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Trickledown

by Jonathan Spencer

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1.
Who will feed the hungry? Who will clothe the poor? Who will stop the violence Just outside our door? Who will love his neighbor As he loves himself? Who for better or for worse, In sickness and in health? The Market will decide The Market will decide The Market will decide The Free Market will provide Who'll take in the widows? Who will heal the sick? Who'll sit down with sinners, Tax collectors and the rich? Who will grant forgiveness? Who will hear our prayers? Just exactly who is even up there? The Market will decide The Market will decide The Market will decide The Free Market will provide The Market will decide, and the Market will take care of us. The Market knows your wants and your needs and your desires and your cravings and your passions and fetishes. The Market knows your special interests and your passing interests and your casual interests. It knows your curiosities and quirks, how soon you need it, what color you typically order, where you'll have it shipped, and the best payment method. The Market will decide and provide and never be denied. But It has to be Free. The Market must be Free, from regulation, from stipulation, from taxation and defamation. The Market must be Free, Free to come, Free to go. Free to go wherever it darn well pleases, Thank you very much. This is none of your business. This is the Free Market, and the Market will decide. The Market will decide The Market will decide The Market will decide The Free Market will provide
2.
Trickledown 05:41
You give it all, as you see fit Use us for maximum profit Give our lives meaning, with jobs you create We stand in awe of your power so great Trickle down trickle down Trickle down trickle down on me Trickle down trickle down Trickle down trickle down on me We give it all, give it to you All that we are, think, and do Where would we be, left on our own? How can we live lest we’re shown? Trickle down trickle down Trickle down trickle down on me Trickle down trickle down Trickle down trickle down on me Everything that comes, it comes from you Everything I get, I get from you Everything I do, I do for you Everything that is, it is for you Trickle down trickle down Trickle down trickle down on me Trickle down trickle down Trickle down trickle down on me
3.
I am your resource. I am your refuse. You are my steward. You are my refuge. I am your masses. I am your labor. You are my master. My job creator. I am your burden. I am your penance. You are my warden. You’re my forgiveness. I am your intern. I’m your apprentice. You are the one I could never compare with. Throw me away. Make me anew. Buy me afresh. I am for you. Cast me away. Cast me aside. Cast me however you need my life. We are your people, crowds at your rally. We are your lost sheep, wand’ring the valley. You are our bargain, you are our leader. You cut your losses, wasteful defeater. We’re your expenses. We are expendable. We come to beg for a seat at your table. You see right past us. You find the quick win. You know there’s no deal that you cannot win. Throw me away. Make me anew. Buy me afresh. I am for you. Cast me away. Cast me aside. Cast me however you need my life. Friends, do we want to be old and tired and used and used up? Obsolete and inefficient? Last year's model? Dog eared and dog tired and dogged and doggone it, NO! We don't want to exceed our usefulness. We don't want to show signs of wear, wear and tear, and tear our hair out, old, gray, limp hair that has just had too much product, too much treatment, for far too long. Past its prime. Out of style. Out of style. Out of style and out of date for time out of mind. Yesterday's news. Yesterday's NEW. Today's old. But we don't have to settle for old. We have a Source of new things! Brand new shiny things. Fresh out of the box. New car smell. Peel off that protective film and bask in that sleek, new surface before you get fingerprints on it. See how fast it boots up. See how much more it can do, how much less it weighs, how skinny it is. How better the new one is. How much better the new one is and always will be. How much better you will be with the new one. Throw me away. Make me anew. Buy me afresh. I am for you. Cast me away. Cast me aside. Cast me however you need my life.
4.
I’ll bail You out. I’ll prop You up. Oh oh oh whoa oh. You are too big to fail. I’ll bank in You. Believe in You. Oh oh oh whoa oh. You are too big to fail. Who’s the guy with the best solution? I’ll put my trust in the institution. The one on whom all my worth is based. All I need is a little more faith. m/k;[= Who has a stake in my succeeding? Who has a hand in my defeating? Where can I go when I can’t quite make it? What do I have, because You can take it. Who gives me a home? Who takes it away? Who creates the wealth that I get paid? I’ll bail You out. I’ll prop You up. Oh oh oh whoa oh. You are too big to fail. I’ll bank in You. Believe in You. Oh oh oh whoa oh. You are too big to fail. Who gives me hope when my prospect’s subprime? Who’s by my side when I’m on my last dime? Who sees me through to the bitter end? Who hedges bets so it’s always win/win? I won’t forget I’m in Your debt You’re in my prayers I’m in Your care You give me a home. You take it away. You control the wealth that I get paid. I’ll bail You out. I’ll prop You up. Oh oh oh whoa oh. You are too big to fail. I’ll trust in you. Invest in you. Oh oh oh whoa oh. You are too big to fail. I’ll bail You out. I’ll prop You up. Oh oh oh whoa oh. You are too big to fail. I’ll bank in You. Believe in You. Oh oh oh whoa oh. You are too big to fail.
5.
We believe in the Economy We believe in the Economy We might stand for freedom We’ll declare our rights We’ll not give up willingly Or back down from a fight We might like the way things are Or we might call for change We’ll say we love liberty While putting on our chains But there’s one thing on which we can agree We believe in the Economy We believe in the Economy We pray for the downtrodden We pray for those in charge We pray for the forgotten We pray that there’s a god Our hearts go out to those who mourn Our thoughts with you always But judging how we spend our lives Our money and our days The thing that matters most to you and me We believe in the Economy We believe in the Economy We might only have one Earth But it don’t pay the bills So keep on pumping fossil fuels And keep on popping pills We fight for equality We fight to be the same But God helps those who help themselves So get out of our way We fight against equality We fight to stay the same We’re for fam’ly values, Cyber Monday, Black Friday We’d love our neighbor as ourselves but what is there to gain? We believe in the Economy We believe in the Economy I want you to take a minute and close your eyes. Don’t worry, everyone else is doing it, too (laughter). Just close your eyes and take a nice deep breath. <breathing in> And now let it out. <breathing out>. Breathe in...and out… Doesn’t that feel good? Feel all your concerns and sympathies just flow right out. In...and out… Now keep your eyes closed, and keep breathing (laughter). I want you to think about someone you love. Someone close to you. It might be a parent or a spouse, maybe a child or a friend. Someone you could count on or who could count on you. Think about that connection. In… and out… Now think about someone else you love. Maybe not quite as much as that first person (laughter), but you love them. You want them to succeed. In… and out… Feel that connection. Now think of some acquaintances, maybe some colleagues at work. Maybe your classmates, or your soccer team. Again, feel that connection. In… and out… Now reach out again for more people. Feel a connection to all the people in this room. All the people in this city. In… and out… Think of all the people in this state, and really feel a connection with them. Think about what they need, and what you need. Expand your thoughts to the whole country. In and out… to the whole world… Feel the connection. We are part of something really big. Feel that connection. Do you know what it is? Have you figured it out? What do we all have linking us together, day in... and day out? It’s competition, isn’t it? Competition. All these people you love, all these people you know, all these people you don’t know, they’re your competition. Whatever they have, you don’t. Whatever you have, they...what? Want. It’s ok. Whatever they have, you don’t. Whatever you have, they want. That’s how it works. That is what links us all together. That is the undergirding tenet. For us to get ahead, they have to get...what? Behind. For us to move up, they have to move...right, down. It’s not about being different or trying to fit in. We feel it. We are all the same. It’s not about providing for our families or a having a sense of accomplishment. It’s about competition. It’s about winning. And we know what it takes. Deep down, I think we all know what it takes. My hope for you is that you can recognize it. Take one more deep breath, feel the connection, and tell me what you believe. We believe in the Economy We believe in the Economy
6.
When that invisible hand picks me up and puts me in my place I’ll glisten in my glory and I’ll gloat in all my grace When that invisible hand swoops down and lifts me up then I’ll be free That invisible hand is coming for me I don’t demand--I just supply I won’t give in--I won’t get tired I’ll work my shifts--I won’t get fired Six days a week--Until I die When that invisible hand picks me up and puts me in my place I’ll glisten in my glory and I’ll gloat in all my grace When that invisible hand swoops down and lifts me up then I’ll be free That invisible hand is coming for me I do my job--I draw my pay I don’t speak up--I know my place I don’t cut up--don’t mis-be-have My great reward--will come someday When that invisible hand picks me up and puts me in my place I’ll glisten in my glory and I’ll gloat in all my grace When that invisible hand swoops down and lifts me up then I’ll be free That invisible hand is coming for me I’ve drawn my hand--I’ve cast my lot I could complain--But I will not This old guitar--is all I’ve got Compared to some--that’s quite a lot When that invisible hand picks me up and puts me in my place I’ll glisten in my glory and I’ll gloat in all my grace When that invisible hand swoops down and lifts me up then I’ll be free That invisible hand is coming for me That invisible hand is coming for me That invisible hand is coming for me

about

I spent years as a church musician playing powerful music to help worshippers express their deep inner hopes and beliefs. Having spent a lifetime observing and participating in a society that professes beautiful love and care for one another once a week and then views one another as competition to be overcome the other six days, I struggled to reconcile those beliefs. I hope you find the juxtaposition of themes and music on this album as jarring as I do. I do not yet have answers to the questions I attempt to raise, but let's recognize the problem and work to solve it together.

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released November 28, 2017

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Jonathan Spencer St. Louis, Missouri

Inspired by science, drawn to nature, and driven by curiosity, Jonathan finds himself wandering the mystic crossroads of speculation.

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