Lyrics

Tough words from stuffed shirts
Are just spiel
To keep the people hushed up
While they peel back the net
They’re cynical traps set
To deflect from deep cuts
And veterans forced to sleep rough

I’m telling you to speak up
Peaceful free people don’t see
Enough respect from the powers that be
We’ve never seen such cowards and fiends
Who neglect in the hour of need
The vast crowds that fell foul of their deeds

Tough words from stuffed shirts
Are just spiel
To keep the people just under the heel
Out of reach
They’ll promise a small piece
To increase their vote share
But it’s all for keeps
And they won’t dare

I’m telling you they don’t care
Showing no scope
To promote fair approaches
When wallets are squeezed
We’ve never seen such astonishing greed
Led by profits
The ominous creed
The lost flocks left impoverished grieve

Well-dressed elite
Treads the streets with fresh shoes on
Connects with beams
Projects screens with the news on
Reflects scenes
Bleak like a blues song
Weave through the throng
Please move on
Nothing to see

Everyone wants something for free
On the leech
These panhandlers are scandalous freaks
Which aversion will hurt least?
He flirts with curt speech
Because words are dirt cheap
But the urge to spurn is burned deep
Better turn cheek

You won’t see him fishing for spare change
Disturbing his peace
No time to listen to their pains
Doesn’t seem like a fair exchange
Between self-made and self-maimed
Shame won’t make him turn in his sleep
If he refrains

They deserve what they reap
He’s got to keep on earning his keep
But this deadbeat’s determined to speak
Pleading ‘Dig deep’
‘Cheers, chief’
‘Lend me your ears, geez’
Jeez
Can you believe the sheer cheek?

Stealing a peek nevertheless
He regrets leaving suburban retreat
For this stress
He’s had a turbulent week
At his desk
And expects threats unless he accepts
So he quickens his steps
Wishes his best and he’s left

Then whispers under his breath
A mild curse:
‘Vile scourge’
High alert
Holding tight to his purse
While the words rise behind him:
‘A smile won’t hurt’
Liar’s too shy to work
Crying:
‘Please sir, I’m dying of thirst’

But his pride will reverse in time
See the fall gets worse
The higher you climb
There’s no safe landing
And he’s standing on a slackwire
Set to snap in the next crash
Then his assets will backfire

Dragging a flat tyre
As his future deflates
Destitution was the price of his hate
Too late
The door slams shut
The man’s fucked
He’s bankrupt
Now he’ll be the one sat and ignored
With his hands cupped

Tough words from stuffed shirts
Are just spiel
To keep the people hushed up
While they peel back the net
They’re cynical traps set
To deflect from deep cuts
And veterans forced to sleep rough

I’m telling you to speak up
Peaceful free people don’t see
Enough respect from the powers that be
We’ve never seen such cowards and fiends
Who neglect in the hour of need
The vast crowds that fell foul of their deeds

Tough words from stuffed shirts
Are just spiel
To keep the people just under the heel
Out of reach
They’ll promise a small piece
To increase their vote share
But it’s all for keeps
And they won’t dare

I’m telling you they don’t care
Showing no scope
To promote fair approaches
When wallets are squeezed
We’ve never seen such astonishing greed
Never stopping to heed
What it costs just to be
Because you see

It’s hard not to resent
The one per cent
Who inherit their wealth
When you can barely keep bread on the shelf
All of the hard earned cash you stacked up
To afford your demands
Snatched up by the lord of the land
You're dealt a raw hand

To catch crumbs from the crust
Take it to the lawman
Or hang tough
All of your plans to stand up
Unravelling and gathering dust
It’s unjust but hard luck
Pass the buck
No fuss kicked up
For trust ripped up

Ratchet up the damage
They've got it stitched up
And they're slapping on a bandage
Just whipped up a shit sandwich
The same old vacuous claptrap
Packed and spat back
Wrapped in different language

‘Lend a hand to the disadvantaged,
And the dispossessed’
Gets the best press
At the behest of execs
Blessed with success
Who neglect to address
The effects of mess that they left

With no shame
They throw blame at the rest
To protect their own names
Blind to the kind
Consigned
Left to grind in the slow lane
Paying with time
Waiting in line for the ghost train

Entwined by design
In a closed chain
Where the vote won’t invoke change
Just stoke flames
Through the smoke see devotees
Clinging to coat tails
Of who claims to be
The most ‘woke’ when hope fails

But now the boat sails without a captain
Behind the walls
Pacing the halls
Divided over backing
All the madcap plans that they’re hatching
That won’t happen
Lost faith in it all
Though it calls for smart action

The working class factions
Have lost traction
Hard hats got tossed back
With doffed caps
To the last bastion
Of Thatcher’s bastard children
Dragging a cadaver
From the ash of a blackened building