America,
You dropped an anvil from the second floor
The sidewalk crumbled and the waterlines poured
You heard the sirens and you headed to the door
Tiptoed down the street and robbed a liquor store
Then called your landlord, said you don’t live there anymore
America, and the prism of distortion

America,
You lost your baby-teeth in a schoolyard brawl
You lost your virginity in a bathroom stall
You lost your graffiti masterpiece when they repainted the wall
You lost your scholarship when the teachers were appalled
And they burned all your records when you took off in the fall
America, and the fraying threads of reason

America,
You feign to listen but you speak too soon
You call it midnight when it’s hardly afternoon
You say that god has such great plans lined up for you
You got engaged and then you tried to steal the moon
Now you’re telling stories only you could think are true
America, and the telescope of wonder

You raised a candle up against the night
You turned the darkness into white electric light
Now I understand the visions that I’ve seen
As I wake from an American dream

America,
You went overseas to go and fight the war
You saw the bodies scattered lifeless on the shore
You smelled the smoke and heard the gunfire roar
Looked up to the clouds and watched the bombers soar
But in the chaos forgot what you’re fighting for
America, and the palace of oblivion

America,
I saw your face last night on the silver screen
I saw you tell it all in a shrink-wrapped magazine
The paparazzi caught you high on Benzedrine
They found you naked in your twisted limousine
And when they pulled you out you couldn’t feel a thing
America, and the catapult of silence

America,
You played a game in which we only lose
You gave us cattle-prods and chains instead of shoes
You gathered our enemies and taught us where to shoot
You planted poplar trees that bore the strangest fruit
But when you cut them down you didn’t burn the roots
America, and the sickle of redemption

You were once a hopeful bright and shining star
You were once the reckless cry of hearts on fire
But now I understand the visions that I’ve seen
As I wake from an American dream

America,
Your father was a vagrant but your mother was a priest
They tried to raise you into holy royalty
They crawled like animals upon their hands and knees
They gave you anything you asked completely free
But now you're convinced you’ve inherited their disease
America, and the sugar-pills of fortune

America,
You built a city out of precious stones
You paved a highway out of solid gold
You climbed a ladder made from ancient human bones
You formed a ghetto out of perfectly good homes
You filled the coasts and now there’s nowhere left to go
America, and the compass of tomorrow