Friday Funk Lyrics

All the cool people do it, A weekly feature. I miss Juan Non-Volokh's Sunday Song Lyrics at The Volokh Conspiracy, so since I'm doing this blog thing, why not start one of my own.

For the first installment, Funkadelic's Free Your Mind (And Your Ass Will Follow).

{G Clinton, Eddie Hazel, Ray Davis}

Free your mind and your ass will follow
The kingdom of heaven is within
(x3)
Open up your funky mind and you can fly
Free your mind and your ass will follow
The kingdom of heaven is within

Freedom is free of the need to be free

Free your mind and your ass will follow
The kingdom of heaven is within(x4)

Free your mind and your ass will follow (your ass will follow)
The kingdom of heaven is within
Free your mind (will you free your mind?)
And your ass will follow (and your ass will follow)
I have never, never never never in my life
Have this given to me

Free your mind and your ass will follow

Not like you
You are as free as you want to be (your ass will follow)

Well, I discovered that this life that was gettin' to me
Is not really mine (Free your mind and your ass will follow)
If it were mine, I would have fun all of the time
I'm very disgruntled now
Now, I want a way out, now
I have to find a way
I have to find some way out
Free your mind and your ass will follow (x2)

Give it up, give it up (free your mind and your ass will follow)
Give it up and give it to me, baby

I'm calling you love
Love
?from my heart

Free your mind and your ass will follow

Wowww!

Free your mind and your ass will follow (x2)
The kingdom of heaven is within
Free your mind and your ass will follow (x3)

Get it on!
Free your mind and your ass will follow
The kingdom of heaven is within
Free your mind and your ass will follow
The kingdom of heaven is within (x5)

The kingdom of heaven is within (free your mind!)
The kingdom of heaven is within (free your mind yawl)
The kingdom of heaven is within (x6)

The kingdom of heaven is within (are you satisfied?)(x4)
The kingdom of heaven is within
(I wanna know! Free your mind and your ass will follow)
The kingdom of heaven is within (I Really care)
The kingdom of heaven is within (x2)

The kingdom of heaven is within
I'm so confused about it all (x2)
I'm so confused about the whole thing
I don't understand
I don't understand nothin'
I don't know what I feel
I can't feel me, I can't live me, I can't be me
My mind, it does not belong to me
I'm so confused (x2)
I can't hear myself
I can't hear myself calling for help
I can't free my mind
So my ass can't follow
Someone help me
I got to get help
Here's my arm
Help me escape
I don't want to (x3)
I can't free my mind
No, no, no, They won't free me
I can't run
I can't get out
I can't free my mind (x3)
I'm so mixed up
So mixed up
What time is it? (x3)

Resurrection, free of charge
I can't hear me (x2)
Free your mind and your ass will follow
I can't
Free your mind and your ass will follow
The kingdom of heaven is within (x4)
Free your mind and your ass will follow

And to be serious for a moment, this is a very Buddhist philosophy (at least in my imperfect understanding of same). One of the goals on the path towards enlightenment is to reach a point of single-mindedness. Training your mind to the point where as the song says the reality that "The Kingdom of Heaven is Within" effuses your soul and washes away thoughts of the world, thoughts of the body, and even thoughts of the mind (the hardest concept of all to wrap around, thought without mind is a paradox, but central to enlightenment), only after succeeding in this training will "Your Ass Follow".

Of course this song is mostly just drug fueled faux deep meandering, and the song itself is a fuzzy psychedelic mess. But that's why I love early Funkadelic so, and why George Clinton is a Boddhisatva (he'll accept his enlightenment and move on once he's freed enough asses and minds, till then enjoy his albums, and buy his latest Masterpiece/Total Mess)