A A G A
A A G A

[Chorus]
A               G                  A
System, system, system - death in life
A               G                      A
System, system, system - the surgeons knife
A               G                A
System, system, system - hacking at the cord
A               G            A
System, system, system - a child is born

[Verse 1]
 A                   Em
Poor little fucker, poor little kid
 G                    A
Never asked for life, no she never did
 A                 Em
Poor little baby, poor little mite
 Em
Crying out for food as her parents fight
 E
Crying out for food as her parents fight

[Chorus]
A               G                      A
System, system, system - send him to school
A               G                    A
System, system, system - force him to crawl
A               G                      A
System, system, system - teach him how to cheat
A               G                  A
System, system, system - kick him off his feet

[Verse 2]
 A                      Em
Poor little schoolboy, poor little lad
        G                      A
They'll pat him if he's good, beat him if he's bad
  A                 Em
Poor little kiddy, poor little chap
         Em
They'll force feed his mind with their useless crap
 E
Force feed his mind with their useless crap

[Chorus]
A               G                         A
System, system, system - they'll teach her how to cook
A               G                       A
System, system, system - they'll teach her how to look
A               G                           A
System, system, system - they'll teach her all the tricks
A               G           A
System, system, system - create another victim for their greasy pricks

[Verse 3]
 A                  Em
Poor little girly, poor little wench
  G                       A
Another little object to prod and pinch
 A                   Em
Poor little sweety, poor little filly
         Em
They'll fuck her mind so they can fuck her silly
 E
Fuck her mind so they can fuck her silly

[Chorus]
A               G               A
System, system, system - he's grown to be a man
A               G                   A
System, system, system - He's been taught to fit the plan
A               G               A
System, system, system - forty years of jobs
A               G         A
System, system, system - Pushing little buttons, pulling little knobs

[Verse 4]
A                     Em
Poor fucking worker, poor little serf
 G                       A
Working like a mule for half of what he's worth
 A                     Em
Poor fucking grafter, poor little gent
 Em
Working for the cash that he's already spent
 E
Working for the cash that he's already spent

[Verse 5]
       A
He'll selling his life, she's his loyal wife
A
Timid as a mouse, she's got her little house
      A
He's got his little car and they share the cocktail bar
     A
She likes to cook his meals, you know, something that appeals
 A
Sometimes he works til late so his supper has to wait
         A
But she doesn't really mind cos he's getting overtime
     A
He likes to put a bit away just for that rainy day
     A
Cos every little counts when the cost of living mounts
 A
They do the pools each week hoping for that lucky break
             A
Then they'd take a trip abroad, do all the things they can't afford
              A
She'd really like to have a fur, he'd like a bigger car
            A
They could buy a bungalow, with a Georgian door for show
          A
He might think of leaving work, but no, he wouldn't like to shirk
      A
He'd much prefer to stay and get his honest days pay
            A
He's got a life of work ahead, there's no rest for the dead
       Em                                E
She's tried to make it nice, he's said thank you once or twice

[Chorus]
A               G                     A
System, system, system - deprived of any hope
A               G                   A
System, system, system - taught they couldn't cope
A               G          A
System, system, system - slaves right from the start
A               G             A
System, system, system - til death do them part

[Bridge]
 A                    Em
Poor little fuckers, what a sorry pair
 G                                A
Had their lives stolen, but they didn't really care
 A                               Em
Poor little darlings, just your ordinary folks
 Em
Victims of the system and it's cruel jokes
 E
Victims of the system and it's cruel jokes

[Outro]
     A                G             A
The couple views the wreckage and dreams of home sweet home
       A                 G                  A
They'd almost paid their mortgage when the system dropped its bomb