John

Hey John, is that you

It's been 14 years boy, what did you do,

When the last thing I saw of you

Was in Spring 1970

Since then I've watched the world advance

I gave peace another chance

Left the army, came back from Vietnam

That really wasn't my scene

And I've worked in some things for some of the time

Went to Bordeaux and stamped on grapes for wine

Packed plastic lids in boxes on the factory line

That paved the way for the weekends

--

I thought I would have seen you once the years

But I've watched my chances of success disappear

So I want you to tell me John

Where it was I went wrong

-

They say we're living now in a boom time

And If I want it enough then it's mine

But crunching through numbers is not my design

There's places I could be now

I could have been like you John, could I have take my bag

When I was 18 and left with what I had

But I had commitment to hold and to have

That didn't work in my favour

And now I'm left considering my fate

In some sheltered housing where those who wait

Are waited on, by those that create

A plan for the rest of their lives

--

Destiny, luck, I don't believe it at all

But the higher the tightrope the further to fall

I could be like you John, go back to the war

Then it's written in luck, it's written in law

-

Hey John, is that you? Since you've been away much has happened to you

You've changed in the way you look, and the things that you do

While I remain largely the same

Your walk and talk is larger than most

And you've got stories about which you boast

But now you say you're home to roost

Does that mean there's nowhere else left?