THE MODERN LOVERS - Government Center

Government Center, by Jonathan Richman, is a bonus track of the Rhino reissues of the 1976 album. It was recorded in the Kim Fowley's sessions.

Well we've got alot alot alot of hard work today
We gotta rock at the government center
Make the secretaries feel better
When they put those stamps on the letters

And they got alot alot alot of great desks and chairs
Uh huh, at the government center
We gotta make the secretaries feel better
When they put those stamps on all those letters

We gotta rock-a rock-a rock-a nonstop tonight
Uh huh, at the government center
Make the secretaries feel better
When they put the stamps on the letters

Won't stop until we see secretaries smile
We gotta see some office boys, they're jumpin' for joy
Tell old Mr. Ayhern (?), "Calm down a while.
You know that's the only way the center is ever gonna get better."

So let's rock-a rock-a rock-a nonstop tonight
Uh huh, at the government center
Make the secretaries feel better
When they put the stamps on the letters
We're gonna make 'em feel better
Oh look out

We're gonna help them out (Make them feel better - repeat)
Take all our equipment
Do rock & roll
That's right
Use that feeling inside, we're gonna transmit
Those secretaries will have to stand up, and not be able to sit
Oh it's gonna be fun, oh we won't get scared, we can't keep it down
Oh that feelin' inside we're gonna transmit it to life
Baby, aw modern dancin'
Yeah, yeah

Category:

Music

Tags:

• jonathan
• richman
• the modern lovers
• government center

[DannyBragg]

They gotta a lotta lotta lotta great desks and chairs!!!!!! i love it.

[Rolandzebub]

Oh yeah, that's what real music sounds like. I'd almost forgotten.

[peterzang]

@nygisgod That's excellent! Tell him he's a good dad!

[28if]

The other video on you tube soundtrack is much better. Video sucks but you have Jon and the band Earth Quake on the backing track, so it really rocks vs this

[uropeanson]

@DannyBragg "gray"

[curtman2k]

@ManThatMovesAtoms The whole "Is This It?" album has this vibe for sure. I wonder if both were a beautiful mistake. I'm thinking The Strokes were trying to achieve this exact sound.

[podcastshmodcast]

See, they destroyed a happpy old neighborhood, full of dives and floozys to put up a hopeless square of bricks, bricks and an upside down brick spaceship. Lots of secretarys putting stamps on the letters, tho

[WitchiTaiTo9]

play this slowed down on vinyl. trust me. i just did it.

[nygisgod]

my dad showed me this song im 16 and love it

[ManThatMovesAtoms]

strokes

[BlackRaven156]

I miss Government Center, the north end, and every square foot of Boston!