The So‐Called Free Songtext
von John Mellencamp

I went to Long Island
Look at a diamond ring
It sparkled so bright in the window
But to me it didn′t mean a thing
Both of us are sailors
And our words were noise on a wing
Some lovers would buy it
And call it their wedding ring

And you recognize the danger
That you saw inside of me
So we both took a different road home
And said "Hello" and "Goodbye"
To the land of the so-called free


Now you got some change
Jingling around in your purse
You used to call me a mean ol' daddy
But what made matters worse
You were just as crazy
Just as crazy as me
Two monsters laid out naked
Don′t make no family

And we both saw the danger
Like the skin across our skinned-up knees
We we're both worthless as money
In the land of the so-called free

A relative of mine
Took a gun to his head
Life's just too boring
Is what his little note said
A permanent solution
To a temporary thought
No heroes nowhere
No dreams could be caught

He recognized the danger
So no happiness please
He was just getting even with someone
In the land of the so-called free


There′s a song you could sing
When you′re feeling down
Has a sweet little melody
To take away your frown
It's sort of repetitious
Says something about being free
Seems to make sense to a lot of people
But it makes no sense to me

I recognize the danger
Of all these false prophecies
Just leaning on a cane on the corner
In the land of the so-called free
In the land of the so-called free