The Clash Songs - Movers And Shakers Lyrics

The Clash - Movers And Shakers

The Clash - Movers And Shakers Lyrics and Youtube Music Videos

Album: Cut The Crap
Released: 1985

Movers And Shakers Lyrics

The boy stood in the burning slum
Better times had to come
Fate lay in the hands that clap
The muscles that move and the power that raps
He went up on money street
Waving an popping to the beat
Off his wits an on his feet
He worked a coin from the cold concrete

Movers And Shakers come on you got what it takes to make it
Movers an shakers come on even if you have to fake it

Where the highway meets the lights
With a red bandanna and rapid wipes
He shines Glass and he cleans chrome
He'll accept what he gets thrown
This man earns 'cause its understood
Times are bad and he's makin' good
Down on him but he's got it beat
He's working coin from the cold concrete

Movers and shakers come on....etc
And when I see you down and I say
That ain't no way through that ain't no way through
Movers and shakers come on...etc

Way back in some city heat
When a friend was anybody with food to eat
It was lousy life with a leaking roof
We got up to find that truth
Make a drum from a garbage can
Allow your tongue to be a man
When the beat propels you off your seat
You got it made in the cold concrete

Movers and shakers come on!

Writer/s: BERNARD RHODES, JOE STRUMMER
Publisher: Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Lyrics licensed and provided by LyricFind

Movers And Shakers

This song came in for particularly heavy criticism from Clash fans for its lyrical content, which contradicts one of The Clash's core messages of striving to make the most of life and not accepting a bottom-rung job. The song seems to suggest that doing menial jobs like washing cars is worthwhile because it's at least something to do ("He shines glass and he cleans chrome, he'll accept what he gets thrown, this man earns 'cause its understood, times are bad and he's makin' good").

Journalist Marcus Gray noted in the Last Gang in Town biography that lyrics such as these sounded remarkably hypocritical. Of course, this being Joe Strummer, a man known for sardonic commentaries, it could be a wry and sarcastic take on it to make a point that actually washing cars isn't a worthwhile career move.

Musically, "Movers and Shakers" is somewhat of a mess, with the main guitar riff being very similar to the main riff from Sham 69's "Hurry Up Harry (Come On)." Poorly-mixed gang vocal choruses and an out-of-place keyboard riff badly added into the mix.

This was only ever performed live by The Clash on their acoustic Busking tour in 1985, in a more stripped-down arrangement which perhaps suits the song better than the lumpen studio mix.