Captain Beefheart - The Thousandth Tenth Day of The Human Totem Pole Lyrics

The thousandth and tenth day of the human totem pole.

The morning was distemper grey,

Of the thousandth and tenth day of the human totem pole.

The man at the bottom was smiling.

He had just finished his breakfast smiling.

It hadnt rained or manured for over two hours.

The man at the top was starving.

The pole was a horrible looking thing

With all of those eyes and ears

And waving hands for balance.

There was no way to get a copter in close

So everybody was starving together.

The man at the top had long ago given up

But didnt have nerve enough to climb down.

At night the pole would talk to itself and the chatter wasnt too good.

Obviously the pole didnt like itself, it wanted to walk!

It was the summer and it was hot

And balance wouldnt permit skinning to undergarments.

It was an integrated pole, it was taking on an reddish brown cast.

Exercise on the pole was isometric,

Kind of a flex and then balance

Then the highest would roll together,

The ears wiggle, hands balance.

There was a gurgling and googling heard

A tenth of the way up the pole.

Approaching was a small child

With statue of liberty doll.