StrangeLittlePoems

On this past Tori Amos tour, I was able to hand Tori in person poems I had written, based upon the songs covered on her latest album StrangeLittleGirls.  These poems attempted to capture the women, the spirits, that spoke to me when I heard the words and how Tori conveyed them.  Building on the characters Tori created, and releasing characters that spoke to me instead of those she intended, I created 12 StrangeLittlePoems.  I have yet to hear back on them, and someday, I'd like to.  Being as he wrote the stories for each character with Tori, I'd also love Neil Gaiman to see them.  Here they are, ordered as the CD has them.  On the left column you will find the poems;  On the right, are the lyrics for those not as familiar with Tori, so that you may see what formed the foundation of the works.

These poems may be triggering for issues of self-injury, domestic violence, rape, abuse and depression; reader discretion and care is advised.  To skip this page for now, click below at the bottom of the page.  Otherwise, enjoy.

THE POEMS.

THE LYRICS.

 

NEW AGE *accompanies New Age*

Slipping into the

velvety folds of

a mini, garnished

with lace

A four star dish,

says the reflection in the mirror

The phone rings, and she startles,

her smooth pale hand grazing

her naked shoulder,

smearing crimson,

like the remains of a vampire’s

gentle kiss;

and she answers

and nods

and slips into her shoes

The road winds with clockwork precision,

curves perfectly spaced and proportioned

so as not to allow one to doze

at the wheel;

the bridge, crossing watery wisps

that geographers jokingly call a creek and brook

And she hums an old Patsy Cline tune

as she slips around the bends,

like the daring hand of

a thirteen year old boy seeking

the promised land he drools at

in Playboy

Her movements smooth, yet tinged

with the green of naivete

She is participant and observer

actor and director,

and she is determined to get her lines right

(Funny how naturally they come so soon after reading the script in that magazine,

the one for alternative lifestyles. What a term

to call something so eloquent and raw, she thinks as she steps inside the bar)

Her chardonnay rolling about her tongue, she heads for the jukebox;

The Chairman of the Board is singing to her soul:

"I did it my way"

Her lips surround his voice silently,

in a gesture of solidarity

and unspoken secrets and knowledge

And she slips deeper into the crowds, the

mushroom clouds of nicotine and Mary Jane,

and she finds her subjects, eager volunteers

in a game where she will always hunt

and never be pursued again

The blonde eyes her breasts, and she eyes hers in return

as the young gentlemen brushes her cheek in a kiss

She nods, her eyes fluttering slowly in a blink-open-blink

as smoothly as her velvet dress hugs her hips.

The room is upstairs.

And they will go there now, woman on top

of this pyramid of eroticism

Monogamy no longer means

what it once did; and this is what intrigues her

What catches her eye

And with this night, begins her

exploration of her deepest, core self

The beginning of a

new Age

 


THE BEACH*accompanies 97 Bonnie and Clyde*

The water is cold, murky,

churning like her stomach

as she clings to a whisper, a

muffled voice through

a metal coffin

One last kiss

One more goodbye

And her head screams

because her throat no longer can;

it bears witness to the mistakes of her youth

‘He’ll only break your heart’. they told her

‘He isn’t worth it’

But she believed he was, believed she could change him

But she couldn’t.

She never could.

And now, never would, unless

Unless....

A sharp slam to the back of her head

when a tire iron connects as

pothole meets car

And a small, quiet question reaches her ears:

"Why is Mommy in the trunk?"

And a single tear rolls down her cheek, her body sparing no fluid

as the gaping hole weeps on her chest

Claustrophobia sets in; and suddenly

Death seems easier

But no one ever said

motherhood was easy, and so she slowly gasps,

her eyes clouded, a finger of fog wrapping about her mind

and she waits and waits

for her last trip to the beach,

for her last kiss goodbye

from the only one

who has ever truly loved her,

the one who always will love her

And it is that love, she knows,

that will kill the little girl

when she realizes that

Mommy can never return from the bed

she helped her dad roll her into

Like a castle made of sand,

her daughter’s world has been flooded

with salty cold water,

destroyed by a wave of goodbye

 


UNRUHE*accompanies Strange Little Girl*

Even nature is violent

In this small, run-down town

And the birds do not sing,

They scream,

As I scream,

Bolting upright from

the dream.

It’s always the same, my dream;

I am walking alone

On a cobblestone road

That never ends,

And my shoes are dirty,

Caked with mud,

That flakes off, but never completely disappears

I reach a riverbed,

And splash the coolness on my face,

But my fever remains

And I rinse my shoes

But now they bleed more mud,

Always dirty

Dirty like me

Jimmy, the elephant trainer

Says I am forever

Lady Macbeth;

Crying out at spots on my soul

As if soap can ever erase

My sins, my blame

Sometimes, I wish I could run away from my soul.

My macabre

Reverie is broken by

The happy crowds drifting by,

As Jimmy arrives

He takes my hand, pressing

A tissue into it

With a whispering touch

To my forsaken flesh

‘You really should be going’, he says

I just wish I knew where to.

 

IN MY ARMS*accompanies Enjoy the Silence*

I can hear the voices now,

Ringing in my ears,

A cacophony of hateful noise.

Even in solitary confinement of my own design,

I am never alone

I’m not sure what’s worse:

Loneliness or longing for it

I trace the lines, blue/black on pale brown,

Tanned from the sun now,

Not my father’s backhand

And I remember lines –

Lines raised upon my flesh

From belt buckles;

Lines in schoolbooks I would stare at

And never use;

Lines in my mother’s face, worn from

Years of a licensed civil war;

Lines on the highway I traced with

A swollen, calloused finger

Through the bus window

As I escaped to Vegas.

I hear his yells, lightning raping a perfect

Starry sky

And her cries,

And I pound my ears

But they do not submit

And it is then I draw back,

And the lines, the lines

They appear

Warn and red, slippery smooth

The silence is here and I know

All I ever wanted, or needed,

Is here, within my arms.

 


SONNET IN THE KEY OF LEATHER*accompanies I'm Not in Love*

‘Why should I love?’

she asked me;

and for that, I had no reply.

I was prepared for the other

Brush-offs:

‘too old’, ‘too young’

‘too cute’, ‘too ugly’

‘I’m a dyke’; ‘You make me want to be one’

[the last is my personal favourite, for originality]

But she simply said,

‘I’m not in love; I never will be

So shut up sweetheart

And enjoy the ride’

And I did,

With the feverish devotion

Of a cult member,

Start-struck with his new Messiah in blue jeans

Only my goddess wore leather,

Vinyl,

And a dash of metal, cuffed ‘round

Slim, pale wrists and

Rich warm neck flesh

The more I needed her

The more she ran

Hair flicker-flashing through club lights,

Chains dangling from her hips

She wielded her flesh and lips

With the precision of the executioner

And I fell,

One more casualty

The only reminder of my love

A picture, hiding a blood stain on her wall

 


E PUR SI MUOVE*accompanies Rattlesnakes*

I drift along these worn and weary streets,

a tumbleweed among roses

The people eye me, piercing my flesh

With cold and malice,

But I will not scream.

No one will ever make me scream again

If rivers could rinse away our lives’ pains

I’d surely need an ocean

To bathe in, breathe in;

Perhaps I’d dare to join the fish

And live forever in blue-black

Bejeweled with mossy green

Then again, would the fish

Resent my polluting their peace

With impurity?

Such are one’s thoughts, when

The wind snaps at your face,

Berating you for the foolish games

You’ve played;

And I am champion, an expert now

If I had the courage,

If I’d had love,

If I’d had….

But I never did.

And so here, along the shore of the

Mississippi, crisp and blue-grey,

I trace the lines, trace them as if

Relearning true pain

Easy as 1-2-3;

The time I ‘fell over drunk’

And hit the table;

With the deathly chill of the rain,

My knee aches still at night,

Remembering his hammers,

Remembering being forced to scrub

My blood, iron-rust, from

Calculating steel.

The line across my wrist,

From Thanksgiving;

When I realized the only thing I

Could be thankful for

Was death

Funny, the times your courage

Sells out

Through the leaves, I hear her cry,

A gorgeous siren who never saw day;

Only a blood-red sky

As he kicked her, as if

Destroying her would appease the

Monster inside him

It was she who demanded I pull the trigger of the shotgun a week later.

We watched him fall, with a look of

Boyish surprise;

A silent confusion crossed his eyes as

Buckshot met empty chest cavity;

He’d made me scream for the last time that night,

When he paid for

My siren’s demise

I wish I’d had the strength

To turn the gun to me;

But instead, I wander

Daring the wind and hail to catch me,

Daring them to do me a favour

In the meantime, she stirs,

A phantom within

‘E Pur Si Muove’, Galileo; but

this time, I’m ready for my trial

by fire

Our shotgun by our side

As we leave the water, passing a seldom

Heeded warning tacked to a weeping willow:

‘Beware of Rattlesnakes’

 

DARK ANGEL*accompanies Time*

She stands guard,

As they fall, one by one,

Stars from the sky

Giving in to the peace that comes

With no longer holding yourself aloft

She knows the warmth

Beneath the coldest ice,

Knows that love is the real paradise

A strand of hair crosses her cheek,

A silent gesture of prayer as

It blows, right to left

Swept up, only to descend

Amen.

The TV glows in the corner,

As she guards the door

There are times she wants to leave her post

But only she could hold the torch;

Only she could understand

The beauty of life,

And understand that it is not infinite

Even stars burn out, and fade away

And when they do,

She is there,

To cradle, to soothe,

To press the coins across the eyes

The radio filled with Ed K.

"I feel it coming back again"

as she rewards one more

for having the courage to live

and

die.

 

BLIND*accompanies Heart of Gold*

She has schoolgirls’ eyes,

The kind that dart here and there,

The velocity daring life to keep in step.

She smiles as she speaks,

Calling me from a bus station

‘I’ve been to Hollywood

I’ve been to Redwood;

But I’m still searching’

I remember her, my drama queen;

Raven hair, pale skin,

And pure energy

Threatening to burst from her heart

And take to the sky

She was always searching

For love

For pot

For something to satisfy the yearning

I love her so.

The latest flame, with no name

Courted her with princely passion

Then promptly deposited her in the alley like

An unwanted pet;

He’d proclaimed himself Romeo,

And became Iago

And she’d run to San Diego

When the bullets hit the car last week

‘I’ve been to Boston,

to Kentucky too’, she said, sounding old

‘But I’m still searching for

a heart of gold’

She sails the skies

With a beguiling guise

But never sees

All she’s ever wanted

Is here, in me.

 


MONDAY’S CHILD*accompanies I Don't Like Mondays*

Monday’s child was fair of face,

Locked with a classmate in a final embrace;

She never spoke wrongly, but never spoke up

So Susie emptied her life’s cup

Tuesday’s child was full of grace,

Prom queen, drama queen, beauty queen

She had it all, and never shared;

Susie’s stray bullet caught her in her designer denim flares

Wednesday’s child was full of woe,

Sylvia Plath, Marilyn Manson, and never was Marilyn Monroe

But Susie was mad; she’d forgotten the ammo

So Wednesday’s child had to go

Thursday’s child had far to go;

Top scholar, top athlete

Reached for the stars, but he still fell hard

When Susie found him in the schoolyard

Friday’s child was loving and giving,

A sweet young girl who never did wrong;

She was going to be valedictorian

Until Susie spilled her blood on the lawn

Saturday’s child worked hard for a living,

Growing up in the ghetto, he never wanted pity

Killing him was an accident;

Susie had been aiming for the class president

Sunday’s child used to be good and bonny,

Good as gold, said her daddy and mommy

But something snapped, the innocence died

And now Susie waits, quietly, and

As heaven is wide

So is her hate

One more statistic in the United States.

 


EXITS*accompanies Happiness is a Warm Gun*

A scream in the streets below

As she watches the windows

Unsure what she’s expecting, but she

Knows it isn’t good

His kiss stains her cheek

With guilt

As the radio plays the news

Her dresses are in disarray;

She’s begun packing but she

Doesn’t know where to go

Alone, scared, but prepared

She slips the needle inside

Happiness, at last

 


CIRCLES*accompanies Raining Blood*

The trees whisper knowingly

As she slips through darkened leaves and muddy paths

To her sanctuary

Her home

Where mother Gaia calls;

It is here, she will avenge and repay

For karma is a bitch, she says,

‘just like I am’

Athame kisses sky and earth

Wind kisses face and hands

And she cries out to the One

For mercy, and vengeance

The animals of the forest cower away

As the sky begins to mourn and rage

Earth, wind, air, fire

Passion and desire

Raining passion from the heavens to soothe her soul

Raining blood, as her sister’s had poured from the holes

Raining reprisal upon all earth’s creatures

For forgetting the way

And the energy surges, and whips like a hurricane

And she feels it now, the fading of pain

Into determination

She rises, nods, and retraces her steps

Through broken branches

To await her reign

The circle is open but unbroken


REAL MAN WANTED*accompanies Real Men*

Call me a feminist for wanting equality,

For wanting a little respect

Because it’s easier that way, isn’t it?

Easier to label and categorize,

Scapegoat and psychoanalyze

Play the politician and never answer the question

Call me a dyke, if it makes you feel at ease;

Ignore my mind; focus on what I do

On my knees

Perhaps you envy me for being better at it than you?

Perhaps you’re afraid that I’ll dominate you?

Perhaps you’re afraid you’d like it?

Talk about being a real man

Talk about having strength

Talk about the women who you slept with

As if they were fresh meat

Strength is to go against the grain

Strength is to reject the patriarchy that enslaves

I wonder if you’ll ever know what it is

To be a real man

To know the beauty of anima and animus joined

To know the power of union

Resistance is the secret of joy, and

I hold the key

Dare you turn it with me?

 

NEW AGE

Waiting for the phone -- to ring
Diamond necklace -- on my shoulder
Waiting for the phone to ring
Lipstick -- on my naked shoulder

It seems to -- be my fancy
To make it with
Frank and Nancy when

Over the bridge we go
Looking for love
I'll come running to you
Hey baby-if-you-want-me
I-I-I-I...

Looking at my hands today
Look to me that they're
Made of ivory
I had a funny call -- today
Someone died and someone's married
You know that -- it's my fancy
To make it with Frank and Nancy

Over the bridge they go
Looking for love
Over the bridge we go
Looking for love
I'll come running to you now
Baby if you want me
I-I-I-I...
I'll come running to you
Baby if you want me

And something's got a hold on me
It's the beginning of the New Age
Ohh-ohh-ohh it was
It's the beginning of the New A-a-age
Can't you save time for yourself
Yes, it's the beginning of the New A-a-age
Oh you little sick little fox -- yes
It's the beginning of the New Aaaaage

'97 BONNIE AND CLYDE

Baby your da-da loves you
And I’m always gonna be here for you
No matter what happened
You’re all I got in this world
I'd never give you up for nothin'
Nobody in this world is ever gonna keep you from me
I love you

C’mon Hai-Hai, we goin to the beach
Grab a couple of toys and let da-da strap you in the car seat
Where’s mama? She’s takin a little nap in the trunk
Oh that smell -- da-da musta runned over a skunk

Now I know what you’re thinkin - it’s kind of late to go swimmin
But you know your mama, she’s one of those type of women
That do crazy things, and if she don’t get her way, she’ll throw a fit
Don’t play with da-da’s toy knife, honey, let go of it
And don’t look so upset, why you actin bashful?
Don’t you wanna help da-da build a sand castle?

And mama said she wants to show you how far she can float
Don’t worry about that little boo-boo on her throat
It’s just a little scratch - it don’t hurt
her was eatin dinner while you were sweepin and spilled ketchup on her shirt
Mama’s messy isn’t she? We’ll let her wash off in the water
Me and you can pway by ourselves, can’t we?

Just the two of us
Just the two of us
Just the two of us

See honey -- there’s a place called heaven and a place called hell
There's a place called prison and a place called jail
And da-da’s probably on his way to all of em except one
Cause mama’s got a new husband and a stepson
And you don’t want a brother do ya?
Maybe when you’re old enough to understand a little better I’ll explain it to ya
But for now we’ll just say mama was real real bad
She was bein mean to dad and made him real real mad
But I still feel sad that I put her on time-out
Sit back in your chair honey, quit tryin to climb out
I told you it’s okay HaiHai wanna ba-ba take a night-night? Nan-a-boo, goo-goo ga-ga?
Her make goo-goo ca-ca? Da-da change your dia-dee
Clean the baby up so her can take a nighty-nighty
Your dad’ll wake her up as soon as we get to the water
Ninety-seven Bonnie and Clyde, me and my daughter
Me and my daughter
Me and my daughter

Just the two of us
Just the two of us
Just the two of us

Wake up sweepy head we’re here
Before we pway we’re gonna take mama for a wittle walk along the pier
Baby, don’t cry honey, don’t get the wrong idea
Mama’s too sweepy to hear you screamin in her ear
That’s why you can’t get her to wake, but don’t worry
Da-da made a nice bed for mommy at the bottom of the lake
Here, you wanna help da-da tie a rope around this rock?
We’ll tie it to her footsie then we’ll roll her off the dock
Ready now, here we go, on the count of free
One.. two.. free.. oh-weeeeeee
There goes mama, splashin in the water
No more fightin with dad, no more restraining order
No more step-da-da, no more brother
Blow her kisses bye bye, tell mommy you love her
Now we’ll go play in the sand, build a castle and junk
But first, just help dad with two more things out the trunk

Just -- the two - of us

STRANGE LITTLE GIRL

One day you see a strange little girl look at you
One day you see a strange little girl feeling blue
She’d run to the town one day
Leaving home and her country fair
Just beware
When you’re there
Strange little girl

She didn’t know how to live in a town that was rough
It didn’t take long before she knew she'd had enough
Walking home in her wrapped up world
She survived but she’s feeling old
'cause she found
All things cold

Strange little girl
Where are you going?
Strange little girl
Where are you going?
Strange little girl, you
really should be Going

I know you're really sure

One day you see a strange little girl look at you
One day you see a strange little girl feeling blue
Walking home in her wrapped up world
She survived but she’s feeling old
'cause she found
All things cold

Strange little girl
Where are you going?
Strange little girl
Where are you going?
Strange little girl, you
Really should you really should
Be going

ENJOY THE SILENCE

Words like violence
Break the silence
Come crashing in
Into my little world

Painful to me
Pierce right through me
Can’t you understand
Oh my little girl

All I ever wanted
All I ever needed
Is here -- in my arms

Vows are spoken
To be broken
Feelings are intense
Words are trivial
Pleasures remain
So does the pain
Words are meaningless
And unforgettable

All I ever wanted
All I ever needed
Is here -- in my arms
All I ever wanted
All I ever needed
Is here -- in my arms
Words are very unnecessary
They -- can only do harm

Words like violence
Break the silence
Come crashing in
Into my little world

Painful to me
Pierce right through me
Can’t you understand
Oh my little girl

All I ever wanted
All I ever needed
Is here -- in my arms

Vows are spoken
To be broken
Feelings are intense
Words are trivial
Pleasures remain
So does the pain
Words are meaningless
And -- forgettable

All I ever wanted
All I ever needed
Is here -- in my arms

Words are very unnecessary
They -- can only do harm
Can only do harm

I'M NOT IN LOVE


I’m not in love, so don’t forget it
It’s just a silly phase I’m going through
And just because I call you up
Don’t get me wrong, don’t think you’ve got it made

I’m not in love, no no, it’s because
I like to see you, but then again
That doesn’t mean you mean that much to me
So if I call you, don’t make a fuss
Don’t tell your friends about the two of us
I’m not in love, no no, it’s because
I keep your picture upon the wall
It hides a nasty stain that’s lying there
So don’t you ask me to give it back
I know you know it doesn’t mean that much to me
I’m not in love, no no, it’s because

Ooh, you’ll wait a long time for me
Ooh, you’ll wait a long time

I’m not in love, I’m not in love

RATTLESNAKES

Jodie wears a hat although it hasn’t rained for six days
She says a girl needs a gun these days
Hey on account of those rattlesnakes
On account of those rattlesnakes

She looks like Eve Marie Saint
In on the waterfront
She reads Simone de Beauvoir
in her American circumstance

She’s less than sure if her heart has come -- to stay in San Jose
And her neverborn child haunts her now
As she speeds down the freeway
As she tries her luck with the traffic police
Out of boredom more than spite
She never finds no trouble, she tries too hard
She’s oblivious despite herself
Hey

She looks like Eve Marie Saint
In on the waterfront, she says
All she needs is therapy
All you need is love, is all you need
Ahh-ah

Jodie never sleeps ‘cause there are always needles in the hay - hay
She says a girl needs a gun these days
Hey on account of the rattlesnakes
Hey on account of the rattlesnakes

She looks like Eve Marie Saint In on the waterfront
As she reads Simone de Beauvoir
In her American circumstance
Her heart’s like crazy paving
Upside down and back to front, she says
Ooh, it’s so hard to love when
Love was your great disappointment
Oooh
Account of those rattlesnakes
She says a girl needs a gun these days, hey
Uh uh uh uh mmmhmmm
She says a girl needs a gun these days, hey
On account of the rattlesnakes
Hey on account of those rattlesnakes

TIME

Well, the smart money’s on Harlow
And the moon is in the street
The shadow boys are breaking all the laws
And you’re east of East St. Louis
And the wind is making speeches
And the rain sounds like a round of applause

Napoleon is weeping in the Carnival saloon
His invisible fiance is in the mirror
The band is going home
It’s raining hammers, it’s raining nails
Yes, it’s true, there’s nothing left for him down here

And it’s Time Time Time
And it’s Time Time Time
And it’s Time Time Time
That you love
And it’s Time Time Time

And they all pretend they’re Orphans
And their memory’s like a train
You can see it getting smaller as it pulls away
And the things you can’t remember
Tell the things you can’t forget that
History puts a saint in every dream
Well she said she’d stick around
Until the bandages came off
But these mamas boys just don’t know when to quit
And Matilda asks the sailors are those dreams
Or are those prayers
So just close your eyes, son
And this won’t hurt a bit

CHORUS

Well, things are pretty lousy for a calendar girl
The boys just dive right off the cars
And splash into the streets
And when she’s on a roll she pulls a razor
From her boot and a thousand
Pigeons fall around her feet
So put a candle in the window
And a kiss upon his lips
Till the dish outside the window fills with rain
Just like a stranger with the weeds in your heart
And pay the fiddler off till I come back again

HEART OF GOLD

I want to live
I want to give
I want to live
I want to give
I’ve been a miner
For a heart of gold
It’s these expressions
I never give

That keep me searching for a heart of gold
That keep me searching for a heart of gold

I've been to Hollywood
I’ve been to Hollywood
I’ve been to Redwood
I crossed an ocean
For a heart of gold
I’ve been in my mind
It’s such a fine line

That keeps me searching for a heart of gold
That keeps me searching for a heart of gold
That keeps me searching for a heart of gold, I said

I’ve been to Hollywood
I’ve been to Redwood
I crossed an ocean
For a heart of gold

I’ve been in my mind
It’s such a fine line
That keeps me searching for a heart of gold
That keeps me searching for a heart of gold
That keeps me searching for a heart of gold
I said...I said...I said...

I DON'T LIKE MONDAYS

MmmMmmMmm. MmmMmmMmmMmm.
MmmMmmMmm. MmmMmmMmmMmm.

The silicon chip inside her head
Gets switched to overload
And nobody’s gonna go to school today
She’s gonna make them stay at home
And daddy doesn’t understand it
He always said she was good as gold
And he can see no reason
'cause there are no reasons
What reasons do you need to be sho-o-o-o-own

Tell me why
I don’t like Mondays
Tell me why
I don’t like Mondays
I don't like
I don't like
I don’t like Mondays
Tell me why
I don’t like Mondays
I want to shoo-o-o-o-o-ot
The whole day down
Down down
Shoot it all -- down

And the playing’s stopped in the playground now
She wants to play with her toys awhile
And school’s out early and soon we’ll be learning
That the lesson today is how -- to -- die
And then the bullhorn cackles
And the captain tackles
With the problems and the how’s and why’s
And he can see no reason
'Cause there are no reasons
What reason do you need to die
Die -- oh oh oh
CHORUS TO END

HAPPINESS IS A WARM GUN

She’s not a girl who misses much
Do do do do do do, oh yeah

She’s well acquainted with the touch of the velvet hand
Like a lizard on a window pane.
The man in the crowd with the multicolored mirrors
On his hobnail boots
Lying with his eyes while his hands are busy
Working overtime
A soap impression of his wife which he ate
And donated to the National Trust.

I need a fix ‘cause I’m going down.
Down to the bits that I left uptown.
I need a fix ‘cause I’m going down.

Mother Superior jump the gun
Mother Superior jump the gun
Mother Superior jump the gun
Mother Superior jump the gun.

Happiness is a warm gun
(bang, bang, shoot shoot)
Happiness is a warm gun
When I hold you in my arms
And I feel my finger on your trigger
I know nobody can do me no harm
Because happiness is a warm gun.
Yes it is.

RAINING BLOOD

Trapped in purgatory
A lifeless object, alive
Awaiting reprisal
Death will be their acquisition
The sky is turning red
Return to power draws near
Fall into me, the sky’s crimson tears
Abolish the rules made of stone
Pierced from below, souls of my treacherous past
Betrayed by many, now ornaments dripping above
Awaiting the hour of reprisal
Your time slips away
Raining blood
From a lacerated sky
Bleeding its horror
Creating my structure
Now I shall reign in blood

REAL MEN

Take your mind back
I don’t know when
Sometime when it always seemed to be just us and them
Girls that wore pink
And boys that wore blue
Boys that always grew up better men than me and you

What’s a man now
What’s a man mean
Is he rough or is he rugged
Cultural and clean
Now it’s all changed It’s got to change more
We think it’s getting better but nobody’s really sure

And so it goes - go round again
But now and then we wonder who the real men are
Mmmhmmmm -- MhmmMmmm
Mmmhmmmm -- MhmmMmmmM
Ahh-ahh-ahhhhh-ah

See the nice boys
Dancing in pairs
Golden earring golden tan
Blow-wave in the hair
Sure they’re all straight Straight as a line
All the guys are macho
See their leather shine

You don’t want to sound dumb
Don’t want to offend
So don’t call me a faggot not unless you are a friend
Then if you’re tall
Handsome and strong
You can wear the uniform and I could play along

And so it goes - go round again
But now and then we wonder who the real men are
Mmmhmmmm -- MhmmMmmm
Mmmhmmmm -- MhmmMmmmM
Ahh-ahh-ahhhhh-ah

Time to get scared
Time to change plan
Don’t know how to treat a lady
Don’t know how to be a man
Time to admit
What you call defeat
‘Cause there’s women running past you now and you just drag your feet

Man makes a gun
Man goes to war
Man can kill and man can drink and man can take a whore
Kill all the blacks
Kill all the reds
If there’s war between the sexes then there’ll be no people left

And so it goes - go round again
But now and then we wonder who the real men are
And so it goes - go round again
But now and then we wonder who the real men are
And so it goes - go round again
But now and then we wonder who the real - men are

That's it folks, nothing more to see, move on now....