(Intro)
Yeah…
Everybody in the neighborhood knows Malcolm,
You hear the “Mal blower before the sun comes up,
Birds scatter like the cops just showed up,
And somewhere in the distance,
His brother’s already calling for another favor…
(Verse 1)
There’s a man named Malcolm, sixty years alive,
Still got that swagger, still got that drive,
Salt-and-pepper hair with a ginger glow,
Looking better now than twenty years ago.
Green and brown eyes underneath the sky,
Sexy little smile that can hypnotize,
Cute dimple flashing when he starts to laugh,
Then he spots a crooked flowerpot and snaps right back.
Bisexual heart but guarded with pride,
Money in his pocket keeps him satisfied,
Loves a clean driveway more than romance dates,
Checking bank accounts while his dinner gets cold on plates.
(Verse 2)
OCD running through his veins like fire,
Perfect green grass is his one desire,
Leaf hits the sidewalk? He can’t walk away,
Doesn’t matter if he cleaned it twice that day.
Blower starts screaming at a quarter to six,
Neighbors wake up talking all kinds of shit,
But Malcolm keeps marching like a man possessed,
One tiny mess and he can’t rest.
Birds land once and he’s out the front door,
Swinging towels like a backyard war,
Yelling at pigeons like they owe him cash,
Then chasing squirrels off the neighbor’s trash.
(Pre-Chorus)
You’d think the man would slow it down,
But he keeps running circles around the town,
Always fixing, cleaning, trimming every tree,
Like perfection’s the only peace he’ll ever see.
(Chorus)
Oh Malcolm, Malcolm, mowing through the pain,
Love money more than dates but still dancing in the rain,
Climbing ladders way too high, ribs cracked in two,
Dogs attack the man but he still pulls through.
Brother tells a sob story, Malcolm says “alright,”
Now he’s picking up that girlfriend every single night.
Can’t say no, can’t sit still, can’t leave one thing wrong,
Life keeps beating Malcolm but the man stays strong.
(Verse 3)
His brother calls him nearly every afternoon,
Always some disaster coming way too soon,
“Man, I barely slept, I can’t survive today,”
Then Malcolm hears the words he already knows he’ll say.
“Can you get my girlfriend? She gets off at nine…”
Malcolm closes both his tired eyes,
He knows he’s being played again somehow,
But he grabs his keys and leaves the house.
Started as a favor one exhausted night,
Now it’s every day like clockwork in his life,
Brother learned guilt works every single time,
And Malcolm keeps surrendering despite his mind.
(Verse 4)
He’s out there trimming hedges in the blazing heat,
Sunburn running down from his forehead to his feet,
Refuses water breaks, refuses any rest,
Like proving something to himself becomes a test.
Climbed a ladder reaching for a dying branch,
Too stubborn to call somebody else for the task,
One wrong step and gravity took control,
Concrete hit hard enough to shake his soul.
Two cracked ribs and bruises black and blue,
Doctor said, “Slow