From the recording The Old Man and the C Chord
I heard a friend say “I may not be much, but I’m all that I think about” about ten years ago. I immediately wrote it down and knew there was a song there. Despite the fact that I was writing about a subject I had more first-hand experience with than I’d like to admit, the song took a while to write. Slowly though, the universe started feeding me some lines. There was a three-year-old girl dancing free and beautifully at one of my gigs, only to get stopped cold when she became aware that the whole place was watching her – first line. There was some graffiti I’d walked by a thousand times in the back alley behind my house, but never noticed – first verse. Then, a couple of years ago, I joined social media for the first time in my life. Wow, if I was looking for a place to both witness and actively participate in the dance most of us seem to be in with ego, narcissism, self-awareness, and blind spots, I’d found it. After that, the song just sort of wrote itself.
Lyrics
It’s hard to dance like nobody’s watching
when everybody’s watching
It’s hard to live and let live
when nobody’s living like me
it’s hard to get inside
when the whole world is bent on keeping you out
I may not be much, but I’m all that I think about
I read somewhere that the sun sets and rises eternally
I thought about it
but I just couldn’t see how it applies to me
When I wake up in the morning
that old sun’s just sitting there
I’m the one running ‘round all day going everywhere
man, I swear
I was the host of a post about inequality
I waited for my friends
to love, like, and agree with me
but no one cared, no one shared
no one noticed my selflessness
Just goes to show there ain’t no use
in trying to help the lower class
Prides a sin, but I must admit, sometimes I can’t
help but be proud that I’ve made it
as a self-made man
I claimed my god-given place
in this meritocracy
I only wish mom and dad had lived
long enough to see
they left it all to me.
When I die
I hope that I am remembered for humility
an uncommon wit and natural ability
but in death, I won’t hold my breath
for I can see
It’s gonna be a long time
before this world appreciates a guy like me