Upon the Chain

Let the water turn the wheel ‘round, yeah

Let the sun shine on the vine for a time now, baby

See the boatman’s body is floating in the shoals

So be careless with your clothes

Don’t ask the wind just where it blows, for it knows

That there’s room enough for us upon the chain, yeah

Upon the chain

So strike the earth and let it bleed

Get your water from the well up by the truck now, baby

And in these days of great and timeless circumstance

See the stony sergeant dance

With a shotgun in his hand, he’s a man

‘Cause there’s room enough for us upon the chain, yeah

Upon the chain

My uncle broke out of the chain gang

He stole a station wagon somewhere in the Palo Verde

He drove back thinking about his girl up on the hill

With her needle and her spoon

And her kisses were like the moon

To his starry sky

Oh, I was just a kid trying not to cry

On a sunny day in east LA

Yeah my uncle got his fix that day

‘Cause there’s room enough for us upon the chain, yeah

Upon the chain