Listen here: https://www.soundclick.com/music/songInfo.cfm?songID=4223902
Here in the good old USA holiday season is upon us. Flight delays, traffic snarl ups and traveling nightmares abound. However, folks all over the world put themselves though all of this for a reason... it's great to get away from the daily grind.
That's particularly the case if you are stuck in a job you don't particularly enjoy and tied into a routine that is pretty much the same every day. Until the advent of Zoom and remote working, many folk had no choice but to make a daily commute into an office in the city.
When such was my weekly routine, I really did not enjoy it. Getting up early to rush to the station to try and catch a train that you did not know was going to be on time. Invariably, as the journey went on, the more crowded it would become. Personal space could be a thing of luxury. Then when you arrived, being faced with the same old tasks could wear you down. Even the break times could take on a monotonous tone! I mean how much can you say about the weather in any given week?
The trip home could be even more congested than the trip to work. Trains were more likely to be cancelled on the homeward journey, so you never know exactly how long the commute would turn out to be.
I have to confess, some weeks I quickly grew sick of the city. And now, while there are days when I think “It would be nice to go back to regular routine,” this song reminds me that I really did not enjoy the experience.
If such be your daily lot, then you may identify with this one. Feel free to sing along.
Such a topic musically seemed to cry out... “Make it funky.” There is something generically urban about a lot of funk music. The rhythm. The repetition. The stops and starts. It's tight. It's punchy. Music to keep you on the move.
Sick of The City
© Adrian J Pratt - March 4 1981
Get up in the morning, it's a quarter to eight
I've overslept once again and now I'm running late
Run from the house and try to reach the train
Yet again, I've missed it. I'm going to be late again.
Boss – he is shouting what time of day do you think this is
I smile at him and say five past nine, that's what time it is
Works piling up, files all over the desk
And that phone won't stop ringing, its driving me round the twist
I'm sick of the city, I'm sick of the city, So sick of the city, Working night and day
I'm sick of the city, I'm sick of the city, So sick of the city, Working night and day
Soon gets round to eleven and its coffee time
And everybody's nattering – gab,gab,gab – the weathers fine
Not long to lunch, will I make it through the day
I don't think I'd do this job, if it wasn't for the pay
So the day keeps dragging, going on and on
Oh I'll be so pleased when another week has gone
Five O'Clock, its here at last, I run down to the train
People crushed against people squashed, oh here we go again
I'm sick of the city, I'm sick of the city, So sick of the city, Working night and day
I'm sick of the city, I'm sick of the city, So sick of the city, Working night and day
(Instrumental)
We spend our lives, working away-ay-ay,
Working week in, week out, working just for our pay-ay-ay
There's got to be more, Got to be more, Got to be more to life than that....
… Got to be more to life than....
Get up in the morning, it's a quarter to eight
I've overslept once again and now I'm running late
Run from the house and try to reach the train
Yet again, I've missed it. I'm going to be late again.
So the day keeps dragging, going on and on
Oh I'll be so pleased when another week has gone
Five O'Clock, its here at last, I run down to the train
People crushed against people squashed, oh here we go again
I'm sick of the city, I'm sick of the city, So sick of the city, Working night and day
I'm sick of the city, I'm sick of the city, So sick of the city, Working night and day
There's got to be more, to life than that.