Sign 'O' The Times (Expanded Version Bonus Track)

(album: A Single Woman - 1993)

In France a skinny man
Died of a big disease with a little name
By chance his girlfriend came across a needle
And soon she did the same
At home there are seventeen-year-old boys
And their idea of fun
Is being in a gang called The Disciples
High on crack, toting a machine gun

Hurricane Annie ripped the ceiling of a church
And killed everyone inside
You turn on the telly and every other story
Is telling you somebody died
Sister killed her baby 'cause she couldn't afford to feed it
And we're sending people to the moon
In September my cousin tried reefer for the very first time
Now he's doing horse, it's June

Is it silly, no
When a rocket ship explodes
And everybody still wants to fly
Some say a man ain't happy truly
Unless a man truly dies
Oh why

Time, mess with your mind
Mess with your mind
Time

Baby make a speech, Star Wars fly
Neighbors just shine it on
But if a night falls and a bomb falls
Will anybody see the dawn?
Time, mess with your mind

Is it silly, no?
When a rocket ship explodes, everybody still wants to fly
Some say a man ain't happy truly unless a man truly dies
Time, mess with your mind

Sign o' the times mess with your mind
Hurry before it's too late
Let's fall in love, get married, have a baby
We'll call him Nate
If it's a boy
We'll call it Nina
If it's a girl
But if it's just healthy we'll call it anything

And you there, sitting on the goddamn fence!
Stop selling the dope
Stop sniffing the cocaine and buying crack
Stop using the needle
And for God's sake, stop killing each other!
This stuff is giving me nightmares!
Let no man write your epitaph
Don't let this be the sign of the times

Time, mess with your mind
Say time, oh mess with your mind
Time