The gates of the schoolyard Are padlocked and chained To keep all the children in out of the rain The art teacher's preaching The virtues of pastel shades You pay no attention but it won't hurt your grades
'Cause your painting by numbers Connecting the dots They don't have to tell you You don't call the shots
You jump when they say jump And you don't ask how high 'Cause painting by numbers they know you'll get by
You take a position In the old man's firm He signs all the papers You agree to the terms They let you run errands And you don't get days off You take out the garbage and hope it pays off
'Cause your painting by numbers Connecting the dots You work from the neck down
You might be in grad school Up at M.I.T You might be down in the canal zone Being all that you can be You might get to thinking you're ahead of the game But when you break it all down It all comes out the same
You're painting by numbers Connecting the dots You work from the neck down as often as not.