Written, Arranged & Produced by Jim
A song lyrically about my perplexity at watching the manifestly true and beautiful routinely rejected for the false & ugly, by so many, and so automatically and instinctively, so at least it would appear to me. It's about my fascination with and mystification about what an easy sell the garbage and the nasty always are.
Harmonically, the song is about that opening riff, a catchy tune and sprightly beat, and it's one of my favorite melodies in my catalog. As ever, I had the help of Tom Fleming with the guitar parts above my pay grade, and I tried something new this time, and had my friend Jim Raines play electronic drums right over the top of my drum program, and am really happy with the merger. I am grateful to both for their help and talents.
Performed by -
James Funk: All Singing & Madhouse Voices; Acoustic, Primary rhythm & other single-coil electric guitars; Bass guitar & Stick bass (in instrumental section - thanks Krste); Organ (and the Glockenspiel notes!); Drum programming and editing of electronic drum takes.
Tom Fleming: Specialty & humbucking electric guitar parts (EBow intro, the "Wasteland" & "Madhouse" sound effects parts in the 3rd verse & the Hieronymus Floyd instrumental section, & the featured solo in that section).
Jim Raines : Electronic drum overdubs (he played sampled drums live over the entire original drum program, and both were inevitably used together).
Lyrics
Did you believe the Wrong Man?
Have you ever seen the way lies, can captivate without a fight,
while truth it only leads to glazed eyes?
Did you believe the wrong man?
Can only see him in a sweet light, can only see as truth his lies,
I think this wheel is gonna need a wainwright;
Well, did you believe the wrong man? Never to perceive the straw man, no.
We'll set you up in the deciding chair, 'cause a jury of his peers won't show,
(he) holds the whole world in his ten-mile stare, the sky could fall we'd never know,
acquit the Wrong Man, never was his fault, the dominoes were wired to fall,
condemn the throng, you know they know.
A barren waste upon the left side, a meadow flowers on the right,
somehow that barren waste just feels right;
why do you believe the wrong man? Always do receive the straw man.
Push doesn't come to shove, barely takes a nudge, you fall right down,
but giving up the ghost to such a lovely host feels alright, somehow.
And did you believe the wrong man? Never to perceive the straw man, no.
Chorus 2x
Did you believe the wrong man? Ever to receive the straw man.