Throwing Stones
Lyrics By: John Barlow Music By: Bob Weir
Picture a bright blue ball just spinning, spinning free Dizzy with eternity Paint it with a skin of sky, brush in some clouds and sea Call it home for you and me A peaceful place, or so it looks from space A closer look reveals the human race Full of hope, full of grace, is the human face But afraid we may lay our home to waste There's a fear down here we can't forget Hasn't got a name just yet Always awake, always around
Singing ashes, ashes, all fall down Ashes, ashes, all fall down
Now watch as the ball revolves and the night-time falls (note 1) And again the hunt begins and again the blood wind calls (note 2) By and by, again, the morning sun will rise But the darkness never goes from some men's eyes (Well I know) It strolls the sidewalk and it rolls the streets Staking turf, dividing up meat Nightmare spook, piece of heat It's you and me, you and me Click flash blade in ghetto night Rudy's looking for a fight Rat cat alley, roll them bones Need that cash to feed that Jones
And the politicians throwing stones Singing ashes, ashes, all fall down Ashes, ashes, all fall down
Commissars and pinstripe bosses roll the dice Anyway they fall, guess who gets to pay the price? (note 3) Money green, or proletarian gray (note 4) Selling guns instead of food today (note 5)
So the kids they dance and shake their bones And the politicians throwing stones Singing ashes, ashes, all fall down Ashes, ashes, all fall down
Heartless powers try to tell us what to think If the spirit's sleeping then the flesh is ink History's page will be neatly carved in stone The future's here, we are it, we are on our own On our own, on our own, we are on our own If the game is lost, then we're all the same No one left to place or take the blame We will leave this place an empty stone Or that shining ball of blue we call our home
So the kids, they dance, they shake their bones And the politicians throwing stones Singing ashes, ashes, all fall down Ashes, ashes, all fall down
Shipping powders back and forth Singing black goes south and white comes north (note 6) And the whole world full of petty wars Singing I got mine and you got yours While the current fashions set the pace Lose your step, fall out of grace The radical, he rant and rage Singing someone got to turn the page And the rich man in his summer home Singing just leave well enough alone But his pants are down, his cover's blown
And the politicians throwing stones So the kids, they dance, they shake their bones 'Cause it's all too clear we're on our own Singing ashes, ashes, all fall down Ashes, ashes, all fall down
Picture a bright blue ball just spinning, spinning free It's dizzying, the possibilities Ashes, ashes, all fall down [Ashes, ashes, all fall down] Ashes, ashes, all fall down [Ashes, ashes, all fall down] Ashes, ashes, all fall down [Ashes, ashes, all fall down] Ashes, ashes, all fall down [Ashes, ashes, all fall down]
(1) Bob Weir sometimes sang "... as the sphere revolves." (2) Bob Weir seems to have sung some variations on this line. These include "The light goes on and off and the nightbird calls" and "Come close to the stars, celestial balls" (thanks to Dave Ellis for this). (3) Bob Weir has sung variants on these two lines: eg "Any more the pinstripe bosses own the dice, Anyway they roll guess who gets to pay the price?" (thanks to Brian and Bill for this) (4) Bob Weir sang this line as "Money green is the only way" on at least two occasions on The Dead's 2003 summer tour (thanks to Carrie for this) (5) Bob Weir has sung this line as "Blood for oil, dropping bombs today," "Drop them bombs, grab that oil today" and "Sell them guns, rape the earth today" (thanks to Bill, Chuck and Brian for noting these). (6) Bob Weir sometimes sang "... while white goes north" - which are the lyrics in the "In The Dark" songbook.
--like dead.net above, this "Annotated" site is my go to for all things Dead...
VISUAL MEDITATION
What are we modelling for our children by our interactions with people who are different from us?
"...a peaceful place...or so it looks from space..."
"...a closer look reveals the human race..."
"...Full of hope, full of grace, is the human face..."
"...But afraid we may lay our home to waste..."
"...There's a fear down here we can't forget Hasn't got a name just yet Always awake, always around..."
"...Singing ashes, ashes, all fall down Ashes, ashes, all fall down..."
"...Now watch as the ball revolves and the night-time falls
And again the hunt begins and again the blood wind calls
By and by, again, the morning sun will rise
But the darkness never goes from some men's eyes..."
"...And the rich man in his summer home Singing just leave well enough alone But his pants are down, his cover's blown..."
"...And the politicians throwing stones So the kids, they dance, they shake their bones 'Cause it's all too clear we're on our own Singing ashes, ashes, all fall down Ashes, ashes, all fall down..."
