Through the winter’s ice and cold Down Nicollet Avenue A city aflame fought fire and ice ‘Neath an occupier’s boots King Trump’s private army from the DHS Guns belted to their coats Came to Minneapolis to enforce the law Or so their story goes Against smoke and rubber bullets By the dawn’s early light Citizens stood for justice Their voices ringing through the night And there were bloody footprints Where mercy should have stood And two dead left to die on snow-filled streets Alex Pretti and Renee Good
Oh our Minneapolis, I hear your voice Singing through the bloody mist We’ll take our stand for this land And the stranger in our midst Here in our home they killed and roamed In the winter of ’26 We’ll remember the names of those who died On the streets of Minneapolis
Trump’s federal thugs beat up on His face and his chest Then we heard the gunshots And Alex Pretti lay in the snow, dead Their claim was self defense, sir Just don’t believe your eyes It’s our blood and bones And these whistles and phones Against Miller and Noem’s dirty lies
Oh our Minneapolis, I hear your voice Crying through the bloody mist We’ll remember the names of those who died On the streets of Minneapolis
Now they say they’re here to uphold the law But they trample on our rights If your skin is black or brown my friend You can be questioned or deported on sight
In chants of ICE out now Our city’s heart and soul persists Through broken glass and bloody tears On the streets of Minneapolis
Oh our Minneapolis, I hear your voice Singing through the bloody mist Here in our home they killed and roamed In the winter of ’26 We’ll take our stand for this land And the stranger in our midst We’ll remember the names of those who died On the streets of Minneapolis We’ll remember the names of those who died On the streets of Minneapolis
I used to wonder vaguely in my mid-teens why everyone in the world was not instantly transformed to a place of paradise after listening to the consecutive songs of Something in the Night and Candy's Room on Springsteen's Darkness on the Edge of Town (1978).
Check it out. In my opinion, Darkness is the very best piece of music ever recorded, what Pete Townsend called a "f*&king triumph" ... a piece of literature and art that lives forever.
I'm riding down Kingsley, figuring I'll get a drink Turn the radio up loud, so I don't have to think, I take her to the floor, looking for a moment when the world seems right, And I tear into the guts, of something in the night.
You're born with nothing, and better off that way, Soon as you've got something they send someone to try and take it away, You can ride this road 'till dawn, without another human being in sight, Just kids wasted on something in the night.
Nothing is forgotten or forgiven, when it's your last time around, I got stuff running 'round my head That I just can't live down
When we found the things we loved, They were crushed and dying in the dirt. We tried to pick up the pieces, And get away without getting hurt, But they caught us at the state line, And burned our cars in one last fight, And left us running burned and blind, Chasing something in the night.
Can't see nothin' in front of me Can't see nothin' coming up behind I make my way through this darkness I can't feel nothing but this chain that binds me Lost track of how far I've gone How far I've gone, how high I've climbed On my back's a sixty pound stone On my shoulder a half mile of line
Come on up for the rising Come on up, lay your hands in mine Come on up for the rising Come on up for the rising tonight
Left the house this morning Bells ringing filled the air Wearin' the cross of my calling On wheels of fire I come rollin' down here
Come on up for the rising Come on up, lay your hands in mine Come on up for the rising Come on up for the rising tonight
Li, li, li, li, li, li, li, li, li
There's spirits above and behind me Faces gone black, eyes burnin' bright May their precious blood bind me Lord, as I stand before your fiery light
Li, li, li, li, li, li, li, li, li
I see you Mary in the garden In the garden of a thousand sighs There's holy pictures of our children Dancin' in a sky filled with light May I feel your arms around me May I feel your blood mix with mine A dream of life comes to me Like a catfish dancin' on the end of my line
Sky of blackness and sorrow (a dream of life) Sky of love, sky of tears (a dream of life) Sky of glory and sadness (a dream of life) Sky of mercy, sky of fear (a dream of life) Sky of memory and shadow (a dream of life) Your burnin' wind fills my arms tonight Sky of longing and emptiness (a dream of life) Sky of fullness, sky of blessed life
Come on up for the rising Come on up, lay your hands in mine Come on up for the rising Come on up for the rising tonight
Like most of you, I've been following the campaign and I have now seen and heard enough to know where I stand. Senator Obama, in my view, is head and shoulders above the rest.
He has the depth, the reflectiveness, and the resilience to be our next President. He speaks to the America I've envisioned in my music for the past 35 years, a generous nation with a citizenry willing to tackle nuanced and complex problems, a country that's interested in its collective destiny and in the potential of its gathered spirit. A place where "...nobody crowds you, and nobody goes it alone."
At the moment, critics have tried to diminish Senator Obama through the exaggeration of certain of his comments and relationships. While these matters are worthy of some discussion, they have been ripped out of the context and fabric of the man's life and vision, so well described in his excellent book, Dreams of My Father, often in order to distract us from discussing the real issues: war and peace, the fight for economic and racial justice, reaffirming our Constitution, and the protection and enhancement of our environment.
After the terrible damage done over the past eight years, a great American reclamation project needs to be undertaken. I believe that Senator Obama is the best candidate to lead that project and to lead us into the 21st Century with a renewed sense of moral purpose and of ourselves as Americans.
Over here on E Street, we're proud to support Obama for President.
