LORD HAVE MERCY

By John D. Loudermilk
©1971 Acuff-Rose Publ. Inc.

We're spendin' six billion bucks on an airplane that ain't gonna get off of the ground
And the man that they hired to cut down on spending
Lord, they fired him when he found what he found
And the government's hiring more voters by day
And checking more tax-payers by night
Lord, have mercy on a country, who'd rather switch than to fight

Over in Russia they are studying psychic phenomenon and ESP
While we go to church and we pray for the Russians
Who are lost cause they don't believe
Our congressmen publicly advocate violence
And fools burn their schools to the ground
Lord, have mercy on a country that's tearin' its ownself down

We say the West beat the East to the moon and that proves the West is the best
While the electricity goes off in our biggest cities
We haven't figured it out yet
And twenty-five years we've been seeing flying saucers
That Washington says weren't around
Lord, have mercy on a country that's tearin' its ownself down

Our senators lie and our presidents get shot
And our preachers say "What hath God wrought?"
And we go on testin' within a few miles
Of San Andreas fault
And we put our was heroes in jail for shootin' some of the enemy down
Lord, have mercy on a country that's tearin' its ownself down

(source: Standard Songs Pop/ Country/ Blues/ Folk/ Instumentals/ Novelty, Acuff-Rose Publications Inc. 1956-1973)

Back to discography