Looks shiny and costly
How much did you pay for your bad Moto Guzzi?
And how much did you spend
On your black leather jacket?
Is it you or your parents in this income tax bracket?
Now, tickets to concerts
And drinking at clubs
Sometimes for music that you haven't even heard of
And how much did you pay for
Your rock 'n' roll T-shirt
That proves you were there, that you heard of them first?
Now, how do you afford your rock 'n' roll lifestyle?
How do you afford your rock 'n' roll lifestyle?
How do you afford your rock 'n' roll lifestyle?
Oh, tell me
Aw, yeah, all right
All right
Oh, yeah, all right, aw
How much did you pay
For the chunk of his guitar
The one he ruthlessly smashed at the end of the show?
And how much will he pay
For a brand-new guitar
One which he'll ruthlessly smash at the end of another show?
And how long will the workers
Keep building him new ones?
As long as their soda cans are red, white, and blue ones
And how long will the workers
Keep building him new ones?
As long as their soda cans are red, white, and blue ones
Aw, yeah, aw, yeah
Aw, yeah, all right, ha
Oh-ho-ho-ho
Oh, no
Aging black leather and hospital bills
And tatoo removal and dozens of pills
Your liver pays dearly now for youthful magic moments
But rock on completely with some brand-new components
Now, how do you afford your rock 'n' roll lifestyle?
How do you afford your rock 'n' roll lifestyle?
How do you afford your rock 'n' roll lifestyle?
All right, aw, yeah
So good, oh, baby
Excess ain't rebellion
You're drinkin' what they're selling now
Your self-destruction doesn't hurt them
Your chaos won't convert them
They're so happy to rebuild it
You'll never really kill it, aw, yeah
Excess ain't rebellion
You're drinkin' what they're selling, oh
Excess ain't rebellion, oh
You're drinkin', you're drinkin'
Aw, yeah, you're drinkin' what they selling
Aw
Yeah, all right
Aw
Yeah
All right
Cake is an American rock band from Sacramento, California, consisting of singer John McCrea, trumpeter Vince DiFiore, guitarist Xan McCurdy, bassist Daniel McCallum, and drummer Todd Roper. The band has been noted for McCrea's sarcastic lyrics and deadpan vocals, and their wide-ranging musical influences, including norteño, country music, mariachi, disco, rock, funk, folk music, and hip hop.
Cake was formed in August of 1991 by McCrea, DiFiore, Greg Brown (guitar), Frank French (drums), and Shon Meckfessel (bass) who soon left and was replaced by Gabe Nelson. Following the self-release of its debut album, Motorcade of Generosity, the band was signed to Capricorn Records in 1995 and released its first single, "Rock 'n' Roll Lifestyle", which hit number 35 on the Modern Rock Tracks music chart and was featured on MTV's 120 Minutes; French and Nelson then left the band, and were replaced by Todd Roper and Victor Damiani. Cake's second album, 1996's Fashion Nugget, went platinum on the strength of its lead single, "The Distance". Following a tour of Europe and the United States, both Brown and Damiani announced they were leaving Cake, which led to speculation about the band's future; McCrea eventually recruited Xan McCurdy to take over on guitar, and persuaded Nelson to return.
Prolonging the Magic, the band's third album, was released in 1998 and went platinum, having shipped over one million units; this was followed three years later by Comfort Eagle, the band's first album on Columbia Records, featuring the single "Short Skirt/Long Jacket" which hit number 7 on the Modern Rock Tracks chart. Following a series of tours, including several versions of the Unlimited Sunshine Tour, the band released Pressure Chief in 2004, its second and last album on Columbia. After creating its own label, Upbeat Records, the band released Showroom of Compassion in 2011, which became its first album to debut at the top of the Billboard charts, selling 44,000 copies in the first week after release. Their studio output has been minimal since 2011, although they have continued to tour and have occasionally hinted at an upcoming album.
