Ball and Chain Songtext
von Xavier Rudd

I been ridin waves child
Guilt thru all my days child
How this place was settled
The murder and the shame

Secrets been exposed child
Truth we must uphold child
Constant fight for justice
To pave the way for change

Living in denial
Goin through the same old cycle
Penal colony survival
Depending on ya ball and chain

System gonna customise ya
The man he gonna redefine ya
Gotta hunt like a night time spider
Depending on ya ball and chain

I′m a survivor full on energy provider
Sometimes you gotta improvise it
Depending on ya ball and chain


System gonna customise ya
The man he gonna redefine ya
Gotta hunt like a night time spider
Depending on ya ball and chain

Wisdom from the old school
Mixed up with the new school
To make up brand new colours
Paint the walls of change

Get among gotta do your time now
Gotta take it in your stride now
Gotta make what you can come alive now
Depending on your ball and chain

Everyday I lift my spirit up
But see my soul is getting heavy
Pressure on my back and I can barely hold it steady
In a cold world but daily I keep sweatin
Cos I'm vulnerable locked in a system that′s so deadly huh

And now I'm racing to build a foundation
To raise a better life for the younger generation
Discriminations we have to change those
And mix up all the colours to form a rainbow


Cos this ball and chain has incarcerated my freedom
Born into the system and wasn't given a reason
Same cycle continues and follows the same sequence
Screaming for change and it′s bringing out inner demons

This ball and chain got me feeling some type of way
Ball and chain got me feeling like im a slave
Its like I′m swimming up and an anchors got me drowned
But still I survive and to keep alive I gotta Pray Pray Pray

And if such things were equal
We may find a need to
To mix up all the colours
Break down the walls of race

Get among gotta do your time now
Gotta take it in your stride now
Gotta make what you can come alive now
Depending on your ball and chain

I'm a survivor full on energy provider
Sometimes you gotta improvise it
Depending on ya ball and chain

System gonna customise ya
The man he gonna redefine ya
Gotta hunt like a night time spider
Depending on ya ball and chain