The Kinks

[fox69]

"The First Time We Fall In Love"

"The First Time We Fall In Love"



How well I remember my very first love affair.
Those juvenile fantasies and innocent dreams we shared.
But we're too blind to realize that we are totally unprepared
For the first time we fall in love.
We think it's forever, the first time we fall in love.
We always treasure the first time we fall in love.
Those other romances come and go,
But we cherish the memory of
The first time we fall in love.

First love can be such a strain.
It can rule your head, it can bring you pain,
And when it ends it seems such a shame.
The first time we fall in love,
Can make you sad, it can keep you awake,
It can drive you mad.
People say you're too young and it's only a fad
The first time we fall in love.
The first time we fall in love.

The first time I fell out of love, it knocked me through the floor.
My world came crashing down, it shook me to the core.
I was unprepared 'cos I was only a kid
And I was much too young and I wasn't equipped
For the emotional pressures and stresses of it.
But oh, I'll never forget
The way that she looked the first time we met.
Time goes by but we never forget
The first time we fall in love.

Love can be exciting, it can be a bloody bore.
Love can be a pleasure or nothing but a chore.
Love can be like a dull routine,
It can run you around until you're out of steam.
It can treat you well, it can treat you mean,
Love can mess you around,
Love can pick you up, it can bring you down.
But they'll never know
The feelings we show
The first time we fall in love.
The first time we fall in love.

 

[fox69]

"The Hard Way"

"The Hard Way"



Boys like you were born to waste,
You never listen to a word I say
And if you think you're here to mess around,
You're making a big mistake,
'Cos you're gonna find out the hard way,
You gonna find out the hard way.

No matter what I do or say,
You're much too dumb to educate.
One day life's going to turn around and slap you in the face,
Then you're gonna find out the hard way.
You'll take the hard way,
Gonna take the hard way.

Well, you'll do it your way and I'll do it my way,
And we'll see who's the one to survive.
You'll find that with no foundation
Or qualifications
There's no way that you can get by,
No, there's no way you can get by.

Why don't you take the easy way?
Why don't you co-operate?
Don't just sit there and vegetate.
Do you want to end up illiterate?
You think that life's a vacation
And you've no inclination
To dust away the cobwebs of your mind.
Now it's time for confrontation
And I'm tired of being patient,
So I've got to be cruel to be kind.
Yeah, I've got to be cruel to be kind.

I'm wasting my vocation teaching you to write neat
When you're only fit to sweep the streets.
Your intellect is such
That it requires a killer's touch.

So I'm going to play it your way,
We'll take the hard way.
Going to take the hard way,
You can take the hard way.
Gonna take the hard way,
Gonna take the hard way.

 

[fox69]

"The Informer"

"The Informer"



Isn't it strange meeting you here
Two old friends
Just sitting down quietly drinking a beer
But knowing your past the way that I do
After all this time I'm surprised
You'd even come to this rendezvous

They say you went and moved across the border
So it's hard to believe
That you're sitting here with me tonight
I know you're on the run, you shouldn't be here
But do you feel the fear
When you meet an old friend and the enemy's near

It's strange we always go to church on Sundays
After getting right out of it on a Saturday night
And if we stay here too long, I know that we'll quarrel
And end up having a fight
Just a couple of losers putting the world to right

Just two people having a beer
But on either side there is so much anger
And so much fear
Just two people trying to get by
But we're torn apart
Because of different pressures
From different sides

I hear you're on the run from law and order
But you had to show up
'Cos you knew it was a matter of pride
But beliefs aside, religion apart
Did you ever think about all the suffering you caused
And all the broken hearts?

The word is out that you are the informer
Who gave me away without so much as a fight
So be a good friend
And let me take you quietly without a fight
I'll be the one who's
Gonna take you home tonight
I'll be the one who's
Gonna take you home tonight

 

[fox69]

"The Last Assembly"

"The Last Assembly"



As I walked to the last assembly,
There were tears in the back of my eyes,
And I saw all my friends all around me,
They were there to wish me goodbye.

As I stood in a line with my comrades,
I felt such a feeling of pride,
And I forgot all the grief and the hatred inside,
As we sang for the very last time.

Gather round, gather round,
Everybody gather round.
Come and join our last assembly,
Let us smile, wipe away all the frowns.

Gather round, gather round,
Everybody gather round.
As we stood at the last assembly,
All my friends came to wish me goodbye.

Gather round, gather round,
Gather round, gather round,
Everybody gather round.
As I stand at the last assembly,
I just can't keep the tears from my eyes.

 

[fox69]

"The Million-Pound-Semi-Detached"

"The Million-Pound-Semi-Detached"



Haven't we come a long way
From newly-weds in our bed-sitter flat?
We skimped and scraped every penny
For a down payment on our semi-detached.
New towns for all the young hopefuls,
A garden suburb with mortgage attached,
Oh, look at us now, sale all agreed, now it's time to exchange the contracts
With the people who sold us a million-pound semi.

Straight out of national service,
Demob suits and short back and sides,
And saw the bomb sites turned air-raid shelters,
Where their families lived all of their lives.
Then the nation built them a utopia,
With pebbledash on the outside, oh,
Look at them now, they've come a long way, they are affluent and bursting with pride.
Soon we'll be sitting inside that million-pound semi-detached,
Detached, in our million-pound semi-detached.
Looking back at the past of this million-pound semi.

Two up two down, a back garden, that was the dream,
Two kids, a cat and a dog, that was the scheme.
Then the kids both grew up and got married and moved out of home,
Then we were strangers again, together alone.
Look at us now, what are we like,
Sitting alone in our million-pound semi-detached?

They're all taking early retirement, the sum total of all of their lives.
Now the country is fat with inflation, immigration has helped us survive.
Once an Englishman's home was his castle,
Now it's a freehold investment to buy, oh,
Look at us now, our debts are all paid, and the Empire has really struck back.
We're the proud owners of a one-million-pound semi-detached,
So detached in our million-pound semi-detached.
A new generation is buying and starting anew,
And learning by all their mistakes the way people do.
Like all the young hopefuls we're buying the future from you,
We hope that one day we'll understand what you've both been through.
Look at us now, what are we like,
Sitting alone, in our million-pound semi-detached?
Look at us now, what are we like,
Sitting alone, in our million-pound semi-detached?

 

[fox69]

"The Moneygoround"

"The Moneygoround"



Robert owes half to Grenville
Who in turn gave half to Larry
Who adored my instrumentals
And so he gave half to a foreign publisher
She took half the money that was earned in some far distant land
Gave back half to Larry and I end up with half of goodness knows what
Oh can somebody explain why things go on this way
I thought they were my friends I can't believe it's me, I can't believe that I'm so green
Eyes down round and round let's all sit and watch the moneygoround
Everyone take a little bit here and a little bit there
Do they all deserve money from a song that they've never heard
They don't know the tune and they don't know the words
But they don't give a damn
There's no end to it I'm in a pit and I'm stuck in it
The money goes round and around and around
And it comes out here when they've all taken their share
I went to see a solicitor and my story was heard and the writs were served
On the verge of a nervous breakdown I decided to fight right to the end
But if I ever get my money I'll be too old and grey to spend it
Oh, but life goes on and on and no one ever wins
And time goes quickly by just like the moneygoround
I only hope that I'll survive

 

[fox69]

"The Poseur"

"The Poseur"



The Poseur's in town
The Poseur's around

Hey, it don't bother me,
But there's a guy eyein' you
He's watched you all night and he's looked you all over
He got his eye on you
But don't act like you're surprised
Because that smooth-looking guy's undressing you with his eyes

Look at him look you over
He thinks he can win you over
He'll flirt for a while, make passes and smile at you
But he'll never come over
'Cause he's just a poseur
Who thinks he's a Cassonova

That dude standing over there
He thinks he really looks cool
The ladies think he looks smooth
But he's rehearsed every move
He stands in front of the mirror all day
Now he's on display and he's so well routined
We've all come here to dance but he's just here to be seen

Look at him bossa nova
Look at him move and sway
But he's been practicing days to make his hair fall a certain way
But he'll never come over
'Cause he's just a poseur
Who thinks he's a Casanova

Look at him bossa nova, yeah
The Poseur's in town

Yeah

 

[fox69]

"The Road"

"The Road"




Sitting alone on my hotel
Looking in the mirror wondering, "well,
After all this time you never thought you'd still be out on the road?"
Like a gypsy I was born to roam
Like a wanderer with no fixed abode
I think about the friends I've left behind on the road

Well, the road's been rocky along the way
It's been a long, hard haul on the motorway
But if it gets too smooth it's time to call it a day

(On the road)
The bed and breakfasts and the greasy spoons
(The road)
The loser bars and the noisy rooms
(The road)
The casualties who did too many lines
(The road)
Wasted talent on women and wine

I think of all the friends I've left behind
Whenever it's time to get back out on the road

Started playing blues in a coffee bar
I took a trip down Charing Cross Road
With my imitation Gretsch guitar
And my head full of songs and my eyes full of stars
I saw a band called the Rolling Stones
I thought, "that's it, I'll get a band,
I'm leaving home, I'm out on the road."

The motorways all over this land
(The road)
Far away places like Wigan and Birmingham
(The road)
Didn't have no name, didn't have any fans
(The road)
Didn't have no money so we slept in the van

All those early gigs we ever played
Sometimes we were lucky if we even got paid
On the road
Pete played on the bass guitar
Liked to get around, mixing with all the stars
But Mrs. Avory's child was all fingers and thumbs
But solid as a rock, setting time on the drums
While Dave the Rave hit the rock 'n' roll riffs
Yours truly strummed away with a slightly limp wrist
On the road

Everyday is when I can't get used to it
Everyday is when I can't get away
Another day, another freeway to face
That's the road

Well, life is a road, it's a motorway
And the road gets rocky along the way
But if it gets too smooth it's time to call it a day

(On the road)
Jimi Hendrix, The Who, the Led Zeppelin and Free
They took the road so it's alright by me
Some are survivors, some are debris
If you play in a band that's the road that you take
Living in it, eating in it, sleeping in it
You wake up in the morning, what do you see?
The road

Life is a road, it's a motorway
Lost a lot of good friends along the way
All the families and homes that I've left behind
To the wives and the lovers and friends who had their time
I say, "you take your road and I'll take mine."
(You take your road and I'll take mine)
You take your road and I'll take mine
(You take your road and I'll take mine)

Life is a road, it's a motorway
And the road gets rocky along the way
But if it gets too smooth it's time to call it a day

(On the road)
Observed all the various phases from
Flower power, heavy metal and acid rock
And still all the critics keep saying
"Are they still around? When they gonna stop?"
It's just the dedicated followers of fashion who like putting down
All the well respected men who came dancing and are still on the road

Sometime I get suicidal
Now everyone is a rival
Different cars, different bars and hotels
Corporations, big business and egos
When it all gets too bad I think back
When we were all each other had
When we started out on the road

And there's gas in my tank and I've still got a way to go
Another hotel, it's time to check out soon
As I look around the room
I think of all the friends I've left behind
On the road

 

[fox69]

"The Shirt"

"The Shirt"



As I walked into the charity store
I saw a second-hand shirt hangin' up by the door
The collar was frayed, there was a stain on the cuff
Caused by ketchup or blood or some such stuff
It wasn't made of polyester or nylon
The label said "Made in the UK" so I tried it on
And I looked in the mirror and declared
"I like this shirt, I want it"

It's not the label on the shirt that you wear
It's the way that you wear it
They say it's style and breeding and culture that counts
But you can't change good taste on the expense account
And if design or fashion makes you a hero
You can dress all highbrow but still be an emotional zero
But I declare "It's not the shirt you wear
It's the way that you wear it"

I was looking for danger, I should have taken more care
I was dressed to kill, I felt so debonair
Wild expectations, arrogant air
Then I walked into that bar, she was standing there
I walked over with all my savoir fair
And she said "You're a smart looking dude
But your character's ugly, it clashes with my shoes
And I, I can't stand your attitude"

I assumed it was leading to a romantic interlude
I thought my conquest was made
But I was stunned by the magnitude
Of her ingratitude
I spent a good thirty bucks on this babe
Like the shirt I was wearing

This romantic affair was not destined to last
The harder I tried, the louder she laughed
I was reduced to despair, my emotions laid bare
She knew I was hurt, made me feel like a jerk
I was humbled, humiliated, castrated
My masculinity dragged through the dirt
Then thrown in the air to be devoured by the lions
The vultures, the jackals and all the scavengers of love
I was strutting around with my chest stuck out
Like a peacock preparing to get laid
Thought I looked cool but she put me down
She said "You look like a clown on a circus parade"
Still the shirt has class, it looks well made
She was a babe of the first degree
She was totally fantabulous
Like a goddess from Greece and yet
The epitome of the 20th century femininity
She was in her own league
She was meant for me, it was destiny
Like Adam and Eve, synchronisity
She brought out the testosterone in me

Last time I saw that babe she was smiling contentedly
Now I'm trapped on this murder rap, a mistaken identity
It wasn't me, it wasn't me, it wasn't me
Now this cop says "It's up to you, death row or solitude
Crime of passion, you should plead 'insane'
You say you wouldn't lie, but we've just blown your alibi
We've found your shirt and it's got a blood stain"

It was the shirt you were wearing
It was the shirt you were wearing

 

[fox69]

"The Video Shop"

"The Video Shop"



The local factory's been pulled down
By an overseas corporation
Now all of my brothers are looking around
For alternative occupation

I was sitting by the telly with my brother, Kenny
When suddenly the penny dropped
While all of my brothers are sitting at home
I've got a bank loan and I've opened up my very own
Video shop
Video shop

At the video shop
I can fly, fly you away

Comedy and tragedy are all sitting on my shelf
And if you've got a fantasy
For a small rental fee
You can set yourself free
At my video shop
At my video shop
At the video shop

I can fly, fly you away
At the video shop
Let me fly, fly you away
From all of the depression in you head
Caused by all the living in the red

I've got a bootleg version of Citizen Kane
A second hand copy of Psycho
I've taped them off the telly so you shouldn't complain
And there's no guarantee you'll get your money back again
From my video shop
My video shop

If you want to escape, I can rent you a tape
To relieve your situation
If you feel a bit low, I got a good peep show
'Cos everybody knows almost anything goes
At my video shop
At my video shop

One fifty a day and I'll fly, fly you away
It's nothing to pay to fly far, far away
I can help you through that lonely night
I've got Technicolour, black and white
I can guide you through those empty days
Make you smile and take your blues away

O let me fly you away
At my video shop
Fly, fly you away

Another factory's been knocked down
But nobody ever complains
And all of my brothers are customers now
We all play video games
I can see it in the eyes of all the lonely wives
If they're bored and they feel like a change
I do sales, rentals, even a swop
And if you feel like a change, well it can all be arranged
At my video shop
At my video shop
At my video shop

At my video shop
Let me fly, fly you away

And everyone who walks in through that door
Has got something that they're looking for
At my video shop
At my video shop
At the video shop
I can fly, fly you away

At the video shop
Let me fly, fly you away
Oh, at the video shop

Oh, at the video shop
Oh, at the video shop