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Clean-Cut Kid - Lyrics by Bob Dylan


Lyrics
Everybody's asking why he couldn't adjust
Adjust to what, a dream that bust? They took a clean-cut kid
And they made a killer out of him
That's what they did
They said what's up is down, they said what isn't is
They put ideas in his head that he thought were his
They took a clean-cut kid
But they made a killer out him
That's what they did
He was on the baseball team, he was in the marching band
When he was ten years old he had a watermelon stand
He was a clean-cut kid
And they made a killer out of him
That's what they did
He went to church on sunday, he was a boy scout
For his friends he would turn his pockets inside out
He was a clean-cut kid
But they made a killer out him
That's what they did
They said, ’listen boy, you're just a pup'
They sent to a napalm health spa to shape up
They gave him dope to smoke, drinks and pills,A jeep to drive, blood to spill
They said ’congratulations you got what it takes'.
They sent him back into the rat-race without any brakes
They took a clean-cut kid
And they made a killer out him
That's what they did
He bought the american dream but it put him in debt
Only game he could play was russian roulette
He drank coca-cola, he was eating wonder bread
He ate burger kings, he was well fed
He went to hollywood to see peter o'toole
He stole a rolls royce and drove it in a swimming pool
They took a clean-cut kid
But they made a killer out of him
That's what they did
He could've sold insurance, owned a restaurant or a bar
He could've been an accountant or a tennis star
He was wearing boxing gloves, he took a dive one day
Off the golden gate bridge into china bay
His mama walks the floor, his dadddy weeps and moans
They gotta sleep together in a home they don't own
They took a clean-cut kid
And made a killer out of him
That's what they did
Everybody's asking why he didn't adjust
All he ever wanted was someone he could trust
They took his head and turned it inside out
He never did know what it was all about
He had a steady job, he joined the choir
He never did plan to walk the high wire
They took a clean-cut kid
And they made a killer out him
That's what they did.

Book: Reflection on the Important Things