It Once Was My Life (Van Morrison)

There were people on the sidewalks Strolling down the avenues They were sitting outside in cafes We were looking for the muse Well I was locked in by the system Where no freedom is the rule Now I spend all my time just trying To make it understood It once was my life, that's what everybody said All the things I used to do and the people that were friends I've got to make it mean something at the end of the day It once was my life, they can't take that away Trials and tribulations and stupidity still rules Sometimes it looks like I'm on a ship of fools It once was my life, when my message was just the street Then it became something else, and now it's incomplete I'm just trying to get back to when Can somebody please shed some light It used to be my life, it used to be uptight Trials and tribulations and stupidity still rules Some days it just feels like I'm on a ship of fools I'm back here on the boards, I can hear the engines roar Everybody's got to pay, some people got to pay more Well you can tell the people anything Spoon feed them anything you like It used to be so simple, it used to be my life Now everything is so complicated, just to speak or use the phone Some people try to use me, just 'cause they don't have their own Don't know who's round the corner, trying to sell me some more tripe It used to be my life, it used to be my life.