Todd Rundgren

"The Range War"

"The Range War"


Your daddy runs sheep and my uncle runs cattle
Nothin' can keep us out of this battle they wage
As it burns up the range, 'til no man is left
In the saddle
Your ranch is upstream and they dammed up the water
Thirsty cows scream for my uncle to slaughter
The sheep while your daddy's asleep
And I do the same for his daughter
If I had my own way, we would be together
Back in Pittsburgh

It's the only town East of the river I know
And I feel kinda bad, bringin' our grief
Upon this poor old farmer's house
But we ain't got nowhere else to go
Three years on this range since they started the range war
Nothing has changed except maybe change for the worst
If I'd married you first,
There might not have been any range war
You wouldn't be lost to the range war

"The Smell Of Money"

"The Smell Of Money"


My boy I say you're unaware of
Things that I am unaware of
The things they say behind one's back
That you suspect but aren't quite sure of
Don't say you haven't noticed

The smell of money is all about me
I just can't rid myself
Of it's overpowering bouquet
My inner beauty cursed with obscurity
By a scent that can't be washed away

I don't know who you think I am
But if I'm who I think I am
Then there's no cranny I've examined
Taints the air where ere I am

But don't say you haven't noticed

The smell of money wafts all about me
It neutralizes any other odors I convey
Best friends won't tell me
They know I'm suffering
With a scent that can't be washed away

The stench of money
Is reeking off of me
A mix of cheap cologne
Weasel pheromone and rotted grave
Thank dad and mommy
I'm filthy, stinking rich
So I can say to you "piss off"
I bathe, I bathe

"The Spark Of Life"

"The Spark Of Life"


[Instrumental]

[Spoken:]
No, no, no! a little more humanity, please!

"The Surf Talks"

"The Surf Talks"


Oooh I love you
Giggle giggle
The surf talks
Do you love me too?

If the surf could talk, I know she'd ask
"do you think you're equal to the task? "
If the surf could talk, she'd say
"beware I love you"

So I'd answer very carefully
And I'd ask if she'd be there for me
And the surf says "always
Beware I love you"

The surf says "i want you like you want me
Am I in you? are you in me?
Tell me"

The surf talks
And it knows what to say
The surf talks
I must learn to obey
The gun cocks, the clock stops, the earth rocks, the surf talks
The surf talks
Puts it's tongue on my skin
The surf talks

While it's sucking me in
The door locks and unlocks, the veil drops, the surf talks

She has promised me a beach of pearls
And an endless wave, a perfect curl
And she tells me always
"beware I love you"

She will place the world inside my hand
She will touch the soul of every man
She will take my message
"i'm here to love you"

The surf says "i want you here inside me
Am I in you? are you in me?
Tell me"

We are standing on a beach of pearls
We are riding deep inside the curl
And everybody all around the world
Must surrender when your flag unfurls

We are standing on a beach of pearls
We are riding deep inside the curl
And everybody all around the world
Will be dancing in the sea.

"The Ultimate Crime"

"The Ultimate Crime"


I'm unfit for jury duty
I know policemen lie like me
But to tell... tell the truth
I'm just not up to the responsibility

'Cause in my day to day life
The ultimate crime is to live in discontent
Looking at bad design and wasting my time
Growing too corpulent

The extent of the ultimate crime
Was driving incompetent
And the ultimate crime could pass for an accident
The ultimate crime, the ultimate crime

I am standing in the gallery
When they lead the client in
And they shave off all his hair
Until there's nothing left, but shining skull and skin

And I wake up sweating bullets
And the ultimate crime is to think it's just a dream
It happens all the time, out of sight, out of mind
No one can hear you scream

We invented the ultimate crime
For the ultimate punishment
And the ultimate crime was our greatest accomplishment
The ultimate crime, the ultimate crime

The ultimate crime was being irreverent
And the ultimate crime was
Dropping the sacrament
The ultimate crime, the ultimate crime

The ultimate crime was being too lenient
And the ultimate crime was being too ignorant
The ultimate crime, the ultimate crime
Is not to care

"The Verb "To Love""

"The Verb "To Love""


Sum people tell me that love is a feeling
Oar a possession
Somehow it seams sew cold
End when they say love is sweet,
Does it mean that ewe eat it?
Maybe ewe drink it,
Does it fill up an empty whole?

I'm lookin' four a love end eye may not fined it
Ewe no it doesn't mean a thing
Without sum action behind it

Pleas cum home
Eye can here them calling
Pleas cum home
Pleas don't leave us all alone
Yore mama end yore papa are crying all alone
Ewe better let it magnetize, learn two sacrifice
'til we get the true version of
The meaning of the verb 'two love'
What does it mean two love?

End when somebody kneads love,
Dew they spend sum money?
Say something funny,
Ask four sum tenderness?
End when ewe wanna touch of love,
Dew ewe lay on yore back?
Stand on yore head,
How dew ewe feel it best?

I'm looking four a love with know strings attached

Two take me like eye am, that's the only catch

Pleas cum home
Eye can here them calling
Pleas cum home
Pleas don't leave us all alone
Yore wife end yore lover are crying all alone
Ewe better let it magnetize, learn two sacrifice
'til we learn the true version of
The meaning of the verb 'two love'

Does it mean any more,
The more ewe talk about it
Is it anymore reel
If ewe jump around end shout it
I'm sic end tired of hearing
'bout everyone without it end
Two much talkin' sends me walkin'
Night is falling end everybody's calling four love

Everybody's lookin' four they're won end only
Its only just a game 'cause their scared two bee lonely

Pleas cum home
Eye can here them calling
Pleas cum home
Pleas don't leave us all alone
Yore brothers end yore sisters are crying all alone
Ewe got two let it magnetize, learn to sacrifice
'til we get the true version of
The meaning of the verb 'two love'
What does it mean two love?

"The Very Last Time"

"The Very Last Time"


Sometimes I wonder if I'm still alive
How much abuse can someone stand and survive
How long I've waited for this day to arrive
When I won't be a fool no more

Nobody knows how you push me around
Nobody sees how you treat me like I'm your clown
I never made a sound

It's the very last time you will get on my case
It's the very last time 'cause
I won't be a fool no more
It's the very last time you will step on my face
It's the very last time 'cause
I won't be a fool no more

I still remember the look in your eyes
Just a reflection of the things you despise
But sooner or later I've got to get wise
And I won't be a fool no more

Nobody sees how you treat me like dirt
Nobody knows just how badly a man can hurt
You've got a lesson to learn

I can still feel the sting of your words
But I won't cry no matter how much it hurts
My head may go crazy, my heart it may burst
But I won't be a fool no more
No I won't be a fool no more

"The Wailing Wall"

"The Wailing Wall"


There's a grand old maid across the sea
So the story was recalled to me
And from dawn 'til dark, you hear her call
Down in front of the Wailing Wall
And she cries all day, so sad and alone
'Til someone comes along and leads her home

Nobody listens, and nobody seems to care
But everyday, you'll find them there and
Kneeling down for sadness sake
Crying just as though their hearts would break
And from dawn 'til dark, you hear them call
Down in front of the Wailing Wall
And they cry all day, so sad and alone
'Til someone comes along and leads them home

You know I don't listen, and you know that I don't care
But everyday you'll find me there and
Kneeling down for sadness sake
Crying just as though my heart would break
And from dawn 'til dark, you'll hear me call
Down in front of the Wailing Wall

"The Waiting Game"

"The Waiting Game"


Every time that I fall for that same old trick
I punish myself with the same old stick
I want to believe it so badly I deceive myself
Forgetting reality
Ignoring the fact that you're altogether someplace else
Forgetting reality

But I swear here and now
The truth shall be mine
And surrender to my prayer
The weapon is time

I'll play your waiting game
I'm gonna win the win the waiting game
I'll play your waiting game
I'm gonna win this game my friend
And forget you in the end

Your memory seems like a living thing
I never know if I'm imagining
I look at your face and I know that's impossible
Forgetting it's just a dream
Now I'm hearing your voice saying anything is possible
Forgetting it's just a dream

And I still can't say why
You keep invading my mind
But this uncontrolled fixation
Grows weaker with time

A cloud of unknowing floats between you and me
A trickle of love still flows between you and me
But we live in different galaxies

But I swear here and now
Your heart will be mine
You'll surrender to my love
My weapon is time
And your wall of resistance
I will slowly undermine
While your uncontrolled fixation
Grows stronger with time

I'll play your waiting game
I'm gonna win the win the waiting game
I'll play your waiting game
I'm gonna win this game my friend
And I'll be with you in the end

I'll play, yes I will