Abbey Lincoln - Brother, Can You Spare a Dime? lyrics

They used to tell me I was building a dream And so I followed the mob When there was earth to plow or guns to bear I was always there right on the job They used to tell me I was building a dream With peace and glory ahead Why should I be standing in line Just waiting for bread Once I built a railroad, I made it run Made it race against time Once I built a railroad, now it's done Brother, can you spare a dime Once I built a tower up to the sun Brick and rivet and lime Once I built a tower, now it's done Brother, can you spare a dime? Once in khaki suits, gee we looked swell Full of that Yankee-Doodly-dum Half a million boots went slogging through Hell And I was the kid with the drum Say, don't you remember, they called me "Al" It was "Al" all the time Why don't you remember, I'm your pal Say buddy, can you spare a dime Once in khaki suits, ah gee we looked swell Full of that Yankee-Doodly-dum Half a million boots went slogging through Hell And I was the kid with the drum Oh, say, don't you remember, they called me "Al" It was "Al" all the time Say, don't you remember, I'm your pal Buddy, can you spare a dime