Calculate
Intro:
“Soybeans for instance,
The source of food for the people and the work animals, the slaves,
Who did almost all the work, and all of this was done by hand,
The hand labor of the slaves, great numbers of slaves,
Cheap slave labor owned by the planter,
It was an aristocratic kind of society,
The sharp division of people into two main groups,
The owners, and the slaves,
The aristocratic class of the landowners,
Who had wealth and privileges,
And the laboring class of the slaves,
Who had little wealth and few privileges,
Can we find anything left of the plantation system?”
Chorus:
Why do you calculate?
Why do you calculate?
Just so you can divide us,
So you can multiply.
Verse One:
I walk into my job and I work really hard,
I'm bending my back and it got me a scar,
The end of the day, the foreman gives me a check,
I look at the numbers, it won't cover my rent,
Hey, hey, Mister man,
I gotta little baby and he needs a hand,
I only got two, and they work for you,
What else do you want me to do?,
I need to make more so I can feed my wife,
You can have my body, but don't take my life,
He looked at me, laughed, then he walked away,
Whispered in an ear, and then I got an okay,
Now I'm working longer and I'm pushing my friends,
We gotta make the quota or the day never ends,
I'm doing what I can do to help my family,
I don't really see 'em but I hope they're happy.
Verse Two:
I make more money but it still ain't enough,
Now the price of everything just went up,
Here comes the boss and he gives a speech,
Tells us that he's laying off folks in a week,
Pulls me to the side and says I get to keep my job,
Now he cuts my pay, and says that I should thank God,
The economy is weak and he warns me of danger,
I listen to his words but I just see a stranger,
He rides off in his fancy, shiny automobile,
And I keep thinking about how my family'll feel,
I take a bus home pass the city hall,
I wonder if the government will answer my call,
Hey, hey Mister Mayor,
I'm not the kind of man that needs a favor,
I realize what's going on,
I gotta bunch of thieves hanging on my front lawn.
Verse Three:
I hold onto my job but now I study at night,
These books I got, give me the power to fight,
I get 'em for free down at the library,
And now I gotta plan so we can be free,
I tell the workers we can open up our own,
We put our minds together and we build a home,
It's not long before they come with rifles and guns,
They want us back to work so they can have their fun,
We stand solid like an old oak tree,
Our leaves fall but we don't never leave,
To build something that we own feels good,
But these men keep comin' in the neighborhood,
Hey, hey Mister President,
All we wanna do is be independent,
We don't need your laws, 'cause we know what's right,
If someone does wrong, he gon' get it tonight.
Chorus:
Why do you calculate?
Why do you calculate?
Just so you can divide us,
So you can multiply.
Intro:
“Soybeans for instance,
The source of food for the people and the work animals, the slaves,
Who did almost all the work, and all of this was done by hand,
The hand labor of the slaves, great numbers of slaves,
Cheap slave labor owned by the planter,
It was an aristocratic kind of society,
The sharp division of people into two main groups,
The owners, and the slaves,
The aristocratic class of the landowners,
Who had wealth and privileges,
And the laboring class of the slaves,
Who had little wealth and few privileges,
Can we find anything left of the plantation system?”
Chorus:
Why do you calculate?
Why do you calculate?
Just so you can divide us,
So you can multiply.
Verse One:
I walk into my job and I work really hard,
I'm bending my back and it got me a scar,
The end of the day, the foreman gives me a check,
I look at the numbers, it won't cover my rent,
Hey, hey, Mister man,
I gotta little baby and he needs a hand,
I only got two, and they work for you,
What else do you want me to do?,
I need to make more so I can feed my wife,
You can have my body, but don't take my life,
He looked at me, laughed, then he walked away,
Whispered in an ear, and then I got an okay,
Now I'm working longer and I'm pushing my friends,
We gotta make the quota or the day never ends,
I'm doing what I can do to help my family,
I don't really see 'em but I hope they're happy.
Verse Two:
I make more money but it still ain't enough,
Now the price of everything just went up,
Here comes the boss and he gives a speech,
Tells us that he's laying off folks in a week,
Pulls me to the side and says I get to keep my job,
Now he cuts my pay, and says that I should thank God,
The economy is weak and he warns me of danger,
I listen to his words but I just see a stranger,
He rides off in his fancy, shiny automobile,
And I keep thinking about how my family'll feel,
I take a bus home pass the city hall,
I wonder if the government will answer my call,
Hey, hey Mister Mayor,
I'm not the kind of man that needs a favor,
I realize what's going on,
I gotta bunch of thieves hanging on my front lawn.
Verse Three:
I hold onto my job but now I study at night,
These books I got, give me the power to fight,
I get 'em for free down at the library,
And now I gotta plan so we can be free,
I tell the workers we can open up our own,
We put our minds together and we build a home,
It's not long before they come with rifles and guns,
They want us back to work so they can have their fun,
We stand solid like an old oak tree,
Our leaves fall but we don't never leave,
To build something that we own feels good,
But these men keep comin' in the neighborhood,
Hey, hey Mister President,
All we wanna do is be independent,
We don't need your laws, 'cause we know what's right,
If someone does wrong, he gon' get it tonight.
Chorus:
Why do you calculate?
Why do you calculate?
Just so you can divide us,
So you can multiply.