The Sadder but Wiser World
(To the tune of The Sadder but Wiser Girl from The Music Man)
[Spoken]
No wide-eyed, eager, wholesome, innocent
Sunday-school pathway for me
That kinda life has loads no donkey ever. . . now, listen fool. . .
A world that trades on ethical purity
Merely wants to trade the goods of the game for dull obscurity
[Sung]
The only greater good that makes me smile
Are goodly sums that swell my pile
No golden, glorious, gleaming pristine goodness, no sir!
For no Blind Justice do I play pawn, I can tell you that right now
I mock, I hiss, how can goodliness be compared to this?
I spark, I fizz for the dealer who knows what time it is
I cheer, I rave for the piece of the pie my good friends gave
The sadder but wiser world for me
No bright-eyed, blushing, by the book behavior, no sir!
That kinda practice ties knots no sailor ever knew
I prefer to take a chance on a more productive dance
No conscience around to keep resisting
Empiricism keeps insisting
No wide-eyed, wholesome, innocent notions, no sir!
Why, that’s the sophistry, I’m the sap, you see? Snap!
I flinch, I shy when I meet a soul that I can’t buy
I smile, I grin when I lead their virtue into sin
I hope, I pray to enjoy my pleasures for one more day
The sadder but wiser world’s the world for me
The sadder but wiser world for me
A fourth song for “Rabid Lemmings: The Musical” — the story will go wherever the music and lyrics lead me.