Thomas Anderson

singer, songwriter, rock 'n' roller

Jarvik 7

by Thomas Anderson

from the album Bolide

Howard Hughes thought it was contagious

Living with his fellow human beings;

High above the desert in Las Vegas,

Behind locked doors in his hotel wing.

Ice Station Zebra on the TV, Susan Hayward and Genghis Khan;

Spruce Goose coming in for landing,

Oh where have all the old times gone?

Hitch-hiking out in the desert,

Fingernails seven inches long; Route 66 to the outskirts,

Saying, "Melvin, friend, it's yours for a song."

   Jarvik 7, I can hear your beat

   Playing on the radio

   And Earth and Heaven are in retreat,

   And we're still on the run,

   And we get nothing done,

   And we don't need anyone.

J.F.K. sent word to Havana,

Warheads aimed at the White House door;

Up all night with Bobby and McNamara,

He said "Listen pal, I don't need no more.

"I got Malcolm X preaching separation,

I got Sputnik whirling through the sky;

I got Indochinese infiltration

I got Marilyn on the White House line."

   Jarvik 7, I can hear your beat,

   Playing on the radio;

   And Earth and Heaven are in retreat,

   And we're still on the run,

   And we get nothing done,

   And we don't need anyone.

Well, I saw Andy Warhol in the disco,

I saw Norman Mailer with the Rolling Stones;

I saw Aldous Huxley in San Francisco,

Looking for a dime for the phone.

He said, "Hemingway--he took the bullring."

He said, "Bukowski--he took the track."

He said, "F. Scott Fitzgerald took high society."

And nobody loves you 'til you give it back.

   Jarvik 7, I can hear your beat

   Playing on the radio

   And Earth and Heaven are in retreat,

   And we're still on the run,

   And we get nothing done,

   And we don't need anyone.