joni mitchell
banquet
Come to the dinner gong The table is laden high Fat bellies and hungry little ones Tuck your napkins in And take your share Some get the gravy And some get the gristle Some get the marrow bone And some get nothing Though there's plenty to spare I took my share down by the sea Paper plates and Javex bottles on the tide Seagulls come down And they squawk at me Down where the water-skiers glide Some turn to Jesus And some turn to heroin Some turn to rambling round Looking for a clean sky And a drinking stream Some watch the paint peel off Some watch their kids grow up Some watch their stocks and bonds Waiting for that big deal American Dream I took my dream down by the sea Yankee yachts and lobster pots and sunshine And logs and sails And Shell Oil pails Dogs and tugs and summertime Back in the banquet line Angry young people crying Who let the greedy in And who left the needy out Who made this salty soup Tell him we're very hungry now For a sweeter fare In the cookie I read "Some get the gravy And some get the gristle Some get the marrow bone And some get nothing Though there's plenty to spare".