You’ve been Fooled

[Intro]
[Piano]

[Verse 1]
Call it for what it is
It’s not about hear-say
He’s lying to you
Yeah—You should know better
You’re smarter than this
His lies are clear as day
What will you do
Yeah—You should know better
What will come of this
Be adult enough to admit
You made a mistake
Yeah—You should know better

[Pre-Chorus]
[Guitar builds tension with palm-muted power chords]
We’ve tried to work it together
Yeah—You should know better

[Chorus]
Time to snap out of that lie
The matter is only getting worse
No matter how hard you try
You can’t break the curse
You’ve been duped to think it’s cool
No baby— Don’t be a fool

[Verse 2]
(The instrumentation thins out to just a funky drum beat and a pulsing bassline)
Wash the scales right out your eyes
Truth is a pill that’s hard to swallow
But you’re livin’ in a dark disguise
Where the heart is empty and the soul is hollow.
(Growling vocal grit)
I said, you’re smarter than the game he’s playin’
Stop believin’ every word he’s sayin’!

[Chorus]
Time to snap out of that lie
The matter is only getting worse
(Horn section blasts: PA-PA-PA-PA!)
No matter how hard you try
You can’t break the curse
You’ve been duped to think it’s cool
No baby— Don’t be a fool!

[Outro]
(The groove settles into a deep, hypnotic funk pocket. Stevie begins improvising over the beat.)
You’ve been fooled...
I tried to tell ya, Lord knows I tried!
Yeah, you’re playin’ the game... but the rules ain't the same!
(Vocal run scaling up to a high B-flat)
DON'T BE A FOOL!
Check the math, do the math, honey...
It just don't add up!
DON'T BE A FOOL!

(The track fades with the sound of a laughing Clavinet and a final, sharp horn hit)

[End]

1980 Progressive soul, R&B, Pop, Funk, jazz, male lyric tenor, drums, piano