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Pullin' a Sickie

by Ric Birtill

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1.
Enough is Enough 02:32
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LYRICS : Enough Computer literate with good communication skills Enough is enough And the ability to work well within a team Are you available for work? Are you flexible enough to work over the weekend Can you put in those extra hours for us? I have had it up to here My heart is filled with fear Enough Oh the phone is ringing every time i put it down Can i help you sir you have won a kitchen Its a shame the way your treated by your fellow man Who is only payed one pound more than you an hour Are you flexible enough to work over the weekend Can you put in those extra hours for us? I have had it up to here My heart is filled with fear Enough
2.
How Long Have You Been Working Here For? 02:28
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LYRICS : I've been working here a long time I've been working till my fingers are red and sore And the keyboard doesn't have any letters any more The staff in the canteen know my name I've been working here a long time I've been working here a long time I've been working till my crossed legs have broken all the bones And I know by the tone who's calling on the phone The lady at reception knows my name I've been working here a long time I've been working here a long time I've been working till my heart has imploded with fear Have I done everything that I needed to do Am I more than this keyboard and these post - it - notes Is time running out as the years get shorter Will I be just a shirt and tie till I'm dead? And nothing to show but some overdue rent I've been working here a long time.
3.
Glutton For Punishment 02:48
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LYRICS : I’ve been working part time in customer service Sat behind a counter Starring at a cue of people Wishing I was dead in customer service Sat behind a counter Starring at a cue of people Ripping out my heart Dislocating my bones We are dancing macabre As the scum of the earth Good morning can i help you I am a robot I have no opinions Only corporate information No one here is happy in customer service Going through the motions Speaking for the sake of speaking Ripping out my heart Dislocating my bones We are dancing macabre As the scum Drifting through the sewer Creeping into your home We are calling you up To come into work Ripping out my heart Dislocating my bones We are dancing macabre As the scum Drifting through the sewer Creeping into your home We are calling you up To come into work
4.
El Popo 01:53
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LYRICS : I could French kiss a porcupine Stick my hand into a fire I could have a migraine An abscess caused by tooth decay But I don’t want to visit mum and dad They’ll just make me feel bad I could stand in a cue Eat a mouldy sag aloo I could lower my genitals Into the erupting Popocatépetl But I don’t want to visit mum and dad They’ll just make me feel bad I could read the NME Watch reality tv Wear fake tan and wax my chest But I don’t want to visit mum and dad They’ll just make me feel bad Into the erupting Popocatépetl
5.
It Pays The Bills 03:26
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LYRICS : I sing a familiar tune I sing for you At a wedding or a leaving do I can sing for you but it’s not what I do I have a dream to sing for you Something new But I sing take that back for good As my dreams are drowned by a forgotten, a forgotten, a monotonous flood But I keep telling myself It pays the bills I studied photography, I can take a photograph Kitchen design or a caricature wedding It pays the bills but it’s not what I do I want to break the shackles that enslave I cower to these bills It’s such a chore So secure this bread and butter I eat it everyday But its making me, making me, making me unwell. But I keep telling myself It pays the bills
6.
Lets Get Pissed 03:41
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CREDITS: All songs written, performed and recorded by Ric Birtill *Japanese spoken word on Don’t Give Up Your Day Job by Dean Hinchey Produced and mixed by Ric Birtill Mastered by Gareth Woodfield Recorded at SIC studios Released through SIC turtle Records Artwork by Robin Hill © Sic Turtle Music 2020 copyright control; unauthorised copying, broadcasting, hiring, renting or public performance prohibited.
7.
I Can't Dance 02:33
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LYRICS: I can't I can't dance Shake my booty or throw jazz hands Oh come on Let's dance Let’s dance I don’t want to dance You find me subdued at the back of the club Slouched in a corner with both arms crossed Look at you You can dance You slut drop with eloquence Oh come on Lets dance Lets dance I don’t want to dance I see you sat in your seat Before propelled into orbit when they play that beat You gather up the rest of your crew To go paralytic and to sing out of tune Don’t you love it when your in a packed out club Someone screaming in your ear this is my favourite song And they get the words wrong It’s going to be long night I don’t want to dance Twerk into embarrassment Oh come on let’s dance Let’s dance I don’t want to dance I cued half an hour for an overpriced pint And now I’m stood with you under a very warm light You gather up the rest of your crew To go paralytic and to sing out of tune Don’t you love it when your in a packed out club Someone screaming in your ear this is my favourite song It’s time to go home It’s going to be a long night I can't I can't dance Shake my booty or throw jazz hands Oh come on Let's dance Let’s dance I don’t want to dance You find me subdued at the back of the club Slouched in a corner with both arms crossed
8.
Pull a Sickie 02:12
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LYRICS: I drank too much at the Cardigan Arms last night I woke up this morning and I am due in work at nine I feel so rough and the sunlight hurts my eyes What should I do? Pull a sickie My band have been offered the chance to open for Sting But I am due in to work on the same night as the gig I am pulling my hair out this is something I surly can’t miss What should I do? Pull a sickie When you need to make those last minute plans When it’s too late to get cover or book in advance When you don’t want to quit or get fired for telling the truth What should I do? Pull a sickie
9.
Don't Leave The House 02:38
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LYRICS: Agoraphobia Stood in a lift with everyone else We are all going to die What the hell is that smell It wasn’t me I didn’t guff in here Heart rate rapid heart rate Breathing trouble breathing Dire diarrhoea Que sera If you're unsure Listen to your Conscience I’m sure you’ll find Safety in doors Don’t leave the house Riding Riding the bus People outside are waiting in line We are all going to die There are plenty of free seats around Don’t talk to me Why did you sit next to me Heart rate rapid heart rate Breathing trouble breathing Dire diarrhoea Que sera If you're unsure Listen to your Conscience I’m sure you’ll find Safety in doors Don’t leave the house
10.
Dole Scum 02:53
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Inside the Job Centre Print out some jobs Take them home Email and telephone Attach a CV and a cover note Applying for another job online Walking into shops with my CV Applying for another job online Walking into shops with my CV I got a graphics and design degree Now I work for Costa Coffee This place is killing me Put on a fake smile Wipe up spilt tea And what has become of my piece of shit degree? Applying for another job online Walking into shops with my CV Applying for another job online Walking into shops with my CV I’m not just sat around the house all day I am walking through town with my curriculum vitae I bash my face against your walls everyday What more do you want What more do you expect Of what I can do and what I will do next Applying for another job online Walking into shops with my CV Applying for another job online Walking into shops with my CV
11.
Parking Space One 01:44
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LYRICS: We now have new tenants moving into apartment 3 And we have given them their allocated parking space Please could you now park Please could you now park in space one The tenant in apartment one He does not have a car And we have just arranged with him For you to use that space Please could you now park Please could you now park in space one Yours sincerely, kind regards Your lettings manager If you have any questions please Don’t hesitate to call Please could you now park Please could you now park in space one
12.
Curtain Twitcher 03:05
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LYRICS: The lamp light glows fro behind her blinds I am frozen from my waste to my toes I think she knows I am crippled with fear in her peripheral scorn I can see her hand has reached for the telephone I think she knows All the things I have done Last night I got into a fight I was kicked out the pub Staggering home singing The Minotaur’s Song I walked into a wall And I fell to the floor I think she knows All the things I have done She will use against me for her own fun Curtain twitcher She is a nosey neighbour I broke into her home And I strangled her to death with the cord from her phone Curtain twitcher She was a nosey neighbour
13.
Don't Give Up Your Day Job 03:46
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LYRICS: You will try your best to succeed Sweat and slave try to embrace all the defeat People can be cruel cynical and rude They will try to stop you It's hard enough to try and crawl Out from underneath it all Just when you think that you are there Someone is waiting with a snare And they will love to tell you Don’t give up your day job Stick to waiting tables You will never amount to anything more Now go and do as you are told When I hear that cretinous drool It throws me into a whirl pool I am spinning in despair I have forgotten why I’m here And what I am dong It can stifle restrict and distract And in some cases permanently block The getting and get up The doing and the try Yes they love to tell you Don’t give up your day job Keep cleaning that toilet They think it's funny But it's not funny at all Don’t give up your day job Stick to waiting tables You will never amount to anything more Now go and do as you are told Don’t give up your day job Keep cleaning that toilet They think it's funny But it's not funny at all I've seen you on stage Singing your songs It's nothing new and it's all been done before So don’t give up your day job このような批判を受け入れて それを自分の本業とは 別の才能を伸ばすための 努力や意欲に活かしていけば その批判はただの批判ではなく 自己実現に繋がりるよ！ 他の人が理解したり 得ていないことを広い心で受け入れ 理解していくことが出来れば それはあなたを成功へと導く一部となり 新しいライフ待っているよ！
14.
I Wish I Was a Plumber 02:25
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LYRICS: I wish I was a plumber I wish I worked in a petrol station I wish I worked in customer service And I was content I wish I was joiner I wish I worked in a factory I wish I worked selling cleaning goods from a magazine And I was content I wish I wasn’t a musician I wish I had a steady income I wish I could come home from selling car insurance And be content I want to be content

about

Pullin' a Sickie' is a comedy/folk/punk autobiographical concept album about the monotony of working in a low paid office job while struggling with crippling mental health issues.

It features songs about social anxiety (Don’t Leave The House/ El Popo / I Can’t Dance), Alcohol dependency (Let’s Get Pissed), neglecting your creative worth by cowering under societal pressures (It Pays The Bills / Don’t Give Up Your Day Job / I wish I Was a Plumber) paranoia (Curtain Twitcher) and changing parking spaces (Parking Space one).

credits

released May 12, 2020

CREDITS:

All songs written, performed and recorded by Ric Birtill
*Japanese spoken word on Don’t Give Up Your Day Job by Dean Hinchey
Produced and mixed by Ric Birtill
Mastered by Gareth Woodfield
Recorded at SIC studios
Released through SIC turtle Records
Artwork by Robin Hill

© Sic Turtle Music 2020 copyright control; unauthorised copying, broadcasting, hiring, renting or public performance prohibited.

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Ric Birtill UK

I play guitar and sing at the same time.

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