Kludge: Live in Dallas, part 3

Tune 3, "Testify (Surrender)" -- Eventually this Cheap Trick gem would become one of our parody mainstays (with lyrics reworked as topics required) but it was hard to beat the original twist on the ongoing Microsoft vs. Justice Dept. lawsuit. Parody lyrics, BTW, were almost always a collaborative effort -- someone would come up with a germ of an idea, take an initial cut, then there would be a group edit via email and again at rehearsals. This process was led mainly by Mike Azzara, Mitch Irsfeld and myself, though everybody ever associated with Kludge (hey we were all smart people) usually contributed in some way. What I like about this recording is that you hear the audience laughing at the jokes...

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TESTIFY (SURRENDER)

Bill Gates told me, yes he told me
I'd write code for him
But Justice told me stay away,
you never know who we'll catch

Just the other day I heard
that a sweet deal had been cut
But now it looks
Like it might not go down

CHORUS
Billy's allright, Ballmer's allright
They just need some healthy fear
Testify, testify
but don't give your code away -- ayyaaayyy

Microsoft does run the country,
that's our big concern
But no one told Judge Stanley Sporkin
I guess that he's gonna learn

Now I have heard the Attorney General's
filing for appeal
Novell and Lotus don't want that
they've fought them all these years

(Chorus)

Whatever happened to all those software
startups from last year
Microsoft just buys their market
then they disappear

But I don't want my royalties
hanging on his wall!
So now I hope my testimony
gets Billy Boy knocked out!

(chorus repeat and out)

More from Dallas tomorrow... including LOTUS...