"Freeze", said the man cruisin' the beat
"You get your hands up and spread your feet"
"Don't you move an inch", I heard him say
"Or you'll be doin' time until the judgement day"
And he said, "Don't tell me no lies, give me alibis
'Cause if you cross my path, you'll be doin' life"
It's a dirty lie

CHORUS:
It's a shakedown
And it's a nervous shakedown
A nervous shakedown
Another nervous shakedown
It's a shakedown
And it's a nervous shakedown
We got a shakedown
Another nervous shakedown

(It's more like a set-up)

"Take a dime", said the man, "you can make one call
You got a one-way ticket to the County Hall"
Well, the judge looked high and I looked low
And when he smiled at me it was a one-man show
He said, "Two to five, the jury decides
Double parole if you survive"
It's a dirty lie

CHORUS

Law is gonna get you this time
And throw away the key

CHORUS

Shake you down, shake you down
And it's another shakedown
Well it's a shakedown
Another nervous shakedown
Shake you down, shake you down
And it's a nervous shakedown
It's a shakedown

It's a shakedown on - you, yes