R.E.M. - Old Man Kensey Lyrics
Old man Kensey wants to be a sign painter
First he's got to learn to read
He's gonna be a clown on TV
Flexes his elbow taut and free
(That's my folly) I believe
(If that's my folly) that's my mistake
Old man Kensey wants to be a goalie
First he's got to learn to count
He's gonna be a clown on a circus mount
Letters to be signed and dropped off
(That's my folly) Kensey's going far
John, Bill and Ed, stand on your head
(If that's my folly) I'm ready to go
First he's got to learn to stand
He's gonna be a clown in a marching band
Letters to be signed, ransom, greed
(If that's my folly) I believe
Drink up the lake, John, Bill and Ed
(If that's my folly) that's my mistake
Kensey's awake, stand on your head
(If that's my folly) I'm ready to go
Drink up the lake, stand on your head
(If that's my folly) I'm ready to go
Other Lyrics by Artist
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- R.E.M. - The Apologist
- R.E.M. - At My Most Beautiful
- R.E.M. - Hope
- R.E.M. - Suspicion
- R.E.M. - Lotus
- R.E.M. - Airportman
- R.E.M. - Electrolite
- R.E.M. - Low Desert
- R.E.M. - So Fast, So Numb
- R.E.M. - Binky The Doormat
- R.E.M. - You're In The Air
- R.E.M. - Walk Unafraid
- R.E.M. - Saturn Return
- R.E.M. - Disappear
- R.E.M. - She Just Wants To Be
- R.E.M. - All The Way To Reno (You're Gonna Be A Star)
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- Edwin McCain - Day Will Never Come
- Edwin McCain - Save The Rain
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R.E.M. Old Man Kensey Comments
Like: Fables of the Reconstruction
Reply: Reconstruction of the Fables
Fables, just perfect. Un album comme on en fait plus...
Always been a big REM fan. Thanks for the lyrics. Music book? Stipe,especially early on,has often been,at least for me,hard to decipher.
R.E.M. had the ability to evoke Americana pathos. Like the Byrds did all those decades ago. We shall not see the like again.
Try Richmond Fontaine.
Wow, what a windswept sound. I love that spectral otherworldly feel. Check Foreign Body by Mirrorring.
Saint George Yup
Right? They were a product of our times. "We shall not see the like again." Right!
Old Man Kelce! hehe
Thank you for sharing this!I spent the last couple days with an "elderly" friend I call MacKenzie; though I know this song like the palm of my hand-it's-Old Man Kensey-it kept playing in my mind as if it was about him. I thoroughly enjoyed finding it with a simple video of the cover art. Have an awesome day!
Don't know if you knew this but thought you'd like to hear, this song was inspired by an old drunk who kidnapped pets for ransom. "He wants to be a dog catcher... letters to his son (?), ransom, greed...Kensey's going far" ...to jail, I think!
Great stuff...33 yrs later...still learning..an ole drunk stealing pets for ransom....chuckling.....now that's a true fable....u want to believe......
Love this tune & the whole album. Well, REM in general. But it is sad. I've always pictured Kensey as elderly drunk who has forgotten to read, to count and watched his dreams slip away. Yet, he still dreams. Not sure if these are his last thoughts -- he is, after all, "ready to go" -- or he's just moving along, Suppose, though, that ambiguity was Stipe's point...