"We Were the Gang at Lyon's"
To properly appreciate this song, you need to have two things: 1) a copy of Billy Joel's "We Didn't Start the Fire" to play while reading it, and 2) a working knowledge of the Lyon's Gang...or the Mission Park Crew; my friends. And a few inside jokes as well. But at least if you have the first one, you may still be able to get the general idea. Like the Billy Joel song, this song covers--in quick jumps--a period of time...in this case, nearly twenty years of the history of a group of friends, a group that came together as kids, basically, and went through it all together, and are still friends to this day. So go download the Billy Joel single, hit play, see how the words fit in, and come along on a two-decade journey with a group of friends that have seen it all together...laughter, pain, surprises, tragedy, second chances and new beginnings. And you may just be able to see yourself or your own friends in there somewhere.
“We Were the Gang at Lyon’s”
by Michael O’Connell (and Billy Joel)
K.C.’s place, Paragons, Kev, Tim and Mike O’Conn
Mike Taylor here from L.A. just how old is this guy?
Greg and Jon and Kev’s friend Mark and Bryan Anglin and his car
And A.T., Ken and drinks and friends and gaming and no lives
Jason Rooker, Chris Bangs, Shan and Cindy join the gang
Kev’s room and Mission Park, Stollwood fun and virgin Mark
Kevin goes the Army way, Mark and Rooker don’t stay
Brian goes to Omaha and Greg is in the Coast Guard
CHORUS
We were the gang at Lyon’s
We were Mission Parkers
Through good times and darker
We were the gang at Lyon’s
Time it tried to fight us
But could not divide us
College time at A.R.C., Scotty soon would make the scene
Dance club cuties, drive-in movies, Marlboros and cloves
Nights at the Marconi pad, girls with issues, A.T.’s nads
Dawn, Deb, Theater jobs, scooters and Pintos
Snowy’s Howl and other dreams, Kevin, Ken, A.T. Marines
Tower Records and Die Hard, Tim and Anna, Alan, Todd
Reno Trips and Steph’s place, catching Shanghai at Jose’s
Arizona, Mikey’s gone, quit the drink and found God
CHORUS
We were the gang at Lyon’s
We were Mission Parkers
Through good times and darker
We were the gang at Lyon’s
Time it tried to fight us
But could not divide us
Kevin Jones sees the world, Mike has got a Mormon girl
Tim’s at Chico State, A.T. and Lynn will date
Kevin’s married, Greg’s divorced, Ken is on the disc golf
course
Jon and Todd become roommates, everyone thinks Gump is great
Mike and Emily are through, make that Tim and Anna too
Hearts are torn, need to mourn, and La Casa is born
Aaron, Rich, A.T., too, Mr. Cookie Face is cool
Summer parties, lovelorn, Jon is selling web porn
CHORUS
We were the gang at Lyon’s
We were Mission Parkers
Through good times and darker
We were the gang at Lyon’s
Time it tried to fight us
But could not divide us
Everyone gets engaged, ending the La Casa age
Move out, to Howe, Kevin has a badge now
Chow Yun Fat and Jackie Chan, Austin Powers he’s the man
Seinfeld, Must-See, Tim is in Berkeley
A.T. and Lynn are wed, Chris Farley and Di are dead
San Diego, Fresno, where did all the brothers go?
CHORUS
We were the gang at Lyon’s
We were Mission Parkers
Through good times and darker
We were the gang at Lyon’s
Time it tried to fight us
But could not divide us
More divorce, moves galore, and the Kings begin to score
Gore/Bush, Britney’s tush, 9/11, Ashton Kutch
Comic strips and limo rides, hair gets gray and backslides
Married life and bigger plans, Iraq and Afghanistan
Ryan, Bryanna, and Ben, Zoe, Faith and other kin
Like Travis, Shannon’s kids, Parker Rose and Harrison
Now another Ryan, too, generation next ensues
How many more kids are due? They’ll be Mission Parkers too!
CHORUS
We were the gang at Lyon’s
We were Mission Parkers
Through good times and darker
We were the gang at Lyon’s
Though those days are gone
We will still go on
And on
And on
