No money in our pocket, but we laughed a lot
And if the fridge was empty, we'd come up with something to eat
Holidays in sleeping-bags, not in feather beds
And for the first time on our own four wheels
I think you'll agree with me now:
It wasn't all bad
On Sundays everyone went into the garden
Instead of telephoning, we sent postcards
Everyone knew someone who was very rich
The big wide world seemed unreachable
Nothing on TV seemed real and genuine
It wasn't all bad
Then there was this hot maths teacher
I didn't understand anything, but I went willingly
There wasn't much that was uncertain for future
And legendary parties when parents weren't there
So many nights we saw through till morning
It wasn't all bad
We enjoyed our time and we wasted it
But then the page turned once again1
The world was suddenly full of colourful things
And everyone wanted to hear us sing
Everyone's favourite bird was the wall-woodpecker2
It wasn't all bad
Perhaps this song isn't interesting
It's certainly not politically relevant
There are probably some who heard it
And got upset about a couple of little lines
It's not as deep as Bertolt Brecht
But it wasn't all bad
1. The German word "Wende", here used to describe the turning of a page, is the usual way of referring to the fall of the Berlin Wall and reunification of Germany, in which case it takes on the meaning of "The Change".2. The "Mauerspecht", or wall-woodpecker, was the nickname for the people seen laying into the Berlin Wall with hammers after the gates opened, chipping off bits as souvenirs or generally enjoying the chance to smash a hated symbol of division