sea lion

this is pretty dope. i dont know how long ago this dropped, but i just discovered it & once again i am blown away by these spoken word poets turned rappers. saul williams is one of the few poets/writers i have really gotten deep into, & this song, naturally, is nothing short of amazing.



(A healthy distrust)

(Will Oldham)
The force of my love was strong
the sea lion laying down long
the song in the air
why should singer care
when singer can be among song

(Sage Francis)
Ma, ma look what I did ma
Look what I did to my hands
I broke 'em
You gave me the stone, gave me the chisel
Didn't say how to hold 'em
Didn't say give away every piece of the puzzle
Till I was left with nothin'
But I took it upon myself to crush it up and distribute the dust
Get in the bus, hop in the van
Jump in the water, crawl to the land
Build another castle out of the sand
Break it down and then I get into the saddle again
Gone city to city
I'm already lost to the boss
Who is new in town
I'ma ride this horse till it bucks me off
And I'm forced to shoot it down
I'ma take him out for some gasoline
I'ma trade this cow for some magic beans
Make mom proud of the deals that I've made
Cause I'm just a modern day Johnny Appleseed
But I'm glad that I never passed the gins
And I never put down the axe
Piano man got checkered dance floor
The grace and the painful look on his face
Cause the crowd is packed
And the louder they clapped
The less he is able to make the connection
Between what he sees when he hears certain notes
And the hurt that is shown in his facial expression
I don't need your 'go-ahead' to go ahead
Y'all don't know if sales gon' be-easy
But sweet Jesus who wants to sleep with me
Way too many moves to learn
But not enough people to put 'em on
Look it mom
No hands
I built a suit of armor with wooden arms

(Will Oldham)
The force of my love was strong
the sea lion laying down long
the song in the air
why should singer care
when singer can be among song

(Saul Williams)
Oh God I think I’m dead
I can’t see outside my head
Brains and Bloods and cryptic gangmen,
czars and warlords breaking bread
Thoughts are thought, what’s said is said
I thought that (No, you said it)
I didn’t mean to think out loud, my tongue slipped
But who let it?
Let it be, let me be, let me go, naw let me out
My manhood nods and whispers
with my father’s screams and shouts
Dear dad I’m sad you’re dead,
a new man standing in the pulpit
He bows before a wooden cross
and forces praise the culprit
I’m a tenor, in the choir
but I sing a different song
of how the where’s and why’s of now
all prove I don’t belong
But I’m staying, I’ve planted seeds
and plan to watch them grow
I’ve watered all my wishes, dreams,
and filled more seeds to sow
And I promise to learn to love the way I learned to fear
To unknot all the inhibitions tangled in my hair
To let my ego mound in piles around the barber chair
and make a graceful exit from my vexed and troubled years.
I’ve decided I’ve been invited to my own resort
where knights can leave their armor neatly piled by the door
And every woman, child, and man will gather by the shore
and study how sea lions swim in cursive