Original version

Uncle Seabird was an action man
He made the scene before the scene began
The first cat to drop acid in the Haight
He understood the lyrics of The Weight

When Fillmore West was still a carousel
And the chick to know was Luria Cantrell
The man to meet already was long gone
Leaving Kesey and his ilk to struggle on

Uncle Seabird, Uncle Seabird had the word
Uncle Seabird, Uncle Seabird had the word
Uncle Seabird, Uncle Seabird led the herd

A feature of those gentle early days
That time and circumstance cannot erase
Was Uncle Seabird trying to be nice
When Berry Gordy asked him for advice

"There's a new group down a hole you oughta
hear"
Said the telephone in Brian Epstein's ear
"But let's not haggle now about my fee
Tom Parker handles these affairs for me"

Uncle Seabird, Uncle Seabird had the word
Uncle Seabird, Uncle Seabird had the word
Uncle Seabird, Uncle Seabird led the herd

When Uncle Seabird wrote for Rolling Stone
A generation felt much less alone
His footloose odyssey went so far back
He recalled not having heard of Kerouac

He represented youth in all its force
For evolution has to take its course
When the children streamed to hear the
Grateful Dead
His wheelchair glittered somewhere up ahead

Uncle Seabird, Uncle Seabird had the word
Uncle Seabird had the word
Uncle Seabird led the herd

Uncle Seabird was the guru of the young
He spoke their tight and unresisting tongue
By steady work he pruned the language down
To an article, an adverb and a noun

When a snot-nosed little kid called Zimmerman
Was seeking a new surname that would scan
Uncle Seabird filled his lungs with hash
And "Weberman" he muttered in a flash

Uncle Seabird had the word
Uncle Seabird had the word
Uncle Seabird led the herd
He led the herd

The last and greatest festival of all
Was Uncle Seabird's acid test and ball
They say one row of people passed a joint
From Yasgur's farm clear to Zabriskie Point

Crosby, Stills and Clapton, Young and Nash
Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Johnny Cash
They all backed Yoko Ono while she sang
And Elvis Presley read from R D Laing

Uncle Seabird, Uncle Seabird had the word
Uncle Seabird, Uncle Seabird had the word
Uncle Seabird, Uncle Seabird led the herd

When Uncle Seabird wheeled onto the stage
He was crowding eighty-seven years of age
"We are stardust, we are (croak)" he cried
And the children yelled his name out as he died

Uncle Seabird

Shortened version

Uncle Seabird was an action man
He knew the scene before the scene began
The first cat to drop acid in the Haight
He understood the lyrics of The Weight

When Fillmore West was still a carousel
And the chick to know was Luria Cantrell
Uncle Seabird tried hard to be nice
When Berry Gordy asked him for advice

Uncle Seabird, Uncle Seabird had the word
Uncle Seabird, Uncle Seabird had the word
Uncle Seabird, Uncle Seabird led the herd

When Uncle Seabird wrote for Rolling Stone
A generation felt much less alone
His footloose odyssey went so far back
He recalled not having heard of Kerouac

He represented youth in all its force
For evolution has to take its course
When the children queued to hear the Grateful
Dead
His wheelchair glittered somewhere up ahead

Uncle Seabird, Uncle Seabird had the word
Uncle Seabird, Uncle Seabird had the word
Uncle Seabird, Uncle Seabird led the herd

When a snot-nosed little kid called Zimmerman
Was seeking a new surname that would scan
Uncle Seabird filled his lungs with hash
And "Weberman" he muttered in a flash

"There's a new group down a hole you ought to
hear"
Said the telephone in Brian Epstein's ear
"But let's not haggle now about my fee
Tom Parker handles these affairs for me"

Uncle Seabird, Uncle Seabird had the word
Uncle Seabird, Uncle Seabird had the word
Uncle Seabird, Uncle Seabird led the herd

The last and greatest festival of all
Was Uncle Seabird's acid test and ball
They say one row of people passed a joint
From Yasgur's Farm clear to Zabriskie Point

Crosby Stills and Clapton, Young and Nash
Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Johnny Cash
They all backed Yoko Ono while she ... sang
And Elvis Presley read from R D Laing

When Uncle Seabird wheeled onto the stage
He was crowding eighty-seven years of age
"We are stardust, we are ... (croak)" he cried
And the children yelled his name out as he died

Uncle Seabird, Uncle Seabird had the word
Uncle Seabird, Uncle Seabird had the word
Uncle Seabird, Uncle Seabird led the herd
Uncle Seabird