Golden Child

by Clive James and Pete Atkin

Pick a boy and offer him the planet on a plate
Raise him up to see the ins and outs of love and hate
Give him an inkling of how it all began
And golden child becomes a driven man

He doesn't sleep alone any more
He doesn't lift the phone with the flourish of yore
And each slice of life goes through to the bone
He knows more than he ever did before

Buy the boy some pretty things to keep him in the nest
Sweeten his tooth for him with nothing but the best
Hit him with everything and stop him if you can
When golden child becomes a driven man

And he doesn't sleep alone any more
He doesn't lift the phone with the flourish of yore
And each slice of life goes through to the bone
He knows more than he ever did before

Watch the boy behave himself with gratitude and tact
Dot the 'i's and cross the 't's until he spots the fact
That life's fabled poetry doesn't even scan
And golden child becomes a driven man