The sterile corridor of the hospital echoed with a cold feeling of emptiness as we walked and talked, en route to visit my friend Joey. He wasn't sick, or hurt... rather, he was selling his body to science by taking part in a double blind study for a "new" medicine for "sour stomach." I don't like hospitals, doctors* or medicine, and I thought it strange that Joey was so willing to take part in something like this, but at the same time I respected his quest for unusual experiences. He loved that kind of thing. At the end of the long hallway, we came to a set of double locked doors. There was an intercom on the wall which we used and gained entrance after we were cleared by security. It looked like any regular hospital, only not as hospitable. The only notable difference were the bunk beds. Four people shared one small room. Joey had one of the lower bunks. He sat there in his hospital gown grinning as we entered his room. I said, "How's my little Guineapig Man?" We weren't allowed to stay long because visiting hours were nearly over, and we soon exited the same way we had arrived.
Joey's father had had cancer for many years, and had endured all kinds of medical tests and experimentation. Joey wanted me to help him write a song about his father's** experiences, and call it, "Guineapig Man." He played the guitar, demonstrating the three chord progression, while humming the melody, and singing the chorus which he had already written. He asked me to write the remainder of the lyrics*** for the song. I accepted, and here is the end result.
They poke him
And prod him
And check him for worms
They slice him
And dice him
And smile as he squirms
They bleed him
And sample his urine
and stools
He's taunted by gadgets
and specialized tools
He's a Guineapig Man
He's a Guineapig Man
They're keeping him happy
Laughing and blind
In the name of Science
In the name of Mankind
They mold him
And fold him
Into their constitution
Corrupting his soul
with lies
And pollution
He's a Guineapig Man
He's the Guineapig Man
They're shaping his mind
To do what he's told
Rejection!
He doesn't fit the mold
They gave him his rights
They gave him what's left
They gave him his life
And they'll give him his death
He's the Guineapig Man
He's the Guineapig Man
They teach us
They train us
They brainwash us too
We're all here together
In this crazy zoo
They shake us
And break us
And there's nothing you can do
By now you know
The Guineapig Man is you
You're the Guineapig Man
You're the Guineapig Man
* According to Reuters, in the United States, doctors are directly responsible for nearly 300,000 unnecessary deaths annually. Just think how many they permanently maim. Where's the outcry?
** Joey's father eventually succumbed to the cancer and passed away.
*** There are actually two versions of Guineapig Man. Joey wrote a version which we recorded and released on the Something New? Ipso Facto release back in 1987. The beginning of the song features the sound of his father snoring. Joey had sneaked into his dad's room in the middle of the night and recorded him snoring on his little four track recorder.
1 comment:
Wow you said "Guinea Pig Man."
Were you the professional GPM?!!!
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