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Space Monkey - John Prine



     
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Space Monkey Lyrics


Space monkey, space monkey, what you doing out there?
Why it's dark as a dungeon, way up in the airCome gather 'round me you little monkeys and a story I'll tell
About a brave young primate, outer space knew him well
He was born at the top of a big old tree
Way back in 1953He could swing through the jungle and hang by his toes
Till they took him to Russia 'cause they could I suppose
They dressed him up in a spacesuit and it started to snow
Shot him off in a rocket where no man would goSpace monkey, space monkey, what you doing out there?
Why it's dark as a dungeon way up in the air
There'll be no one to greet you when you get back home
Well, no hammer or sickle, you'll be on your ownHe had plenty of Cuban bananas and loads of Spam
But he found great difficulty trying to open the can
One day he slipped on a banana peel and the ship lost control
It spun out of orbit and shot out the black holeIt's been four decades now, that's nine monkey years
That's a long time for a space monkey to confront all his fearsSpace monkey, space monkey, what you doing out there?
Why it's dark as a dungeon way up in the air
But there'll be no one to greet you when you get back home
No hammer or sickle, you'll be all on your ownSpace monkey, space monkey, it's time to get real

The space race is over, how does it feel
Cold War's had a heatwave, Iron Curtain's torn down
They've rolled up the carpet in space monkey townNow Leningrad is Petersburg and Petersburg's hell
For a card-carrying monkey with a story to tellThe space monkey was reportedly last sighted about
A half a block off of Red Square
In a karaoke bar having a few drinks with some of his friendsThere was the dog that flew Sputnik
And a blind red-headed, one legged parrot
Who had done some minor research for Dow ChemicalThey were drinking American Vodka
Imported all the way from Paducah, Kentucky
And reportedly had their arms around each other's shoulders singing
"Those were the days, my friend, we thought they'd never end"Space monkey, space monkey, there's nothing to do
But it's better than living in a Communist zoo
There'll be no one to greet you when you get back home
No hammer or sickle, you'll be all on you ownSpace monkey

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John Prine (born October 10, 1946 in Maywood, Illinois) is an american country/folk singer-songwriter who has achieved widespread critical (and some commercial) success since the early 1970s.

The son of William Prine and Verna Hamm, his grandfather had played guitar with Merle Travis and he started playing guitar himself at 14 years old. He was a postman for 5 years and spent a couple of years in the army before starting his musical career in the Chicago area. He emerged in 1971 with a highly acclaimed debut album titled John Prine. He and friend Steve Goodman (another folk singer-songwriter) had been minor stars in the Chicago folk scene before being "discovered" by Kris Kristofferson. The album John Prine included his signature songs "Illegal Smile", "Sam Stone", and the environmentalist newgrass standard "Paradise". The album also included "Hello In There", a song about aging that was later covered by Joan Baez, Bette Midler, and Eddi Reader, and "Angel From Montgomery", a song now also associated with Bonnie Raitt, who occasionally brings Prine on-stage with her for live performances of the song. The album received many positive reviews, and some hailed Prine as "the next Dylan". Bob Dylan himself appeared unannounced at one of Prine's first New York City club appearances, anonymously backing him on harmonica.

Later albums include Sweet Revenge (1973, containing such Prine fan favorites as "Dear Abby", "Grandpa was a Carpenter", and "Christmas In Prison"), and Common Sense (1975, with "Come Back to Us Barbara Lewis Hare Krishna Beauregard").

In 1991 Prine released the Grammy Award-winning The Missing Years, his first collaboration with producer and bassist Howie Epstein. The title song records Prine's humorous take on what Jesus did in the unrecorded years between his childhood and his ministry. In 1995 Prine released Lost Dogs and Mixed Blessings, another collaboration with Epstein. In 1997 Prine followed with In Spite of Ourselves, which was unusual for Prine in that it contained only one original song; the rest were covers of classic country songs. All were collaborations with Prine's favorite female country vocalists, including Lucinda Williams and Iris DeMent.

In early 1998 Prine was diagnosed with throat cancer, but survived after an operation to remove the tumor and this has added gravel to his voice. In 2003 he was given a Lifetime Achievement Award for songwriting by the UK's BBC Radio 2 and that same year was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame. The following year saw his classic "Sam Stone" covered by Laura Cantrell for the Future Soundtrack for America compilation.

In 2005, Prine released his first all-new album since In Spite of Ourselves. This new album, Fair and Square, tends toward a more laid-back, acoustic approach than, for example, Lost Dogs and Mixed Blessings. The album contains songs such as "Safety Joe", about a man who has never taken any risks in his life, and also "Some Humans Ain't Human", Prine's protest piece on the album, which talks about the ugly side of human nature and includes a quick shot at President George W. Bush. Fair and Square won the 2006 Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Folk Album.

The 2005 Americana Music Awards marked another significant achievement for Prine. At the September 9th ceremony, Prine was honored with the Artist of the Year award, which was accepted in his name by awards host and long-time friend Billy Bob Thornton.

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