Story Behind The Song

I was watching a documentary about the work of police and emergency services in the U.K In one scene some officers discovered a young man of 22 trying to hang himself in a train station waiting room. The officers only seemed to be concerned with removing him from the area. When they tried to manhandle him out of the room he he didn't fight or shout, he just made a small yet heartrending sound like a weak, frail baby, as if he had reverted to being as helpless as an infant. I expected some sort of compassionate response from the officers - perhaps of few words of comfort for someone so lost - but all they said was "You can't stay here or we'll have to arrest you." This was a young man on the precipice of life and death. I wondered what had happened to him since, and what on earth has happened to us.

Song Description

At the risk of sounding like some kind of political campaigner (I wish I was but I'm not clever enough) I just wanted to express how frustrated I have become with the number of young, promising people who end up on the scrapheap or worse because of the status they were born with. The hideous waste of potential and unecessary suffering that we cause one another because of some warped perception of an individuals' worth being measured only by his or her wealth. It's undone our humanity.

Lyrics

22

Twenty two and his cord's still wet
Twenty two hanging tight around his neck there's
No point
So take a happy pill and smoke a joint
No future for a boy no
Job, no money, no joy

Twenty two and it's all gone wrong
Twenty two and he don't belong no
Can't cope
So take another pill and one more smoke
And hide inside from what's out there 'cos
You don't matter, and they don't care.

Twenty two and he can't be saved
Twenty two and he can't behave it's
No life
No itty-bitty family and
No wife
Mama's drunk and Daddy's lazy
The World's insane so he's a little crazy.

Don't want to live no more
That's all he's asking for
Don't want to cry, don't want to scream, don't want to shout
He's just had enough yeah, he want to get out but
Mr policeman come and say it's offensive
"You can't die here", but there's nowhere to live

Twenty two, he didn't ask for much
Twenty two, he didn't have much luck he's
All cold, all blue, all stiff
Hanging around, he's just another statistic
Can't we see he's not just someone's son our
Future hanging there belongs to everyone.

Don't want to live no more
That's all he's asking for
Don't want to cry, don't want to scream, don't want to shout he's just
Had enough yeah, he want to get out but
Mr policeman come and say it's offensive
"You can't die here", but there's nowhere to live.