[Lyric] Absolutely Nothing (Michael Mantler)

[Verse 1: Susi Hyldgaard & Robert Wyatt]
Have you noticed?
It's hard to say, probably not
In fact, I'd say definitely not
I find that hard to believe
It's hardly hard
I can believe it quite easily
Look, all you have to do is look
I'm looking
And?
And what?
What do you see?
Nothing, absolutely nothing
Where are you looking?
In front of me
That's the problem
You're looking in the wrong place

[Verse 2: Susi Hyldgaard & Robert Wyatt]
Where should I be looking?
To your left
Alright, I'm looking to my left
What do you see?
A wall
Good, a wall
Now look to your right, what do you see?
A wall
Now look behind you, what do you see?
A wall
Now look down in front of you, what do you see?
A wall, half a wall
I would say I see half a wall
So how many walls does that make?
Four walls — no
Three and a half walls, there are three and a half walls
And?
And what?
Have you noticed?
I'm not sure I follow you
Have you noticed that you're boxed in?
Oh, yes, I see what you mеan
What else is new?
[Verse 3: Susi Hyldgaard & Robert Wyatt]
Do you think wе'll ever find it?
It depends on what we are looking for
It doesn't matter
Anything
A door to open, a door to shut
A place to put our heads
Yes, and those things as well
But it doesn't really matter
No, it makes no difference at all
Do you think we'll ever find it?
We can't count on it too heavily
Does that mean we've given up?
Not exactly, but as time goes on
We invent new ways of looking for it
Like closing our eyes