Finians Rainbow- Idle Poor

When the idle poor become the idle rich,
You’ll never know just who is who or who is which,
Won’t it be rich when everyone’s poor relative becomes a Rockefellertive,
And palms no longer itch, what a switch,
When we all have ermine and plastic teeth,
How will we determine who’s who underneath?
And when all your neighbors are upper class,
You won’t know your Joneses from your Astors,
Let’s toast the day,
The day we drink that drinkie up,
But with the little pinkie up,
The day on which, the idle poor become the idle rich.
When a rich man doesn’t want to work,
He’s a bon vivant, yes, he’s a bon vivant,
But when a poor man doesn’t want to work,
He’s a loafer, he’s a lounger, he’s a lazy good for nothing, he’s a jerk.
When a rich man loses on a horse, isn’t he the sport?
Oh isn’t he the sport?
But when a poor man loses on a horse,
He’s a gambler, he’s a spender, he’s a lowlife,
He’s a reason for divorce.
When a rich man chases after dames,
He’s a man about town, oh, he’s a man about town,
But when a poor man chases after dames,
He’s a bounder, he’s a rounder, he’s a rotter and a lotta dirty names.
When the idle poor become the idle rich,
You’ll never know just who is who or who is which,
No one will see the Irish or the Slav in you,
For when you’re on Park Avenue, Cornelius and Mike look alike.
When poor Tweedledum is rich Tweedledee,
This discrimination will no longer be,
When we’re in the dough and off of the nut,
You won’t know your banker from your butler.
Let’s make a switch, with just a few annuities,
We’ll hide those incongruities in clothes from Abercrombie Fitch.
When the idle poor become the idle rich,
When the idle poor become the idle rich.