John McCutcheon
Hail to the Chief!
(and other Short Shelf-life Classics)

After years of requests John has finally assembled a collection of his topical songs on a CD. "Hail to the Chief" skewers personalities like Jerry Falwell, Pat Robertson, John Ashcroft, John Rocker and the linguistic acrobatics of George W. Bush. Along the way he manages to point humorous fingers at the Kansas School Board's scientific curiosities, Clear Channel Communication's censorship of peace songs and Virginia's new concealed weapons law. Again, baseball shows up in a couple of songs and Wendell Berry's novel, "Jayber Crow" even inspired a withering look at the New Economy.

Here's the CD for people who have longed for the straight-ahead solo sound of John and an instrument, his trademark humor and incisive observations. Available ONLY on this WWW site and at live performances.

John says: "One of the first things I ever learned about music was how much fun it was. Shortly thereafter, I learned how potent it was. Almost immediately I found that combining the two was down right lethal. Mentors like Tom Paxton, Malvina Reynolds, Phil Ochs, and Tom Lehrer all showed me that skilled insight, honed by a rapier wit, could accomplish things truth and sincerity often missed. Plus, you could get people who disagreed with one another to sit down and enjoy one another's company.

"Over the years, I've found the daily news an irresistible source of inspiration. Most of these topical ditties...what Paxton calls, "Short shelf-life songs"...would find their way into my set lists and then wane as quickly as the day's news reports. Some, however, have shown surprising longevity. I soon realized that, despite my efforts to turn these songs into MP3 files for free downloading from the folkmusic.com website, many folks in my audience no longer have teenagers living at home showing them how to download songs from the Internet for free. So as a nod to my technologically-challenged fans, I've assembled a baker's dozen of these "short shelf-life classics" into a new release, Hail to the Chief. It's available only here, on the web, or at my concerts. Enjoy!"

Formats

Lyrics

Ashcroft’s Army (2002)
words and music by John McCutcheon

Operation TIPS! Sign me up! I wanna be a spy!

I saw him on TV last night
In a suit of somber blue
He said it was time for all Americans
To do what we must do
Take out your x-ray glasses
And your decoder rings
We need ordinary people
To keep an eye on things

So…

I wanna be in Ashcroft’s Army
I wanna be a spy
I wanna watch my neighbor’s doings
Kiss your rights goodbye
In this legal devolution
A perfect chance for retribution
Let’s just can the Constitution
I wanna be a spy

I wanna be in Ashcroft’s Army
I wanna be a fed
I might look like the meter man
But I’m a spook instead
Delivering pizza or the mail
Buddy, you can never tell
I’ll haul your sorry ass to jail
I wanna be a spy

I wanna be in Ashcroft’s Army
I wanna be a sleuth
I wanna catch some terrorists
Don’t worry ‘bout the truth
If I see you hanging ‘round
Wearin’ a turban and your skin is brown
You’re gonna take a ride downtown
I wanna be a spy

I wanna be in Ashcroft’s Army
I’m gonna be a mole
It’s time to show the rest or my neighbors
Just who’s in control
The Vice-President said, “Shame on you!”
The Attorney General said it too
“Don’t you question what we do!”
I wanna be a spy

I wanna be in Ashcroft’s Army
I wanna a G-Man
He used to be a Senator
But now he is a free man
He’s a Attorney General instead
‘Cause the people of Missouri said
“We’d rather vote for a guy who’s dead!”
I wanna be a spy

I wanna be in Ashcroft’s Army
But still I’ve gotta wonder
Where was all this spying
When Adelphia went under
When Enron ran off with the loot
And Worldcom went right down the chute
Some terrorists wear pin-striped suits
I wanna be a spy

Charlottesville, VA August, 2002

©2002 John McCutcheon/Appalsongs (ASCAP)

Monkeys (1999)
words and music by John McCutcheon

When the Kansas School Board mandated that creationism be given equal weight in classroom instruction back in 1999 songwriters around the world rejoiced.

I went to school this morning
It was the first day of the year
Took out my paper and my pencil
And I opened up my mind and my ears
The teacher said, “Now students take your places
“Everybody settle in your desk
“The first class in going to be science
“Gonna use the Bible as our text.”

Chorus
There ain’t no monkeys in you
There’re none in me, I know
And there ain’t no monkeys in Kansas
‘Cause the school board to me so

So let’s get rid of Pythagoras
Relativity and all the rest
Cause if you can’t find it in Genesis
It ain't gonna be in our test

Chorus

Now, the land is flat in Kansas
As anyone can see
And if the school board says that the world is flat
Well, that’s good enough for me

Chorus

Every culture has a way to see creation
Each religion has a version of its own
So if you aren’t Christian or Jewish
You better hope Kansas ain’t your home

Chorus

I’ve learned that faith is one thing
And knowledge is something else
One doesn’t rule the other one out
As Einstein said himself

Chorus

Now, God gave us intelligence
And God he gave us brains
But I guess he ran just a little bit short
On that school board on the plains

Chorus

Stonington, ME & Winfield, KS

©1999 John McCutcheon/Appalsongs (ASCAP)

Talking Tinky-Winky Blues (1999)
words and music by John McCutcheon

Jerry Falwell has way too much free time.

Let me tell you all a story
Though I’m sure you’ve heard
If you’ve paid the least attention
Then you’ve gotten the word
About the latest in America’s
Favorite mix:
I’m talking
Politics, religion and sex
Yeah boy, brought many a dinner party, talk show, and federal government to a grinding halt

It seems that there’s a preacher that’s
Spending his days
Channel surfing searching for
Signs of gays
And he’s just uncovered something
That the rest of us missed
Aimed at two year olds
And the guy is pissed
We’re talking televised brain washing directly from Gay Control Central!

Teletubbies, Tinky Winky,
You know the deal
He’s purple, he’s gay
And I say, “Get real!”
The color’s pink, Jerry
And here’s further news:
If he’s gay his purse would
Match his shoes

Plus, you’ve got the wrong issue
It seems to me
The question is
Why should two year olds be watching TV?
But I know you’ve got a lot of
Witch-hunting to do
So I thought I’d help you out
‘Cause you missed a few:
like:

-Fred & Barney: remember the song? “we’ll have a gay old time”

-Donald Duck: “never wore any pants…spent a little too much time w/all those nephews, don’t you think?”

-Batman & Robin: wealthy single guy and younger man living in that big mansion, leading a double life, lots of tights and capes. Come on…

-Uncle Sam: he's your uncle, he wants you

-and, of course, the Purple One himself: Barney “I love you, you love me…” Gay.

See, what I can’t figure
Are his days so free
That he can waste ‘em watching
All that kid’s TV?
We’d all be better off
If you’d just begin
Preaching love and compassion
Instead of trolling for sin

Charlottesville, VA 1999

©1999 John McCutcheon/Appalsongs (ASCAP)

Hail to the Chief (2001)
words and music by John McCutcheon

The election of George W. Bush made us realize that Dan Quayle was a man way ahead of his time. Based entirely on W’s speeches.

I was born in West Texas, pretty near California
Far away from Dad’s home in DC
When I’m talkin’ ‘bout myself and
They’re talking ‘bout myself
All of us are talkin’ about me
Now some may retort to personal attacks
Take the high horse then claim the low road
But I’m not revengeful person
I’ll simply respond with this ode

When I delivered the State of the Budget Address
I offered a question or two
How can a man still put food on his family
Will the tollbooth to the middleclass become more few?
It’s time to make the pie higher
This idea’s sure to resignate
This is no time to be subliminable
It’s a time to unificate

If there’s more trade, there’s more commerce
And we’ll bring this solution to an end
Even if your business is Hispanically owned
If you speak French or Mexican
We’re working for a hopefuller country
No longer vulcanized
Where humans and fish can coexist
And each act civilized

I think we agree, the past is over
Still we’re held hostile everywhere
Today we’re not so sure who “they” are
But still, we know that they’re there
No longer inoculated from what is coming
With a foreign-handed foreign policy
Keep good relations w/ Kosovoans and Grecians
And resist emotionality


We know reading is the basics of learning
And learning…well…I forget the rest
But teach a child to read and he or her
Will sure pass a literacy test
So I ask you, “Is our children learning?”
Will we tolerate failed subsidation
Or will this be where wings finally take dream
Not a cufflink of federalization

So if you’re tired of the politics of polls and of principles
It’s time that you join this campaign
We’re looking for women who while serving our country
Never the house will they stain
Where our priorities is our faith
Where a troop can house his family
We’ll find power to power the power of the power plants
No, you’d best not misunderestimates me

Sung:
With every word and every breath
Our language dies a slow, sad death
Hail to the Chief, let’s give him hail
Part Yogi Berra
Part Dan Quayle

Charlottesville, VA 2001

©2001 John McCutcheon/Appalsongs (ASCAP)

I’m Packing (1998)
words and music by John McCutcheon

In 1998 Virginia became the latest state to introduce the concealed weapon permit program. I feel safer already.

Here in old Virginia we’re standing tall
It’s a brand new day, it’s a brand new law
We got a new world order in the Wild, Wild East
‘Cause I got my permit and I got my piece

Chorus
I’m packin’
I’m carryin’ heat
I’m packin’
Now it’s safe on the street
I’m packin’
No punk is gonna get in my way
‘Cause I’m packin’
Come on and make my day!

You can carry a gun and you don’t have to show it
You’re an armed man and no one has to know it
In your office in your church, it’s the American Way
Me and Charleton Heston and the NRA Chorus

Now when I’m driving to work out on the road
It’s buckle up, check your mirrors, lock and load
I got road rage, buddy, but I don’t scream or shout
If you cut me off I’m gonna take you out Chorus

No pointy-headed liberal’s gonna stop me now
One more bleeding heart whine and I tell you, “Pow!”
It was God, guts, and guns that made America great
Now I’ve decided before it’s too late Chorus

Vienna, VA March 1998

©1998 John McCutcheon/Appalsongs (ASCAP)

The List (2001)
words and music by John McCutcheon

In our post-September 11th world censorship masqueraded as patriotism.

Clear Channel Communication
Sent a memo to their stations
Asking DJs to take care
With songs they play upon the air
That might upset, that might divide
That just might stem the growing tide
To send the country into war
Guess that’s what the media is for

To help the listeners of this nation
Clear Channel Communication
Made a list and sent it out
Of songs we should think twice about
One hundred sixty songs or so
To not hear on your radio
Mettalica, The Clash and Queen
AC/DC, Bruce Springsteen
Van Halen, Kansas, Jackson Browne
Dave Matthews, Pink Floyd, Three Doors Down
A huge and most impressive list
But as I read I said, “What’s this?”
Louis Armstrong’s on there too
Neil Diamond, him I always knew
Elvis, Peter, Paul & Mary
James Taylor, he was always scary
“Imagine,” “Peace Train,” “Get Together”
“He Ain’t Heavy, He’s My Brother”
As I read this litany
One awful thought came clear to me

I didn’t make this list
Though I’ve worked my whole life long
Twenty five recordings
They can’t find one lousy song?
It’s a slap in the face, an awful disgrace
What do I have to do
To make the grade and not be played
Like Sinatra and U2?

“How many songs must a folksinger write
“Before they’re forever banned?”

“Imagine there’s no airplay
“It’s easy if you try…”

I’ve always disagreed with folks who’ve said
The world is saved by songs
One thing I’ve learned from all of this
Is that I must be wrong
Some people think it’s dangerous
These things we sing and write
The pen is mightier than the sword
And I’m wielding mine tonight

No, I didn’t make the list
Though I’m really not surprised
I guess that means I can resist
When they’ve silenced all these other guys
I’m taking it well, I’m giving ‘em hell
It’s the only sane solution
So here’s a song, now sing along
And join the revolution:

“Come on, people, now smile on your brother
“Everybody get together and love one another right now”

Charlottesville, VA September 2001

©2001 John McCutcheon/Appalsongs (ASCAP)

Take Back the Night (1997)
words and music by John McCutcheon

Written for a Take Back the Night rally here in Charlottesville.

There was a time I do recall
When the streets of this town of mine
Belonged to one and all
But now the nights seem dark and small
No one is safe, no way is clear
When lives are ruled by pain and fear

Take back the night
Take back this town
Take the light of this new day
And tear the darkness down
Take back our power
Take back our rights
Take back our dreams, take back our lives
Take back the night

There is a place in every heart
Where fear can make you stronger
Or can tear you right apart
This is the place where we must start
Mothers, fathers, daughters, sons
Together we will fear no one

This is the truth that we must speak
That violence and hatred are the weapons of the weak
We will not waver from what we seek
For we are the ones, we will not bow
The place is here, the time is now

Charlottesville, VA April 1997

©1997 John McCutcheon/Appalsongs (ASCAP)

Let’s Keep It Straight (1993)
words and music by John McCutcheon

An older song that…unfortunately…continues to be relevant.

I left home for boot camp the day I turned eighteen
It was ten weeks of hell, but I made a Marine
Stationed at Cherry Point when the call came to war
I was eager to go it's what I was trained for
So I shipped out to Dubai with the Hundred and First
And, though we never saw action, we knew ten times worse
In bone-chilling danger we lived every day
We found one of the guys in our unit was gay

Chorus A

Let's keep it straight when you carry a gun
It's not what you do, boys, it's just who you've done
The fate of our nation, it's power and might
Depend on who soldiers might sleep with at night

On patrol in the jungle, my buddies and I
Came upon, to our horror, the village, Mi Lai
Midst the dead and the dying we heard one old man say
"They came and they killed, but, thank God, they weren't gay!"

Chorus A

Bridge:

We work in your office, we teach in your schools
We pray in your churches, we live by the rules
We win your elections, we die in your wars
Who we choose to love is no business of yours

All alone on the street in the quickening night
Miles from home as my heart fills with fright
No place for a woman to be out this way
There's a man in the shadows, God, I hope that he's gay!

Chorus B:

Our leaders and generals all carry on,
"We need separate showers and barracks and johns"
Men frightened of men, I just laugh through my tears
To think it's what women have gone through for years

Chorus A

Tag:

I guess I misunderstood when I saw on TV,
"Join Today's Army, be all you can be"

©1993 John McCutcheon/Appalsongs (ASCAP).

John Rocker (2000)
words and music by John McCutcheon

They say baseball is the most metaphorical of American sports. It certainly offers a field upon which many of our great social dramas of heroism and bigotry play themselves out.

You give a kid a pile of money
And you put him on TV
For being better at a game
Than you and I will ever be
And you want him in your bullpen
And you want him in the zone
But you want him far away
From the microphone

John Rocker did an interview
He told us what he thought
It’s what a lot of people think
But he got caught
Now everybody’s wondering
Just what we’re gonna do
About the ugly little secret
That we always knew

When I read the story
First thing that came to mind
Was how Henry Aaron
Fought his whole lifetime
To battle all the demons
That raised their heads
In the kind of ideas
That interview spread


How many years?
How many times?
How many jokes?
How many crimes?
How many mistakes?
How many abuses?
How many apologies?
How many excuses?

‘Cause I am the queer with AIDS, John Rocker
I’m the single mother with the kids, John Rocker
I am the foreigner and I got here
The same way your people did, John Rocker
So take your seat on the subway
Get on the bus
Underneath your fears
You’re just one of us

John Rocker did an interview
He told us what he thought
It’s what a lot of people think
But he got caught

Charlottesville, VA 2000

©2000 John McCutcheon/Appalsongs (ASCAP)
 

It’s the Economy, Stupid (2001)
words and music by John McCutcheon

Written after reading Wendell Berry’s fabulous novel, Jayber Crow.

It’s the economy, stupid
A victory sign
A mantra
An explanation
A reminder
A warning
An omen
An onus
A threat
It’s the economy, stupid

Farmers’ wives bring eggs
Chickens
Whole milk
Fresh butter
To the local market
To the store
Come in with groceries
And leave with groceries and money

Small farmers raise crops
For local markets
Up at dawn
Home at dusk
More in fallow
Than under the plow
Dark loam
Rich with earthworms
Defying erosion
Anchoring forest borders
Home for
Game
Shelter
Shade
Now virginity is no longer fashionable
Even in our forests
We will harvest another crop
Of walnut
Cherry, oak
If we only live
Another hundred years.
Man was the last piece
Of creation
And has been playing catch up
Ever since.

Farming is a balance
Of muscle
Daylight
And conservation
Machinery
Becomes the muscle now
Allowing us to work
Into the night.
We plant our debts
Fencerow to fencerow
Swallowing
Every bitter dram
Of expert advice
Until
…drunk with dreams
of fortune
equity
leverage
growth…

We grow
What we cannot use
Purchase
What we used to raise
Spend
What we used to save
Sell
What we used to treasure
Mock
What we used to revere
Hate
What we used to love
It’s the economy, stupid

Understand…
I am not a nostalgist
I am a most pragmatic man
I look at what naturally occurs
In the living world…
And see diversity
Not specialization.
I look at
Hometown banks
Restaurants
Hardware stores
Where your name
Is your credit
And decisions are rendered
By people who know you
Where you are more than
The five banks
And the four airlines
And the three newspaper chains
And the two big box stores
And the one-and-a-half political parties
And the one retort:
It’s the economy stupid

And the standards
That demand that
Every teacher teaches
Every student
Exactly the same thing
And, like these students
I have to ask “why?”
Why?
It’s the economy, stupid

Now those educated
Appraised students
Ride their buses
From their consolidated schools
Back to their small towns and farms
And cannot wait
To drive their cars away
On that highway of diamonds
Into the consolidated cities
Where they look back
In shame
And wonder
Stranded
Between what they know
And what they’ve been sold
It’s the economy, stupid

The economy that looks
For the maximum return
For the quick turnaround
For the short term gain
For the unearned income
For the Big Lotto
It’s the economy, stupid

And the economy
Is impatient
It has a short attention span
It is easily bored
It is hungry
It is late for its next appointment
It puts you on hold
It does not return your call
It’s the economy, stupid

The economy
Has you working two jobs
It is mandatory overtime
It is expensive sneakers
Made by sweating children
It is cheap food
Picked by landless hands
It is good paying jobs
Disappearing from American towns
And reappearing
Nowhere
It is your closed up main street
And it is your boarded up mill
And it is your condo-minimized factory
And it is your cookie cutter mall
And it is not accountable
It is not America
It’s the economy, stupid

The economy now has no borders
Or horizons
Or faces
Or hands
The economy has only one rule:
More.

And the economy lies.
The economy tells us it is about Freedom.
The economy is about Dependence.
Not on land
Or animals
Or weather
Or neighbors
But
On machinery
And fuel
And credit.
Most farmers
Have borrowed their way
Right out of farming.
And
No government loan
No government program
Will change
That cycle.
Because the government
Is powerless now, see…
It’s the economy, stupid

And the government is the economy’s
Biggest cheerleader.
It plays by the same rules:
The quick fix
The stronger army
The bigger bomb
The dependence on machinery
To do work
That can only effectively be done
By humans.
It consolidates
When diversity is required.

It’s about economy
It’s about small towns with
Banks
And baseball teams
A general store
Churches
Family cemeteries
A schoolhouse
A lumberyard
A radio station
A newspaper
A roadhouse
A funeral home
A filling station
Open space
Open opportunity
Open eyes
Open hearts
Choice
Recourse
Response
Responsibility
It’s about economy

Craigston, Carriacou, Grenada February 2001

©2001 John McCutcheon/Appalsongs (ASCAP)

Picture of Jesus (1999)
words and music by John McCutcheon

Looking for God in all the wrong places…

In the National Catholic Reporter
A paper I have actually read
They’re havin’ ‘em a great big contest
This is what the article said
“Take out your paper and your pencils
“Take out your crayons and your paint
“One of you is gonna be a winner
“One of you is gonna be a saint!”

We need a whole new picture of Jesus
For the new millennium
Something that’ll speak to the ages
Yet something that’ll work for years to come
Something that’ll give our lives new meaning
For bumper stickers, T-shirts, MTV
We need a whole new picture of Jesus
For the 21st Century

I guess we all could use a better picture
I suppose we all need a change of face
You know, they did it to Betty Crocker
And now she’s all over the place
They’ll gonna take all of the entries
And give it to that TV nun
And when she hollers “Jesus Christ”
I reckon that’ll be the one

We need a whole new picture of Jesus
Something that’ll boost his market share
Something that’ll say, “Jesus is today”
Something that’ll make the people care
We need a new corporate logo
Something for our focus groups can see
We need a whole new picture of Jesus
For the 21st Century

So I took a little bit of Elvis
And a little dab of Mt. T
And I threw in some Jerry Seinfeld
‘Cause I sure liked him on TV
And, of course, I used some Kristi Yamagoochi
Some Michael Jordan I had sittin’ on the shelf
And great big bunch of Aretha
‘Cause I just couldn’t help myself

We need a whole new picture of Jesus
Something that’ll grab a whole new crew
Maybe what he needs is a new haircut
Maybe an earring or tattoo
It’s a natural evolution
I’m sure it’s where our savior wants to be
We need a whole new picture of Jesus
For the 21st Century

But I finally took out my camera
And I went out onto the street
And I started taking pictures
Of everyone I’d meet
And I’m sending ‘em in as my entry
Two hundred photos or more
The guy in the Beemer, the bum on the corner
The kid in the grocery store

I figure if you’re never sure who’s Jesus
And if you’re never sure who ain’t
You’re never sure who’s the sinner
You’re never sure who’s the saint
We need a whole new picture of Jesus
One that looks a lot like you and me
We need a whole new picture of Jesus
For the 21st Century

Stonington, ME August 1999

©1999 John McCutcheon/Appalsongs (ASCAP)

Talking Pat & Jerry Blues (2001)
words and music by John McCutcheon

As a Virginian I never cease to be amazed that these two bastions of regressive thinking live mere hours from my door. They’ve given our state a black eye and religious people a bad name. But they continue to give me more songs than I can pen.

On September 11th
The awful news came
Our tears and our innocence
Fell like rain
Glued to the screens
Of our TV sets
It’s a day that none of us
Will ever forget

As the dust settled
And we counted the cost
We were all drawn together
By the lives that were lost
“Who could have done this?”
Arose the shout
Well, two guys from Virginia
Have is all figured out

Two television preachers
Got it down
In Virginia Beach
And Lynchburg town
Jerry Falwell
And Pat Robertson
Let us all in
On why the deed was done

It was pro-choice folks
That caused that day
Feminists, liberals
And, of course, the gays
Jerry and Pat said
God got pissed
Hijacked some planes
And…you know the rest

Jerry, you were mildly amusing
With the Tinky Winky stuff
And when Pat ran for President
It was hilarious enough
But when this came out
I couldn’t resist
Now God’s not the only
One who’s pissed

How dare you exploit
This fragile time
Tying innocent people
To this horrible crime
At a time we should
Stand side by side
You chose, instead,
To help divide

But at least you’ve cleared up
Some of our doubts
Now we all know exactly
What you’re about:
Out of step with your religions
And full of fear
Fundamentalist fanatics
Who live right here

Sheltered by the State
Out of reach
You terrorize
By what you preach
We’re tired of you telling us
Just what’s what
I say, “Jerry and Pat:
Shut the hell up!”

Pittsburgh Airport September 2001

©2001 John McCutcheon/Appalsongs (ASCAP)

I Am Here (2001)
words and music by John McCutcheon

Written for a concert at the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2001.

We gather every August here
To celebrate our game
And raise above our number
Those heroes we can name
But today I want to tell my Dad
A thing he never thought he’d hear:
I am here
Those Saturdays at our house
The Braves there on the screen
The names of Matthews, Aaron, Spahn
Were but a distant, wondrous dream
But those not enshrined in Cooperstown
I hold them just as dear
And it is in their name that I am here

For every kid who’s chosen last
And comes back a second time
For every life-time minor leaguer
For the last guy in the line
For every broken-hearted Red Sox fan
Crying in his beer
I am here
For every kid that played in little league
Who still walks in those dreams
For every small market last place crowd
Who cheers the hometown team
For every fan who truly does believe
That this might be the year
I am here

Chorus
I am here
For all the others
Who never got this far
I am here
For every kid out there
Still wishing on that star
For every hope raised like a beacon
Proud and bright and clear
I am here, I am here

For every bleacher bun who tosses back
A visitor’s home run
For every sorry, battered loser
Who still thinks this game is fun
For those still cheering for the Cubbies
After all these years
I am here
For every parent, every child
Playing catch out in the yard
For every guy whose mother threw away
That box of baseball cards
Who thinks back on their favorite team
And will not fight a tear
I am here Chorus

For those who’ll try to stretch
A single to a double every time
For every sacrifice and squeeze play
When the game is on the line
For every ten year old who faces
Their first curve ball without fear
I am here
For every creaking joint and muscle
On your hometown senior league
For every fifty year old dreamer
Who fights through the fatigue
Whose only satisfaction is
One good swing and a beer
I am here Chorus

I wish I could tell every story
I wish that I knew every name
Of every coach and comrade
Who made me love this game
Every teammate, each opponent
I want to tell them all
This is your Hall
For every pickup game and sandlot
In every little town
For every street in every city
Where stickball still is found
For every 6 or 86 year old
Still swinging for the wall
This is your Hall Chorus

Vienna, VA Mayday 2001

©2001 John McCutcheon/Appalsongs (ASCAP)