Birdland (Digitally Remastered 1996)

Birdland - Patti Smith

His father died and left him

A little farm in New England

All the long black funeral cars

Left the scene

And the boy was

Just standing there alone

Looking at the shiny red tractor

Him and his daddy used to sit inside

And circle the blue fields

And grease the night

It was if someone had spread butter

On all the fine points of the stars

Cause when he looked up

They started to slip

Then he put his head

In the crux of his arm

And he started to drift

Drift to the belly of a ship

Let the ship slide open

And he went inside of it

And saw his daddy

Hind the control board streamin

Beads of light

He saw his daddy

Hind the control board

And was he very different tonight

Cause he was not human

He was not human

And then the little boy's face

Lit up with such naked joy

That the sun burned around his lids

And his eyes were like two suns

White lids white opals

Seeing everything

Just a little bit too clearly

And he looked around

And there was no black ship in sight

No black funeral cars

Nothing except for him the raven

And fell on his knees

And looked up and cried out

No daddy

Don't leave me here alone

Take me up daddy

To the belly of your ship

Let the ship slide open

And I'll go inside of it

Where you're not human

You are not human ”

But nobody heard

The boy's cry of alarm

Nobody there cept for the birds

Around the New England farm

And they gathered in all directions

Like roses they scattered

And they were like compass grass

Coming together

Into the head of a shaman bouquet

Slit in his nose

And all the others went shooting

And he saw the lights of traffic beckoning

Like the hands of Blake

Grabbing at his cheeks

Taking out his neck

All his limbs

Everything was twisted and he said

I won't give up

Won't give up

Don't let me give up

I won't give up

Come here

Let me go up fast

Take me up quick

Take me up

Up to the belly of a ship

And the ship slides open

And I go inside of it

Where I am not human ”

I am helium raven

And this movie is mine

So he cried out

As he stretched the sky

Pushing it all out like latex cartoon

Am I all alone in this generation

We'll just be dreaming

Of animation night and day

And won't let up

Won't let up

And I see them coming in

Oh I couldn't hear them before

But I hear them now

It's a radar scope in all silver

And all platinum lights

Moving in like black ships

They were moving in

Streams of them

And he put up his hands and he said

It's me it's me

I'll give you my eyes

Take me up

Oh now please take me up

I'm helium raven waitin for you

Please take me up

Don't let me here

The son the sign the cross

Like the shape of a tortured woman

The true shape of a tortured woman

The mother standing

In the doorway letting her sons

No longer presidents but prophets

They're all dreaming

They're gonna bear the prophet

He's gonna run through the fields

Dreaming in animation

It's all gonna split his skull

It's gonna come out

Like a black bouquet shining

Like a fist that's gonna

Shoot them up

Like light like Mohammed Boxer

Take them up up up up up up

Oh let's go up up

Take me up I'll go up

I'm going up I'm going up

Take me up I'm going up

I'll go up there

Go up go up go up

Go up up up up up up up

Up up to the belly of a ship

Let the ship slide open

And we'll go inside of it

Where we are not human

We're not human

Well there was sand

There were tiles

The sun had melted the sand

And it coagulated

Like a river of glass

When it hardened he

Looked at the surface

He saw his face

And where there were eyes

Were just two white opals

Two white opals

Where there were eyes

There were just two white opals

And he looked up

And the rays shot

And he saw raven comin in

And he crawled on his back

And he went up

Up up up up up up

Sha da do wop

Da shaman do way

Sha da do wop

Da shaman do way

Sha da do wop

Da shaman do way

Sha da do wop

Da shaman do way

Sha da do wop

Da shaman do way

We like birdland