That's What I Want to Hear (Phil Ochs)

That's What I Want to Hear
That's What I Want to Hear
Author	Phil Ochs
First published	1965
Type	Song

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Lyrics

Oh you tell me that your last good dollar is gone

And you say that your pockets are bare

And you tell me that your clothes are tattered and torn

And nobody seems to care

Now don't tell me your troubles

No I don't have the time to spare

But if you want to get together and fight

Good buddy that's what I want to hear

And you tell me that your job was taken away

By a big ol' greasy machine

And you tell me that you don't collect no more pay

And your belly is growing lean

Now if I had the jobs to give

You know I'd give them all away.

But don't waste your breath calling out my name

If you don't have nothing to say

And you tell me that you don't have nothing to do

And you keep on wasting your time

And you say when you want to get your family some food

You gotta stand in a relief line

Now it's a sin and a bloody shame

About the way they're pushing you 'round

But when you decide not to take no more

You know I'll put my money down

'Cause I've seen your kind many times before

And I'll see 'em many times again

Oh but every bad thing that's happened to you

Has happened to better men.

So don't explain that you've lost your way

That you've got no place to go

You've got a hand and a voice and you're not alone

Brother that's all you need to know.

And if you're still wonderin' what I'm trying to say

Let me tell you what it's all about

Now nobody listens to a single man

When he's walkin' 'round down and out.

So if you're looking for an answer

He's standing there by your side.

And you'll never really know how far you'll go

'Til you join together and try