A
song from
Fear's debut LP; this was the second song they did, IIRC, on their
SNL appearance in the fall of
1981, when
Halloween's
Donald Pleasance hosted (it was the October 31, 1981 show, geddit?). Cast member emeritus
John Belushi made an appearance also, and I've always thought it was he who got Fear on the show, which was probably the first time a real(-ish)
mosh pit was featured on
television on a national broadcast.
I see homeless people out on the streets this time of year, with wind chills approaching 0° Fahrenheit at their worst, and I think of that line "New York's alright if you wanna freeze to death..." Not that they want to.
New York's alright, New York's alright
New York's alright if you like saxophones
New York's alright if you wanna get pushed in front of the subway
New York's alright if you like tuberculosis
New York's alright if you like art and jazz
New York's alright if you're a homosexual
New York's alright, New York's alright
New York's alright if you like saxophones
New York's alright if you like drunks in your doorway
New York's alright if you wanna freeze to death
New York's alright if you wanna get mugged or murdered
New York's alright if you like saxophones
New York's alright, New York's alright
New York's alright if you like saxophones
-- Lee Ving (lyrics), from Fear:The Record (1982)