Old White Men

Lyrics

[Verse 1] I was such a strange boy Forty years or so back then Fat with big thick ol' glasses Trouble making friends Cruising through my neighborhood Could easily have come to no good end 'Til I stumbled into the workshops Of old white men [Verse 2] "Call your mother, you can stay" That's about all they'd ever say Then they'd take the lid off Of some old wooden box And inside would lay a gem Made of string and spring And wood and glue Right then and there I'm sure I knew Firsthand the raw ingredients Of old white men [Chorus] Old white men Get tеary eyed Decеmber 7th Old white men Salute every flag they see Old white men Didn't care how cool I couldn't be A drop of glue will do to help it mend "Put the cap on when you're through" Said old white men [Verse 3] It was all ball peen hammers and calipers Dovetail joints and acetone Tubes and printed circuits Screws and spokes and wheels The difference 'tween truth and opinion When you're old enough, be sure you vote And never trust a woman Wearing more than three-inch heels [Chorus] Old white men Living crosscut, chainsaw lives Old white men They don't talk back to their wives Old white men Thanks to them I can sharpen your kitchen knives with this stone Sometimes when I'm alone I wonder what became of Old white men [Bridge] Do they synchronize their watches As on and on time marches? Do their belts need extra notches As their waistlines grow big and round? I call their wives up often And I carry their husbands' coffins As these grey hairs of my own Chase me down [Verse 4] Over the years I outgrew My awkward situation I went to college, joined a cause Became the black man I never was And over the years I learned to view Old white men with suspicion 'Cause I'd heard the world was run to ruin By old white men [Verse 5] Last Thursday I was hunched over My Briggs and Stratton mower Trying to adjust the carburetor When this kid come bendin' my ear Always bugging me when I'm working So I said "Make yourself seem useful, son Clean the carbon off that spark plug Wipe it down and hand it here." [Chorus] Old white men Look me squarely in the eyes Old white men They looked right past my skin Old white men I can hear them oh so clearly "Are you gonna just stand there With that sanding block, son Or make it so these pieces fit again?"