T | 1 |

Tragedy Of The Trade Bob Dylan, Gerry Goffin, Barry Goldberg

winter 1995 FRIENDS WILL DISAPPEAR:     Studio Sessions (Take 2) (T-1063)

Gerry Goffin: Back Room Blood sessions, NYC - winter 1995 A young girl dies in the gutter face down Taxi driver pulls up to the curb, dies without a sound Cop in a squad car ridin' round is nowhere to be found Each one has seen his last But we must let it pass Too much money to be made The tragedy of the trade. And if you don't give ice to the mob Life around here gets awful hard You're likely to lose more than just a job And if that aint bad enough Times are getting so tough Most people beggin to be underpaid The tragedy of the trade. Young man working for the fast food store Sees a recuiting poster and goes off to war I don't think he ever knew what he was fighting for They play Taps and lower the flag When they bring him home in a body bag But don't you be dismayed It's just the tragedy of the trade. A baby cries in the ghetto morn' Before he's five he'll wish he'd never been born 'Cause all society shows him is their hatred and their scorn He knows he doesn't stand a chance So he grows up with a gangster's stance Just one more reason to be afraid The tragedy of the trade. Remember the hum of the factory town Business was booming fo a thousand miles around But they farmed out the work and let so many people down I hear it happened just recently Another change in our history The billionaire's promenade The tragedy of the trade. The trade takes place around the world on a derelict street Where the masters and the slaves often congregate to meet They make deals - turn the big wheels With starving children dying at their feet The world's been run with Backroom Blood Long before the time of the flood And it's you who are betrayed The tragedy of the trade. If you still have innocence, better lock it in a vault Once it was a virtue, but now it's a fault Too many people waiting around just to rip you off And as I understand No one really gives a damn It's not a game, but that's the way it's played The scales of justice have really never been weighed The tragedy of the trade.