BACK WHEN THE BEANO WAS BOSS
In the 60's civil rights were causin' a rift
ideas and opinions were beginnin' to shift
a lot of young Americans hadn't been hipped
but the blokes and the birds saw the blues as a gift
It was back when the Beano was boss
we were just tryin' to get our point across
payin' the price, no matter what the cost
back when the Beano was boss
Voice of America beamin' in
blastin' John Lee Hooker and Guitar Slim
while Muddy and the Wolf were groovin' in style
at the far left end of your AM dial
It was back when the Beano was boss
we were playin' the blues, we didn't give a toss
with a bone to pick and an ocean to cross
back when the Beano was boss
A Les Paul through a Bluesbreaker two-twelve
was the rig du jour, it was louder than hell
'Can you please turn it down? We're way in the red!'
Young EC never heard a single word he said
There's been nothin' like it, before or since
it's all quite sterile in the present tense
those days of abandon are sadly long gone
Mike Vernon's in Spain, and Gus Dudgeon's gone on
Once at the Crossroads I heard it again
that signature sound singin' in the wind
and John and the band still play in your town
forty six years on, still knockin' miles down
but back when the Beano was boss
if you didn't live it, it's truly your loss
the soul intact, but the innocence lost
back when the Beano was boss
In the 60's civil rights were causin' a rift
ideas and opinions were beginnin' to shift
a lot of young Americans hadn't been hipped
but the blokes and the birds saw the blues as a gift
It was back when the Beano was boss
we were just tryin' to get our point across
payin' the price, no matter what the cost
back when the Beano was boss
Voice of America beamin' in
blastin' John Lee Hooker and Guitar Slim
while Muddy and the Wolf were groovin' in style
at the far left end of your AM dial
It was back when the Beano was boss
we were playin' the blues, we didn't give a toss
with a bone to pick and an ocean to cross
back when the Beano was boss
A Les Paul through a Bluesbreaker two-twelve
was the rig du jour, it was louder than hell
'Can you please turn it down? We're way in the red!'
Young EC never heard a single word he said
There's been nothin' like it, before or since
it's all quite sterile in the present tense
those days of abandon are sadly long gone
Mike Vernon's in Spain, and Gus Dudgeon's gone on
Once at the Crossroads I heard it again
that signature sound singin' in the wind
and John and the band still play in your town
forty six years on, still knockin' miles down
but back when the Beano was boss
if you didn't live it, it's truly your loss
the soul intact, but the innocence lost
back when the Beano was boss