The Roots Album

Cold, cold eyes upon me they stare
People all around me and they're all in fear
They don't seem to want me but they won't admit
I must be some kind of creature up here having fits

From my party house, I'm afraid to come outside
Although I'm filled with love I'm afraid they'll hurt my pride
So I play the part I feel they want of me
And I pull the shades so I won't see them seein me

Havin hard times in this crazy town
Havin hard times, there's no love to be found
(repeat)

From my party house I feel like meetin others
Familiar faces, creed and race, a brother

But to my surprise I find a man corrupt
Although he be my brother, he wants to hold me up

Havin' hard times in this crazy town
Havin' hard times, there's no love to be found
(repeat)

(rap)

In this crazy town
Havin hard times, there's no love to be found
Havin hard times, in this crazy town
Havin hard times, there's no love to be found

Love the lie and lie the love
Hangin' on, with a push and shove
Possession is the motivation
that is hangin' up the God-damn nation
Looks like we always end up in a rut (everybody now!)
Tryin' to make it real — compared to what?

Slaughterhouse is killin' hogs
Twisted children killin' frogs
Poor dumb rednecks rollin' logs
Tired old ladies kissin' dogs
Hate the human, love that stinking mutt (I can't stand it!)
Try to make it real — compared to what?

The President, he's got his war
Folks don't know just what it's for
Nobody gives us rhyme or reason
Have one doubt, they call it treason
Find More lyrics at www.sweetslyrics.com
We're chicken-feathers, all without one gut (God damn it!)
Tryin' to make it real — compared to what? (Sock it to me, now)

Church on Sunday, sleep and nod
Tryin' to duck the wrath of God
Preacher's fillin' us with fright
Tryin' to tell us what he thinks is right
He really got to be some kind of nut (I can't use it!)
Tryin' to make it real — compared to what?

Where's that bee and where's that honey?
Where's my God and where's my money
Unreal values, crass distortion
Unwed mothers need abortion
Kind of brings to mind ol' young King Tut (He did it now)
Tried to make it real — compared to what?!

Wake up everybody
no more sleeping in bed
No more backward thinking,
time for thinking ahead

The world has changed
So very much
From what is used to be
There is so much hatred
War and Poverty

Ooh, Ohh, Yeah

Wake up all the teachers
Time to teach a new way
Maybe then they'll listen
To what you have to say

'Cause they're the ones who's coming now
When the world is in their hands
When you teach the children
Teach the very best you can

(Chorus)
The world won't get no better
If we just let it be
The world won't get no better
We gotta change it, yeah
Just you and me

Wake up all the doctors,
Make the old people well
They're the ones who suffer
And who catch all the hell

But they don't have so very long
Before the Judgement Day
So won't you make them happy
Before they pass away

Wake up all the builders
Time to build a new land
I know we can do it
If we all lend a hand

The only thing we have to do
Is put it in our minds
Surely things will work out
'Cause they do everytime

(Chorus)

It's the God hour
The morning I wake up
Just for the breath of life I thank my maker
My mom say I come from hustlers and shakers
My mom built it on skyscrapers and acres
He said take us back to where we belong
I try to write a song
As sweet as these arms the one the type to bare arms
And wear my heart on my sleeve
Even when I fell in God I believe
Read the days that weave through the maze
The seasons so amazing
Feed them and raised them
Seasons are aging
Earthquakes, wars, and rumors
I want us to get by but
We're more than consumers
We more than shooters, more than looters
Created in His image so God live through us
And even in this generation, living through computers
Only love love love can reboot us

Ohh Wake up, everybody
No more sleeping in bed
Ohh Wake up, everybody
I said I need a little help, y'all
Ohh need a little help, y'all

Come on, come on, come on, come on

Need a little help y'all
Ohh Need a little help, y'all
Wake up everybody
Wake up everybody
Wake up everybody

Hope of the world is in our generation
It's all left up to us to change this present situation
Take caution from our elders, don't make the same mistake
Let's fill the world with love, and get rid of all the hate

Our elders taught us one thing but, practice another
Just look at what happened to the Indian and the Brother

straighten it out (x3)

Hope of the world is in our generation
It's all left up to us to change this present situation
Our leaders make us fight, and we don't know what for
If they want people killed, let them fight the war

It's gotta end somewhere, this killing's got to cease
If no one were to fight, we'd all live in peace

Our generation, it's all left up to us
Our generation, let's do just what we must
Straighten it out, gotta straighten it out
Straighten it out, , we can straighten it out

Our generation, let's straighten it out (repeat till end)

(feat. Malik Yusef)

[Malik Yusef]
You know you ghetto boy, when you got a face, with a scar
And yo' highest aspirations is a place, and a car
Shorties pull out and bussssst, like a money shot
Now he on the run, he hot
And he hurtin his Granny and she the only one he got
The hood so shady
You give up hope, of ever even tryin to find a sunny, spot-
-light, they caught him at the stop-
-light, but if he woulda run that yellow
Then he coulda, run the globe
But insteed, with speed
They put one in the middle of his frontal, lobe
like a unicorn
I'm just tryin to keep you, informed
To my little ghetto soldiers in they, gold
green, red, and blue uni-forms - chuuch!
But I'm feeling like the loneliest monk
So I pull me a Thelonius Monk and blew, the horn
And we don the monikers of goons and gangsters
And are trained to conduct ourselves true, to form
So we add a Shorty, a Money, a Mack
A Lil', a Eazy, or a Young to our name
So all the big ballers grab rims and hung, in the game
And there's a degree, of difficul-ty
to make it from the ghetto boy into the man-hood
Especially when you know that yo' fresh greens
will help eliminated a canned, good
Can, good, and bad co-exisssst?
In a place with plenty of off ramps but no ex-its

(feat. Black Thought)

[Black Thought]
My grandmother suits was tailor made, Sundays Mahalia played
Simple familiar ways, like how she kneeled and prayed
Willin, master forgive us, our trust pastors had us real afraid
I never listened yet I still obeyed
I got to see how Philly played at such an early age
What my father was into sent him to his early grave
Then moms started chasin that base, like Willie Mays
My childhood was all of 40 nights and 40 days
Trouble was my ball and chain, shorties would call me names
Humble beginnings but a star is what it all became
My journey from a dirty hallway, to the Hall of Fame
Music my therapeutic way to cope with all this pain
Was headed for the drain, soakin before the rainwater came
And chaos, into the order came
I started doin what I'm 'sposed to do in life
Tryin to move out of the dark, and closer to the light
They say if you get a chance to do it, overdo it right
Tomorrow isn't promised every time, you say goodnight
Knahmtalkinabout? Uhh, yo
Story of a little ghetto boy, check it out

[John Legend - overlapping BT's last two lines]
Yeah yeahhh
Little ghetto boy, ohhh
Playin in the ghetto street, ay-ayyyy!
What'chu gonna do when you grow up
and have to face responsibility?
Yeah yeahhh

Will you spend your days and nights in a pool room?
Will you sell caps of madness, to the neighborhood
little ghetto boy
You already know, how rough life could be
Hard to see, so much pain and misery
Yeahhhhhhh, yeahhhh

Little ghetto boy, yeah
Your daddy was blown away
Heyyyy yeahhh
He robbed that grocery store yeah
Don't you know that was a sad sad day?
Eyyyyy-yeah

All your young life you've seen such misery and pain
The world's a cruel place to live in, it ain't gonna change yeahh
You're so young, and you've got so far to goooooo
Don't think you'll reach your goal young man
Talkin 'bout the ghetto boy
Yeah yeah yeahhhh

Yeah, yeahhh little ghetto BOYYYYY-OYYYY
When when you become a maaaaan, yeahhhh
You can make things change
Oh if you just take a stand, yeah yeahhhh

You've got to believe in yourself, in all that you doooo
You've got to fight to make it better, better
And you will see, that others will start believin too
Then my son, things will start to get better
Hey yeahhhh yeah

"Everything has got to get better" - [repeat in background]
Ohhh
Everything has got to get better
Yeahhh yeahhhhh yeah
Don't you know it's gonna get better
Heyyyyyy yeah yeah
Got to believe that everything
yeahhhhh yeah yeah yeah
Whooahhh ho oahhh oahhh oahh
Whoa yeah
Whoah ho oahhh oh ohhhhhhh

OHHHHHHHH YEAH YEAHHHH
YEAH, YEAHHHHH, little ghetto boy
Mmmmmm yeah yeahhhhhhhhh

Whenever things seem hard to bare
Don't give up. Hang On In There

There ain't no time,
No time for sorrow.
And we ain't got time no time
Ah time to be sad.
And maybe the world ain't what it could be
But to understand why is to know reality
Ah don't give in (hang on in there)
Ah I said hang on (hang on in there)

How many times did you hear your mom and daddy?
Say oh child I never had it so good
I wanna say thank you, thank you for the start
Cause deep in my soul, I know you did all that you could
I'm just a part of your dreams this I know
But I'll do what ever possible to make this thing grow.
Ah don't give in (hang on in there)
I said hang on (hang on in there)

Ah now say tomorrow you woke up a king
Now tell me just how would you fix everything?
You walk around complaining about how things are
But what have you added to this world so far
Check out your mind, and see what the answer is
And tell me how much did you give
Ah don't give in (hang on in there)
I said hang on (hang on in there)

There are plenty of things still left to live for
A child, a friend, and a wife
They all want to share your life.
Ain't that enough to make you want hang on
Hang on, hang on (hang on in there)

The sign said "America love it or leave" well has it really come to that?
And beside, I don't want to and you can't make me love

I've got too many friends, that have she'd their blood,
I've got too many relatives here born on this land
So you can't make me leave
I say this is my county and you can't make me leave
You can't make me love the way you treat me
And you can't make me love the way you beat me.

Hang on in there, I'm gonna hang on
No matter you do or what you say
Is just wanna let you know you can't drive me away

I'm gonna ay hang
I'm not gonna throw up my hand
I'm not gonna throw up my hand

Any you can't drive me from my home land
If the smog from the cars and so many live we have lost

Still No matter what I'm gonna hang on

More lyrics: http://www.lyricsmode.com/lyrics/j/john_legend/#share

Whoa, oh, yeah

Time is gettin' harder and harder
More and more each day, yeah
Still I am determined that I'm never gonna change my way
Thinking 'bout love the way it should be
You gotta open your eyes and you will see
About love the way it should be
You gotta make up your minds and you'll advance humanity
Humanity, humanity, humanity, whoa

What happened to the love
That they are all talking about?
It's nothing but useless words
Coming from out of their mouths
Talking 'bout love the way it should be
We gotta open our eyes and we will see
About love the way it should be
We gotta make up our minds and we'll advance humanity
Humanity, humanity, humanity, whoa

(..) Whoa, yes, yeah!

What happened to the love
That they are all talking about?
It's nothing but useless words
That are coming from out of their mouth
Talking 'bout love the way it should be
Open our eyes and we will see
About love the way it should be
We gotta make up our minds and we'll advance humanity
Humanity, humanity, humanity, whoa

Listen, people listen
You got the notion (I hope so)
Listen what I'm saying to you
You got the notion (I hope so)
A little bit of justice and peace
You got the notion (I hope so)
Bring a little love for everyone
You got the notion (our hope's on)
You got the notion
You got the notion
You got the notion (our hope's on)
Oh, get in the motion
Get in the motion
You got the notion (I hope so)
You got the notion
You got the notion
You got the notion (I hope so)
Get in the motion
Get in the motion
You got the notion (I hope so)

Chorus:
(Woo-wooo-wooo-wooo)

Whoa-ho-ho-ho Holy Wholly
Come together wholly
People we have got to come together
With all of the strength
Have all of the feeling ooo-yeah
Why Holly Wholly
Come on check out the water now now
Water Holly Wholly

We should believe
Believe in each other's dreams
Jesus left along time ago
And said he would return
But he left us a book to believe in
And in it we've got a whole lot to learn
Yeah-yeah-whoa Holly Wholly
He can't talk out
Can't walk out now
Holly Holly Holly

We can rock this earth's foundation
Yes we can (glory)
Can't you see us (glory)
Brothers and sisters
Talkin' about love
(Love-love-love-love-love)
Love-love-love-love)
(Love-love-love-love-love)

Oooooohooo-hoooo
Holly Wholly
We can rock
We can rock this earth's foundation
Uum hum (Holly Wholly)
Wholly Wholly (Wholly-Wholly)
Can't you see us (Wholly)
Comin' together
Talking 'bout love (Wholly)
Movin' and groovin' with a-love
Let it get men with a-love (Wholly Wholly)
Doin' and movin' it with love
Love-love-love-love-love
Whoa- Holly Wholly
He proclaimed love
He proclaimed love
About his salvation oh-yeah-yeah
Yeah-yeah-yeah-yeah (Wholly)

Whoa (Wholly) Wholly Wholly Wholl
Wholly-wholly-wholly-wholly-wholly
Wholly-wholly
Wholly-wholly-wholly-wholly-wholly
Wholly-wholly
Wholly-wholly-wholly-wholly-wholly
Wholly-wholly
Wholly-wholly-wholly-wholly-wholly
Wholly-wholly-wholly-wholly-wholly
Wholly-wholly-wholly-wholly

Love right now- love brother
Love right now- love..

I can't write left-handed
Would you please write a letter, write a letter to my mother?
Tell her to tell, tell her to tell, tell her to tell the family lawyer
Trying to get, trying to get a deferment for my younger brother

Tell the Reverend Harris to pray for me, Lord, Lord, Lord
I ain't gonna live, I don't believe I'm going to live to get much older
Strange little man over here in Vietnam I ain't, I ain't never seen
Bless his heart ain't never done nothing to,
he done shot me in my shoulder

Boot camp we had classes
You know we talked about fighting, fighting everyday
And looking through rosy, rosy colored glasses
Find More lyrics at www.sweetslyrics.com
I must admit it seemed exciting anyway

Oh, but something that day overlooked to tell me, Lord
Bullets look better, I must say
Brother when they ain't coming at you
But going out the other way

And please call up the Reverend, call up, call up the Reverend Harris
Tell him to ask the Lord to do some good things for me
Tell him I ain't gonna live, I ain't gonna live, I ain't gonna live
To get much older, oh Lord
Strange little man over here in Vietnam, I ain't never seen
Bless his heart ain't never done nothing to,
he done shot me in my shoulder
Lord

[John Legend]
I wish I knew how, it would feel, to be free
I wish I could break, all the chains, holding me
And I wish I could say, all the things, that I should say
Say 'em loud, say 'em clear, for the whole world to hear

I wish I could share, all the love, that's in my heart
Remove all the bars, that keep, us apart
And I wish you could know, what it means, to be me
Then you'd see, and agree, that every man, should be free

I wish I could give, I'm longing to give
And I wish I could live, like I'm longing to live
And I wish I could do, all the things I can do
Though I'm way overdue, I'd be starting to move

Well I wish I could be, like a bird up in the sky
How sweet it would be, if I found I could fly
Well I'd soar to the sun, then I'd look down at the sea
Then I'd sing cause I'd know
Yes I'd, sing cause I'd know
Sing cause I know
I know I'm free, yeah
Yeah I know I'm free... [fades out]

[23 seconds of instrumental to open]

[John Legend]
They wait to plead their case, unknown cast aside
I love to see their face, can we spare the lie?
Are we afraid to see them, prisoners of history
These beautiful minds, trapped inside, bring them back to life
Let 'em shine, let 'em shine on
Let 'em shine, let 'em shine on

Ooooooohhhhhhhhhh
Aowwwww

So dark when I see sparks, if we don't snuff 'em out
We've gotta let 'em flame, let 'em speak their name
Let 'em reach up to the clouds
Can't eat if we don't feed 'em, can't read if we don't teach 'em
There's no light if we just hide 'em
Don't just let 'em die
Let 'em shine (yeah yeah yeah) let 'em shine on
Let 'em shine (yeah yeah yeah) let 'em shine on
Oh let 'em shine on (yeah yeah yeah) let 'em shine on
Let 'em shine on (yeah yeah yeah) let 'em shine, on

Ohhhhh sparks flicker, in the distance
Lonely out in space
They sing out, but we're not listening
Cause we don't see their face
We can't let 'em die we can't, make 'em hide
All the little miracles that live inside
Let 'em shine, ohhhhhhhhhhhhhh

Let 'em shine (yeah yeah yeah) let 'em shine on
Let 'em live (yeah yeah yeah) let 'em shine on
Let 'em be loved (yeah yeah yeah) let 'em shine on
Let 'em growwww (yeah yeah yeah) let 'em shine, on
C'mon let 'em love (yeah yeah yeah) hey
C'mon let 'em love (yeah yeah yeah) hey hey hey yeah
C'mon let 'em love (yeah yeah yeah) YEAH-HA-HEAH
C'mon, YEAH-HA-HEAH-HA-HEAHH

Hold 'em close, let 'em know
That they'll get through the night
Ordinary people could, be a hero
Don't put out the light!

Let 'em shine, let 'em shine on [2X]
Yeah
Yeayyyyeahhh
Let 'em shine on