A plumber handed me her bill today,
I might have complained but I paid her;
She said, “Just think of the mess if you did it yourself –
It’s not the parts, it’s the labour.”
She said, “Our body chemicals aren’t worth much,
Well, that’s what you read in the paper;”
She said, “I may be a plumber – but I’m also a mother, and I know
It’s not the parts, it’s the labour.”
CHORUS: Oh, mothers and lovers and kings and clowns,
Whether for wage or a favour,
Be you high or low down, what makes the world go ’round,
It’s not the parts, it’s the labour.
Old Buddha sat under the Bodhi Tree,
The first great meditator;
He said, “How far I’ve travelled just a-gazing at my navel, now I know
It’s not the part, it’s the labour!”
Don Juan became a household name,
A legendary copulator;
For a man so plain he achieved such a fame, because
It’s not the parts, it’s the labour. [CHORUS]
And back in ’29, life was bullish and fine
For many rich speculators;
But then the market slumped and out of windows they jumped; they shoulda thunk
It’s not the parts, it’s the labour.
Now Apple, IBM and Bill Gates too,
They think the computer is a saviour;
But garbage in is still garbage out –
It’s not the parts, it’s the labour. [CHORUS]
All manner of creatures came from the mud,
Shaped by the Grand Creator;
From out of the slime, what beauty sublime; oh, I know
It’s not the parts, it’s the labour.
So remember this truth that’s oft forgot –
Don’t be a slave or a slaver;
Put your heart in what you do, and good will come to you –
It’s not the parts, it’s the labour. [CHORUS]
FINALE: Adam Smith may be your star,
Or you may give full marks to Karl – never mind,
It’s not the parts, it’s the labour.