Dar Williams
"The Great Unknown"


Once upon a time there was a nuclear family
And we lived in a family time
And we'd unite in a family way
And off the ancient mountain
They were splitting every nucleus
They said "don't be alarmed,
Just don't try this at home."
And they were the mystery that made the world run
And we had the power, 'cause they were the sun
And we called them our heroes, and the future had come
They said, "look at the light we're giving you,
And the darkness we're saving you from."

Soon they were bringing it into our showroom
And they'd unveil it with its title
Bring your family, bring your family
It's the Great Unknown
You can look, but you can't fathom
It's the Great Unknown

LyricsI'm no ordinary princess, I was born in the cold war
And my team is the Rockets
Go team, it's a dangerous time
And I dream of the moon and building lunar clone colonies
And I build my peace with strength, that's the best weapon you've got.
Oh, I am the brainchild, I am the mortar
With a plastic trophy and an eating disorder
And vision as big as a great big wall
And they tell me that I'll move forward for the good of us all
And the good of nuclear families all

And they think I think I am important
I know I never was, no I wasn't
No I never, and how could I be?
It's the Great Unknown.
Now we've built it, now it's ticking
It's the Great Unknown

And I am your children, I am millions
And I wanted to sell out, I wanted to try
But you know the sky got too low, and the ocean got too high
And I tried to take God into my own hands
Am I too late? Is it over?
Have I sacrificed my family to the Great Unknown?
There's a war between my conscience and the Great Unknown

So I walked out into the Gamma fields
Out in Mercury, Nevada.
Where I stood in circle and that circle started to pray
And the wind at the nuclear test sights floats the data at the radiation
From the underground testing
Cross the line, you'll get arrested
And we came from all over in a silent appeal
As the drill comes down like a presidential seal
And we stand for the living, and we stand for the dead
And we looked out to see your enemies
And we see that you're looking all at us instead

And you think I am being disruptive?
But no I'm running home, I'm running
'cause I'm trying to put the atom back together
It's the Great Unknown
I'm just trying to put the atom back together
It's the Great Unknown