Originally published at: http://boingboing.net/2017/01/20/ball-of-confusion-performed-l.html
…
9 Likes
Great lyrics:
One, two, one, two, three, four, ow
People moving out, people moving in
Why, because of the color of their skin
Run, run, run but you sure can’t hide
An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth
Vote for me and I’ll set you free
Rap on, brother, rap on
Well, the only person talking about love thy brother is the preacher
And it seems nobody’s interested in learning but the teacher
Segregation, determination, demonstration, integration
Aggravation, humiliation, obligation to our nation
Ball of confusion
Oh yeah, that’s what the world is today
Woo, hey, hey
The sale of pills are at an all time high
Young folks walking round with their heads in the sky
The cities ablaze in the summer time
And oh, the beat goes on
Evolution, revolution, gun control, sound of soul
Shooting rockets to the moon, kids growing up too soon
Politicians say more taxes will solve everything
And the band played on
So, round and around and around we go
Where the world’s headed, nobody knows
Oh, great googa-looga, can’t you hear me talking to you
Just a ball of confusion
Oh yeah, that’s what the world is today
Woo, hey
Fear in the air, tension everywhere
Unemployment rising fast, the Beatles new record’s a gas
And the only safe place to live is on an Indian reservation
And the band played on
Eve of destruction, tax deduction, city inspectors, bill collectors
Mod clothes in demand, population out of hand, suicide, too many bills
Hippies moving to the hills, people all over the world are shouting, end the war
And the band played on
Great googa-looga, can’t you hear me talking to you
Sayin’ ball of confusion
That’s what the world is today, hey, hey
Let me hear ya, let me hear ya, let me hear ya
Sayin’, ball of confusion
That’s what the world is today, hey, hey
Let me hear ya, let me hear ya, let me hear ya, let me hear ya, let me hear ya
Ball of confusion
14 Likes
I feel really stupid because I was only familiar with the Love and Rockets version of this song. This is so great, and I particularly love that it’s live.
10 Likes
I do love the jangly psychedelic sound of their version, but the original is awesome stuff.
9 Likes
{sheepishly raises hand}
Me too
8 Likes
More like a ball of… Drumpf.
5 Likes
I never realized it was Ball of Confusion. I have no idea what i thought the first word was, however.
4 Likes
Being a kid of the 80’s my introduction to Ball of Confusion was:
6 Likes
interesting -
A pal of my hippie Aunt’s posted up the Barry McGuire video on FB, so I replied with Temps Ball of Confusion. (and yes, L&R did a nice cover)
here is the Barry McGuire for ya JLW
6 Likes
Sometimes mistaken for that all-time favorite, ‘A Fall of Contusions’, wherein successful trauma treatment is celebrated.
5 Likes
Fuck yeah!
Got my head bopping much more than this one.
That’s the version I was expecting, both are good.
1 Like
People moving out, people moving in
Why, because of the color of their skin
Run, run, run but you sure can’t hide
2 Likes
Love & Rockets updated some of the original lyrics appropriately
4 Likes
I recently had the same thing happen with “Tainted Love.” The version that I’m most familiar with was the 80’s version by Soft Cell. But I recently learned that it was originally a 60’s soul song. Who knew? :-o
3 Likes
This is also a great version:
1 Like
Coil had a darker version that I prefer that addressed a different aspect of being gay in the 80’s. My vague recollection was that Marc Almond had been a friend and collaborator of Coil but they had a falling out when he wanted to make more pop oriented music and they wanted to shock people into action. I wish I recalled the details better.
3 Likes
That was nice but my present mood is less upbeat and more like this:
(and yes I know it’s an anti-Vietnam song)
“Only love can conquer hate”
1 Like
Coil’s version is the version of that one.
I hadn’t heard of any falling out with Marc Almond - he was only a very infrequent collaborator with Psychic TV and Coil, but he’s in that video (a reciprocation after Peter ‘Sleazy’ Christopherson had directed a number of Almond’s videos, including the one for his version of the song). Their collaborations continued even after Sleazy’s death, with Almond doing work on an X-TG (Sleazy, Chris and Cosey) album that was started when Sleazy was alive but finished after. Which sounds less like an estrangement and more that their musical directions diverged during the later years of Coil.
1 Like
Hell yes!
Ah! My memory was hazy and honestly the source might have been wrong or dishonest. I think it was something I read on Usenet in the 90’s. I’d much prefer everyone get along so this is good news.
1 Like
