Greg Brown: Dream on

Gonna meet some sweet lovershe'll be so wise and so kindLove her 'til we're a hundred 'n' sevenBody 'n' the soul an' the mind.That's right, dream on,Little dreamersDream onThis world ain't what you think it isIt's just what it is!OK, I will meet some nice personIn a quiet little cafeWe'll make such sweet love that the birds will applaudAnd then we'll go on our understanding ways.Good luck, dream on,Little dreamerDream on.The world ain't what you think it isIt's just what it is!The president he gonna start laughin'Pass to the general a toke.All the world bigshots gonna lay down their gunsAnd say "hey folks, it was all just a joke!"(spoken with jazzy fingersnapping)Bombs & stuff?Droppin' on you?You know we would'n' do that to you.We're the leaders-of-the-worldWe're the real cool guysWe're elected, respected, we try to be wiseWe're not gonna drop a bunch a' bombs on everybody, blow up the whole worldover some little political difficulty or border dispute or somethin'Us leaders-of-the-world we'r' like all you people,Jus' to sit back, relax, take it easy....Dream on, little dreamersDream on.The world ain't what you think it isIt's just what it is.I 'as feeling kinda troubled 'n' upset 'n' confused 'n' out of it.You know how that goes? Time goes along........... things change, you wakeup some mornin'g 'n' you realize that you're jus' out of it,I find mysel' at some friend's apartment on a nice spring day, little birdsbe singin' in the trees?......... All my friends, they be sittin' aroun'inside......... They was gittin' kinda out of it too, I guess, but, seemedto be workin' out awright for 'em....... They be sittin' aroun' in alittle apartment watchin' TV, you know, on a nice spring day..........they'd be watchin' like reruns of "Three's Company", stuff likethat........ They be laughin', you know, jus' havin' a great time. Ididn' get it........ So I knew I must be kinda outta sync, 'n' outtaswing......... I need a little bit a' help.Well, jus' luckily for me, the great Swami, Prisnidadirapi was comin'through town....... (I think he was on his way up to Boulder, Colorado, orsomewhere.) He was givin' a li'l advice as he went by 'n' I went to seethe guy.......... 'n' in so many words I said to him: "I'm in bad shapehere.......... An' I heard you got the true knowledge, which you c'ld giveto me, which w'ld clear up all my doubts and difficulties, 'n' git me backon the track, back in the swing, fully adjusted to life in the 20thcentury....... An' the only trouble I heard about, Swami, is you chargeabout eight hundred dollars fer the true knowledge............. That's allright, I mean........ I never expected there to be a blue light special onenlightenment or anythin' like that, but I..... I'm just a guitar player,your holy Swaminess, an' I was hopin' we could make a deal where...... Iwould give you, like, maybe, four hundred dollars........an' I was hopin'maybe you would give me, like, jus' maybe half of the trueknowledge?........Jus' enough to git me by for a month or six weeks at themost, 'n' I'll give you the rest of the cash......... you give me the restof the knowledge, I'll be enlightened, your pockets'll be a little heavy,we both be doing awright, whaddaya say?"Well, the Swami, he looked at me from under his heavy-lidded eyes,...hismysterious eyes...... He smiled at me......... That was nuthin' new, youknow, the Swami was always kinda smiling......... Like he knew sumpin'that you didn't know...... Like those people that............ they jus'levitate jus' a lit'l bit, you know, 'n' they git a little smile on theirface.......He smiled......... He looked at me 'n' he said:"Dream on, little dreamerDream on.This world ain't what you think it isit's jus' what it is."This quiet rain will always continueOur kids will always think we're greatThe world won't keep reeling like a poor drunken foolWho's lost an' upset an' too lateDream on, little dreamers,Dream on.This world ain't what you think it is,This world ain't what you wish it was,Uh, the worldAin't what you think it isIt's justWhat it is.