When he
got out of Vietnam, he landed in a crooked scene
Blowin' trumpet for his
living, livin' fast and livin' mean
One night out with some
buddies, collecting on a deal
Shots were fired, a man
lay dyin', he's got the gun, there's no appeal
They gave him life, but
what else could he have been given to trade?
For a soul that's nearly
damned, in need of bein' saved
Oh, life is cruel
Oh, life is mean
When a man cannot become
what he was meant to be
And all that's left is
misery
I don't guess that neither
solace nor sanity's eas'ly found
Inside a Pennsy jail
or anywhere on prison ground
But Black Muslim words
spoke to him, he saw a ray of light
Through tears cried in
his cold dark cell in the middle of the night
He must have said, "I'm
sorry God," he must have been forgiven
'Cause everyone who knew
him felt his heart glow warm within'm
[chorus] Oh, life is cruel
He knew he could not right
his wrongs, but he made his life anew
And tried to serve in
any way, whatever he could do
He gained his jailer's
trust, and in the shadow of Graterford
He started teachin' wayward
kids to not live by the sword
When he chose the name
"Ali," I wonder if he knew Ali said,
"Remember the rights
others have over you -- forget your rights over them"
[chorus] Oh, life is cruel
They might have let him
out of jail, this man who did repent
But the governor wouldn't
hear his plea, the War on Drugs was too important
They locked him back
in the rough tough jail, his guts burned like a flame
I wonder if the prison
doctors even tried to heal his pain
Ali! May you rest
with God in an eternity of peace
I'm sorry that the world
never got a chance to see your face again
Oh, life is cruel
Oh, life is mean
When a man cannot become
what he was meant to be
And all that's left is
misery
When a man cannot become
what he was meant to be
And all that's left's
his memory
When a man cannot become
what he was meant to be
And all that's left is
mystery
-- by Josh Wachtel
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