I'm thanking you for opening my eyes so clear
And sweeping old illusions from my soul
But most of all for turning something simple and sincere
Into somethin' jaded and as jive as rock n' roll.
Chorus:
Ain't you always looked at lovin' like a four letter word
That I made up to make you ill at ease
I fought to free you from your castle of despair
'Til I saw the prison wall was me
See the soul who calls itself a prisoner
'Cause it's still too frightened to be free
I feel so much older now, and wiser
Ain't it sad how lonesome that can be.
Chorus:
Ain't you always looked at lovin' like a four letter word
That I made up to make you ill at ease
I fought to free you from your castle of despair
'Til I saw the prison wall was me
Chorus:
Ain't you always looked at lovin' like a four letter word
That I made up to make you ill at ease
I fought to free you from your castle of despair
A misfit who is old before his time
Poverty has turned him to crime
Boredom gives him too much time to think
He pours another drink.
A burning, bitter taste of irony
A prisoner in the land of the free.
He wonders why his landscape looks so strange
Burger bars are home on the range
An empty bottle falling from his hand
He doesn't understand.
A burning, bitter taste of irony
A prisoner in the land of the free.
A cork unlocks the door to other lands
Of battles won and destinies in hand
A half-remembered state of liquid dreams
Where things aren't what they seem.
A burning, bitter taste of irony
A prisoner in the land of the free.
A naked savage dressed in shirt and jeans
A burning, bitter taste of irony
A prisoner in the land of the free.
A burning, bitter taste of irony
The Prisoner
[Steve Harris and Adrian Smith]
I'm on the run, I kill to eat
I'm starving now, feeling dead on my feet
Going all the way, I'm natures beast
Do what I want and do as I please
Run - Fight - To breathe - It's tough
Now you see me now you don't
Break the walls I'm coming out
Not a prisoner I'm a free man
And my blood is my own now
Don't care where the past was
I know where I'm going ...out!
If you kill me it's self defense
And if I kill ya' then I call it vengeance
Spit in your eye I will defy
You'll be afraid when I call out your name
Run - Fight - To breathe - It's gonna be tough
Now you see me now you don't
Break the walls I'm coming out
Not a prisoner I'm a free man
And my blood is my own now
Don't care where the past was
I know where I'm going
I'm not a number I'm a free man
Live my life where I want to
You'd better scratch me from your black book
He's taking her away, he's acting like a general
Generally, his game is so familiar
He wants her to play with a toaster and a kettle
While he spends his day miles from the prisoner
She reads the stars, he reads the sun
No wonder his IQ is below twenty-one
He's helping her to see how happy she is looking
Take it that he'll be no icing on her cake
Oh, how happy she would be if someone did the cooking
He's helping her to see how a marriage can be baked
Baked like a cake but without the file
The tool that she needs to make her life worthwhile
She's not a prisoner alone doing time
To love and to cherish for all of her life
To have and to hold, to lock up inside
What can this man know about her heart?
To love ?til death do us part
He's looking everywhere, she's nowhere to be found
And suddenly he cares his dinner's looking burnt
There's a smell in the air, there's a prisoner in town
He breaks down in his chair, his face fills with concern
Concerned that he might not eat tonight
She's broken out of jail and run for her life
She's not a prisoner alone doing time
To love and to cherish for all of her life
To have and to hold, to lock up inside
What can this man know about her heart?
To love ?til death do us part
She's not a prisoner alone doing time
To love and to cherish for all of her life
To have and to hold, to lock up inside
She's not a prisoner, she's not a prisoner
(Keighley, C. Keighley. 1:51)
Apartment walls, halls are small
Government building site much too small
These tiny boxes won't let me out
These tiny boxes are too remote
It's a screaming mess
Television city dream
Your robot's eyes gleam
In my future dream
Yeah hey!
It's not fate or chance
It's the money in the bank
Burn their timber and gather their bricks
Drive'em into the fire, the bloody dicks
It's a screaming mess
And I am the prisoner
The prisoner, the prisoner
It's not fate or chance
Kick somebody in the face
Burn their timber and gather their bricks
Drive'em into the fire, the bloody dicks
It's a screaming mess
Television city dream
Your robot's eyes gleam
In my future dream
And I am the prisoner
The prisoner, the prisoner
Well I am the prisoner
The prisoner, the prisoner
(Strummer/Jones)
THE PRISONER MEETS THE MUPPET HI-FI
NORTH OF WATFORD JUNCTION
WE GET IN BUT WE DON'T HAVE FUN
AN' WE LEAVE BEFORE THE TRUNCHEONS
SO IT'S BACK TO WATCH THE DAY TO DAY
SAGA OF WORKING PEOPLE
HANGING OUT THE WASHING AND CLIPPING COUPONS
AND GENERALLY BEING DECENT
JOHNNY TOO BAD MEETS JOHNNY BE GOOD
IN THE CHARING CROSS ROAD
THAT'S THE ONLY THING THAT HAPPENED TODAY
SAYS THE WEST END JUNGLE CODE
AND ALL THE GERMANS AND ALL THE FRENCH
JAM THEMSELVES DOWN THE TUBE
AND RE-ENACT THE SECOND WORLD WAR
WHILE THE RUDE BOYS GET RUDE!AND I LOOK TO MY LEFT
AND I LOOK TO MY RIGHT
AND I'M LOOKING FOR A MAN
I'M LOOKING FOR A SIGN
I DON'T WANNA BE THE PRISONER
THE PRISONER LIVES IN CAMDEN TOWN
SELLING REVOLUTION
THE PRISONER LOADS HIS TRACKING ARM UP
WITH SELF-DISILLUSION
YOUR MOTHER DOES THE WASHING UP
YOUR OLD MAN DIGS THE GARDEN
YOU'RE ONLY FREE TO DODGE THE COPS
AN' BUNK THE TRAIN TO STARDOM
the prisoner meets the muppet hi-fi
north of watford junction
we get in but we don't have fun
an' we leave before the truncheons
so it's back to watch the day to day
saga of working people
hanging out the washing and clipping coupons
and generally being decent
johnny too bad meets johnny be good
in the charing cross road
that's the only thing that happened today
says the west end jungle code
and all the germans and all the french
jam themselves down the tube
and re-enact the second world war
while the rude boys get rude!
and i look to my left
and i look to my right
and i'm looking for a man
i'm looking for a sign
i don't wanna be the prisoner
the prisoner lives in camden town
selling revolution
the prisoner loads his tracking arm up
with self-disillusion
your mother does the washing up
your old man digs the garden
you're only free to dodge the cops
You're the prisoner locked in your cell
You're living in your personal hell
Invisible bars block your view
They don't exist except for you
Free, why can't you see how easily
You could break those bars right down
New freedom found, travel around
And find out exactly why
Give it a try, living the lie
And try to solve the final clue
See if it's true, found out just who
The real enemy is you
Don't be afraid
Don't be deceived
A new world for you
Can be conceived
Don't tell me 'bout how the world isn't fair
How you'll live your life how you choose
I don't want to hear another excuse
How it ain't your fault when you lose
And you're the prisoner
Your mind's diseased, my mind is cured
I was the prisoner but never again
My worst enemy is now my friend
Brainwashed, you'll probably believe
I gave it up for a new reprieve
Free, why can't you see how easily
You could break those bars right down
New freedom found, travel around
And find out exactly why
Give it a try, living the lie
And try to solve the final clue
See if it's true, found out just who
The real enemy is you
You say you're political
You have watched me, safe in your anonymity
I have dreamed you, held in your security
Some people believe a photograph traps your mortal soul
Your eyes were the camera and you've take hold
And you captured me
I need you to take control
I am a prisoner of no confidence
You've entered me now make me whole
Every place I go I feel your lenses trained on me
This distant concentration takes away my energy
Your image burns it's negative
Behind my waking eyes
Then the night comes and you stalk your prize
And you captured me
I need you to take control
I am a prisoner of no confidence
You've entered me now make me whole
Some people believe a photograph traps your mortal soul
Your eyes were the camera and you've taken hold
And you captured me
I need you to take control
I am a prisoner of no confidence
You've entered me now make me whole
(Courtney, Todd, Daltrey)
Days go - so slow
Life just slipping away
Day after day
The wall's too close to me now
Oh I can't take too much more
All the lying
Is it just an illusion
I've been feeling the strain
And it's more than just pain
I can't help myself
'Cause I've lost myself
If I could see you through the wire
And just forget about tomorrow
No one listens to what I am saying
I'm just a sad man another sad man
They say I'm no bad man
But I'm no bad man
Wasted - wasted
All my life's been wasted
Sitting here in this room
I can never feel warm
I can get no release
It's all war and no peace
If I could see you through the wire
And just forget about tomorrow
Someone listen to what I am saying
I'm just a sad man another sad man.
If I could see you through the wire
And just forget about tomorrow
Someone listen to what I am saying
I'm just a sad man another sad man
Don't say I'm a bad man
'Cause I'm no bad man
They say it's wrong to set me free
Here, behind the wall I feel so small
Breathing but not perceiving
Here, anger is me, love sets me free
Feeling and not believing
Here, behind the wall I feel so small
Breathing but not perceiving
Here, anger is me, love sets me free
You're a man in a cage
I see you everyday
You're the one who has everything
But your thoughts are disturbed
You don't like what you've heard
You condemn what you don't understand
And you think you're happy, better than the rest
But you're a prisoner like everybody else
Watch the light as it moves
Feel the eyes in your room
You are free you can do anything
And you think you're happy, better than the rest
Still you're a prisoner just like everybody else
(whistling)
Lock your heroes away
Put your mind out to play
Take a walk to the edge of town
As you're dragged to the ground
Close your ear to the sound
But you're safe 'cause it can't happen here
And you think you're happy, better than the rest
But you're a prisoner like everybody else
And you think you're happy, better than the rest
But you're a prisoner just like everybody else
And you think you're happy, better than the rest
But you're a prisoner like everybody else
Yeah and you think you're happy, so better than the
rest
But you're a prisoner just like everybody else
Summer's burning (up inside)
Left alone (to gag then tie)
Here comes the rain
Just when you never thought you'd lose your way again
When it's so wrong
It has to be, nobody has won
We will soon be free
The prisoner is history
We will soon be free
The prisoner is history
Yea...
You've been lost and you've been found
This time you've gotta stand your ground
Here comes your train
Just when you never thought you'd catch that ride again
When it's so wrong
It has to be, everybody's gone
We will soon be free
The prisoner is history
We will soon be free
The prisoner is history
Here I am after so many years
Hounded by hatred and trapped by fear
I'm in a box, I've got no place to go
If I follow my mind, I know I'll slaughter my own
Help me, I'm the prisoner won't you hear my plea?
I need somebody, yeah, to listen to me
I beg you, brothers and sisters
I'm counting on you, yeah
Black babies in the womb are shackled and bound
Chained by the caveman who keeps beauty down
Smacked on the ass when they're squalling and wet
Heir to a spineless man who never forgets
Never forgets that he's a prisoner, can't you hear my plea?
'Cause I need somebody, Lord knows, to listen to me
I'm a stranger to my son
Who wonders why his daddy runs, yeah
On my way to work in the morning
When I don't give a damn
Can't nobody, can't nobody
Can't nobody, can't nobody see just who in hell I am?
Hemmed in by a suit, yes, all choked up in a tie
Ain't no wonder some times near morning I hear my woman cry
She knows her man is a prisoner, won't you hear my plea?
Yeah, 'cause I need somebody to listen to me
My woman, she don't say but she hates
To see her man chained this way, yeah
Help me, I'm the prisoner
you've thrown away the world, no longer can you see
you've left your soul somewhere that you can never be
in this place you've gone you see no light inside
in this place you've gone i'm hoping that you die
and when the night is calling i won't hear your cries
and when the dark is falling i won't hear your lies
every word you've told and every tear you've spilled
falls into emptiness for every chance you've killed
you'd walk away right now if you could find a way
for more attention drawn towards every game you play
and when the night is calling i won't hear your cries
I am the prisoner
I have been caught
Creature of habit
Patterns of thought
My mind flight light and dark like a television tube
Need now kids and quick-draw wallets
My mind flicks light and dark like a television tube
Believe be kids we’ve been abused
Institutions brought be up straight and narrow
A dark tower to my grave
I think in their thoughts
I am the slave
The tiger that waits on the banks of the river
The young dream of her that can never deliver
The memory of pain so you'll never forgive her
And never go home again.
It's the fire that you get rubbing two sticks together
When you first learn that fire won't last forever
The quill of your pen when you're writing a letter
That you know you'll never send.
Well I hope that you find what you're looking for
But I won't be 'round to see it.
And I hope that you find who you're looking for
But I won't be 'round to see it.
There's a boot (?) here that's under your chin
That says you ain't never gonna win
And you wish you were dreaming
But you know the nightmare's still there when you wake up again.
Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah-ah.
Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah-ah.
There's the whispering tombstone that roars like the thunder
The last breath you breathe right before you go under
It's the eyes of the child when they're flashing with wonder
And right when you take it away.
Well I hope when you find what you're looking for
That you're not too blind to see it.
And I hope when they open your prison cell
That you're not too afraid to flee it.
There's a boot (?) here that's under your chin
That says you ain't never gonna win
And you wish you were dreaming
But you know the nightmare's still there when you wake up again.
Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah-ah.
Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah-ah.
Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah-ah.
Take us to the prisoner
Let us gaze into his eyes
To see what kind of man
It takes a nation to despise
Take us to the prisoner
Let us look upon his face
To see why twenty thousand men
Would gladly take his place
Won't someone give a drink to him?
Remove the chains and let him live
Let him live
Take us to the prisoner
Let us listen to his voice
To see why worlds of wisdom's
In a cell without a choice
Take us to the prisoner
Torn and bent beneath the chains
We wonder if the world is really
Worthy of his name?
Won't someone give a drink to him?
Remove the chains and let him live
Let him live
We know where we're going
For we heard the new winds blowing
And we're got to know for ourselves
It won't help to listen to someone else
Take us to the prisoner
With his eyes so full of grace
The priests have lied
And kings have died
Filled with their own disgrace
Won't someone give a drink to him?
Remove the chains and let him live
Let him live
Let him live
I was mad and was accepted for treatment at a hospital
for the mentally sick
I was wild and introvert wandering alone in the night
I would scream and rage should someone disturb my peace
So they took me away and they put me here alone in my
silent privacy
Then they gave me shock treatment
And when I awoke I was numb and remembering nothing
Probe me mould me reassemble my brain my brain
Schizoid paranoid just terms just names just names
Why can't you leave me don't drive me insane
Your minds analyse me, your eyes penetrate me
Illusions, confusions, I'm frightened, I'm helpless
Please leave me I long to be free
I long to be free
I lie alone unable to remember
No face no name no eyes my brain just an ember
Kindle me protect my barren matter
Whose seeds may propagate yet still may shatter
They have emptied my head of its dreaming
Like paper out of a waste bin
And I yearn to be yearn to be yearn to be yearn to be
free
Cold is the climate dark is the atomic night
Searching and hoping guarding my mind from your sight
Your evil eyes watch me your evil hands touch me
they're cold
I can stand prison but even my conscious you hold
Let me be
Set me free
Oh...
Probe me mould me reassemble my brain my brain
Schizoid paranoid just terms just names just names
Why can't you leave me don't drive me insane insane
I'm sitting on the run, no place to go
Sitting on a time bomb, ready to blow
But deep down I know, I'm a prisoner
I crossed over your domain, bound in chains
Can't you see
I'm held by the mercies of love
Cause I'm a prisoner, prisoner of love
I can't go on, it's much too strong
A prisoner of love
A dream in slow motion, consuming me
Can't hide the truth, the reality
Will I escape this hold on me
I crossed over your domain, bound in chains
Can't you see
I'm held by the mercies of love
Cause I'm a prisoner, a prisoner of love
I can't hold on, it's much too strong
A prisoner of love, yes, I'm a prisoner
Held by your touch, it's plain as can be
Gotts hold on me
A prisoner of love
To live for a vision that is given to you
To find out it's all but a dream come true
So hold on to what you believe, cause dreams are real too
To give all that you've got is believing in you
Cause I'm a prisoner, prisoner of love
I can't go on, it's much too strong
