Released: April 24, 1984
Songwriter: David Byrne
Producer: Gary Goetzman Talking Heads
Well, I'm dressed up so nice
An' I'm doin' my best
Yes I'm startin' over..
Startin' over in another place
Lemme tell you a story
Big chief with a golden crown
He's got rings on his fingers
And he walks up, up to the throne
He's makin' shapes with his hands
An' don't you dare sit back
Now don't you dare sit down
And don't you dare speak up
And on the first day, we had everything we could stand
Who could have asked for more?
And on the second day, there was nothing else left to do
Ooh, what a day that was
Well, there are 50,000 beggars
Roaming in the streets
And they have lost all their possessions
They have nothing left to eat
Down come a bolt of lightning
Start an electrical storm
And starts a chain reaction
Go pull a fire alarm
I said I, I'm dreaming of a city
It was my own invention
And I put the wheels in motion
A time for big decisions
And on the first day, we had everything we could stand
Ooh, and then we let it fall
And on the second day, there was nothing else left at all
Ooh, what a day that was
Oh, a day that was
Ooh, that's the way it goes
There's a million ways to get things done
Three's a million ways to make things work out
Well, I'm going right through
And the light came down
Well, they're roundin' 'em up
From all over the town
They're movin' forward and backwards
They're movin' backwards and front
And they're enjoying themselves
Moving in every direction
And if you feel like you're in a whirlpool
You feel like going home
You feel like talking to someone
Who knows the difference between right and wrong
Oh, and on the first day, we had everything we could stand
Ooh, and then we let it fall
And on the second day, there was nothing else left at all
Ooh, what a day that was
We're goin' boom, boom, boom
And that's the way we live
And in a great big room
And that's the way we live
We're goin' boom, boom, boom
And that's the way we live
And in a great big room
And that's the way we live
We're goin' boom, boom, boom
And that's the way we live
And in a great big room
And that's the way we live
We're goin' boom, boom, boom
And that's the way we live
And in a great big room
And that's the way we live
An' I'm doin' my best
Yes I'm startin' over..
Startin' over in another place
Lemme tell you a story
Big chief with a golden crown
He's got rings on his fingers
And he walks up, up to the throne
He's makin' shapes with his hands
An' don't you dare sit back
Now don't you dare sit down
And don't you dare speak up
And on the first day, we had everything we could stand
Who could have asked for more?
And on the second day, there was nothing else left to do
Ooh, what a day that was
Well, there are 50,000 beggars
Roaming in the streets
And they have lost all their possessions
They have nothing left to eat
Down come a bolt of lightning
Start an electrical storm
And starts a chain reaction
Go pull a fire alarm
I said I, I'm dreaming of a city
It was my own invention
And I put the wheels in motion
A time for big decisions
And on the first day, we had everything we could stand
Ooh, and then we let it fall
And on the second day, there was nothing else left at all
Ooh, what a day that was
Oh, a day that was
Ooh, that's the way it goes
There's a million ways to get things done
Three's a million ways to make things work out
Well, I'm going right through
And the light came down
Well, they're roundin' 'em up
From all over the town
They're movin' forward and backwards
They're movin' backwards and front
And they're enjoying themselves
Moving in every direction
And if you feel like you're in a whirlpool
You feel like going home
You feel like talking to someone
Who knows the difference between right and wrong
Oh, and on the first day, we had everything we could stand
Ooh, and then we let it fall
And on the second day, there was nothing else left at all
Ooh, what a day that was
We're goin' boom, boom, boom
And that's the way we live
And in a great big room
And that's the way we live
We're goin' boom, boom, boom
And that's the way we live
And in a great big room
And that's the way we live
We're goin' boom, boom, boom
And that's the way we live
And in a great big room
And that's the way we live
We're goin' boom, boom, boom
And that's the way we live
And in a great big room
And that's the way we live
more tracks from the album
Stop Making Sense
- What a Day That Was
- Take Me to the River - Live
- Girlfriend Is Better [Stop Making Sense] - Live
- Once in a Lifetime - Live
- This Must Be the Place (Naive Melody) - Live
- Swamp - Live
- Making Flippy Floppy - Live
- Life During Wartime [Stop Making Sense] - Live
- Burning Down the House - Live
- Slippery People [Stop Making Sense] - Live
- Found a Job - Live
- Thank You for Sending Me an Angel - Live
- Heaven - Live
- Psycho Killer [Stop Making Sense] - Live
- Crosseyed and Painless - Live
From the album
- Stop Making Sense (1984)
Talking Heads popular songs
- Once in a Lifetime
- Psycho Killer
- This Must Be the Place (Naive Melody)
- Burning Down the House
- Life During Wartime
- Born Under Punches (The Heat Goes On)
- Road to Nowhere
- Crosseyed and Painless
- The Great Curve
- Girlfriend Is Better
- Slippery People
- (Nothing But) Flowers
- Heaven
- Take Me to the River
- And She Was
- Listening Wind
- Don’t Worry About the Government
- Seen and Not Seen
- Making Flippy Floppy
- Houses in Motion
- I Zimbra
- The Overload
- Cities
- Wild Wild Life