Author: Roger Waters Album title: Radio KAOS The Story Benny is a Welsh coal miner. He is a radio ham. He is 23 years old, married to Molly. They have a son, young Ben, aged 4, and a new baby. They look after Benny's twin brother Billy, who is apparently a vegetable. The mine is closed by the market forces. The Male Voice Choir stops singing, the village is dying. One night Benny takes Billy on a pub crawl. Drunk in a brightly-lit shopping mall, Benny vents his anger on a shop window full of multiple TV images of Margaret Thatcher's mocking condescension. In defiance, he steals a cordless 'phone. Later that night, Benny cavorts dangerously on the parapet of a motorway footbridge, in theatrical protest at the tabloid press. That same night, a cab driver is killed by a concrete block dropped off a similar bridge. The police come to question Benny; he hides the cordless 'phone under the cushion of Billy's wheelchair. Billy is different, he can receive radio waves directly without the aid of a tuner; he explores the cordless 'phone, recognizing its radioness. Benny is sent to prison. Billy feels as if half of him has been cut off. He misses Benny's nightly conversations with radio hams in foreign parts. Molly, unable to cope, sends Billy to stay with his Great Uncle David, who had emigrated to the USA during the war. Much as Billy likes Uncle David and the sunshine and all the new radio in LA, he cannot adjust to the cultural upheaval and the loss of Benny, who for him is 'home'. Uncle David, now an old man, is haunted by having worked on the Manhattan project during World War II, designing the Atom Bomb, and seeks to atone. He also is a radio ham; he often talks to other hams about the Black Hills of his youth, the Male Voice Choir, about home. He is saddened by the use of telecommunication to trivialise important issues, the soap opera of state. However, Live Aid has decynicised him to an extent. Billy listens to David and hears the truth the old man speaks. Billy experiments with his cordless 'phone, he learns to make calls. He accesses computers and speech synthesizers, he learns to speak. Billy makes contact with Jim a DJ at Radio KAOS, a renegade rock station fighting a lone rear guard action against format radio. Billy and Jim become radio friends, Reagan and Thatcher bomb Lybia. Billy perceives this as an act of political "entertainment" fireworks to focus attention away from problems at "home". Billy has developed his expertise with the cordless 'phone to the point where he can now control the most powerful computers in the world. He plans an "entertainment" of his own. He simulates nuclear attack everywhere, but de-activates the military capability of "the powers that be" to retaliate. In extremes perceptions change, Panic, comedy, compassion. In a SAC bunker a soldier in a white cravat turns a key to launch the counter attack. Nothing happens; impotently he kicks the console, hurting his foot. He watches the approaching blips on the radar screen. As impact approaches, he thinks of his wife and kids, he puts his fingers in his ears. Silence. White out. Black out. Lights out. It didn't happen, we're still alive. Billy has drained the earth of power to create his illusion. All over the dark side of the earth, candles are lit. In the pub in Billy's home village in Wales one man starts to sing; the other men join in. The tide is turning. Billy is home. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Jim: This is K.A.O.S. You and I are listening to KAOS in Los Angeles. Let's go to the telephones now and take a request. Billy: Hello, I'm Billy. Jim: Yes? Billy: I hear radio waves in my head. Jim: You hear radio waves in your head? Ah! Is there a request that you have tonight for KAOS? Radio Waves ------------ Radio waves. Radio waves. He hears radio waves. Radio waves. The atmosphere is thin and cold The yellow sun is getting old The ozone overflows with radio waves AM, FM, weather and news Our leaders had a frank exchange of views Are you confused, radio waves. Radio waves, radio waves AM radio waves, FM radio waves Radio waves, mind-numbing radio waves Fish-stunning radio waves Radio waves. Magic Billy in his wheel chair Is picking up all this stuff in the air Billy is face to face with outer space Messages from distant stars The local police calling all cars, radio waves Hear them radio waves, radio waves Jesus saves radio, radio waves Radio waves, AM radio waves, FM radio waves All them radio waves Radio waves, radio waves, he hears radio waves Radio waves, radio waves, hopeful radio waves, dopeful radio waves Radio waves, Russian radio waves, Prussian radio waves Eastern radio waves, Western radio waves Testing radio waves, one two. One two. Radio waves. Getting through to you More code radio waves, Tobacco road radio waves South to Paloma radio waves, Oklahoma City radio waves Sitting pretty radio waves, nitty-gritty radio waves Radio waves Jim: Alright, that's a song called Radio Waves. You are listening to KAOS in Los Angeles and we've got Billy on the line. Billy: I'm from the valleys. Jim: You're from the valley? Billy: No, Jim you schmuck, the Valleys; male voice choirs, Wales. Jim: Ah, you're from Wales! Now is this sperm or blue-tip? Billy: Ha, ha, ha, ha. Very funny Jim. Jim: Sorry. Billy: Me and Benny went out. Jim: Who's Benny? Who Needs Information ---------------------- Me and Benny went out last night Looking for fun Supping ale in the moonlight Waiting for the dawn to come Benny pointed at a HiFi shop He said hey man look at all the stuff they've got How'd you make a have out of a have not Hmmmm. Who needs information When you're working underground Just give me confirmation We could win a million pounds Benny climbed up on a footbridge And he teetered on the parapet He said can you see the whites of their headlights Are they coming yet Who needs information This high off the ground Just give me confirmation We could win a million pounds Who needs information When you're living in constant fear Just give me confirmation There's some way out of here Some way out of here Benny hefted a breeze block And tried to let go Got hung up on a tear drop So me and Benny went home Who needs information When you're living in constant fear Just give me confirmation There's some way out of here Some way out of here Who needs information yeah When you're living on borrowed time Just give me confirmation There will be a winner this time Who needs information when you're working underground Just give me confirmation We could win a million pounds Who needs, who needs, who needs information This high off the ground Just give me confirmation We could win a million pounds - yeah Jim: Um. So your brother's in jail? Me or Him ---------- You wake up in the morning, get something for the pot Wonder why the sun makes the rocks feel hot Draw on the walls, eat, get laid Back in the good old days Then some damn fool invents the wheel Listen to the whitewalls squeal You spend all day looking for a parking spot Nothing for the heart, nothing for the pot Benny turned the dial on his Short Wave radio Oh how he wanted to talk to the people, he wanted his own show Tune in Moscow. Tune in New York Listen tot the Welsh kid talk Communicating like in the good old days Forgive me father for I have sinned It was either me or him And a voice said Benny You fucked the whole thing up Benny your time is up Your time is up Benny turned the dial on his Short Wave radio He wanted to talk to the people He wanted his own show Tune in Moscow. Tune in New York Listen to the Welsh kid talk communicating Like in the good old days Forgive me Father Welsh Policeman: Mobile One Two to Central. For I have sinned Welsh Policeman: We have a multiple on the A465 between Cwmbran and Cylgoch. Father it was either me or him. Father can we turn back the clock? Welsh Policeman: Ambulance, over. I never meant to drop the concrete block. Welsh Policeman: Roger central, over and out. Benny turned the dial on his Short Wave radio He wanted to talk to the people He wanted his own show Tune in Moscow. Tune in New York Listen to the Welsh kid talk Just like in the good old days The good old days Radio announcer: Do you really think Iranian terrorists would have taken Americans hostage if Ronald Reagan were president? Do you really think the Russians would have invaded Afghanistan if Ronald Reagan were president? Do you really think third-rate military dictators would laugh at America and burn our flag in contempt if Ronald Reagan were president? Concerned Citizen: Well, it might work! Hostage: We as a group do most importantly want to beseech President Reagan and our fellow Americans to refrain from any form of military or violent means as an attempt, no matter how noble or heroic, to secure our freedom. Concerned Citizen: Sure! Only it's going to be mighty dangerous for you, Cassidy Hoppy's faithful sidekick: guess you don't know Hopalong Cassidy, Mister. Adventure's his bread, excitement's his butter and danger, why to him that's like strawberry jam to top it off. Jim: This is some live rock and roll at KAOS, where rock and roll comes out of chaos and a song called "The Powers that Be" The Powers That Be ------------------- The powers that be They like a tough game No rules Some you win, some you lose Competition's good for you They're dying to be free They're the powers that be They like a bomb proof cadillac Air conditioned, gold taps, Back seat gun rack, platinum hub caps They pick horses for courses They're the market forces Nice car Jack They like order, make-up, lime light power Game shows, rodeos, star wars, TV They're the powers that be If you see them come, You better run - run You better run on home Sisters of mercy better join your brothers Put a stop to the soap opera right now They say the toothless get ruthless You better run on home You better run - run You better run on home The powers that be They like treats, tricks, carrots and sticks They like fear and loathing, they like sheep's clothing And blacked-out vans Blacked-out vans, contingency plans They like death or glory, they love a good story They love a good story Sisters of mercy better join with your brothers Put a stop to the soap opera state They say the toothless get ruthless Run home before its too late You better run - run You better run on home Billy: Goodnight, Jim. Jim: Goodnight, Billy. Uncle David's Great Dane: Woof, woof, woof! The canyon - daytime. Billy plays with Great Uncle David's Great Dane. Paraquat Kelly: Bull heads, three red snapper, one pink snapper and your Pacific coastal trench hosemonster fish. Cynthia Fox: Ohhh! At Sky David's juke joint of joy reports, forty under the console giggle stick ling cod, twenty-three purple perches four sledgehammerhead sharks, and what a surprise, eightyfour crabs, and no red snappers. Paraquat Kelly: Hey, and that'll do for the triumphant return of the fish report with a beat. Jim: We think of it as mainstreet, but to the rest of the country it's Sunset Strip. You're listening to KAOS in Los Angeles. Sunset Strip ------------- I like staying with my Uncle Dave And I like playing with his great dane But I don't fit I feel alien and strange Kinda outa range I like riding in my Uncle's car Down to the beach where the pretty girls all parade And movie stars and paparazzi play The Charles Atlas kicking sand in the face game And I sit in the canyon with my back to the sea There's a blood red dragon on a field of green Calling me back Back to the Black Hills again Ooh, ooh, Billy come home Billy is searching for his native land Flicking through the stations with the dial in his head Picking up -------------- and A male voice choir on the short wave band Billy taps out Jim's number on the 'phone Sits shaking as he waits for Jim's answering tone Come on my friend, speak to me please The land of my fathers is calling to me And I sit in the canyon with my back to the sea There's a blood red dragon on a field of green Calling me back, back to the Black Hills again Ooh, ooh, Billy come home Come on home He sits in the canyon with his back to the sea Sees a blood red dragon on a field of green He hears a male voice choir singing Billy come home Billy, Billy, come home Come on home Californian Weirdo: I don't like fish. Jim: You are listening to KAOS here in Los Angeles. Californian Weirdo: I don't like fish. Jim: Yes, we've established that. Ah! Do you have a request? Californian Weirdo: Shell fish, guppy, salmon, shrimp and crab and lobster, flounder.I hate fish, but I think most of all I hate fresh fish, like trout. I hate fresh trout. My least-hated, favourite fish would be sole. That way you don't have to see the eyes. Sole has no eyes. Jim: Oh no! Californian Weirdo: I'd like to be home with my monkey and my dog Jim: Thankyou. Californian Weirdo: I'd like to be home with my monkey and my dog I'd like to be home with my monkey and my dog I'd like to be home with my monkey ... Jim: They don't care. Shut up. Play the record. Home ----- Jim: Oh, God! Californian Weirdo: Sole has no eyes. Could be Jerusalem, or it could be Cairo Could be Berlin, or it could be Prague Could be Moscow, could be New York Could be Llanelli, and it could be Warrington Could be Warsaw, and it could be Moose Jaw Could be Rome Everybody got somewhere they call home When they overrun the defences A minor invasion put down to expenses Will you go down to the airport lounge Will you accept your second class status A nation of waitresses and waiters Will you mix their martinis Will you stand still for it Or will you take to the hills It could be clay and it could be sand Could be desert Could be a tract of arable land Could be a house, could be a corner shop Could be a cabin by a bend in the river Could be something your old man handed down Could be something you built on your own Everybody got something he calls home When the cowboys and Arabs draw down On each other at noon In the cool dusty air of the city boardroom Will you stand by a passive spectator Of the market dictators Will you discreetly withdraw With your ear pressed to the boardroom door Will you hear when the lion within you roars Will you take to the hills Will you stand, will you stand for it Will you hear, ohhhh! ohhh! when the lion within you roars Could be your father and it could be your mother Could be your sister, could be your brother Could be a foreigner, could be a Turk Could be a cyclist out looking for work. Norman Could be a king, could be the Aga khan Could be a Vietnam vet with no arms and no legs Could be a saint, could be a sinner Could be a loser or it could be a winner Could be a banker, could be a baker Could be a Laker, could be Kareem Abdul Jabar Could be a male voice choir Could be a lover, could be a fighter Could be a super heavyweight, or it could be something lighter Could be a cripple, could be a freak Could be a wop, gook, geek Could be a cop, could be a thief Could be a family of ten living in one room on relief Could be our leaders in their concrete tombs With their tinned food and their silver spoons Could be the pilot with God on his side Could be the kid in the middle of the bomb sight Could be a fanatic, could be a terrorist Could be a dentist, could be a psychiatrist Could be humble, could be proud Could be a face in the crowd Could be the soldier in the white cravat Who turns the key in spite of the fact That this is the end of the cat and mouse Who dwelt in the house Where the laughter rang and the tears were spilt The house that Jack built Where the laughter rang and the tears were spilt The house that Jack built Bang, bang, shoot, shoot White gloved thumb, Lord thy will be done He was always a good boy his mother said He'll do his duty when he's grown, yeah Everybody's got someone they call home Four Minutes ------------- Billy: Four minutes and counting. Jim: O.K. Billy: They pressed the button, Jim. Jim: They pressed the button Billy, what button? Billy: The big red one. Jim: You mean THE button? Billy: Goodbye, Jim. Jim: Goodbye! Oh yes. This ain't au revoir, it's goodbye! Ha! Ha! Jim: This is KAOS. It's a beautiful, balmy, Southern California summer day. It's 80 degrees ... I said balmy ... I could say bomby ... Ha! Ha! ...O.K. I'm Jim and this is Radio KAOS and with only four minutes left to us, let's use this as wisely as possible. Molly: Everybody got someone they call home. Jim: Out at Dodger Stadium. It's the bottom of the seventh, the Dodgers are leading three to nothing over the Giants, and for those of you who are looking to go surfing tomorrow, too bad. (Telephone rings) Jim: I'm kinda lost in here to tell you the truth ... O.K. good. Ladies and gentlemen, if the reports that we are getting are correct, this could be it. Billy, if you're listening to me, please call now. After a near miss on the plane You swear you'll never fly again After the first kiss when you make up You swear you'll never break up again And when you've just run a red light Sit shaking under the street light You swear to yourself you'll never drink and drive again Sometimes I feel like going home You swear you'll never let things go by again. Sometimes I miss the rain and snow And you'll never toe the party line again And when the east wind blows Sometimes I feel like going home Jim: Billy, if you are listening, please call. Californian Weirdo: Sole has no eyes. Molly: Goodbye little spy in the sky. They say that cameras don't lie. Am I happy, am I sad, am I good, am I bad? Jim: Billy, if you're listening, please call. Californian Weirdo: Sole has no eyes, sole has no eyes Billy: Ten, nine, eight, seven Margaret Thatcher: Our own independent nuclear deterrent has helped to keep the peace. Billy: Six, five four, three, Ordinary Person: ...you've go a job... Billy: Two, one, Margaret Thatcher: For nearly forty years Jim: Goodbye Billy. The Tide is Turning (After Live Aid) ------------------------------------- I used to think the world was flat Rarely threw my hat into the crowd I felt I had used up my quota of yearning Used to look in on the children at night In the glow of their Donald Duck light And frighten myself with the thought of my little ones burning But oh, oh, oh, the tide is turning The tide is turning Satellite buzzing through the endless night Exclusive to moonshots and world title fights Jesus Christ imagine what it must be earning Who is the strongest, who is the best Who holds the aces, the East or the West This is the crap our children are learning But oh, oh, oh, the tide is turning The tide is turning Oh, oh, oh, the tide is turning Now the satellite's confused 'Cos on Saturday night The airwaves were full of compassion and light And his silicon heart warmed To the sight of a billion candles burning Oo, oo, oo, the tide is turning Oo, oo, oo, the tide is turning The tide is turning Billy I'm not saying that the battle is won But on Saturday night all those kids in the sun Wrested technology's sword from the hand of the War Lords Oh, oh, oh, the tide is turning The tide is turning Sylvester The tide is turning. "That's it!" [Morse Code:] "Now the past is over but you are not alone Together we'll fight Sylvester Stallone We will not be dragged down in his South China Sea of macho bullshit and mediocrity"