That's the man you gotta give it to We pay him our rent to have a hole in our roof And when our neighbors burned It was only because of telephone cords Trash on sidewalks, broken windowpanes, The pipes are leaking They ain't gonna fix it 'til it's too far gone They're gonna wash us away We've got to say You've got to fan the flames You've got to stand up and break the chains Make a plan and demand what the damage pays Fan the flames In the dark and the bitter cold They're freezing us out, it's as good as gold Between the vacant homes Are fancy doorbells wrapped with ribbon and bow Getting hard to stay in tune The boys are getting me down, i'll be staying in my room But when the yuppies push us out The boys are picking me up and sticking around That's the man you gotta give it to Time and time again he plays us for a fool And when our neighbors burned The realtors shands with their backs turned