It Takes One To Know One
Mott Lyrics

Well, didya ever get the feelin' that the world ain't right?
Have you ever felt that something is wrong with the world?

Like when you're standing in the dance-hall someone picks a fight
For instance, when you're dancing, and someone starts a fight?

He says, hey, c'mere long-hair I saw ya lookin' at my chick!
The person might say, 'Hey, you with the long hair, I saw you looking at my girlfriend!'

You gotta get away quick
You have to leave as quickly as possible.

And as you turn to make a run he throws a punch at your head
While you're trying to escape, he tries to hit you.

You know you gotta make the exit or you're gonna be dead
It's best to leave quickly, or you might get hurt badly.

But when you finally hit the sidewalk you can tell that you ain't going too far
However, even after leaving the place, you can still sense danger nearby.

'cos someone stole your car
That's because someone stole your car.

And it's the same play, each day, can't pay, no way
Every day, it's the same struggle, with no money to pay bills.

They gotcha in a hole y'know.
You feel trapped in a hopeless situation.

It's the same old reason and the same old rhyme,
The same issues keep arising, over and over again.

And the snakes are out to bite you everytime
You feel like people are out to harm you at every turn.

But not me babe
But not me, I'm different.

It takes one to know one,
I understand what you're going through, because I've been there too.

And I know you!
I understand you!

You know I tried to call my baby, tried to make a date,
For example, I once tried to call my girlfriend to make plans.

She said, I'm awful sorry, honey, but you called too late,
She told me that I called too late.

Y'see I've gotta drive my daddy to a meeting of the p.t.a.,
She explained that she had to drive her father to a PTA meeting.

I can't come out to play!
Therefore, she couldn't hang out with me.

So then I took me off downtown and met this chick in a bar
In response, I went downtown and met someone else at a bar.

She took me back to her apartment in her jaguar,
She drove me to her apartment in her fancy car.

But when we started rockin' she threw me straight outta the door,
But as soon as we got intimate, she kicked me out immediately.

There oughta be a law
I thought to myself, 'there should be a law against this!'

And it's the same play, each day, can't pay, there's no way
Every day, the struggle continues with no money to pay bills.

You're gonna get a break, y'know
You hope to catch a break, but you're not sure it will happen.

She says she's got the feelin' but she ain't got the time,
The woman I had met earlier claimed to be interested but had no time to hang out.

Don't gimme that jive, babe
I didn't believe her excuses.

And it's the same old reason and the same old rhyme,
The same situations keep happening over and over.

It takes one to know one
But, I understand because I've experienced these things too.

Well now it's saturday night and I just got laid,
Now it's Saturday night, and I just had sex.

But there's a shadow in the alley still gotta be paid.
However, there's still a threat looming around the corner.

I heard it's tough at the top, but it sure looks good from the floor
People say it's hard to reach the top, but it looks appealing from the bottom.

They won't let you score.
But, others around you won't let you succeed.

Every day it's getting rougher and it's hard to survive
Every day, life seems to be getting harder and harder to manage.

When there's a lotta people round don't wanna see you alive,
There are many people out there who don't care if you live or die.

They wanna take you to the cleaners, and leave you in the gutter to bleed
These people want to take advantage of you and leave you with nothing.

When they've got all they need.
They don't care about your well-being once they've gotten what they wanted.

And the man still wants your life on the dotted line,
Even people in power still want to take advantage of you.

But I got wise, babe
But I learned from my experiences.

And I know you (all of you).
And I understand everyone who's been through similar situations.