"Lookin' Out For #1" as written by and Randy Bachman....
Every day is an endless train
You've got to ride it to the end of the line
Be a troubleshooter
Blow the bad luck away
And you will make it to your station on time
And you'll find out every trick in the book
That there's only one way to get things done
You'll find out the only way to the top
Is looking out for number one
I mean you
Keep looking out for number one
Every night is a different game
We gotta work for our fortune and fame
Success is a ladder take a step at a time
And the people will remember your name
Yes I found out all the tricks of the trade
And that there's only one way
That you're gonna get things done
I found out the only way to the top
Is looking out for number one
And that's me
I'm looking out for number one
Every day is an endless train
But I ride it to the end of the line
I'm a real troubleshooter
And I blow it away
Know what's gonna get me mine
I found out every trick in the book
And that there's only one way to get things done
I found out the only way to the top
Is looking out for number one
I mean you
Keep looking out for number one
And that's us
Keep looking out for number one
That's me
I'm looking out for number one
You've got to ride it to the end of the line
Be a troubleshooter
Blow the bad luck away
And you will make it to your station on time
And you'll find out every trick in the book
That there's only one way to get things done
You'll find out the only way to the top
Is looking out for number one
I mean you
Keep looking out for number one
Every night is a different game
We gotta work for our fortune and fame
Success is a ladder take a step at a time
And the people will remember your name
Yes I found out all the tricks of the trade
And that there's only one way
That you're gonna get things done
I found out the only way to the top
Is looking out for number one
And that's me
I'm looking out for number one
Every day is an endless train
But I ride it to the end of the line
I'm a real troubleshooter
And I blow it away
Know what's gonna get me mine
I found out every trick in the book
And that there's only one way to get things done
I found out the only way to the top
Is looking out for number one
I mean you
Keep looking out for number one
And that's us
Keep looking out for number one
That's me
I'm looking out for number one
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The lyrics expressed the concept of DUALITY in the face of dog-eat-dog capitalism and the school of hard knocks (Rock and Roll). Learned the hard way through his days in the Guess Who & BTO, Bachman experienced a music industry filled with Lies, Betrayal, Cut-throat contracts, Pressure, Fickleness, Sex, Drugs...Bachman had seen it all and tried to find Balance and Harmony in his life, including leaving the Guess Who at their peak, marrying a Mormon girl and converting to the religion, only to find that it was as big a scam as everything else in society!
The Duality in the lyrics (and hence their brilliance) lay between what one defined as SUCCESS. Fame, Fortune? This was one definition and hence to achieve it you had to look out for #1 by being cut-throat and ruthless. But there's another definition, and that is the ultimate one...Peace and Happiness...to reach this state of mind also required looking out for #1, but not by being ruthless, rather by STICKING TO YOUR IDEALS every step of the way ("success is a ladder take a step at a time"). Being a principled person doesn't mean taking advantage of others, rather, it means not letting others take advantage of you...and in that way "looking out for #1" works not only for the self, but for society...hence his lyrics at the end of the song...
"Is looking out for number one
I mean you
Keep looking out for number one
And that's us
Keep looking out for number one
That's me
I'm looking out for number one"
"You...us...me" we all win by looking out for #1 b/c we remove a world of VICTIMS and replace it with a world of Happiness...and how do victims respond to one another? Distrust, Separation, Suspicion & Doubt. How do Happy people interact? Trust, Connection, Friendship & Generosity.
Thus, Life is only ever a choice in every moment between Love and Fear. Capitalism is a system of Inequality, thus Fear. So when we value things like Fame and Fortune (illusory & temporary) we encourage a world of DIVISION. However, when we learn to value Peace and Happiness over Greed (Love over Gold), we encourage a world of Connection. We begin to see ourselves as ONE species, together, on this beautiful planet, instead of apart. And this world will come to know Peace and Individual expression, instead of war and conformity to the norm!