Caught between the longing for love And the struggle for the legal tender Where the sirens sing and the church bells ring And the junk man pounds his fender Where the veterans dream of the fight Fast asleep at the traffic light And the children solemnly wait For the ice cream vendor Out into the cool of the evening Strolls the pretender He knows that all his hopes and dreams Begin and end there
Ah, the laughter as they run through the night Leaving nothing but to choose off and fight And tear the world with all their might While the ships bearing their dreams sail out of sight
I'm going to be a happy idiot And struggle for the legal tender Where the ads take aim and lay their claim To the heart and the soul of the spender And believe in whatever may lie In those things that money can buy Though true love could have been a contender
Are you there? Say a prayer for the pretender Who started out so young and strong Only to surrender
Say a prayer for the pretender Are you there for the pretender? Say a prayer for the pretender
Jackson Browne - The Pretender