Panic in Detroit
"Green Cat" 2005
Driven weasel man
Kept his plans in quiet seclusion
An ambitious man
A vicious survivor
Internationally known hit-man
Panic in Detroit
We asked for for a Golden Calf
They want us to stay home
He sits upon his throne
Panic in Detroit
The city rushed towards his sirens
began to build its tomb
Pleading for his tax deductions
which followed none too soon
A trick of arrangers were all that were left to thrive
Panic in Detroit
We asked for for a Golden Calf
They want us to stay home
He sits upon his throne
Panic in Detroit
Strutting in emperors clothes the man became a ghoul
And found some slouching creatures who would help him rule
I screamed and jumped to smash my favorite slot machine
And dumped the racial bars and demographic blights
Having scored ten trillion dollars
Ran for the Capitol Dome
City sold across the table
No reason to atone
I ran to the window
Smashed out a pane or two
Panic in Detroit
He left with the Golden Calf
“I’ll let you collect rust”
He sits upon his throne
Panic in Detroit
One of my 'burning Detroit' photos
Notes:
Throughout the 80’s & 90’s Detroit's “Layabouts” covered David Bowie’s “Panic in Detroit” many times, and although the band had its own interpretation, we stuck pretty faithfully to the lyrics.
If I had a time machine, I would love to replace them with this freshly constructed interpretation.
Of course, the ailments that Detroit suffers are complex and cannot be attributed to a simple cause. Nonetheless, in this lyric reinterpretation of David Bowie’s “Panic in Detroit” I have lumped all ills into the personification of a fictional individual whose greed and avarice spells the city’s demise.
As to cadence, I have tried to remain as faithful to Bowie’s lyrics as possible, keeping a line or two intact as they cannot be improved upon.
