Tom Tom Club

Wordy Rappinghood
-----------------

What are words worth?
What are words worth? - words

Words in papers, words in books
Words on TV, words for crooks
Words of comfort, words of peace
Words to make the fighting cease
Words to tell you what to do
Words are working hard for you
Eat your words but don't go hungry
Words have always nearly hung me

What are words worth?
What are words worth? - words

Words of nuance, words of skill
And words of romance are a thrill
Words are stupid, words are fun
Words can put you on the run

mots pressés, mots sensés,
mots qui disent la vérité
mots maudits, mots mentis,
mots qui manquent le fruit d'esprit

What are words worth?
What are words worth? - words

Its a rap race, with a fast pace
Concrete words, abstract words
Crazy words and lying words
Hazy words and dying words
Words of faith and tell me straight
Rare words and swear words
Good words and bad words

What are words worth?
What are words worth? - words

Words can make you pay and pay
Four-letter words I cannot say
Panty, toilet, dirty devil
Words are trouble, words are subtle
Words of anger, words of hate
Words over here, words out there
In the air and everywhere
Words of wisdom, words of strife
Words that write the book I like
Words won't find no right solution
To the planet earth's pollution
Say the right word, make a million
Words are like a certain person
Who can't say what they mean
Don't mean what they say
With a rap rap here and a rap rap there
Here a rap, there a rap
Everywhere a rap rap

Rap it up for the common good
Let us enlist the neighbourhood
It's okay, I've overstood
This is a wordy rappinghood, okay, bye.

What are words worth?
What are words worth? - words

What are words worth?
What are words worth? - words

He'll stop ... Don't stop ... Stop.


Genius of Love
--------------

What you gonna do when you get out of jail?
I'm gonna have some fun
What do you consider fun?
Fun, natural fun

I'm in heaven
With my boyfriend, my laughing boyfriend
There's no beginning and there is no end
Time isn't present in that dimention
He'll take my arm
When we're walkin', rolling and rocking
It's one time I'm glad I'm not a man
Feels like I'm dreaming, but I'm not sleeping

I'm in heaven
With the maven of funk mutation
Clinton's musicians such as Bootsy Collins
Raise expectations to a new intention
No one can sing
Quite like Smokey, Smokey Robinson
Wailin' and shakin' to Bob Marley
Reggae's expanding with Sly and Robbie

All the weekend
Boyfriend was missing
I surely miss him
The way he'd hold me in his warm arms
We went insane when we took cocaine.

Stepping in a rhythm to a Kurtis Blow
Who needs to think when your feet just go
With a hiditihi and a hipitiho
Who needs to think when your feet just go ...
Who needs to think when your feet just go ...
James Brown, James Brown
James Brown, James Brown

If you see him
Please remind him, unhappy boyfriend
Well he's the genius of love
He's got a greater depth of feeling
Well he's the genius of love
He's so deep.


L'elephant
----------
[transcription by Stephane Osstyn
corrections, notes and English translation by Tina Weymouth]

L'éléphant et l'hippopotame
(Se) Sont déguisés en hommes.
(Ils) Ont marché au beau village,
Marché, marché, marché, marché.

Sur le chemin, (ils) ont rencontré
Des enfants des hommes,
Et des femmes qui courraient
Courraient, courraient, courraient, courraient.

Tout en courrant, les femmes pleuraient
Pleuraient des grosses larmes
Grosses gouttes, grosses larmes
Tombaient, tombaient, tombaient, tombaient.

L'éléphant et l'hippopotame
Voulaient savoir ce qu'elles avaient
Voulaient savoir la raison qu'elles
Pleuraient, pleuraient, pleuraient, pleuraient.

Un enfant, tout terrifié,
S'est arrêté pour leur parler.
Sa bouche ouvrait, mais il est resté
Muet, muet, muet, muet.

*Enlevez vos costumes bêtes,
Leur chantaient les oiseaux.
**Gobe-mouches pipits, chouettes et hiboux
Chantaient, chantaient, chantaient, chantaient:

C'est la guerre, la guerre des hommes.
Ils se sont disputés.
Tout autour, ils veulent tuer,
Tuer, tuer, tuer, tuer.

Tuer, tuer, tuer, tuer.
Tuer, tuer, tuer, tuer.
Tuer, tuer, tuer, tuer.
Tuer, tuer, tuer, tuer.

**************************************************

*Bêtes is plural for bête, which means beast, animal,
or dumb creature. It also means silly, stupid, dumb,
or idiotic. Since the animals are dressed as men,
this is a play on words.

**In ornithology, gobe-mouches pipits are fly-catching
tit-larks, or pipits, a species of bird. In botany,
un gobe-mouches is defined as a fly-trap. Gobe-mouches
also translates into simpleton, fool, gull, dupe, sap
or, in slang, as sucker. This is another play on words.

**************************************************
THE ELEPHANT (translation into English)

The elephant and the hippopotamus
Disguised themselves as men.
They walked to the beautiful village,
Walked, walked, walked, walked

On the path, they met
The children of men
And women, who were running,
Running, running, running, running

As they ran, the women were crying,
Crying fat tears.
Large drops, big fat tears, were
Falling, falling, falling, falling

The elephant and the hippopotamus
Wanted to know what was the matter,
Wanted to know the reason they were
Crying, crying, crying, crying.

A terrified child
Stopped to speak with them.
His mouth opened, but he remained
Mute, mute, mute, mute.

*"Take off your foolish/beastly costumes,"
Sang to them the birds.
**Pipits, screech owls, and owls were
Singing, singing, singing, singing:

"It is war, the war of men.
They have quarreled among themselves.
All around, they want to kill,
Kill, kill, kill, kill"

Kill, kill, kill, kill
Kill, kill, kill, kill
Kill, kill, kill, kill
Kill, kill, kill, kill


As Above, so Below
------------------
[transcription by half@proaxis.com]

Hold the symbol to your forehead
Close your eyes
Call the spirit of the symbol
Come to me
Call the symbols of the golden age
One by one
Call the water, fire, air and earth
Come to me

As above, so below
As above, so below
As above, so below
As above, so below

Behold the door appears before you
Walk on through
Observe the doorway now behind you
Look ahead
Call the spirit of the symbol
Come to me
Allow the deity to guide you
Follow me

As above, so below
As above, so below
As above, so below
As above, so below

A web of thought; of tangled vision
Humanity
Tear away the veil before me
Set me free
Tales to picture that you give to me
Memory
Tear away the minds that bind me
Liberty

As above, so below
As above, so below
As above, so below
As above, so below

Thank the spirit of the symbol
Once you see
Raise your finger to your lips now
Sign of Silence
Find the doorway of the symbol
Pass on through
Find the doorway of the symbol
Pass on through...

As above, so below
As above, so below
As above, so below
As above, so below


Lorelei
-------

Lorelei
Maybe you like a little melody
It's not the words that move me

Lorelei Lorelei Lorelei
Maybe you like a lullaby
Now I can't remember why

Lorelei Lorelei Lorelei
Intuation's leading us where
I don't know yet

Lorelei Lorelei
Something's happening
Hard to place it
Hard to hide it

Lorelei Lorelei
What is happening
I'm not sure
I guess you know it

Lorelei Lorelei

Deep in the jungle of thought
There comes a clearing
And in the clearing
There is a pool

The pool is deep
The water cool
This is the thought
The thought is you

Lorelei Lorelei Lorelei

Intuition's leading us where
I don't know yet

Lorelei Lorelei
Something's happening
Hard to place it
Hard to hide it

Lorelei Lorelei
What is happening
I'm not sure
I guess you know it

Lorelei Lorelei
Lorelei Lorelei
Lorelei Lorelei

Across the wasted plain
Across the twisted dunes
Beyond the colored lights
The mountain looms

The air is thin
The door within
The sea of light
The light is you

Lorelei Lorelei Lorelei ...



On, On, On, On ...
------------------

I'm living proof, I love you
I know the truth, so do you

On and on we will come
There are scores of us
On and on, here we come
There are more of us

Come to my room, I need you
You're living proof, make your move

On and on we will come
There are scores of us
On and on, here we come
There are more of us

You are the youth, we're with you
We're living proof what we can do
On and on we will come
There are scores of us

On and on we will come
There are scores of us
On and on, here we come
There are more of us

On and on ...


Booming and Zooming [on later issue replaced with Under the Boardwalk]
----------------------------------------------------------------------
[transcription by hansumgent@aol.com]

If they could see me now, Booming and Zooming
If they could see me now, Booming and Zooming

F104, come in F104......
C'mon get down F104.
Ho, get back up F104!
Aw, now, one more time for me on the ground F1--104 get down..

'Cause you know and I know it's a private thing at twice the speed of
sound blue goes to black.

You're spinning flat like a skipping stone F104 but don't green apple,
ok. We want no defenstrations today, okay?

F104 where are you at? Play it Kenneth!
Uh! You think you're staying cool while its getting hot,eh?

F104 here, uh, stop flapping your gums.
I wear my own clothes now
and I don't need you to roll up my sleeves, ok?

Uh ground here, uh, that's a couple of million, F104.

F104 here, uh, look this is a private thing
and I don't want you talking about it
down there with your nice friends.
Cause this is a private thing, ok?
Cause I've tried A
and then I've tried B
and then I've tried C...
but no, I won't green apple.

Uh, this is the ground F104, get outa there, get outa there F104!

F104 uh, not to sweat baby,
it's my hide and I can ride her out.

This is the ground get down here F104. You and I know who your hide
belongs to!

F104 here, uh, I guess I'm at about 75 thousand feet
and the rpm's are damn near zero,
uh, maybe falling about 150 feet a second,
uh, that makes about 9000 feet a minute.
Uh, Like I said I've tried A
and I've tried B
and C, didn't do nothing.
Just spinning around
like a boomerang
in the sky up here!...I reckon.

I got about one last shot.

Ok, this is a private thing
this blue to black
at twice the speed of sound.
It's green silent peace,
with waves around.
And it's lighting up
like a damn Christmas tree in here!

But we'll ignore what these little lights are saying
and enjoy the view because
you know and I know
It's just that little old problem
Our boys in Engineering find so entertaining

This is the ground, come in F104, come in F104, come in F104.

F104 here, I'd love to talk to you sweetheart
but this Christmas tree is smoking
and it's obscuring the view.
I'm preparing to disintegrate now,
I'll see you boys
for a drink on the ground
at about 1900 hours, okay? BYE!

If they could see me now, Booming and Zooming
If they could see me now...
If they could see me now, Booming and Zooming
.....Booming and Zooming


Under the Boardwalk [on later issue replaces Booming and Zooming]
-----------------------------------------------------------------

Oh when the sun beats down
And burns the tar on the roof
And your shoes get so hot
You wish your tired feet were fireproof

Under the Boardwalk
Down by the sea
On a blanket with my boyfriend's where I'll be

Under the Boardwalk, out of the sun
Under the Boardwalk, we'll be having some fun
Under the Boardwalk, people walking above
Under the Boardwalk, we'll be making love
Under the Boardwalk, Boardwalk

From the park you hear the happy sound
Of the carousel
You can almost taste the hot dogs
And french fries they sell

Under the Boardwalk
Down by the sea
On a blanket with my boyfriend's where I'll be

Under the Boardwalk, out of the sun
Under the Boardwalk, we'll be having some fun
Under the Boardwalk, people walking above
Under the Boardwalk, we'll be making love
Under the Boardwalk, Boardwalk

Under the Boardwalk
Down by the sea
On a blanket with my boyfriend's where I'll be

Under the Boardwalk, out of the sun
Under the Boardwalk, we'll be having some fun
Under the Boardwalk, people walking above
Under the Boardwalk, we'll be falling in love
Under the Boardwalk, Boardwalk

Boardwalk, Boardwalk ...