(editor’s note: The song below premiered on Fresh Air radio in Minneapolis. Quite a few people called in afterward which I enjoyed as they were supportive. The last time I checked in 2015, the eatery had mutated from a hippy dive to a hipster dive w/ smaller food portions and higher prices.)
Seward Cafe
In Minneapolis on Franklin Avenue way,
Lies a hippie museum called the Seward Cafe,
If eating there is politically correct ,
Could any citizen really know,
Because most of the folks pose values,
As if they were in a shopping mall fashion show.
If you want to break into their little clique,
And don't exactly know the code,
Tattoo your shoulder blades,
And ear pierce the cartilage in your nose.
Macrame your armpit hairs,
Tint your glasses Rose,
Make yourself ginghamed,
Then you can pose.
Make a token gesture to change the world,
Join the Seward fixtures
In their flashback Paisley swirls.
Tie-dye eternity is the Utopia they live,
Going to the rainbow fest is the only way to win ,
LSD escapades make their brains more whiffed,
As they follow the Grateful Dead,
Like lemmings over a cliff.
Seward Cafe Seward Cafe,
Long live the neo- hippies,
Listen how they say,
Speaking out in a place that's safe,
What they wouldn't dare utter in any other place.
Bathroom graffiti make urgent proclamations,
About Western culture and its degradation,
Protesting the loss of democracy,
While the artwork on the restaurant walls gets more and more greasy.
Step right up to the Seward Cafe,
If you don't conform then your déclassé,
Rip up your jeans, dishevel your hair.
Make a statement of your despair,
Lacquer your blood with drugs,
Then you can start gleaning,
Empty your eyes of,
Any hard-earned meaning.
Then you'll fit right in, then you'll fit right in.
At the:
Seward Cafe, Seward Cafe
Long live the neo hippies listen to them say ,
Speaking out in a place that's safe,
What they wouldn't dare other than any other place.
They're all just hippies huddled together,
Awaiting the ark that will never come,
Because it's piloted by Christopher Columbus.
And who wants a ride from him, who wants a ride from him?
At the:
The Seward Cafe, Seward Cafe
Long live the Neo hippies,
Listen to them say,
Speaking out in a place that's safe,
What they wouldn't dare other than any other place.
They're all just hippies quivering in totalitarian shadows,
The Shadows that they own, the shadows they try to disown.
The shadows that are in each and everyone of us.
Peace, love, and a Super Green Earth breakfast
Smothered in ranchero sauce
At the Seward Cafe.
(C)-1996 Jaye B.
***
Jaye B. is a writer, musician and artist. His art criticism has appeared in Art Paper, New North Artscape, Art Muscle, Northfield Magazine and elsewhere. His articles have also appeared in City Pages, Twin Cities Reader, Mysteries Magazine, Fahrenheit San Diego, High Plains Reader, New Dawn and Rain Taxi. He has appeared on BBC Radio, WGN Chicago, WLW Cincinnati and elsewhere in the mediasphere to discuss his work. Please help support Reset News @ Paypal, Cash App or contact the author for other options @ jayeb444@protonmail.com