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Roger Waters lyrics
Album: Radio K.A.O.S. [1987]
| Radio Waves | |
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Radio waves, Radio waves,
He hears radio waves, Radio waves,
The atmosphere is thin and cold
The yellow sun is getting old
The ozone overflows with radio waves
AM, FM whether and news
Our leaders have a frank exchange of views
Are you confused, radio waves.
Radio waves, radio waves
AM radio waves, FM radio waves
Radio waves, mind-numbing radio waves
Fish-stunning radio waves
Radio waves.
Magic Billy in his wheel chair
Is picking up all this stuff in the air
Billy is face to face with outer space
Messages from distant stars
The local police calling all cars, radio waves
Hear them radio waves, radio waves
Jesus saves radio, radio waves
Radio waves, AM radio waves, FM radio waves
All them radio waves
Radio waves, radio waves, he hears radio waves
Radio waves, radio waves, hopeful radio waves,
dopeful radio waves
Radio waves, Russian radio waves, Prussian radio waves
Eastern radio waves, western radio waves
Testing radio waves, one, two. One, two.
Radio waves. Getting through to you
Morse code radio waves, Tobacco road radio waves
South to Paloma radio waves, Oklaholma City radio waves
Sitting pretty radio waves, nitty-gritty radio waves
Radio waves
Jim: Alright, that's song called Radio Waves. You are listening to
K.A.O.S. in Los Angeles and we've got Billy on the line.
Billy: I'm from the valleys.
Jim: Are you from valley?
Billy: No, Jim you schmuck, the Valleys; male voice choirs, Wales.
Jim: Ah, you're from Wales! Now is this sperm or blue-tip?
Billy: Ha, ha, ha, ha. Very funny Jim.
Jim: Sorry.
Billy Me and Benny went out.
Jim: Who is Benny ?
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| Who Needs Information | |
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Me and Benny went out last night
Looking for fun
Supping ale in the moonlight
Waiting for the dawn to come
Benny pointed at a HiFi shop
He said hey man look at all the stuff they've got
How'd you make a have out of a have not
Hmmmm,
Who needs information
When you're working underground
Just give me confirmation
We could win a million pounds
Benny climbed up on a footbridge
And he teetered on the parapet
He said can you see the whites of their headlights
Are the coming yet
Who needs information
This high off the ground
Just give me confirmation
We could win a million pounds
Who needs information
When you're living in constant fear
Just give me confirmation
There's some way out of here
Some way out of here
Benny hafted a breeze block
And tried to let go
Got hung up on a tear drop
So me and Benny went home
Who needs information
When you're living in constant fear
Just give me confirmation
There's some way out of here
Some way out of here
Who needs information yeah
When you living on as borrowed time
Just give me confirmation
there will be a winner this time
Who needs information when you're working underground
Just give me confirmation
We could win a million pounds
Who needs, who needs, who needs information
This high off the ground
Just give me confirmation
We could win a million pounds - yeah
Jim: Vm.
Jim lights a cigarette
Jim: So your brothers in jail?
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| Me Or Him | |
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You wake up in the morning, get something for the pot
Wonder why the sun makes the rocks feel hot
Draw on the walls, eat, get laid
Back in the good old days
Then some damn fool invents the wheel
Listen to the whitewalls squeal
You spend all day looking for a parking spot
Nothing for the heart, nothing for the pot
Benny turned the dial on his Short Wave radio
Oh how he wanted to talk to the people,
he wanted his own show
Tune in Moscow, Tune in New York
Listen to the Welsh kid talk
Communicating like in the good old days
Forgive me father for i have sinned
It was either me or him
And the voice said Benny
You fucked the whole thing up
Benny your time is up
Your time is up
Benny turn the dial on his Short Wave radio
He wanted to talk to the people,
he wanted his own show
Tune in Moscow, Tune in New York
Listen to the Welsh kid talk communicating
Like in the good old days
Forgive me father
Welsh Policeman: Mobile one two to Central
For I have sinned
Welsh Policeman: We have a multiple on the A465
between Cwmbran and Cylgoch.
Father, it was either me or him
Father, can we turn back the clock?
Welsh Policeman: Ambulance, over.
I never meant to drop the concrete block,
Welsh Policeman: Roger Central, over and out.
Benny turned the dial on his Short Wave radio
He wanted to talk to the people,
He wanted his own show
Tune in Moscow, Tune in New York
Listen to the Welsh kid talk
Just like in the good old days
The good old days
Radio announcer: Do you really think Iranian terrorists would have
taken American hostage if Ronald Reagan were president?
Do you really think the Russians would have invaded Afghanistan if
Ronald Reagan were president?
Do you really think third-rate military dictators would laugh at
America and burn our flag in contempt if Ronald Reagan were
president?
Concerned Citizen: Well it might work!
Hostage: We as a group do most importantly want to beseech President
Reagan and out fellow Americans to refrain of any form of military
or violent means as an attempt, no matter how noble or heroic, to
secure our freedom.
Concerned Citizen: Sure! Only it's going to be mighty dangerous for
you, Cassidy
Hoppy's faithful sidekick guess you don't know Hopalong Cassidy,
Mister. Adventure's his bread, excitement's his butter and danger,
why to him that's like strawberry jam to top it off.
Jim: This is some live rock and roll at KAOS, where rock and roll
comes out of chaos and song called "The Powers that Be"...
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| That Powers That Be | |
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The powers that be
They like a tough game
No rules
Some you win, some you lose
Competition's good for you
They're dying to be free
They're the powers that be
They like a bomb proof cadillac
Air conditioned, gold taps
Back seat gun rack, platinum hub caps
they pick horses of courses
They're the market forces
Nice car Jack
They like order, make-up, lime light power
Game shows, rodeos, star wars, TV
They're the power that be
If you see them come,
You better run - run
You better run on home
Sisters of mercy better join your brothers
Put a stop to the soap opera right now
They say the toothless get ruthless
You better run on home
You better run - run
You better run on home
The powers that be
They like treats, tricks, carrots and sticks
They like fear and loathing, the like sheep's clothing
And blacked-out vans
Blacked-out vans, contingency plans
They like death or glory, they love a good story
Sisters of mercy better join with your brothers
Put a stop to the soap opera state
They say the toothless get ruthless
Run home before its too late
You better run - run
You better run on home
Billy: Goodnight, Jim.
Jim: Goodnight, Billy.
Uncle David's Great Dane: Woof, woof, woof!
The canyon - daytime. Billy plays with Great Uncle David's Great Dane.
Paraquat Kelly: Bull heads, three red snapper, one pink
snapper and your Pacific coastal thench hosemonster fish
Cynthia Fox: Ohhh! At Sky David's juke joint of joy reports, forty
under the console giggle stick ling cod, twenty-three purple perches
four sledgehammerhead sharks, and no red snappers.
Paraquat Kelly: Hey and that'll do for the triumphant return of the
fish report with a beat.
Jim: We think of it is a mainstreet, but to the rest of the country
it's Sunset Strip. You're listening to KAOS in Los Angeles.
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| Sunset Strip | |
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I like staying with my Uncle Dave
And i like playing with his great dane
But I don't fit
I feel alien and strange, Kinda outa range
I like riding in my Uncle's car
Down to the beach where the pretty girls all parade
And movie stars and paparazzi play
The Charles Atlas kicking sand in the face game
And I sit in the canyon with my back to the sea
There's a blood red dragon on a field of green
Calling me back
Back to the Black Hills again
Ooh, ooh, Billy come home
Billy is searching for his native land
Flicking through the station with the dial in his head
Pickingup--------------and
A male voice choir on the short wave band
Billy tap's out Jim's number on the 'phone
Sits shaking as he waits for Jim's answering tone
Come on my friend, speak to me, please
the land of my fathers is calling to me
And I sit in the canyon with my back to the sea
There's a blood red dragon on a field of green
Calling me back, back to the Black Hills again
Ooh, ooh, Billy come home
.
Come on home
Hi sits in the canyon with his back to the sea
Sees a blood red dragon on a field of green
He hears a male voice choir singing Billy come home
Billy, Billy, come home
Californian Weirdo: I don't like fish, marine fish.
Jim: You are listening to KAOS here in Los Angeles
Californian Weirdo: I don't like fish
Jim: Yes, we've established that, Ah! Do you have a request?
Californian Weirdo: Shell fish, guppy, salmon, shrimp and crab and
lobster, flounder, I hate fish, but I think most of all I have
fresh fish, like trout. I hate fish trout. I have fresh trout. My
least-heted, favourite fish would be sole. That way you don't have
to see eyes. Sole has no eyes.
Jim: Oh no!
I'd like to be home with my monkey and my dog.
Jim: Thank you.
I'd like to be home with my monkey and my dog.
I'd like to be home with my monkey and my dog.
I'd like to be home with my monkey and my dog.
I'd like to be home with my monkey ...
Jim: They don't care. Shut up. Play the record.
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| Home | |
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Jim: Oh, God!
Californian Weirdo: Sole has no eyes.
Could be Jerusalem, or could be Cairo
Could be Berlin, or could be Prague
Could be Moscow, could be New York
Could be Llanelli, and could be Warrington
Could be Warsaw, and it could be Moose Jaw
Could be Rome
Everybody got somewhere they call home
When they overrun the defences
A minor invasion put down to expenses
Will you go down to the airport lounge
Will you accept your second class status
A nation of waitresses and waiters
Will you mix there martinis
Will you stand still for it
Or will you take to this hills
It could be clay and it could be sand
Could be desert
Could be a tract of arable land
Could be a house, could be a corner shop
Could be a cabin by bend in the river
Could be something you old men handed down
Could be something you built in your own
Everybody got something he calls home
When the cowboys and Arabs draw down
On each other at noon
In the cool dusty air of the city boardroom
Will you stand by a passive spectator
Of the market dictators
Will you discreetly withdraw
With your ear pressed to the boardroom door
Will you hear when the lion within you roars
Will you take to the hills
Will you stand, will you stand for it
Will you hear, ohhhh! ohhh! when the lion within you roars
Could be your father and could be your mother
Could be your sister, could be your brother
Could be a foreigner, could be Turk
Could be a cyclist out looking for work, Norman
Could be a king, could be the Aga Khan
Could be a Vietnam vet with no arms and no legs
Could be a saint, could be a sinner
Could be a loser or it could be a winner
Could be a banker, could be a baker
Could be a Laker, could be Kareem Abdul Jabar
Could be a mail voice choir
Could be a super heavyweight, or it could be something lighter
Could be a cripple, could be a freak
Could be a wop, gook, geek
Could be a cop, could be a thief
Could be a family of ten living in one room on relief
Could be a our leaders in their concrete tombs
With their tinned food and their silver spoons
Could be a pilot with God on his side
Could be a kid in the middle of the bomb sight
Could be a fanatic, could be a terrorist
Could be a dentist, could be a psychiatrist
Could be a humble, could be proud
Could be a face in the crowd
Could be a soldier in the white cravat
Who turns the key in spite of the fact
That this is the end of the cat and the mouse
Who dwelt in the house
Where the laughter rang and the tears were split
The house that Jack built
Where the laughter rang and the tears were split
The house that Jack built
Bang, bang, shoot, shoot
White gloves thumb, Lord thy will be done
He was always a good boy his mother said
He'll do this duty when he's grown, yeah
Everybody got someone they call home
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| Four Minutes | |
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Billy: Four minutes and counting.
Jim: O.K.
Billy: They pressed the button, Jim.
Jim: They pressed the button Billy, what button?
Billy: The big red one.
Jim: You mean _t_h_e_ button?
Billy: Goodbye, Jim.
Jim: Goodbye! Oh yes. This ain't au revoir, it's goodbye! Ha! Ha!
Jim: This is KAOS. It's a beautiful, balmy, Southern California
summer day, It's 80 degrees ... I said balmy ... I could say bomby
... Ha! Ha!...O.K. I'm Jim and this is Radio KAOS and with only
four minutes left to us, let's use this as wisely as possible.
Molly: Everybody got someone they call home.
Jim: Out a Dodger Stadium.
It's the bottom of the seventh, the Dodgers are leading three to
nothing over the Giants, and for those of you who are looking to go
surfing tomorrow, too bad.
'Phone rings.
Jim: I'm kinda lost in here to tell you the truth ...
O.K. good. Ladies and gentlemen, if the reports that we are getting
are correct, this could be it. Billy, if you're listening to me,
please call now.
After a near miss on the plane
You swear you'll never fly again
After the first kiss when you make up
You swear you'll never break up again
And when you've just run a red light
Sit shaking under the street light
You swear to yourself you'll never drink and drive again
Sometimes I feel like going home
You swear you'll let things go by again.
Sometimes I miss the rain and the show
And you'll never toe the party line again
And when the east wind blows
Sometimes I feel like going home
Jim: Billy, if you're listening, please call.
Californian Weirdo: Sole has no eyes.
Molly: Goodbye little spy in the sky
The say that cameras don't lie.
Am I happy, am I sad, am I good, am I bad?
Jim: Billy, if you're listening, please call.
Californian Weirdo: Sole has no eyes, sole has no eyes
Billy: Ten, nine, eight, seven
Margaret Thatcher: Our own independent nuclear deterrent has helped
to keep the peace.
Billy: Six, five, four, three,
Ordinary Person: ...you've got a job...
Billy: Two, one
Margaret Thatcher: For nearly forty years
Jim: Goodbye, Billy.
THE TIDE IS TURNING (After Live Aid)
I used to think the world was flat
Rarely threw my hat into the crowd
I felt I had used up my quota of yearning
Used to look in on the children at night
In the glow of their Donald Duck light
And frighten myself with the thought of my little ones burning
But oh, oh, oh, the tide is turning
The tide is turning
Satellite buzzing through the endless night
Exclusive to moonshots and world little fights
Jesus Christ imagine what it must be earning
Who is the strongest, who is the best
Who holds the aces, the East or the West
This is the crap our children are learning
But oh, oh, oh, the tide is turning
The tide is turning
Oh, oh, oh, the tide is turning
Now the satellite's confused
'Cos on Saturday night
The airwaves were full of compassion and light
And his silicon heart warmed
To the sight of a billion candles burning
Oo, oo, oo, the tide is turning
Oo, oo, oo, the tide is turning
the tide is turning Billy
I'm not saying that the battle is won
But on Saturday night all those kids in the sun
Wrested technology's sword from the hand of the War Lords
Oh, oh, oh, the tide is turning
The tide is turning Sylvester
The tide is turning.
Words and music by Roger Waters (P) 1987
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