An Old Man's Dream

Lyrics

An old man with nowhere to go Lay down at the side of the road He slept and dreamed he wasn't there And then he dreamed he was a millionaire

It didn't snow or rain in the land of Cockayne It didn't snow or rain in the land of Cockayne

And after that old man awoke The first person to whom he spoke Was a psychoanalyst, a shrink Who said "I'll help you, but first think And tell me in your sorry plight Exactly what you dreamed last night The old man replied. He said, "I don't know why You care, I dreamed I was a millionaire

The shrink explained what the dream had meant "Your dream has symbolic content: The millionaire is a symbol of your father." "A symbol you say? Of my father?" The old man said, "That is so strange..." Then he asked the shrink for some change

It didn't snow or rain in the land of Cockayne It didn't snow or rain in the land of Cockayne

Chronology

• Kangaroo?
  • Gina Birch - vocals
  • Lora Logic - saxophone
  • Mayo Thompson - guitar
  • Ben Annesley - bass
  • Epic Soundtracks - drums
  • Allen Ravenstine - synthesizer
  • An Old Man's Dream
    • Removes the sigh at the beginning
    • Singles

Retrospectives

Art & Language, 1981

This song is based on a poem by the German writer Max Horkheimer. He was perhaps tired of the self-portraits of the privileged masquerading as descriptions of the world.

Live recordings

Show
October 9, 1999	vocals: Sandy Yang
August 6, 2006	vocals: Mayo Thompson
October 15, 2006	vocals: Mayo Thompson

Various artists compilations

• April 1981: Rough Trade New Releases 5 (UK)
• 1983: Clear Cut 4: Flower Pot (Japan)