Music
People In The Middle
I am not a muslim but I read the final call
because within its pages there is something for us all
and I am not professional but I love basketball
the squeaking of the sneakers they echo in the hall
But if I don't have enemies I'm not doin' my job
I might throw out a curve ball but I never throw a lob
people criticize me but I know it's not the end
I try to kick the truth not just to make friends
(chorus)
but hey diddle diddle
to the people in the middle
we got hot wax
and it cookin' on the griddle
Got the guitar strummin'
the drummer drummin'
the people all hummin'
and the vibe was lovin'
on and on and on
'til the breakadawn
I am not a jerk although sometimes I act like one
and I am deadly serious about us havin' fun
well I go many places but I know I'm not with you
and I am not a sucker even though I'm stuck on you
each one- should teach one and share with one anotha
so many is out there-that's livin undercover
your motha your fatha your sista your brotha
your friends and their enemies all have their lovers
(chorus)
So tell me- the definition of a sell-out
cast your first stone-but then get the hell out
people say they know me I can tell you that they don't
people say they own me I can tell you that they won't
the left and the right they all try to use me
but I'll be in they faces before they can abuse me
so roll down ya window and listen what I'm sayin'
relax ya mind and let the band keep playin'
on and on and on 'til the breakadawn
(chorus)
Love Is Da Shit
Say when you called me that night
to tell me that things
they weren't goin' alright with your boyfriend
was it me or did you just need somebody to talk to
Say is it you or the fact that I can't be near you
that keeps you in the front of my mind
when your breath is the last thing that you say
when your voice goes away
and a breath is the last thing that you say
But the warmth of your lips on my fingertips won't go away
when I drop my head in my hands and play
the memory of that might in L.A.
again and again and again
because I can't think straight and I can't sleep late
the few times we shared I try to recreate
I know this is wrong better stop this talk
cause grass can grow up through a crack in the sidewalk
and what I see when I look in your eyes
grass that's truly greenest sprouting inside
I wasn't even looking when I realized
that you had the vibe that was my fertilizer
thought love in this world was dead and buried and gone
how could I be so cynical when I was so young
you hit me in the chest like and 808 boom
I found love is the shit that makes life bloom!
(chorus)
Love is the shit that makes life bloom
and you never know when you might step in it!
love is the shit that makes life bloom
and you never know when you might...
But fate is like a pigeon that follows me around
sometimes he flies ahead and he brings me what he found
then he'll drop it on my head leave me numb
from the brain down
that's the way it was when I walked upon your ground
The irrepressible and impermissable
are the two things that have made my life miserable
'cause spirits don't leave if you don't talk about 'em
and memories come back when you don't think aabout 'em
I wish I had an ocean of some magic potion
I'd trade all this emotion for a few moments of motion
I've never felt this way some things can't be rehearsed
now I'm grindin' up my gearbox tryin' to find reverse
because...
(chorus)
(bridge)
But I want to keep on walkin'
Right through
And let this fellin' rock me
ooh-oooh!
(repeat)
"ya know fallin' in love is like easing into a hot tub.
it feels good on your feet but by the time you
get to your mid section you know your either
gonna get all the way in or all the way out!"
But music brings me comfort in this grieving hour
the Sade tape tells me it's all over for now
I listen read hard but don't dare play it loud
'cause I don't wanna think what you might be doin' now
sometimes it feels like a bad initiation but you
woke my hear from a long hibernation
you were worth every risk so I gave my hear room
and now I'm deep in the doo-doo
that makes life bloom
because...
(chorus)
(bridge)
See the flowers bloomin' in the springtime
see the bees zoomin' in the sunshine
(repeat)
Positive
Make me, make me sweat
til I'm wet, til I'm dry
but then wipe this tear from my eye
haven't felt this warm in a long time
even out in the bright sunshine
in lifetime of springtimes
I fall into your arms
with my heart pumpin' on
like a bubblin' dub track
like a garlicy hot tonque and lip smack
I did some contemplation
before we got down to this consecration
maybe baby something in you kiss said
it was an impetous
for me to rethink this
If I love you
then I better get tested
make sure we're protected
I walk through the park
dressed like a question mark
Hark!
I hear my memory bark
in the back of my brain,
makn' me insane...
...like cocaine
(chorus)
But how'm I gonna live my life if I'm positive?
Is it gonna be a negative?
How'm I gonna live my life if I'm positive?
Is it gonna be a negative?
but how'm I gonna live my life if I'm positive?
It dawned on me, it seemed to me
this is unusual scenery
this red light greenery
make me feel kinda dreamery
thinkin' how I used to be
Arrive at the clinic
walk through the front door
take a nervous number
then I think about it more
about all the time
that I neglected
makin sure that
I was protected
They took my blood
With an anonymous number
two weeks waitin' wonderin'
I shoulda done this a long time ago
alot of excuses why I couldn't go
I know these things and these things I must know
'cause it's better to know than to not know!
(chorus)
I go home to kick it
in my apartment
I try to give myself
a risk assessment
the wait is what can really annoy ya
everyday is more paranoya
I'm readin' about how it's transmitted
some behavior I must admit it
who I slept with, who they slept with,
who they, who they, who they slept with
I think about life and immortality
what's the first thing I do if I'm H.I.V
have a cry and tell my mother
get on the phone and call my past lovers
I never thought about infectin' anotha
all the times that I said "Hmmm? Don't bother."
Was it really all that magic?
The times I didn't use a prophalactic
Would my whole life have to change?
or would my whole life remain the same?
sometimes it makes me wanna shout!
all these things too hard to think about
a day to laugh, a day to cry
a day to live and a day to die
'til I find out, I may wonder
but I'm not gonna live my life six feet under
Dream Team
Red Black Green, Red Gold Green
Dat's how we know we a fe we dream team
(repeat)
The other day
A friend gave me a call
He said that the dream team was playin basketball
Was so excited / That I hadda get a Witness
The first time the NBA was in the 'lympics
players from the east/ players from the west
And you can bet that they took the very best
("Except they left Tim Hardaway at home"
"Yeah that was hella fucked up!")
But Anyway
I tuned in because I was hella psyched
To see Magic Johnson on the same team as Mike
Gettin crazy / Havin lots of fun
makin sure that they got the job done
Fans were wavin the red white end blue
It seemed strange to me / was it strange to you?
Brotha's on the street / And everyone is scared a ya
So how could ten Africans represent America?
Bullshit / It didn't mean a thing
'Cause in the same year / we saw Rodney King
So I thought / That I would put a team together
A team that I have been waitin for forever
Some a you / May know what I mean
But if you don't then / Lemme introduce you to...
MY DREAM TEAM!
"SPEARHEAD IN THE AREA!"
(chorus)
THIS IS MY DREAM TEAM, MY DREAM TEAM
MY DREAM TEAM, MY DREAM TEAM
Well Chuck D'sannouncin'/ Flava's doin' color
halftime enterntainment by Dre and Ed Lover
Malcolm X is the coach he's drawin' up the strategy
he's choppin up America's anatomy
'cause they're the ones/ we're up against of course
are general manager is Chief Crazy Horse
Huey Newton/ 'cause he was extra hard
he's the one/ who would be playin at the shootin' guard
I dreamed Charles Barkley would be
played by Marcus Garvey
he'd be throwin people off his back and makin
sure they never got a rebound rebound / and
he'd throw it to the outlet
Nat Turner/ 'cause he can turn the corner when
he's out there
he be flyin through the air/ throwin passes like
he really doesn't care/behind the back /and in
between the legs
he's handlin the rock /as gently as an egg
he's throwin it in/ to Angela Davis's neighborhood
she's postin up down in the extra hard wood
she grabs the pill/ and then she puts her shoulder down
get out the way/ 'cause she's gonna throw down now
boom /oh my god! I just can't believe it
get anotha backboard or bettah yet leave it.
we always play for fun /but we always play for keeps
the game is over and the loser's gotta sweep.
up the glass/ that we busted in the ass
Set the record straight /about America's past
THIS IS MY DREAM TEAM
"SPEARHEAD IN THE AREA!"
(chorus)
DREAM TEAM'S IN THE HOUSE
DREAM TEAM'S IN THE HOUSE
Well after doin that /we be headin for the ceremony
hand on the heart /is a bunch of baloney
the spirit of/ the '68 olympics
Black power people/ can I get a witness
fist in the air/ this is proper manners
while Jimi Hendrix/ is fuckin' up the spangled banner
up into the sky/ Miles Davis blows a horn
Look into the bleachers/ It's Bill Clinton sellin popcorn
so now we jump! and we have a celebration!
Shaquille 0'neal would provide the entertainment
to some of you this is a far fetched scheme
but to me... I'll tell you what it is...
This is my Dream Team...
"spearhead in the area"
(chorus)
Yeah Sista Rosa Perks she gets the first seat
on the bench!
and Dr. King, webring him in in a pinch.
Because I like to shoot hoops not brothas!
Beceuse I like to shoot hoops not brothas!
Because I like to shoot hoops not brothas!
Because I like to shoot hoops not brothas!
Runfayalife!
Every woman every man wanna move dem feet
every woman every man love a Spearhead beat!
Police in the city
is shuttin all the clubs down
it's lookin like a ghost town
ya know Mary- what we gotta do?
Hell Yeah!
we gotta go underground"
To da place -from which we all came from
house parties-they was always fun
remember tryin to rig a sound system
everybody- would bring a donation
when we needed- to get a turn table
my man Zulu
would borrow one from aunt Mable
set it up in the corner-
turn the lights down until the mornin'
(chorus)
But the party ain't started till the speaker's blown
NO! NO! NO!
Run fa ya life!
The party ain't started 'till the speaker's blown
While he was settin up camp
someone else would bring a home stereo amp
with a note from they mama-
"don't turn it up loud or it's a goner"
sorry mama- there's no chance
cause if the shit ain't bumpin'
people ain't gonna dance
"know what I'm sayin'" ("Turn that shit up")
everybody in the place would bring a few speakers
string em all togetha like they was sneakers
and say a prayer- before we turn it on
hopin that the amp- wouldn't get blown.
I asked Mary watcha think of it
"now we need a D.J. to work this shit"
so everybody- would bring a few singles- get
the beat bumpin
and then start to mingle
(chorus)
Every woman every man wanna move dem feet
every woman every man love a Spearhead beat!
Every brother and every sister
would pay respect up to the ancestors
we would dance and we would celebrate
even though we live in a police state
then the pigs- would try to make a statement
with a ticket- for noise abatement
but we kept it pumpin' -till the braekadawn
then we told the cops
they gotta break the door down
and today -across the nation- don't ya know
it's the same situation
alotta cities lookin like a ghost town
but the house party will never be shut down
no no no!
(chorus)
Crime To Be Broke
I take the needle off the record
and shove it in my arm
whenever I feel life is
comin' on too strong
they left me in a clinic fulla
cynical motha fuckin' bureaucrats
and other kinda ding bats
Livin on the tracks
the tracks in my arm said
it all depends which side the tracks your on.
tellin' me what to wear
tellin me cut my hair
and tryin to convince me that they
really really care
all about my health and about my wealth
but still they built the Stealth
'cause everybody's
just lookin out for they self
So then I ask 'em
can I have a clean needle
"Hell no that's illegal!"
(chorus)
'Cause it's a crime to be broke in America!
and it's a crime to smoke dank in America!
(repeat)
"Yeah hit those drums now"
they lockin' brother's in the poorhouse
who can't afford Moorhouse
politicians nervous
it's the only free service they provide
you wanna go inside
there's a hot meal waitin' for ya
a deal we can score ya
on a bed for a night or two
or three or four months.
They say they lockin' us up in cells
to protect us from ourselves
it smells like they got anotha
plan in store house
or should I say warehouse
fulla niggas and other misfits
that couldn't turn tricks in the courthouse
it's a justice whorehouse
(chorus)
It's a crime to be broke in America!
and it's a crime to be Black in America!
But there's a mutiny on the bounty
in ever single county
we remember Attica
but don't forget to pat a few
other on the back as a matter of fact
sister Asatta Shakur and Geronimo Pratt
'cause Amnesty international
is fightin' for political
but if your analytical
you know it's much more critical than that
percentages black is really, really whack
can I kick a few facts yes?
Sx percent in college
from livin on the block
twenty five percent in prison
the school of hard knocks
fifty percent in poverty
is livin on the rocks
five hundred brothas on a death row box
The punishment is capital
for those who lack in capital
because a public defender
can't remember the last time
that a brother wasn't treated like an animal.
They say they blame it on a song
when someone kills a cop
what music did they listen to
when they bombed Iraq?
give me one example so I can take a sample
no need to play it backwards
if you wanna hear the devil
cause music's not the problem
it didn't cause the bombin'
but maybe they should listen
to the songs of people starving..
(chorus)
'Cause it's a Crime to be broke in America!
it's a crime to smoke dank in America!
it's a crime to be black in America!
it's a crime to be black in America!
it's a crime to be Puerto Rican
African
Native American
Asian Hatian
a Woman
Red Beans And Rice
I don't eat red meat but I'm not a vegetarian
I like ice cream/ but not much dairy
'cause it gets in my nose
it makes me gotta blows
snot like a farmer and it gets on my clothes
it's rather unsightly/ can even be frightening
but cold medication/ should not be taken nightly
because everything dat I put in/ it comes out again
and if I eat lean/ it helps me stay thin
check out my hair, I keep it dreaded
about my corn? I like it breaded
hot from the oven? MMMM! you said it!
straight to the stomach my fuel is unleaded
But not fossil fuels/ I like olive oil
I like my eggs scrambled/ I never eat 'em boiled
The way to my heart/ is with a garlic clove
it smells hella sexy/ when it's on the kitchen stove
(chorus)
Red beans and rice, red beans and rice, red beans and rice,
make everything nice
red beans and rice, red beans and rice, red beans and rice
I could eat a plate twice. So nice. So nice. So nice.
Most people on the planet/ eat beans and rice
some can't afford beef or they think cows are nice
If you talk table manners don't believe all they
told ya I eat with my fingers like an African soldier
I don't know which fork is for meat or for salad
I haven't got a clue when they say "whet your palate"
eat a lot a prunes it'll keep you loose
skin'll turn orange if you drink carrot juice
I think beef jerky tastes like a boot
when I'm on the street I chew a licorice root
and if I have a soar throat /then I eat ginger
and I will break bread /with those who are strangers
so come into my cave / tonight I will show you
food is for life / and life I will show you.
If you're havin' problems/ I invite you here
step into my kitchen /we will cook away your fears
(chorus)
Amazing grace how sweet the sound that
saved a wretch like me
Dammit let's eat!
Mi casa es su casa. Mi cocina es su cocina.
you know what I meana!
(bridge)
get some boilin' water! Yeah!
get a pound aof beans! Yeah!
get some spice and make it nice! Yeah!
you know what I mean!
But if a friend has gas /then he's passin'
it gives me a headache end I gotta take aspirin
it makes me dizzy/ I fix him fizzies
to calm his stomach/ when it's feelin kinda
busy some like it white/but I like it brown
I like spicy chicken/ and I can throw it down
chilis come red /and chilis come green
when it's on the table/ I lick my plate clean
Then I drink a toast to the host and hostess
But first we give thanks/ to God the Mostest
'cause if I am a guest/ I always wash my plate
sip a sip a soda while I sing Amazing Grace
rings on my fingers /left round the tub
bass fulla bubbles/ bumpin like a wash tub
think about my troubles/ goin down the drain
dryin' up the puddles in the back of my brain
But...
(chorus)
Original Release Date: September 8, 1994
Label: Capital Records
Produced and mixed by: Michael Franti and Joe "the Butcha" Nicolo
*Produced by: Michael Franti
Mixed by: Michael Franti and Craig Silvey
Executive Producers: Kim Buie and Len Fico
Michael Franti - Vocalist
Mary Harris - Vocalist
Le Le Jamison - Keyboards
Keith McArthur - Bass
David James - Guitar
James Gray - Drums
Sub Commander - Ras I Zulu
