Eyeball Kid

Album: Mule Variations (1999)
Play Video
  • Well, Zenora Bariella and Coriander Pyle
    They had sixteen children in the usual style
    They had a curio museum and they had no guile
    All they ever wanted was a showbiz child

    The seventh of December, nineteen-forty-nine
    They got what they'd been wishing for all of the time
    He grew up in a trailer, by the time he was nine
    Rolled off to join the circus, telling fortunes on the side
    Hail, hail, The Eyeball Kid

    Well, the first time I saw him was a Saigon jail
    Cost me twenty-seven dollars just to go his bail
    I said your name will be in lights, and there's no doubt
    But you got to have a manager, that's what it's all about
    Yeah, yeah, yeah

    The people would point, the people would stare
    I'll always be here to protect you and to cut down on the glare
    I know you can't speak, I know you can't sign
    So cry right here on the dotted line
    Hail, hail, The Eyeball Kid

    Well, he was born without a body, not even a brow
    I made the kid a promise, I made the kid a vow
    He's not conventionally handsome, he'll never be tall
    He said, 'All you got to do is book me into Carnegie Hall'

    Hoo, he's just a little bitty thing, he's just a little guy
    But women go crazy for the big blue eye
    How does he dream, how does he think
    When he can't even speak and he can't even blink?

    I said Hail, hail
    The Eyeball Kid
    Hail, hail
    The Eyeball Kid
    Hail, hail
    Eyeball Kid

    Give it up and throw me down a couple of quid
    Everybody wants to see the Eyeball Kid

    They say, how does he dream, how does he think
    When he can't even speak, and he can't even blink?
    We're all lost in the wilderness, we're blind as can be
    He came down to teach us how to really see (hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah)

    So give it up and throw me down a couple of quid
    Everybody wants to see the Eyeball Kid
    Give it up and throw me down a couple of quid
    Everybody wants to see the Eyeball Kid
    Give it up, give it up

    Give it up and throw me down a couple of quid
    Everybody will want to see the Eyeball Kid
    Eyeball Kid
    Eyeball Kid
    Oh, Eyeball Kid Writer/s: KATHLEEN BRENNAN, THOMAS A. WAITS
    Publisher: JALMA MUSIC
    Lyrics licensed and provided by LyricFind

Comments: 1

  • S Sparrow from St LouisJust started listening to The Pop Group’s “For How Much Longer Do We Tolerate Mass Murder?”, and I noticed the chanting at the beginning of “Forces of Oppression” are the same as what we hear in this song.
see more comments

Editor's Picks

They Might Be Giants

They Might Be GiantsSongwriter Interviews

Who writes a song about a name they found in a phone book? That's just one of the everyday things these guys find to sing about. Anything in their field of vision or general scope of knowledge is fair game. If you cross paths with them, so are you.

Kim Thayil of Soundgarden

Kim Thayil of SoundgardenSongwriter Interviews

Their frontman (Chris Cornell) started out as their drummer, so Soundgarden takes a linear approach when it comes to songwriting. Kim explains how they do it.

Women Who Rock

Women Who RockSong Writing

Evelyn McDonnell, editor of the book Women Who Rock, on why the Supremes are just as important as Bob Dylan.

Laura Nyro

Laura NyroSongwriting Legends

Laura Nyro talks about her complex, emotionally rich songwriting and how she supports women's culture through her art.

Scott Gorham of Thin Lizzy and Black Star Riders

Scott Gorham of Thin Lizzy and Black Star RidersSongwriter Interviews

Writing with Phil Lynott, Scott saw their ill-fated frontman move to a darker place in his life and lyrics.

Director Paul Rachman on "Hunger Strike," "Man in the Box," Kiss

Director Paul Rachman on "Hunger Strike," "Man in the Box," KissSong Writing

After cutting his teeth on hardcore punk videos, Paul defined the grunge look with his work on "Hunger Strike" and "Man in the Box."