Jackyl had a beer in his hand last time I seen him
When he rolled the dice, you know, he never thought twice
Never thought twice about being here

He was an artist and a writer
And a poet and a friend
In a man's life he will take a fall
But how low he goes, it just depends
He's shooting dope in the mens' room
At the station Daly City Train
Have you ever seen an angel, well I know I have
You see, they stay here for a while, then they fly away

Some grow up and some grow old
But what about the kid who never learned the rules
Spent all these years on this earth
When you look back it's just a flicker of time
Jackyl was one of the ones that perished
Yeah, he was one of the ones that was already saved
Through all this evil and wreckage, yeah
He maintained a sense of himself

Some men are in prison although they walk the streets at night
Other men who got the lockdown are free as a bird in flight
How about the hour in the system that ended
In a one-way line, our measures could not stand it