Styx

Released: October 9, 1990

Songwriter: Ralph Covert

Producer: Dennis DeYoung

[Verse 1]
Well, I was born too late to be a Rolling Stone
I don't know Jerry Lee, I never met John and Yoko
Standing with a Strat, I'm rock n' roll's bastard son
Go out, get drunk, get wild, have fun
I don't got a million dollars, don't drive a Cadillac
Give me half a chance 'cause I'm not dead yet

[Chorus]
I'm not dead yet, oh no, I'm not dead yet
I'm a mad dog fighting with the wall against my back
You better get a bigger gun, I'm not dead yet

[Verse 2]
I've been machine-gunned, hand gunned, hijacked, left for dead
Dive-bombed, napalmed, nuclear warheaded
Dropped from a jet plane with no parachute
And shot by a firing squad and raped by a business suit
I'm dancing on a land mine, baby, one leg left
And I can still crawl and I'm not dead yet

[Chorus]
I'm not dead yet, oh no, I'm not dead yet
I'm a mad dog fighting with the wall against my back
You better get a bigger gun, I'm not dead yet

[Verse 3]
Well you're bigger, tougher, meaner, rougher
Dirtier and uglier and sneakier and trickier
You wanna shoot me with a gun, cut me with a knife
Take your bare hands baby, rip out my eyes
You knocked me to the floor then you bit me in the neck, well
Hit me again 'cause I'm not dead yet

[Chorus]
I'm not dead yet, no no I'm not dead yet
Well I'm a wild card hiding in the middle of the deck
You better get a bigger gun
You better get a bigger gun

[Verse 4]
Well there's a mugger in the alley, there's a sniper in the hall
There's a girl at the bar wants to grab me by my balls
And the hangman is hanging, if I autograph the noose
Lee Harvey Oswald's brother's on the loose
Mafia hit man with a bullet for my neck
Some day he's gonna get me but
[quietly] I'm not dead yet

[Chorus]
I'm not dead yet, I'm not dead yet
Well I'm a wild card hiding in the middle of the deck
You better get a bigger gun, you better get your poison pen

[Outro]
I'm not dead yet, not me, I'm not dead yet
Well, I'm a mad dog fighting with the wall against my back
You better get a bigger gun, go, go, go
I'm not dead yet, I'm not dead yet
I'm not dead yet, Punch this face
I'm not dead yet, So, so, so, so, so, so
I'm not dead yet, [yells]
Well, I'm a mad dog fighting with the wall against my back
You better get a bigger gun, I'm not dead yet

Styx is a rock band from Chicago formed in 1970. They enjoyed great success with pop rock and hard rock songs, and became famous for their power ballads and album releases of the mid 1970s and early 80s.

The band has gone through some famously nasty internal struggles, drug problems, illnesses and deaths, but continues to perform today (with a significantly altered line-up). Tommy Shaw, from Montgomery, AL, left but returned to the band. Drummer John Panozzo developed a debilitating drinking problem and ultimately died. Dennis DeYoung developed an acute case of photosensitivity, and he left the band. They fought among themselves for control of the band name. Glen Burtnik also left and returned, this time on bass, to replace Chuck Panozzo (John’s brother), who had also left the band. (whew.)

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Edge of the Century (1990)

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