Our previous song was written by Richard A. Lupoff back in the 60s and recently put to music by Knees Calhoon. But when Dick heard the tune he was inspired all over again and wrote three more verses for it, bringing it up to date. Doesn't a song that was written in two parts, 50 years apart, deserve to be considered a masterpiece and sequel? Yes. So here's how the night that began as a druggy ritual of exploration ended up, two generations later.
Ommmmm Ommmmm
Holy man, Oh Holy man
Ommmmm Ommmmm
Get you high Oh yes he can
The years flew by, you’d think I’d hit the big fast-forward
key
I look into the mirror and I say, this cannot be
My rocker friends no longer rock, I can’t believe they’re
gone
But Bob and Nick have left this world, and Jerry too, and
John
Old Mozart seems my meat these days, my energy is low
And weed no longer moves my soul, the time moves much too
slow
The kids I see on TV now, I feel more like their father
And if they try to show me how I tell them not to bother
Ommmmm Ommmmm
Holy man, Oh Holy man
Ommmmm Ommmmm
Get you high Oh yes he can
The politics that once outraged, I called for revolution
Now I’ll leave it for somebody else to work out the solution
I’d rather drink a glass of wine and read a good whodunit
Than climb into a hotrod car and hit the gas and gunnit
But someone needs to raise his fist and smash the social
order
And call upon the decent folks who wait there at the border
And so I’ll leave it up to you to keep the banner flying
And keep on living all your life and never think of dying
Ommmmm Ommmmm
Holy man, Oh Holy man
Ommmmm Ommmmm
Get you high Oh yes he can
It’s been a great and happy life, to start with Benny
Goodman
Scarecrow, and Beast, and Toto too, and don’t forget the Tin
Woodman
The lady that I met that night, her guru was a wizard
He got me high, he laid me low, my head was in a blizzard
She’s with me still, our life has been a long fantastic
pleasure
Our kids are grown, they’re on their own, each one’s been a
treasure
And so I leave you to your chores, do everything in style
So when at last you close your eyes you do it with a smile.
Ommmmm Ommmmm
Holy man, Oh Holy man
Ommmmm Ommmmm
Get you high Oh yes he can.
BONUS COVER!
Knees had never heard of Bruce Cockburn until he joined the Canadian group called the Cover Album Project Band, and found that Bruce was a fantastic songwriter, singer and guitar player. One of his songs, an instrumental, seemed like a candidate for Knees' first excursion into playing without a pick. He even made a video with a very lousy camera.
