I opened my mind

I opened my mind and the Revolution ran through
police on horseback, bareback
bare hooves drumming on my frontal lobes
those drums


shaman drums boosted me up the World Tree
I flew, saw it all from above
mile-high posters of Mao in Hong Kong
and the Seventh Fleet in harbor


in Saigon a girl in ao dai, must have been
just my age -- I was fifteen at the time
wanted me to buy her a drink
playfully unbuttoned my shirt


I opened my mind and the Revolution ran through
smoking on Harlem rooftops
summer of 68
with Michael and Bebop, breathing the ashes
of the spring riots, the King riots
and the military junkies in the methadone clinics
Harlem awash in heroin
thoughtfully provided by the CIA
to cool things down


I opened my mind and the Revolution ran through
summer of 69 on the Lower East Side
lots of acid, hash, good buddies
comrades in arms raising the consciousness
doing exorcisms, see
we thought that by changing OUR minds
we'd change the the thoughts of the Beast


We opened our minds and the Revolution ran through
we thought that by changing OUR minds
we'd change the the thoughts of the Beast


the Beast just laughed, drummed on our frontal lobes
twisted our ganglia for sport


wasted the minds of Little Brother and STP John
they were gone, gone


I was just a kid, but I saw something was wrong
wanted to change the world
I got high and am I glad I did
because I opened my mind and saw the truth


the truth of the Devil System, 
world controlled by demonic operators


I opened my mind and the Revolution ran through
just in time, then
I closed my up mind, too much wear and tear
on my frontal lobes


this sympathetic Indian girl, 
some kind of kindly witchdoctor
helped me  close it down,
get some down time
like forty years, 
before I would even consider
opening it up again