Shadows and Light Songtext
von The Band

Every picture has its shadows
And it has some source of light
Blindness and sight
The perils of benefactors
And the blessings of parasites
Blindness and sight

We are threatened by all things
By the devil of cruelty
Just as we′re drawn to all things
By the devil of delight
Mythical devil of the ever-present laws
Giving us our usual blindness and our occasional insight

Suntans in reservation dining rooms
Pale miners in their lantern rays
Just like night night and day
Look at this hostage smile on your presidents
Is it freedom scribbled in the subway?
Isn't that like night, night and day?


Oh, we are threatened by all things
By the God of cruelty
Just as we′re drawn to all things
By the sweet God of delight
Mythical God credited with all these things in the whole wide world
Keeper of day and night

Critics of all expression
Judges in black and white
Saying this is wrong, this is wrong
And I'm gonna tell you what's right
Compelled by prescribed standards
By the backgrounds of our troubles and our ideals we all fight
Wrong and right

And we are threatened by all things
We are men of cruelty
And we′re drawn to all things
Sweet, sweet, sweet man of delight
Man who makes these laws
Same man who′s gonna break those laws
Wong and right
Lying us inside
The sun and the moon, and day and night

Day and right