"I-Feel-Like-I'm-Fixin'-To-Die"

Yeah, come on all of you, big strong men,
Uncle Sam needs your help again.
He's got himself in a terrible jam
Way down yonder in Vietnam
So put down your books and pick up a gun,
We're gonna have a whole lotta fun.

And it's one, two, three,
What are we fighting for ?
Don't ask me, I don't give a damn,
Next stop is Vietnam;
And it's five, six, seven,
Open up the pearly gates,
Well there ain't no time to wonder why,
Whoopee! we're all gonna die.

Well, come on generals, let's move fast;
Your big chance has come at last.
Gotta go out and get those reds —
The only good commie is the one who's dead
And you know that peace can only be won
When we've blown 'em all to kingdom come.

And it's one, two, three,
What are we fighting for ?
Don't ask me, I don't give a damn,
Next stop is Vietnam;
And it's five, six, seven,
Open up the pearly gates,
Well there ain't no time to wonder why
Whoopee! we're all gonna die.

Huh!

Well, come on Wall Street, don't move slow,
Why man, this is war au-go-go.
There's plenty good money to be made
By supplying the Army with the tools of the trade,
Just hope and pray that if they drop the bomb,
They drop it on the Viet Cong.

And it's one, two, three,
What are we fighting for ?
Don't ask me, I don't give a damn,
Next stop is Vietnam.
And it's five, six, seven,
Open up the pearly gates,
Well there ain't no time to wonder why
Whoopee! we're all gonna die.

Well, come on mothers throughout the land,
Pack your boys off to Vietnam.
Come on fathers, don't hesitate,
Send 'em off before it's too late.
Be the first one on your block
To have your boy come home in a box.

And it's one, two, three
What are we fighting for ?
Don't ask me, I don't give a damn,
Next stop is Vietnam.
And it's five, six, seven,
Open up the pearly gates,
Well there ain't no time to wonder why,
Whoopee! we're all gonna die.

Who Am I ?

There were some things that I loved one time,
But the dreams are gone I thought were mine,
And the hidden tears that once could fall
Now burn inside at the thought of all
The years of waste, the years of crime
Passions of a heart so blind;
To think that, but even still
As I stand exposed, the feelings are felt
And I cry into the echo of my loneliness.

Who am I
To stand and wonder, to wait
While the wheels of fate
Slowly grind my life away.
Who am I ?

What a nothing I've made of life
The empty words, the coward's plight
To be pushed and passed from hand to hand
Never daring to speak, never daring to stand
And the emptiness of my family's eyes
Reminds me over and over of lies
And promises and deeds undone
And now again I want to run
But now there is nowhere to run to.

Who am I
To stand and wonder, to wait
While the wheels of fate
Slowly grind my life away.
Who am I ?

And now my friend we meet again
We shall see which one will bend
Under the strain of death's golden eyes
Which one of us shall win the prize
To live and which one will die
'Tis I, my friend, yes 'tis I
Shall kill to live again and again
To clutch the throat of sweet revenge
For life is here only for the taking.

Who am I
To stand and wonder, to wait
While the wheels of fate
Slowly grind my life away.
Who am I ? Who am I ?

Pat's Song

She will stand in the sea with her body like sand
And the dolphins will come kiss the palms of her hands;
As she opens her soul to the water and land
Her smiles will color the sky.

With bottles of light and sacks of clay,
With music to dance and songs to play,
With lemons and candles you'll see the way
That the moon will shine in her eyes.

She will fly on the wind with her face to the sun,
Children will dance all around her for fun.
Just ask her for love and she'll give you some
For her smiles will color the sky.

Rock Coast Blues

Black stone roadway by the sea
Oh, I wonder if she's a-missing me
Four-wheeled clock keeps tickin' off time
Measured minutes by a broken white line,
Wonder if I'm really on her mind, oh.

And now in my thoughts I feel her eyes,
Feel her smilin' by my side,
Then I turn around and see
There's nobody sittin' here but me, yeah!

Rubber tired, oh, lonesome song
Tells me that I've done something wrong
Days before and then we parted,
I wonder why I even started
Thinkin' I've been gone far too long.

Moving past those rocks and waves
I wonder how she spends her days,
Watch the sun as we go by
Throwin' colors off the water sky,
Thinkin' about the rainbows in my baby's eyes.

Movin' past those pine-cone trees,
Sorry that I had to leave
High above on a twisted road
Ocean movin' down below
I wonder just how far I have to go.

Now in my thoughts I feel her eyes,
Feel her smilin' by my side,
Oh, then I turn around and see
There's nobody sittin' here but me, yeah!

Rubber tired, oh, lonesome song
Tells me that I've done something wrong
Days before and then we parted,
I wonder why I even started
Thinkin' I've been gone far too long.

Yeah, I've been gone too long,
Oh, now don't you know I've been gone too long, oh yeah.
Yeah, woman, oh, I've been gone too long, yeah,
Yeah now little girl, I'm coming home, yes.
Mm, you know that I'm coming on home,
Yeah, you know ...

Magoo

Sometimes when I look into your eyes
The beauty that I see makes me want to cry.
The stars are so big and the earth is so small;
Stay as you are, stay as you are — life before death

Stay as you are — life before death
Stay as you are — life before death
Stay as you are — life before death

Stay as you are — life before death
Stay as you are — life before death
Stay as you are — life before death.

Janis

And even though I know that you and I
Could never find the kind of love we wanted together,
Alone I find myself missing you and I, you and I.

It's not very often that something special happens
And you happen to be that something special for me.
And walking on grass where we rolled and laughed in the moonlight
I find myself thinking of you and I, you and I, you.

Into my eye comes visions of patterns
Designs the image of her I see.
Into my mind the smell of her hair,
The sound of her voice — we once were there.

And even though I know that you and I
Could never find the kind of love we wanted together,
Alone, I find myself missing

You and I,
You and I,
You.

The Bomb Song

Well, I said please,
Please don't drop,
Don't drop that h-bomb,
H-bomb on me

Yeah, I said please,
Please don't drop,
Don't drop that h-bomb on me.

Yeah, I said please,
Please don't drop,
Don't drop that h-bomb on me, yes,

Well, you can drop it,
Oh, you can drop it on yourself.

Thought Dream

I feel the cold of eve slowly waning.
As sun burst rays of warmth overtake me.
And the twisted seeds of doubt
Which spread my sins about
Lie parched and withered.
And the present not the past
Claims me at the last
For it's not over.

The Bomb Song (Reprise)

Yeah, I said please,
Please don't drop,
Don't drop that h-bomb on me.

Yeah, I said please,
Please don't drop,
Don't drop that h-bomb on me ...

Acid Commercial

Now if you're tired or a bit run down,
Can't seem to getcha feet off the ground,
Maybe you oughta try a little bit of L.S.D.

Only if you want to

Shake your head and rattle your brain,
Make you act just a bit insane,
Give you all the psychic energy you need —

Eat flowers and kiss babies
L.S.D.
For you and me!

Thursday

I found you,
I found you,
I found you.

I found you,
I found you,
I found you.

Eastern Jam

Colors for Susan

Recorded and processed at Vanguard Studios, 71 West 23rd Street, New York City, July-September 1967
Producer: Samuel Charters
Recording and Special Effects: Ed Friedner

Joe McDonald: vocals, harmony vocals, acoustic guitar, rhythm guitar, organ
Barry Melton: vocals, second voice, lead guitar, rhythm guitar, 12-string guitar, kazoo
David Cohen: rhythm guitar, lead guitar, acoustic guitar, vocals, calliope, organ, harpsichord, bells
Bruce Barthol: bass, harmonica, vocals, barking
Gary "Chicken" Hirsh: drums, conga, bells,wine bottle

This album is dedicated to John Campbell, Jeff Tod Hunter and Dave Talcott

"I-Feel-Like-I'm-Fixin'-To-Die Rag" copyright © Tradition Music, BMI, 1965 renewed 1993 by Alkatraz Corner Music, BMI, except : All other songs copyright © 1967 renewed 1996 by Joyful Wisdom Music, BMI

This page made possible through the kind assistance of Serge Mironneau.

H  O  M  E