Their American Dream?

Baseball hotdogs and apple pie
He waves the flag likes to hold it high
He says he’s the voice of the common man
He feels your pain and he understands

He eats fast food from a silver plate 
He lives in a compound with a fence and a gate
And he wants you to know that he 
cares about the little people

And he’s dreaming of a better day when the people he hates have been locked away
He says vote for me I’m your man.
I can’t tell you what it is but I’ve got a plan
He says you and me.  
We’re goanna take this country back

Sharks in the water and he’s tossing red meat
And we’re jumping in with both feet
He’s goanna make our country great again
He’s goanna be the second coming of George Washington

He likes to talk about the good old days
When people had values and everyone behaved.
He says my way’s the only way listen to me
There’s no place for you if you disagree
He admires dictators cause they get things done
Some people believe he’s the chosen one
And he wants you to know that he 
cares about the little people

And he’s dreaming of a better day when the people he hates have been locked away
He says vote for me I’m your man.
I can’t tell you what it is but I’ve got a plan
He says you and me.  
We’re goanna take this country back

Sharks in the water and he’s tossing red meat
And we’re jumping in with both feet
He’s goanna make our country great again
He’s goanna be the second coming of George Washington

Sharks in the water and he’s tossing red meat
And we’re jumping in with both feet
He’s goanna make our country great again
He’s goanna be the second coming of George Washington

Take This Country Back

All of the people throughout history
Who used the earth so thoughtlessly
Now there’s not much left for us at all
Cause our shortsighted ancestors dropped the ball

A hundred years ago the experts predicted
That we would ruin the earth
But the people persisted 
If we could turn back time and do it all again
Maybe this time the earth would be our friend

What a terrible awful mess we’ve made

The old people speak with a gleam in their eyes
Of childhood memories and clear crystal skies
They say that once the sky was blue
And children played upon the land

A hundred years ago the experts predicted
That we would ruin the earth
But the people persisted 
If we could turn back time and do it all again
Maybe this time the earth would be our friend

What a terrible awful mess we’ve made

They made such a mess such a godawful mess
I hope they at least had a good time
They lived so large off the fat of the land 
And now it’s payback time 

Our ancestors were shortsighted and now their children pay
Awakening each morning to greet the tainted day
Gazing out across an endless barren plain
No more amber waves of grain

If we could turn back time and do it all again
Maybe this time the earth would be our friend

What a terrible awful mess we’ve made

They made such a mess such a godawful mess
I hope they at least had a good time
They lived so large off the fat of the land 
And now it’s payback time

If We Could Turn Back Time

He spent his whole life. He tried to do right
He gave them his best years. 
He worked late each night
He ruined his eyesight. 
Trying to get ahead

He was a company man through to the bone.  
He was always at work even when he was at home.
But like a commodity to be bought and liquidated
They had to let him go when the economy deflated

Hot prospects turn cold some say he’s too old
To start all over again
There’s too much free time he just can’t unwind
He’s forgotten how to play

He gave them his heart he gave them his soul  
and then they turned around and let him go
They said they had to watch the bottom line
It was getting pretty close to corporate bonus time
They said here’s wishing you the best of luck it’s nothing personal

He sits on a park bench smelling the stench 
of his broken dreams
And people they walk past no flags at half-mast 
for the demise of the company man

He was a company man through to the bone.  
He was always at work even when he was at home.
But like a commodity to be bought and liquidated
They had to let him go when the economy deflated
They had to let him go and now he needs to be sedated
He gave them his heart he gave them his soul  
and then they turned around and let him go
They said they had to watch the bottom line
It was getting pretty close to corporate bonus time
They said here’s wishing you the best of luck it’s nothing personal
They said here’s wishing you the best of luck it’s nothing personal

Company Man

Cover picture: Albert Bierstadt, "Emigrants Crossing the Plains" (1869): an oil on canvas painting of emigrants on their way to Oregon, inspired by a fifty-wagon train of German emigrants who crossed Bierstadt's path during his 1863 expedition.

Although it is very difficult to estimate the total number of European emigrants, it is thought that from the beginning of the 19th century to the middle of the 20th century, around 30 million people left Europe for the United States.

I reworked in the last days on this not particularly original piece, whose first draft is from 2018.
Femal vocals courtesy by La Boutique Studios Dakar; harmonica by Dust Bowl - Vintage Country.
Composed by Michele Ansani (2018-2025).
Posted on SoundCloud: 2025, March 26

Their American dream *

Inspired by “The New Colossus” by Emma Lazarus, 1883.
Copyright 2025

They got on boats, and they sailed across the ocean hoping for a better life
They left behind poverty, famine, hardship and strife
She lifted her lamp behind the golden door
She welcomed them with open arms 
But we don’t need those people any more 
We’ll use robots to tend our farms
There’s an angry mob wearing red caps
And they’re pulling on a rope
They’re trying to knock down that statue that gave so many people hope.
They say a rising tide lifts all boats but now it’s every nation for itself
As the billionaires and oligarchs accumulate more wealth
We’re all just living on this rock floating in the vastness of space
You’d think we’d find a way to co-exist as one human race
There’s an angry mob wearing red caps
And they’re pulling on a rope
They’re trying to knock down that statue that gave so many people hope.
Someday if you’re standing there waiting at the pearly gates
With a bunch of other people waiting in line to get into heaven
And you’re filling out God’s paperwork so you can immigrate 
How will answer that question did you love or did you hate 
There are people who call themselves Christians who don’t practice what they preach
They see a man whose down on his luck, and they consider him a human leech
There’s an angry mob wearing red caps
And they’re pulling on a rope
They’re trying to knock down that statue that gave so many people hope.
There’s an angry mob wearing red caps
And they’re pulling on a rope
They’re trying to knock down that statue that gave so many people hope.

Angry Mob Wearing Red Caps

Songs with a twinge of humor (and some a bit more serious).  
I do not use AI to create my songs. 
https://linktr.ee/joe.stroffolino
Recently I have had the urge to pick up my guitars (Taylor 114ce and Fender Squire) and I have been trying to use more guitar in my songs.  
My go to .vst plug ins are  EZkeys 2, EZ Bass and  EZ drummer 3) and my DAW is Logic Pro 11. 
I welcome your comments and enjoy listening to all the great music on SoundCloud. 
All songs are originals and copyrighted.

Their American Dream?

Joe Stroffolino