The Ballad of a Fevered June

The sun hangs high, a heavy coin On a nation baked in fevered June A heat dome settles on the land A story written in the sand From Phoenix up to Caribou There's nothing old and nothing new Just shimmering roads and a thirsty sky And the low, collective, weary sigh Oh, the ink runs dry, the screen goes dark But the travelling bard must make his mark Singin' 'bout the kings and the dispossessed Putting the human heart to the test Another town, another stage

Just turnin' history's latest page Two old lions, silver-maned On a TV stage, their power proclaimed One from the left, one from the right Ready to argue through the night Of borders, taxes, wars, and fears The same debate for a hundred years They'll draw their lines with words of fire To feed the country's deep desire Oh, the ink runs dry, the screen goes dark But the travelling bard must make his mark Singin' 'bout the kings and the dispossessed Putting the human heart to the test

Another town, another stage Just turnin' history's latest page And the gavel falls in a marble hall Answering a desperate, whispered call From a town called Grants Pass, you might have heard Where sleeping outside is a forbidden word The highest court has had its say You can't just wish the poor away But a blanket on the cold, hard ground Is the oldest trouble I have found Oh, the ink runs dry, the screen goes dark But the travelling bard must make his mark Singin' 'bout the kings and the dispossessed

Putting the human heart to the test Another town, another stage Just turnin' history's latest page