I Remember Spirit Lyrics

I know what you're thinkin', the look on your faces

But if you look around you might read about me places

I was one of ten, now it's down to me

Do you wanna buy a book? Some would call it poetry

But that's not for me to decide

I don't call myself a poet, I call myself a high spirit

And that's something you can't see

So close your eyes, and you can hear me read

This one's from December, 1964

Oh never mind, I'm just an old man and a bore

But you live in a world that's stuck on automatic

And I remember spirit back when everybody had it

And I don't mean on Main Street, where they drive in from the Valley

I'm talkin' 'bout the people used to light up that alley

Ginsburg and Kerouac, Corso and me

Suzanne and Dianne, Sinclair and Ferlinghetti

Yeah, that was a time, writing words in that choir

Like a chorus of angels 'round a trashcan fire

But you can't be surprised when anything ends

And now I'm just an old man missin' old friends

But I could still read for you, if you can spare a second

But nobody can, 'cause it all got taken

We're sittin' double-parked with the meter always runnin'

Somewhere along the line they turned out time into money

But I remember spirit, when everybody had it

Before they plugged it in and started prayin' to the static

And now I'm just an old ghost hangin' around

But maybe I could grab a ride uptown?