a sting, a clout
Kick ‘em out, kick ‘em out, kick the bums out!
©2016 The Hesh Inc.
I wrote this in the early 2000s, after seeing a corrupt city council get away with murder one too many times. I actually performed it twice, once on a local radio show and again at a coffee house not far from city hall. At least one councilman heard it and from that point forward would not even look in my direction (and yes, he knew exactly who I was). The original title was "bastards," not "bums" ... I can just imagine how well that would have gone over!
Fortunately, the days of corruption at that level seem to have passed on, with more responsible official elected who cared at least as much about the city as about their own position. I'd like to think that my 2¢ had something to do with it.