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Good sense, innocence, cripplin' mankind
Dead kings, many things I can't define
Occasions, persuasions clutter your mind
Incense and peppermints, the color of time
Who cares what games we choose?
Little to win but nothin' to lose
Incense and peppermints, meaningless nouns
Turn on, tune in, turn your eyes around
Look at yourself, look at yourself, yeah, yeah
Look at yourself, look at yourself, yeah, yeah, yeah!
To divide this cockeyed world in two
Throw your pride to one side, it's the least you can do
Beatniks and politics, nothing is new
A yardstick for lunatics, one point of view
Who cares what games we choose?
Little to win but nothin' to lose
------ instrumental break ------
Good sense, innocence, cripplin' mankind
Dead kings, many things I can't define
Occasions, persuasions clutter your mind
Incense and peppermints, the color of time
Who cares what games we choose?
Little to win but nothin' to lose
Incense and peppermints
Incense and peppermints
Sha la la
Sha la la
Sha la la
Sha la la
Sha la la [fade]
Dead kings, many things I can't define
Occasions, persuasions clutter your mind
Incense and peppermints, the color of time
Who cares what games we choose?
Little to win but nothin' to lose
Incense and peppermints, meaningless nouns
Turn on, tune in, turn your eyes around
Look at yourself, look at yourself, yeah, yeah
Look at yourself, look at yourself, yeah, yeah, yeah!
To divide this cockeyed world in two
Throw your pride to one side, it's the least you can do
Beatniks and politics, nothing is new
A yardstick for lunatics, one point of view
Who cares what games we choose?
Little to win but nothin' to lose
------ instrumental break ------
Good sense, innocence, cripplin' mankind
Dead kings, many things I can't define
Occasions, persuasions clutter your mind
Incense and peppermints, the color of time
Who cares what games we choose?
Little to win but nothin' to lose
Incense and peppermints
Incense and peppermints
Sha la la
Sha la la
Sha la la
Sha la la
Sha la la [fade]
Lyrics submitted by grouping
Track duration: 02:50
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The younger kids hearing these songs think it was all about some drugged out stupor, but they should remember, these groups may have taken drugs, but the had the drive, the talent, and the brains to write the music, get it heard by the right producers, and perform it live time and time again.. not like American Idol where someone else does all the work for you. And just a side note, there's a huge difference between LSD and all the junk people take today. Some of the greatest music performances at Woodstock and other shows were by people who were tripping the whole time, like the whole Santana band, Ten Years After, Jefferson Airplane, and others.. Peace to All...
This tells me that in the exploits of those living the song, you may not get alot out of what you are doing, but you aren't going to back step either. So, actually they are coming out on top no matter what.
And it could be seen as two sides to an argument too. "Well, you aren't gonna get much out of what you're doin', son!" "Yea, dad but I don't have anything to lose, Dad!" In which the 2nd half of the line is the rebuttal and delivers the punch.
During the time of the 60's, young people didn't watch the news, they LISTENED to it. Underneath all of the groovy music was the news of the day and the calls to the people to listen to what's going on. This was the clarion call to the Summer of Love in 1967.
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Here's the breakdown:
The reference to "Dead kings, many things I can't define" is a reference to JFK, the "Age of Camelot" that his young administration was bringing to the country and his untimely death. Also the assassinations of his brother, MLK and Malcolm X were the many thing he couldn't define.
What was "Good sense, innocence, cripplin' mankind" was the events of the Vietnam War and how it was wasting the youth through the tortured battles.
"Occasions, persuasions clutter your mind/Incense and peppermints, the color of time"
Here is where the hippie movement took the reference that just drop out and don't give into the "machine"
"Who cares what games we choose?/Little to win but nothin' to lose"
Another reference to apathy and not conforming to what "straight" society wants from you.
"Incense and peppermints, meaningless nouns/Turn on, tune in, turn your eyes around"
A callback to Dr. Timothy Leary who advised the youth to "Tune in, turn on and drop out" meaning to not give in to the machine that was stealing young people with futures.
"Look at yourself, look at yourself, yeah, yeah/Look at yourself, look at yourself, yeah, yeah, yeah!"
A mantra to the listener to reflect what was said, and to see where they are at the moment.
"To divide this cockeyed world in two/Throw your pride to one side, it's the least you can do"
This one was the most telling of the drug ideology. That you divide the old sense of blindness and really SEE the world around you and what kind of future you can create for yourself.
"Beatniks and politics, nothing is new/A yardstick for lunatics, one point of view"
This was the inclusion to the movement of the Beats into this emerging power structure. The people were the power, because if enough of them stood up, they knew they could move the world.