I got my mind made up, yeah!
Lordy, Lordy, Lord!
Then you ask why I don't live here! Honey, I gotta think you're really weird!
Hootenanny television!
Touched the back of her head and he died. Oh!
Two riders were approaching, and the wind began to howl, oh!
We're both just one too many mornings and a thousand miles behind!
Pale face fit into place, oh, please!
It was the mailman!
The ones on Hootenanny!
All I care, though, 'bout now is if I'm seeing the real you at last - oh, yes, I am!
I figured they was in my TV set!
I's high-flying, bare-naked, out the window!
Yeah, man!
Oh, oh, we gonna fly down to the easy chair!
And you ask why I don't live here! Honey, I can't believe that you're for real!
Oh, oh, are we gonna fly down in the easy chair!
And you say, "What does this mean?" And he screams back, "You're a cow!
She takes just like a woman - yes!
Get the loot, don't be slow, we're gonna catch a trout!
Oh, oh, are we gonna fly down to the easy chair!
Yes, come out your window!
Seeing my reflection, I'm hung over, hung down, hung up!
Take me down to California, baby!
Give a little bit, she took it all!
Ah, you fake just like a woman - yes, you do!
Look around you, it's just bound to make you embarrassed!
I discovered there was red stripes in the American flag!
Best notify my next of kin this wheel shall explode!
Can't stand pat, I swear you gotta step it up and go!
She's trying to hide, pretending she don't know me!
She makes love just like a woman - yes, she does!
Rain-man leaves in the wolf-man's disguise. Oh!
Start over!
Yea heavy, and a bottle of bread!
I'm in the kitchen with the tombstone blues - oh, ah! Yeah!
Ooh-ee, are we gonna fly down into the easy chair!
Right now I cannot read too well, don't send me no more letters, no!
Pack up your money, pull up your tent, McGuinn, you ain't a-going nowhere!
Wowee! Pretty scary!
Pressing on - yeah, leading the way!
Gotta step it up and go, yeah, man!
Well, you know, it costs more to store the food than it do to give it!
Yeah, you'll not see nothing like the mighty Quinn!
You make love like a woman - yes, you do!
Lo and behold! Lo and behold!
Oh, lawdy, I got 'em in the bottom of my rambling shoes!
"I was only robbing the register, I hope you understand!
They were all over!
Pressing on - oh, yes, I am!
I figured they was in my television set!
Oh, you got to trust yourself, yeah!
Oh, lawdy, mama, got 'em in the bottom of my rambling shoes!
Then he fines you every time you slam the door, ohh!
I got the freight train blues!
Watch out so you don't step on me!
I ain't different than anyone!
How they ever flood my soul!
So long, New York!
Sure was glad to get out of there alive!
She's making me into an old man and, man, I'm not even twenty-five!
I'm in love with you!
Oh me, oh my, love that country pie!
Woo!
You're a liar!
Oh, yeah!
It's a shame the way she makes me scrub the floor, ohh!
I don't need much, that ain't no lie - ain't running any race!
She gotta step it up and go, yeah, go!
They got away!
I jumped a fallout shelter! I jumped a string bean! I jumped a TV dinner! I jumped a shotgun!
Hear my gal call me, God, I got to go!
Well, I need a woman, alright!
That's 'cause she's so obvious and you ain't. Oh, oh, well!
Baby, oh, what a story I could tell!
Well, look over yonder to that burying ground!
Can't stand pat, swear you gotta step it up and go!
She takes just like a woman - yes, she does!
I'm in the kitchen with the tombstone blues - oh, well!
Get me outta here, my dear man!
But what do you care? Ain't nobody there would want to marry your sister!
Well!
Them Reds did it!
Thank you!
Oh!
One more weekend, one more weekend'll do, yes, you will!
"Come out, ye gifted kings and queens, and hear my sad complaint!
She's insane!
You'll not see nothing like the mighty Quinn!
68, but says she's 24, ohh!
Lord, I really miss my baby!
Quite lucky to be alive, though!
You're the prettiest darned girl I ever seen-i-O!
They was all over!
And you say, "Oh, my God, what does that mean?" And he screams back, "You're a cow!
This is called "Talking John Birch Blues" and there ain't nothing wrong with this song!
Gotta step it up and go, yeah, go!
Step it up and go, yeah, man!
Ooh-ee, ride me high, tomorrow's the day my bride's gonna come!
Now step it up and go, yeah, man!
They talk about a life of brotherly love - show me someone who knows how to live it!
Play fucking loud!
Please, Mrs. Henry, Mrs. Henry, please!
Give to me my country pie, I won't throw it up in anybody's face!
You to sign your check to tax-deductible charity organizations, oh!
My God, they killed Him!
Come running down your stairs, Pretty Peggy-O!
I hear sometimes Satan come as a man of peace, oh, yeah!
I discovered red stripes in the American flag!
Howdy, East Orange!
You make love just like a woman - yes, you do!
Keep-a your hand on that plow, hold on!
Tell the judge I said it was alright, yeah!
Under that apple suckling tree, oh, yeah!
Hope I don't find out too much!
I'm in love with the ugliest girl in the world, hey!
Can't stand back, swear you gotta step it up and go!
Well, I was praying the pieces wouldn't fall on me!
But he's badly built and he walks on stilts - watch out he don't fall on you!
Woo-hoo!
Mr. Bojangles, Mr. Bojangles, dance!
Underneath that apple suckling tree, oh, yeah!
Right now I can't read too good, don't send me no more letters, no!
Yippee!
He says, "You ain't so bad yourself!" Oh, yeah!
Good God!
And then the tears roll down - what a bitter taste!
Goodnight!
Dignity never been photographed!
I'm in the kitchen with the tombstone blues - oh, yeah!
I've got the freight train blues!
I said, "You know, they refused Jesus too." He said, "You're not Him!
They say "Sing!" while you slave -- I get bored, whoa-ohh!
Alright, now!
Lordy, Lord!
You must think I'm crazy!
I wanna be yours!
[incoherent] on the avenue, oh, yeah!
Oh, no!
The National Guard stands around his door, ohh!
Play that guitar now!
Mr. Bojangles, Mr. Bojangles, dance! Yeah, dance!
Just don't put your horse in front of your cart," ohh!
Looking for my lo and behold!
But come on, baby, I'm your friend!
I wound up with the Dean of Women!
I'm just thankful and grateful to be seeing the real you at last - oh!
Our captain, he is dead, Pretty Peggy-O!
He punched me out!
Bring the whole kids." Yippee!
Betty Ross!
So now I'm home investigating myself!
You, you, you, you, you got a hold of my heart, oh, yeah!
I'm still trying to get used to seeing the real you at last - oh, yes, I am!
I've got a million friends!
The lieutenant, he has gone, Pretty Peggy-O!
I catch dinosaurs! Make love to Elizabeth Taylor! Catch hell from Richard Burton!
This place don't make sense to me no more!
I wanna be your lover, baby, I don't wanna be hers, I wanna be yours!
Ooh-ee, ride me high, tomorrow's the day that my bride's a-gonna come!
Oh, if I could just find you tonight!
Dance!
Look over yonder to that burying ground!
Best notify my next of kin that this wheel shall explode!
You fake just like a woman - yes, you do!
All is gone, all is gone! Admit it, take flight!
She makes love like a woman - yes, she does!
You got more than the blacks, don't complain!
Alright!
Oh, Lord, this cell is cold!
God said, "Out on Highway 61."
She was standing there right beside my chair, said, "What's that you got up your sleeve?"
Saying, "Throw me something, mister, please."
"Are birds free from the chains of the sky-way?"
He said, "What do doctors know about farms, pray tell?"
Oh, they call me Jack-A-Roe."
Well, she says, "You just don't seem,like you do." I said, "You're way wrong."
Everybody's shouting, "Which side are you on?"
Saying, "Name me somebody that's not a parasite and I'll go out and say a prayer for him."
Judge says, "Poor boy, you got ninety-nine."
"Come in," she said, "I'll give you shelter from the storm."
Screaming, she moans, "I've just been made!"
Please a-let me love you, baby, don't put me down."
As he came charging down the stairs, saying, "What's that I heard you say?"
The tears are all wiped from my eyes."
She gives me a napkin, she say, "You can do it on that."
And says, "Here's your throat back. Thanks for the loan!"
Get on your horse and ride away."
Brighton girls are like the moon."
And say, "Would you like to make a deal?"
God said, "Oh, down Highway 61."
"Waiting for a train, please bring my woman home."
Got any papers, will you serve 'em to me?"
But we'll shout from the bow, "Your days are numbered!"
I could see that his face looked just like mine."
She said, "I don't want nobody see me talking to you,"
Don't you tell Henry, apple's got your fly."
She said, "No, dear." I said, "Your words aren't clear. You better spit out your plum."
And it's all for the love of thee."
He writes "Everything's been returned which was owed"
Howard said, "There's only one place I know."
"What should the wedding supper be?"
"Oh, hard times, come again no more."
Saying, "Name me someone that's not a parasite and I'll go out and say a prayer for him."
"Death to all those that--who would whimper and cry!"
"Where shall the wedding supper be?"
"Is it easy to forget?"
"My complexion," she said, " - much too white."
I'll apply them all to thee."
He wasn't too small and he wasn't too big - "Ah, think I'll call it a pig."
There's just as much foot in--danger in a football game,"
Spanish boots of Spanish leather."
There's just as much danger in a football game,"
Gonna stand at the window, gonna ask the maid, "Have you seen dignity?"
I can't find my knees."
Cries out, "My God, they've killed 'em all!"
"Well, my message is he's down the road, stranded in a house."
It depends on how I'm feeling."
For that reason I will have to stay."
"I thought you'd never say hello," she said, "You look like the silent type."
She took off her wig, said, "How do I look?"
I said, "That's alright, mama, you-you do what you gotta do."
"Only a Pawn in Their Game."
A woman shot her lover down, murder in the second degree."
We'll put 'em on the wall when you get home."
"Nothing," they say, "He just like to cause war."
That you don't touch my daughter and in the morning milk the cows."
She said, "You gonna stay?" I said, "If you want me to, yes!"
Louis the King said, "Let me think for a minute, son."
Somebody points to you and says, "It's his."
And emptied out the register, said, "Tell 'em it was Crazy Joe."
Well, she's there, she says, "I'm right here in front of you - or haven't you looked?"
You can't blame me at all."
And I'm a-sure he's a fine, young man."
To make your time more easy-passing?"
She said, "Be easy, baby, there ain't nothing worth stealing in here."
The next time you see me coming you better run."
"Have you seen dignity?"
I said, "I like Fidel Castro. I think you heard me right."
Then she says, "I know you're an artist. Draw a picture of me."
I said, "What happens tomorrow is on your head, not mine."
And you say, "What's mine?" And somebody else says, "Where what is?"
The man says, "Get out of here! I'll tear you limb from limb!"
You see somebody naked, you say, "Who is that man?"
Judge says to Curtis, "What's this noise about?"
"I will secretly accept you and together we'll fly south."
You see someone naked and you say, "Who is that man?"
I and I, one said to the other, "No man see my face and live."
She'll never see that seaport town called Canadee-i-o."
Abe said, "Man, you must be putting me on."
Think it mighta been that fighter that you saw running that night? Don't forget, now, you are white."
It say, "It don't count 'less it sell."
"Thought you'd never say hello," she said, "You look like the silent type."
So let us not talk falsely now, the hour is getting late."
When they asked him why it had to be that way, "Well," he answered, "just because."
You're a bad man, bad man, Stack-A-Lee."
While other poor fellows go dirty and mean and sup on thin gruel in the morning."
He gave me his card, he said, "Call me if they die."
Say, "OK, I've had enough, what else can you show me?"
Oh, God said to Abraham, "Kill me a son."
"The trial was bad enough, but this is ten times worse."
And Louis the King said, "Let me think for a minute, son."
He asked poor Howard, "Where can I go?"
You stole my John B., now I'm bound to take your life."
Think it mighta been that fighter that you saw running that night? Don't forget that you are white."
Says, "How does it feel to be such a freak?"
He say, "Oh, you want a gun? I'll give you one."
Well, Abe said, "Where you want this killing done?"
He saw milk coming out, but he didn't know how - "Ah, think I'll call it a cow."
Man said, "Freddy." I said, "Freddy who?" He said, "Freddy or not, here I come."
I heard someone whisper, "Please adore me,"
We'll both go off together."
They kill babies in the crib and say, "Only the good die young."
She said, "You been gone." I said, "That's only natural."
"Five to ten," said Joey. Judge says, "That's just what you get."
And hung on a willow tree."
I said, "I got no money, man." He said, "That ain't necessary."
Arthur Dexter Bradley said, "I'm really not sure."
You see, you're just like me. I hope you're satisfied."
Remember the night you lay--blowed little Sadie down?"
Oh, would ever suit your mind."
It was destiny, it was God's will."
And somebody points to you and says, "It's his."
I said, "Some of 'em, not all of 'em." He said, "You always help out around here with the chores?"
He said, "Ok, boys, I'll see you tomorrow."
As great as you are a man, you'll never be greater than yourself."
No, you can't blame us at all."
He said, "Come here and step into the light."
And wait for the lad that has left me all alone on the banks of Belle Isle."
But the judge says, "Mona can't have no bond."
"Poison Love", "Red Roses for Blue Lady", and "Memphis in June"
Everybody must give something back for something they get."
I said, "I was born at the bottom of a wishing well."
Say, "Prove to me that He's Lord, show me a sign."
I'm glad to see you're still alive, you're looking like a saint."
Someone turns and says, "You're in the wrong room, my friend, you'd better hurry up and leave."
My soul flew to mansions on high."
"You'd fail to understand," he said. "Why must you even try?"
Where you and I will unite."
Saying, "I dig farmers. Don't shoot me please!"
Turned her eyes up towards the heavens, said, "Nearer, my God, to Thee."
Said, "I got no money." He said, "That ain't necessary."
I stood there and hummed, I tapped on her drum, I asked her, "How come?"
You'll say, "What are you made of?"
Others say, "Don't hate nothing at all except a-hatred."
You can't blame us at all."
Ruby just smiled and said, "Ah, you know some babies never learn."
We wanna pin this triple murder on him - he ain't no 'Gentleman Jim'."
I said, "I would if I could, but I don't do sketches from memory."
"I wouldn't worry 'bout it none, though. Them old dreams are only in your head."
Knocking on the door, I say, "Who is it? Where you from?"
Just as papa yelled outside, "Mama wants you to come back in the house and bring them clothes!"
"Leave her alone! Goddamn you, get out!"
With its pale ghost retreating between the king and the queen of swords."
Don't you and your one true love ever part."
Shes says, "We ain't got any, you picked the wrong time to come."
For you'd have no scruples for to send us to France where we would get shot without warning."
Juliet said back to Romeo, "Why don't you just shove off if it bothers you so much?"
She said, "You look different." I said, "Well, I guess."
"I'll let you be in my dream if I can be in yours."
Has kindly assisted me home."
You'll see that seaport town of Canadee-i-o."
He hung there from the chandelier, she cried, "Help, there's danger near, please a-open up a-the door!"
Now, you see this one-eyed midget shouting the word "now"
From across that lonesome ocean."
Mr. Bojangles, dance!"
"What's the matter, Molly dear? What's the matter with your mound?"
Romeo, he said to Juliet, "You got a poor complexion. It doesn't give your appearance a very youthful touch."
Please let me love you, baby, don't put me down."
For, if you insult me with one other word, I'll cut off your heads in the morning."
But sometimes a man must be alone and this is no place to hide."
Emptied out the register, said, "Tell 'em it was Crazy Joe."
I didn't see you around."
But we were tangled up in blue."
I said, "Oh, kind miss, it most certainly does."
"You unpatriotic, rotten doctor, Commie rat!"
"What's it to you, Moby Dick? This is chicken-town!"
She said, "Be easy, baby, ain't nothing worth stealing here."
He grabbed my arm, I said "Ouch!"
I say, "Tell me what I want." She say, "You probably want hard-boiled eggs."
For me there is no other damsel than my blooming, bright star of Belle Isle."
"Call the wagon, this man is dead."
Don't get too gay in Botany Bay or else you'll surely hang."
Somebody points his finger at you and says, "It's his."
"I'm gonna start my picking right now. Just tell me where you'll be."
So let us not talk falsely now, you know, the hour's getting late."
You must know about my debutante."
"To that beautiful shore by the bright, crystal sea."
"Get up, old man, or I'm taking you down."
I reached up, touched my shirt, and the neighbor said, "Are those clothes yours?"
Ride off with Blackjack Davey?"
He -- "Yeah, you're right. Let me tell your mother this has been done."
What do you mean you can't? Of course you can."
And have it on Highway 61."
Don't let an egg get laid in it by something you can't see."
"I've had too much of your company,"
You raise up your head, say, "Is this where it is?"
And you say, "Oh, my God, am I here all alone?"
Remember, you blowed little Sadie down."
She'll say, "You got all the time in the world, honey."
"My complexion," she said, "is much too white."
She was standing there right beside my chair, said, "Don't tell me, let me guess your name,"
She said, "No, dear." I said, "Your words aren't clear, you better spit out your plum."
But I know what you want."
It's high above on the gallows tree the crows will pick your bones."
And I say, "Aw, come on, now, you know you know about my debutante."
To the boss said, "I have returned and now I want what's mine."
Great, big, furry back and furry hair - "Ah, think I'll call it a bear."
He tried to grab the woman's hand, said, "Here's a ring, it cost a grand!" She said, "That ain't enough."
He said, "Let's set up a fort and start buying the place with beads."
"Let's blow this place to kingdom come, let Con Edison take the blame."
I love far better than thee."
They look as white as snow."
If you've never seen one, it's a blessing in disguise."
"How old are you, my pretty, little miss? How old are you, my honey?"
And she buttoned her boot and straightened her suit, then she said, "Don't get cute."
She said, "Boy, you talking crazy."
He'll say, "Nothing neither 'live nor dead."
He says, "Hmm, you're right. Let me tell the second mother this has been done."
Come flowing down so free?"
I say, "Alright, I know, but I don't have my drawing book."
The price, my dear, is you instead."
To the boss he said, "I have returned and now I want what's mine."
By the way, what happened to that poison wine?"
Casanova, he's just being punished for going to Desolation Row!"
Abe said, "Where you want this killing done?"
"There's something funny going on," he said, "I can just feel it in the air."
No, you can't blame me at all."
For that's all I'm wishing to be owning."
Be sixteen come Sunday."
Tangled up in blue."
She say, "You must be joking." I said, "I wish I was."
"Before you step on board, sir, your name I'd like to know."
I went up and yelled to him, "Please, please, please!"
Was, "Oh, the cruel rain and the wind..."
Love my Blackjack Davey."
So I'll just say, "Fare thee well."
"All about them rounders, judge, trying to cut me out."
"Alright," said Judas Priest, "I'll see you after a while."
Let us not talk falsely now, you know the hour's getting late."
Said to the bartender, "Has my loving man been here?"
"I'm around too many children," he'd say, "they should never know of one."
He'll say, "Can you repeat what you said?"
"Half the people can be part right all of the time and some of the people can be all right part of the time, but all the people can't be all right all of the time."
She'll say, "Who take away his license to kill?"
You could die down here, be just another accident statistic."
Rode off with Blackjack Davey."
"What kind of house is this," he said, "where I have come to roam?"
Well, I say, "How would you know and what would it matter anyway?"
He said, "My friend, Bob, what do we need to make the country grow?"
"My complexion," she says, "is much too white."
It's all for the love of thee."
You will not die, it's not poison!"
Would kill a little bird like me."
It's peace and quiet that we need to go back to work again."
"I am leaving, I am leaving!"
"Well met, well met, my own, true love."
"I'm around too many children," he said, "they should never know of one."
"It's not a house," says Judas Priest. "It's not a house, it's a home."
If you feel it grabbing out for you, send for the nurse."
In comes Romeo, he's moaning, "You belong to me, I believe."
I ordered some Suzette. I said, "Could you please make that crepe?"
And say, "Do--would you like to--come on now, would you like to come up and make a deal?"
While others say, "Don't hate nothing at all except hatred."
I'll endow them onto thee."
Just tell her kindly, "There is the front door."
I saw Albert an hour ago with a gal named Alice Fry."
"Don't reach out for me," she said, "Can't you see I'm drowning too?"
We'll both go home together."
"Are you that traveling salesman that I have heard about?"
"Five to ten," said Joey. Judge says, "That's exactly what you get."
Take it on down to Highway 61."
She'll see that seaport town called Canadee-i-o."
And you say, "What's mine?" Someone else says, "Where what is?"
I want him to feel what it's like to every moment face his death."
And he says, "Here is your throat back. Thanks for the loan."
Are you from heaven descended, abiding in Cupid's fair throne?"
"That's my son that's about to go, he's a soldier now, you know?"
They look me squarely in the eye and they say, "Well, all is well."
Oh, to see ten thousand fall."
I said, "Lord, have mercy! Mama, it sure is good to see you coming today!"
He said, "Come over here, girl, step into the light."
I jumped right into line, saying, "I hope that I'm not late,"
And I always said, "Hang on to me, baby, and let's hope that the roof stays on."
She says, "Which ones have you read then?" I say, "I've read Erica Jong."
God said, "On Highway 61."
Said, "Hey, hey, man, can't you wait a little while?"
"What's good for you is good for me,"
Or from the coast of Barcelona."
And she buttoned her boot and straightened her suit, then she said, "Don't get cute,"
She say, "Who take away his license to kill?"
They look as dark as night."
Besides, anyhow, the more the merrier."
So write to her tenderly."
Now, the rain-man gave me two cures, then he said, "Jump right in."
Cop said, "Wait a minute, boys, this one's not dead!"
So let us not talk falsely now, you know, the hour is getting late."
I know who you are and what league you play in."
"Could you kindly tell me, friend, what time the show begins?"
She says, "Henry ain't here, but you can come on in, he'll be back in a little while."
"If ye cannot bring good news, then don't bring any."
And said, "That way down Highway 61."
Eating grass on a mountainside so steep - "Oh, think I'll call it a sheep."
That you must always first forgive them."
Someone else asked, "What do you care?" Papa said, "Well, just because."
Sam said, "Tell me quick, man! I got to run."
"The soles of my feet, I swear they're burning."
Say, "Alright, I've had enough, what else can you show me?"
I'm weeping for my babies three."
You hand in a back door to go--"Is this--this where it is?"
Ask you with a grin, "You having a good time?"
And in comes Romeo, he's moaning, "You belong to me, I believe."
Oh, to face the cannonball."
No one can protect you from it once you turn it on."
Good God Almighty, that stuff ain't real."
And you say, "For what reason?" And he says, "How?"
Will mourn for your return."
Saying, "I wish I could tell you all the things that I never learned how to say."
"I do recall him very well. In fact, he just left my sight."
"I'm sorry, sir," he said to me. "I'm sorry for what she's done."
Someone's always yelling, "Turn it down!"
The dealer said, "It's too late now, you can take your money, but I don't know how you'll spend it in the tomb."
He smiled when he saw me coming and he said, "Well, well, well."
"That way down Highway 61."
Well, she takes the napkin and throws it back and says, "That don't look a thing like me."
Oh, would have this heart of mine."
I say, "That's right, bring me some."
"Well, there's nothing we can do about it," said the neighbor, "Just something we're gonna have to forget."
"Gonna find me a janitor to sweep me off my feet."
And I still do not know what it was that I've done wrong."
Man says, "Three dollars." "Alright," I say, "will you take four?"
She said, "Where you been?" I said, "No place special."
The girls all say, "You're a worn-out star."
I said, "Yes, ten thousand miles today I drove."
Country'll grow."
You walk in so politely, you say, "Is this where it is?"
I'll bring back my lady."
He was my man, but he done me wrong."
Well, if you are, there's a fellow calling you down the road and they say his name is Priest."
You see this one-eyed midget shouting the word "now"
Look at my skin laugh, look at my skin cry,"
And pretend that you never have met."
Said, "Take me, daddy, to the nearest town."
Saying, "How does it feel to be such a freak?"
And say, "Do you wanna make a deal?"
And someone says, "You're in the wrong place, my friend, you'd better leave."
He said, "Are you looking for something easy to catch?"
She says, "Alright, now, go ahead, draw me, I'm staying right here."
I say, "Yes, I could, but I don't know where my pencil is at."
On the shores of sunny Italy."
If I carry it out, it'll bring a good price."
"Where?" "Downtown." "When?" "Last night." "Hmm, gee, that's too bad."
And say, "Do you want to make a deal?"
Turned around to Billy Lyons, said, "What are you doing here?"
And says, "How does it feel to be such a freak?"
She said, "Would you like to take a shower? I'll show you up to the door."
And punched my cigarette."
You say, "Oh, no, am I here all alone?"
She said that for over an hour and I hung up."
Let me tell the second mother this has been done."
They'll stone you and then say, "You are brave,"
Said, "Why'd you bring him in here for! He ain't the guy!"
Do you know where I can possibly get rid of these things?"
And keep him good company."
I said, "Could you help me out? I got some friends down the way."
Saying, "Master, tell me why a man must be born again."
Or are you weeping for your babe?"
"One of us had better call up the cops."
Have it on Highway 61."
"Same thing my father do I can do likewise."
Lightning strikes, the lights blow out, the desk clerk wakes, he begins to shout, "Can you see anything?"
If you got any papers, will you serve 'em to me?"
I would want again tomorrow."
You say, "What's mine?" Somebody else says, "Where what is?"
You won't die, it's not poison!"
See somebody naked, you say, "Who's that man?"
And she says, "Your debutante just knows what you need, but I know what you want."
I'll see her soon, I know."
And says, "My advice is to not let the boys in."
Saying, "Take your pick, Frankie Boy. My loss will be your gain."
Where she held me in her arms one time and said, "Forget me not."
Why didn't they tell me the day I was born?"
Is there a hole for me to get sick in?"
I and I, one said to the other, "No man sees my face and lives."
I and I, one said to the other, "No man see my face and lives."
She said, "Lord, have mercy! Honey, I'm so glad you're my boy!"
"His Master's voice is calling me,"
What's wrong? What's exactly the matter?"
"You can't open up your mind, boys, to every conceivable point of view."
He writes, "Everything's been returned which was owed"
She said, "You look a-different." I said, "Well, I guess."
When nothing you got is US-made?"
Call down to room service, says, "Send up a room."
As she worked on my face till breaking my eyes, then said, "What else you got left?"
You say, "Oh, my God, am I here all alone?"
She said, "Even the swap meets around here are getting pretty corrupt."
Do you know where I can get rid of these things?"
I'm a clean-cut kid and I been to college, too."
Give me some milk or else go home!"
This is ca--this is called "Yes-" - this is, uh, this is called "Yes, I See You've Got Your Brand-New Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat."
It looked like there wasn't nothing that he couldn't pull - "Ah, think I'll call it a bull."
She said, "I gave it to you, drink it."
He did it in Las Vegas and he can do it here!"
Next time you see me coming you better run."
Say "You're dancing with whom they tell you to or you don't dance at all!"
See somebody naked, you say, "Who is that man?"
14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, gonna knock him clean right out of his spleen!"
"That's right," said Judas, "Eternity, though you might call it paradise."
They'll stone you and then they'll say, "Good luck."
And Howard said, "There's only one place I know."
I went out the other door, this Englishman said "Fab!"
I said, "Hey, hey, in there, is there anybody home?"
Saying, "Death to all those who would whimper and cry!"
So I yelled, "I like Fidel Castro and his beard!"
She said, "Son, this ain't a dream no more, it's the real thing."
I said, "Hold it, doc, a World War passed through my brain!"
I said, "Oh, no, no! I've been through this movie before!"
Tell nothing except who to idolize, and say, "God bless him."
But, you'd better hurry up and choose which of those bills you want before they all disappear."
Saying, "For whose sake did you live? For whose sake did you die?"
And someone turns and says to him, "My friend, you'd better leave."
You raise up your head and you ask, "Is this where it is?"
He said, "Nurse, get your pad, the boy's insane!"
But most of the time I spend behind these county bars 'cause I drinks a bit."
Jumped into a white car with out-of-state plates."
God said to Abraham, "Kill me a son."
None of them along the line know what any of it's worth."
Said, "Ms. Mouse, are you within?"
And a cannonball blew my eyes away."
Asks you with a grin, "Are you having a good time?"
She was standing there in back of my chair, said to me, "Don't I know your name?"
Saying, "The sun's not yellow, it's chicken!"
"Oh, they'll flog the poaching outta you down there in Botany Bay."
Sometimes you gotta do like Elvis did and shoot the damn thing out."
You can do about it, so let us just agree to agree."
Says to the madman, "Ain't you cute!"
From the place that I'll be landing?"
We want folksingers here."
You're a soldier of mercy and you're cold and you curse, "He who cannot be trusted must fall."
But, go on your way accordingly, but know you're not alone."
Says, "Your wife." I said, "She's busy in the kitchen cooking."
Screaming, she moans, "I have just been made!"
She say, "Who gonna take away his license to kill?"
"How good-how good does it feel to be free?"
"The sun not yellow, it's chicken!"
"Pardon, monsieur," the desk clerk says, carefully removes his fez, "am I hearing you right?"
Curtis said to the judge, "What might be my fine?"
"We'll climb that bridge after it's dawn, after we're way past it."
How is it that you've come to be this way?"
God said, "No." Abe said, "What?"
"Now, take them up, devils!" cried Arthur McBride, "And temper their edge in the morning!"
Just take everything down to Highway 61."
I said, "That's the best news that I've ever heard."
You could die down here, be another accident statistic."
And says, "Here's your throat back. Thanks for the loan."
Judas pointed down the road and said, "Eternity."
You see somebody naked and you, you say, "Who is that man?"
Saying, "Don't let the boys in."
And he just smoked my eyelids and punched my cigarette."
None of them along the line know what any of it is worth."
You'll say, "What are you afraid of?"
He'll say, "Oh, darling, tell me the truth, how much time I got?"
"How sweetly I sleep here alone."
Till the sun peels the paint and the seat covers fade and the water moccasin dies."
While she's out on the balcony where a stranger tells her, "My darling, je vous aime beaucoup."
Get out of here before I break your bone! I ain't your pop!"
Saying, "Hands up, you Communists!"
You and I'll never know."
Says, "My advice is not to let the boys in."
You wasn't there standing in my shoes."
"Your presence is obnoxious to me."
You say, "What's mine?" Someone else says, "Where what is?"
What am I giving? What am I taking?"
She was standing there in back of my chair, said to me, "What's your name?"
'Round my bedside Billy Lyons has began to creep."
Casanova is just being punished for going to Desolation Row!"
And muttered underneath his breath, "Nothing is revealed."
So let us not talk falsely now, the hour's getting late."
He said, "Tell me about it."
Said she, "But I don't wish to." Said I, "But you have no choice."
"Have you heard the news?" he said with a grin, "The Vice President's gone mad!"
"But we'll climb that hill no matter how steep when we come up to it!"
And Sam said, "Well, tell me quick, man - I got to run!"
When she said, "Would you like to take that shower now?"
Man came to the door, I said, "For whom are you looking?"
Don't wait up for me, a-worry about me when I'm gone."
He look straight into the sun and say, "Revenge is mine, huh?"
You sneak into the window and you say, "Is this where it is?"
Our loves are gonna grow, ooh-wah, ooh-wah.'
I said, 'Let's go and play Adam and Eve.'
'Give me a string bean! I'm a hungry man!'
Well, we drove that car all night until we got into San Anton'
You seen what happened last time they started.'
I said, 'Howdy, friend, I guess it's just us two.'
'When you hear the beep it will be three o'clock.'
(Oh, my goodness!)
And her pleasure knows no limits, her voice is like a meadowlark,
Stack-A-Lee turned to the jailer, he said, "Jailer, I can't sleep,
Someone's got it in for me, they're planting stories in the press,
If I pass this way again, you can rest assured,
Well, if you don't want to see me,
Don't think twice, it's alright,
Feel I'm knocking on heaven's door,
You're going to Sodom and Gomorrah,
Who uses all his power to do evil, but in the end is always left so alone,
To hate them and fear them, to run and to hide,
Tell me now with a glance or a sigh,
And a great, big bowl for to mix it in,
I've shined your shoes, I've moved your mountains and marked your cards,
We ducked inside the doorway as thunder went crashing,
I left town at dawn with Marcel and St. John,
That's been banging and booming and blowing forever,
I wish tonight were here,
There's seven breezes blowing all around the cabin door,
I see the screws break loose, see the devil pounding on tin,
That you're tired of yourself and all your creations,
Well, it's four in the morning by the sound of the birds,
"If you, my love, must think that way,
Blue moon, you knew just what I was there for,
On a night like this I can't get any sleep,
The night passed away so quickly,
There was pushing, there was shoving, and everybody ran,
Wedding bells're ringing, the choir is beginning to sing,
I can still see them playing with their pails in the sand,
My voice is really warm, it's just that it ain't got no form,
I courted lovely Flora some pleasure for to find,
And the telling of his story, mean to let you know,
I saw a room full of men with their hammers a-bleeding,
Goodness hides behind its gates,
Desperate men, desperate women divided,
Well, my baby went to Illinois with some boy she could destroy,
With a dream of beauty that they cannot take away,
At Delilah, who's sitting worthlessly alone,
There's a place--they call it Heaven, a place where there is no pain of birth,
Tolling for the deaf and blind, tolling for the mute,
Bird, fly high by the light of the moon,
The Second World War came to an end,
He had the reputation as the gamblingest man around,
You wanna ramble to the break of dawn,
Thinking about diamonds and the world's biggest necklace,
Doomed and determined to destroy all the gentle,
Well, Mack the Finger said to Louis the King,
I got mixed up confusion, man, it's a-killing me,
Well, I've been to London and I've been to gay Paris,
First it's hello, goodbye, then push, and then crash,
Rubin Carter was falsely tried,
Yes, I want you so bad,
As we rode through the canyons, through the devilish cold,
Whole lotta people struggling tonight from the disease of conceit,
There's a dying voice within me reaching out somewhere,
And it ain't in the seats of a supper club,
Without a love of my own,
When first I came to Louisville some pleasure there to find,
I'm a-thinking and wondering, walking down the road,
They paved paradise, they put up a parking lot,
Please see if her hair hangs long,
Well, they took me downtown and they dressed me in black,
I should have known better, baby, I should have called your bluff,
She sees a bartender in a pool of blood,
People disagreeing everywhere you look, makes you wanna stop and read a book,
Your conscience betrayed you when some tyrant waylaid you where the lion lies down with the lamb,
Oh, if there's an original thought out there, I could use it right now,
Now, my mama always said, "Someday, true--you gotta follow your heart,
The bridge at midnight trembles,
Chilly wind sharp as a razor blade,
Ten thousand women all dressed in white,
Well, my nerves are exploding and my body's tense,
Ring them bells, St. Peter, where the four winds blow,
And the locusts sang off in the distance,
I don't want nothing from anyone, ain't that much to take,
Oh, the locusts sang that high, whining trill,
Blackness was a virtue and the road was full of mud,
It knows that it knows, is always content,
Lord, I went to my window, babe, I couldn't see through my blinds,
He that gets hurt will be he who has stalled,
And not going through any great extreme,
Old New York City is a friendly, old town,
Far away in the stormy night,
When God and man will be reconciled,
I met him in a cell in New Orleans - I was down and out,
And the cockerels and the neighbors clap and cheer with each blast,
You don't have to feed me,
Now, it's king for king, queen for queen,
I'll see you later when I'm not so out of my head,
Winterlude, let's go down to the chapel,
I bargained for salvation, they gave me a lethal dose,
That five walls cannot hide him,
And I'm still carrying the gift you gave,
Don't wanna hurt nobody, don't wanna be hurt,
Wiggle till it opens, wiggle till it shuts,
Icicles hanging down,
For the lonesome-hearted lovers with too personal a tale,
Yes, I been gambling so long,
John Brown went off to war to fight on a foreign shore,
In order to get in a word with you, I'd a-have to come up with some excuse,
Well, I wake up in the morning, there's frogs inside my socks,
I just don't know what to do,
Except of course the little neighbor-boy, who carried him to rest,
Come over here, pony, I wanna climb up one time on you,
Next to come in was a little, black tick,
Come, senators, congressmen, please heed the call,
There's a woman on my lap and she's drinking champagne,
Winterlude, Winterlude, oh, darling,
They sat together in the park as the evening sky grew dark,
When things go wrong, so wrong with you,
Rasputin, he's so dignified,
Here comes the story of the "Hurricane",
'Cause you can't find it on a dollar bill,
He been around the world and back again,
I said, "Oh, come on, now,
It all seemed so proper, it all seemed so elite,
Ancient footprints are everywhere,
But I'm pledging my time to you,
Well, you give me the blues, I guess you're satisfied,
Don't be a fool, don't be blind,
Idiot wind blowing every time you move your teeth,
Judge said to the jury, "Plain as a thing can be,
That you're tired of yourself and all of your creations,
Crash on the levee, mama, water's gonna overflow,
Then they started to take back the clothes, hang 'em on the line,
It ain't that I'm wanting anything you never gave before,
So you can read out your hymn-book,
Well, my shoes, they come from Singapore,
The First World War, boys, it came and it went,
Neighborhood bully, he just lives to survive,
A world war can be won, you want me to believe,
If I was a master thief perhaps I'd rob them,
Where hunger is ugly, where the souls are forgotten,
Oh, in somebody's room,
He went to get the hanging judge, but the hanging judge a-was drunk,
Till the tombstones of damage read no questions but, "Please,
So, if you got to go, it's alright,
I got my walking shoes, I got my walking shoes,
Race or chase you, track or trace you,
I need a shot of love,
Watching the river flow,
And for every hung-up person in the whole wide universe,
With his bodyguards and silver cane and every hair in place,
A saxophone someplace played, she was walking on by the arcade,
May be living in another country under another name,
The king of the Philistines, his soldiers to save,
I'm a-walking through the summer nights, the jukebox playing low,
Santa Fe, dear, dear, dear, dear, dear, dear Santa Fe,
Well, the children cry for mother, I tell 'em, "Mother took a trip",
Idiot wind blowing every time you move your jaw,
The battle outside is raging,
Tolling for the searching ones on their speechless, seeking trail,
Your grass is turning black, there's no water in your well,
Suddenly I found you and the spirit in me sings,
You want to talk to me, go ahead and talk,
Oh, you been with the professors, they've all liked your looks,
Cat's in the well, leaves are starting to fall,
She had done a lot of bad things, even once tried suicide,
But you know you only used to get juiced in it,
Life is sad, life is a bust,
Step lightly from the ledge, babe,
Wiggle, wiggle, wiggle all dressed in green,
"Get down, get down, love Henry," she cried,
You can mislead a man, take hold of his heart with your eyes,
And it ain't no use in turning on your light, babe,
The moonlight reflects from the window, where the snowflakes, they cover the sand,
Isis, oh, Isis, you're a mystical child,
Tolling for the aching, whose wounds cannot be nursed,
Stripping away at it all,
Holding his club like he was a king,
The war soon being over, they hunted all around,
Wiggle, wiggle, wiggle like a pail of milk,
Hmm, I can make it through,
But, if you do right to me, baby, I'll do right to you too,
It's many a night I pretended to be a-sleeping,
Crickets are chirping, the water is high,
We sat in her kitchen while her mama was cooking,
She wrote me a letter and she wrote it so kind,
When your rooster crows at the break of dawn,
He can walk the streets like most and boast of what he'd like to keep,
They said that he was sick 'cause he didn't play by the rules,
The preacher talked 'bout Christ's betrayal,
See my bulldog bite a rabbit and my hound dog is sitting on a barbed-wire fence,
You fasten all the triggers for the others to fire,
They said "Congratulations, you got what it takes",
Just got back from a city, city of red skies,
You're going somewhere and so am I,
When she lays upon the grass,
Well, you gone to the finest school, alright, Ms. Lonely,
I was blinded by the devil, born already ruined,
Everybody knows that baby's got new clothes,
I believe I'm fixing to die,
Drinking, thinking that they got it made,
It's true, I just can't recall San Francisco at all,
Well, God is in his heaven and we all want what's his,
I'm never, never far from home,
Hanging 'round the theaters,
Sing me one more song about your love into the morning, stranger,
Hmm, suddenly, it happened, hmm, I lost every dime,
Rubin could take a man out with just one punch,
There's a-mighty many people in the middle and all around,
Insanity is smashing up against my soul,
I don't compromise and I don't pretend,
You hand in your money to go watch the geek,
Jailhouse ain't no plaything,
Sign on a porch says "Three's a Crowd",
Everybody wants my attention, everybody got something to sell, except you, yeah, you,
Tears on the letter that I write,
But Joey stepped up and he raised his hands, said, "We're not those kind of men,
I was thinking about Isis, how she thought I was so reckless,
I was ready to leave, I was already walking,
Every time you leave and go off some place,
And go out in your country where the land meets the sun,
She's proud, but she needs to roam,
And the all-night girls, they whisper of escapades out on the D train,
Most of the time I'm halfways content,
Beat a path of retreat up them spiral staircases,
Might have drugs at your command, women in a cage,
He had a job in Santa Fe working in an old hotel,
But he never did like it all that much and one day the ax just fell,
They walked along by the old canal, little confused - I remember well,
Yes, and only if my own true love was waiting,
That icy wind that's howling in your eye,
And I'll stand on the ocean until I start sinking,
As easy it was to tell black from white,
As I stepped to the stage to pick up my degree,
Will be rolling long after the bubble-gum craze,
God knows it's a crime,
Well, there's a woman on my block, she'll just sit there facing the hill,
At your feet - at your feet to convince you of your pain,
I went into the city, went into the town,
Since I'm'a never cease to roam,
They'd all fall there so perfectly,
There's a new day at dawn and I've finally arrived,
And now the heart is filled with gold as if it was a purse,
Seem like I been down this way before,
I bless the day I found you,
She answered to him with a loving smile, "I'll be sixteen come Sunday,
And you're flat on your belly with your hands tied behind,
I didn't realize just what I did hear,
Pistol-shots ring out in the barroom night,
And then a whistle will be blowing,
Well, the wind, it was howling and the snow was outrageous,
To make all that should be killed to crawl,
I pity the poor immigrant whose strength is spent in vain,
No, but that ain't your game, it ain't your race,
Where we together weathered many a storm,
I must admit, felt a little uneasy when she bent down to tie the laces of my shoe,
Ever since you walked right in, the circle's been complete,
And emptied the ashtrays on a whole other level,
A blanket of newspaper covered his head,
I offered for salvation and they give me a lethal dose,
Said there's so much oppression, can't keep track of it no more,
Tell her not to worry,
The motorcycle, Black Madonna,
You can gaze on the Capitol Dome,
Someone showed me a picture, I just had to laugh,
And where do you look for this hope that you're seeking,
Now everything's a little upside down - as a matter of fact, the wheels have stopped,
To show me the kinda love that don't have to be condemned,
She said, "Don't you tell Henry,
Hang on and go on out and gas that dog,
Surrender your crown on this bloodstained ground, take up off your mask,
Something about you that I can't shake,
I met a young woman whose body was burning,
There was an old man and he lived in the moon,
Take or shake or forsake you out,
He's young and on fire,
Strange things have happened than ever before,
Now, there's a certain thing that I learned from my friend, Mouse,
You may be a businessman or some high-degree thief,
Asking only workman's wages, I come looking for a job,
You may be a preacher preaching spiritual pride,
You got your rabbit's foot, you got your good-luck charm,
Who's never weak but always strong,
Sometimes my burden is more than I can bear,
Yeah, I went down to the whorehouse the other night,
Blue river running slow and lazy,
And I could never let you go, no matter what goes on,
Go melt back in the night,
Heading out for the East Coast - Lord knows, I've paid some dues getting through,
Princess on the steeple and all pretty people,
Mama come in and picked up a book and papa asked her what it was,
You say you lost your faith, but that's not where it's at,
In the hills of mystery,
God knows it's outta sight,
Once there was a man who had no eyes,
"God bless your children and I'll take care of your wife,
Now, the senator came down here showing everyone his gun,
"Well, I got up and I walked around,
I'm forty miles from the mill, I'm dropping it into overdrive,
In the ruins of your balcony,
Go 'head and talk about him because he makes you doubt,
I wake up every morning with that woman in my bed,
And the locusts sang, yeah, it give me a chill,
Heartbreaker, backbreaker,
I fell down to my bended knees,
I was born in Dixie in a boomer's shack,
I'm a-thinking and a-wondering, walking all the way down the road,
And your match-book songs and your gypsy hymns,
Nothing that I wouldn't do,
They'll stone you when you're at the breakfast table,
And your gentleness now, which you just can't help but show,
Judgment on them is something that you'll never see,
But you ain't a-gonna ride in my car no more,
Inside the museums infinity's going up on trial,
Across the street they've nailed the curtains, they're getting ready for the feast,
Teeth like pearls shining like the moon above,
Don't wanna be used by nobody for a doormat,
Already the fiesta has begun,
Look at the sun sinking like a ship,
We are covered in blood, girl, you know, both our forefathers were slaves,
Where the neon madmen climb,
But, if I could, I'd bring you to the mountain-top, girl,
I'm not sorry for nothing I've done,
Well, John the Baptist, after torturing a thief,
And she'll be coming forth,
But there's nothing, really nothing to turn off,
But I did not trust my brother, I carried him to blame,
Oh, Jokerman, you know what he wants,
Some are building monuments, others jotting down notes,
And sometimes I'm in the mood, I wanna walk the road again,
I just keep pressing on,
I got up in the morning, looked under my bed,
It's just a ragged clown behind,
Well, the fat's in the fire and the water's in the tank,
Rabbit running down across the road,
My patron saint is a-fighting with a ghost,
Where boxing ain't allowed no more,
And sometimes I'm in the mood that I'm bound to lose again,
All your reindeer armies, they're all going home,
That her father was going to hang,
I never could learn to drink that blood and call it wine,
The Commander-in-Chief answers him while chasing a fly,
If you throw it all away,
Night-sticks and water-cannons, tear gas, padlocks,
Sara, Sara, sweet virgin angel, sweet love of my life,
But you who philosophize disgrace and criticize all fears,
He crosses himself and then he clicks his high heels,
I been riding the midnight train,
In a bigger place, bigger money too,
And it's only that I'm asking,
And Rosemary on the gallows, she didn't even blink,
Lawman on your trail, he'd like to catch you,
But they'll pinch themselves and squeal and they'll know that it's for real,
I don't mean trouble, please don't put me down or get upset,
And, as long as it does, I'll just sit here and watch the river flow,
Well, the road's washed out, weather not fit for man or beast,
With the stitches still mending 'neath a heart-shaped tattoo,
It didn't seem like much was happening, so I turned it off and went to grab another beer,
I believe in you when white turn to black,
In the lonely night,
I spied a little chicken a-down on his knees,
Nothing that would pass inspection,
I'm getting up in the morning, I believe I'll dust my broom,
I heard the sound of a thunder that roared out a warning,
My sweetheart was a brakeman and it ain't no joke,
Whoa! and--well, I can do just like the rest, you know, I like my sugar sweet,
Well, You've done it all and there's no more anyone can pretend to do,
Well, today's been a sad, old, lonesome day,
"Go on back to see the gypsy! He can move you from the rear,
You're right from your side, I'm right from mine,
Sorry if I touched the place where your secrets are hid,
After a while we took in the clothes, nobody said very much,
Yes, the comic book and me, just us, we caught the bus,
Like a complete unknown,
Into your eyes, where the moonlight swims,
Tombstone bay dog can't get it done,
Stay free from petty jealousies, live by no man's code,
If I turn a deaf ear to the thundering sky,
Got white skin, got assassin's eyes,
Stone you when you're walking on the path,
Ten thousand men on a hill,
And your sky cries water and your drain-pipe's a-pouring,
Heard the last moan of a boxer, seen the massacre of the innocent,
Now, you take your file and you bend my head,
You can tell her that I had to see the world, tell her that my ship's at sail,
Will not deceive you or lead you into transgression,
I been a moonshiner for seventeen long years,
You have laid down Your life for me,
In these times of compassion when conformity's in fashion,
Englishman stranded in the black-heart wind,
Let me drink from the waters where the mountain streams flood,
But I need a woman, it ain't no crime,
So many roads, so much at stake,
Not supposed to fight back and have thick skin,
Kick my legs to crash it off,
But, until men lose their chains and righteousness reigns,
Condemned to drift or else be kept from drifting,
She had to sell everything she owned and froze up inside,
Now, the Union Central is pulling out, the orchids are in bloom,
Don't even hear a murmur of a prayer,
Sometimes the silence can be like thunder,
Oh, everybody that cares is going up the castle-stairs,
Don't wanna miss nobody, don't wanna be missed,
She said, "Welcome to the land of the living dead",
So, I done laid around, done stayed around this old town too long,
And that three eyes cannot see him,
May be hung on the dais, hanging out to dry,
I got a wife and five little children,
Tolling for the tongues with no place to bring their thoughts,
Well, he deep in number and heavy in toil,
Last time you might hear the sermon on the mount,
Where the New York City winters aren't bleeding me,
They'd probably put my head in a guillotine,
Where do you look for this oil-well gushing,
And he carries all his money in a diamond-studded jar,
Pulled my cap down over my eyes,
Yes, I've been saved by the blood of the lamb - well,
Steps going down into tattoo land,
Now and then there's a fool--a fool such as I,
Thinking it was a trusty tree,
I'm going down the river,
The country music station plays soft,
There's a Man on a cross and He be crucified for you,
Nobody can get any sleep, there's someone on everybody's toes,
Well, if I should die 'fore my time should come,
You that hide behind walls, you that hide behind desks,
Day you quit me, baby,
As the night comes in a-falling, the dogs will lose their bark,
The truth was obscure, too profound and too pure,
Temptation's page a-flies out the door,
Anyway, it wouldn't ring true,
You see me on the street, you always act surprised,
Working for a while on a fishing boat right outside of Delacroix,
We'll go someplace unknown,
The meaning of the life has been lost in the wind,
Come up where the Yankees are, dress up in a pinstripe suit,
I've learned to hate the Russians all through my whole life,
Stopped into a renovated hotel with a neon burning bright,
Big Joe Turner looking east and west from the dark room of his mind,
And it ain't made in no fat kid's fraternity house,
That man whom with his fingers cheats and whom lies with every breath,
Say hello to Valerie, say hello to Vivian,
Me, I'm still heading towards the sun, trying to stay outta the joint,
This couple, they got married, so well they did agree,
I ran into the fortune-teller, who said beware of lightning that might strike,
Who could they get to carry you,
Outside the streets were filling up, the window was open wide,
I seen thousands who could've overcome the darkness,
I got a new pony, she knows how to foxtrot, lope, and pace,
He's out there preaching in front of the steeple,
High water rising, six inches 'bove my head,
Fifteen jugglers, fifteen jugglers,
Let the dead bury the dead, your time will come,
Luck was with me when I crossed the borderline,
Feel like a broke-down engine, ain't got no drive at all,
Filled up the hunger that had always been denied,
Any day now, any day now, I shall be released,
It's not aimed at anyone,
Only one thing I did wrong,
On this guitar I'm playing, on this banjo I'm flailing,
To disgrace, distract, and bother me,
They must bust in early May,
A question in your nerves is lit,
Well, my heart's in the Highlands with the horses and hounds,
They tried to strangle Larry, Joey almost a-hit the roof,
As the light burst through a beat-up shade, where he was waking up,
People see me all the time, I guess they just can't remember how to act,
Trying to peel the moon and expose it,
And here I sit so patiently,
I need something strong to distract my mind,
Like some mystery,
Like the stillness in the wind before the hurricane begins,
Jokerman, dance to the nightingale tune,
I found my world, found my world in you,
My so-called friends have fallen under a spell,
A man named Martin Luther King,
You're blowing down the shaky street,
Mama, put my guns in the ground,
Called home, everybody seemed to have moved away,
Stone you when you are young and able,
Lord, I'm walking down the line, walking down the line,
And you wouldn't know it would happen like this,
Don't let her see where you're going,
I couldn't believe after all these years you didn't know me any better than that,
Lord, I'm broke, I'm hungry, ragged and dirty too,
Now there's a wall between us, something there's been lost,
They said, "Don't you tell Henry,
I'm on a rolling river in a jerking boat,
And, though I don't ask for much, no material things to touch,
I think we better talk this over,
And you - and you wish your situation be more drastic,
I see-I see lovers in the meadow,
In another I witnessed a crime,
Wiggle, wiggle, wiggle till the moon is blue,
From the dirty, old mess hall you march to the brick wall,
From the Grand Coulee Dam to the Capitol,
'Tis the song, the sigh of the weary,
I love you more than money and more than the stars above,
You drink bitter water on your bed, eating your bread of sorrow,
Though you might hear laughing, spinning, swinging madly across the sun,
Look out your window, I'll be gone,
The line, it is drawn and the curse, it is cast,
Mostly when I'm all alone,
You even make love just like a woman,
Can lead you to hundred-dollar plates,
Look who's back in town,
A saxophone someplace far off played as she was walking on by the arcade,
And forget my pride,
Don't wanna treat nobody like they was dirt,
Where peace is not welcome at all,
She say, "Baby, baby, baby, baby, I lo-lo-love you",
You can run down to the desert,
He said, "I never engaged in this kind of thing before,
Some mother's child has gone astray,
Your babies're crying louder now, it's pounding on your brain,
She's away and westward-bound, far above the clouds she'll fly,
I tried to love and protect you because I cared,
I dreamed I saw Saint Augustine, alive as you or me,
And I've never gotten used to it, I've just learned to turn it off,
She's five-feet-nine and she carries a monkey wrench,
He's a great humanitarian, he's a great philanthropist,
Light yourself a candle,
From Broadway to the Milky Way,
There were six thousand people trying to kill each other,
But people don't live or die, people just float,
She looked at him, he felt a spark tingle to her bones,
Then the letters ceased to come, for a long time they did not come,
Well, I asked for something to eat - I'm hungry as a hog,
No time to choose when the truth must die,
Neighborhood bully, standing on a hill,
She would have married me,
I'm all cracked up on the highway and in the water's edge,
Sometimes I'm in the mood, I wanna milk my milk-cow low,
Leaving in the morning if I have to ride the blinds,
And I want you to be that woman, yes, I do,
Who breathe and burp and bend and crack,
We had a falling-out like lovers often will,
You may be an ambassador to England or France,
And the sun will respect every face on the deck,
I'm not asking you to say words like "yes" or "no",
Senor, Senor, you know, their hearts're as hard as leather,
It's gonna be the meanest flood that anybody's seen,
All my fathers, they've gone down,
And your streets are getting empty,
Grandpa died last week and now he's buried in the rocks,
Yes, I walked all night long listening to them church bells tone,
In the smoke of the twilight, on a milk-white steed,
That's the story of the "Hurricane",
He finishes his drink, he gets up from the table,
Some on their way up, some on their way down,
Your charms have broken many a heart and mine is surely one,
Take a message to Mary, but don't tell her what I've done,
Now, Ira's folks were hungry and their farms were crops of weeds,
Even you, yesterday, you had to ask me where it was at,
Oh, though the earth may shake me,
Seven days zipping and blowing,
Sara, Sara, it's all so clear, I could never forget,
And come every time you call,
Sundown, yellow moon, I replay the past,
She had sweethearts plenty and men of high degree,
Tonight I lay on the river banks in the arms of Blackjack Davey,
Stack-A-Lee walked to the bar-room and he called for a glass of beer,
And I--I walk out on my own,
Oh, set me down on a television floor,
Bertha Mason shook it, broke it, then she hung it on a wall,
Who'll pick you up each time you fall,
Some trains don't pull no gamblers,
I ain't afraid of confusion no matter how thick,
So unknown,
Let me die in my footsteps before I go down under the ground,
And when it finally--the bottom fell out, I became withdrawn,
I got a craving love for blazing speed, got a hopped-up Mustang Ford,
You can't do the time, don't do the crime,
Couldn't imagine nothing else,
Oh, all my fathers, they've gone down,
But, to remain as friends,
With great lawyers and scholars you've discussed lepers and crooks,
True love of mine,
If tomorrow wasn't such a long time,
For all intended purposes,
Odds and ends, odds and ends,
Who among them would try to impress you,
Yes, sometimes I'm in the mood, I wanna hit that highway road,
Well, he puts his cigar out in your face just for kicks,
I peeked behind the picture frame,
I stepped up to my rival, dagger in my hand,
I sat with my high-heeled sneakers on,
I see people who're supposed to know better standing around like furniture,
You say my kisses are not like his,
Striking for the gentle, striking for the kind,
No time to lose or say goodbye,
Where Ma Rainey and Beethoven once unwrapped their bedroll,
Next to come in was the old, gray cat,
All the tired horses in the sun,
You just ain't a-gonna find it on your ticket stub,
And I know that you're gon' be mine one of these days,
People going down to the ground,
Well, I was looking everywhere for them god-darned Reds,
Better jump down a manhole,
On the road to glory where the story never ends,
I got a house on the hill, I got hogs all out in the mud,
They are spoon-feeding Casanova to get him to feel more assured,
With a blanket underneath his arm and a coat of solid gold,
I'll buy you a [incomprehensible] skirt,
She walked up to me so gracefully, took my crown of thorns,
Most of the time she ain't even in my mind,
So, run here, baby, put your little hand in mine,
You can mislead a man, you can take a hold of his heart with your eyes,
Let the smell of wildflowers flow free through my blood,
Boys in the street beginning to play,
In the blinking stardust of a pale-blue light,
The best is always yet to come - that's what they explain to me,
Goodbye's too good a word, babe,
If your time to you is worth saving,
You angel, you, you're as fine as can be,
I can change, I swear,
Oh, every foe that ever I faced,
Up in the Rocky Mountains in a town called Cripple Creek,
Clinging to strange promises, dying on the vine,
Lazy stadium night, catfish on the mound,
He is centuries old,
There she come, now, down my way,
I can still hear his voice crying in the wilderness,
I can't feel you anymore, I can't even touch the clothes you wear,
Now she's gone, I don't worry,
And I will not carry myself down to die,
Hazel, you called and I came,
Wiggle, wiggle, wiggle, you got nothing to lose,
Where do you look for this lamp that's a-burning,
And your feet can only walk down two kinds of roads,
Ooh, I can't stand it, I can't stand it,
But your good man ain't a-coming home, you better understand,
Oh, the locusts sang off in the distance,
He said, "I dance now at every chance at honky-tonks for drinks and tips,
I want my arms around you,
Where you been don't bother me or bring me down with sorrow,
I gazed down in the river's mirror and watched its winding strum,
You that never done nothing but build to destroy,
I lived with them on Montague Street in a basement down the stairs,
My pretty baby, she's looking around,
He was a friend of mine, he was a friend of mine,
Ever since I been a child,
Stone you and say that it's the end,
"Or else you'll surely hang," says he, "And after that, Jim Jones,
Father of minutes, father of days,
Stop your conversation when he passes on the street,
But you were gambling for support,
You can hurt someone and not even know it,
Tweedle Dee, he's a low-down, sorry, old man,
The Siamese twins are coming to town,
You always responded when I needed your help,
Now and then--now and then there's a fool--a fool such as I,
The fiddler, he now steps to the road,
I begun to think what a deed I'd done,
I can smile in the face of mankind,
And to come every time you call,
Pretty flowers are made for blooming, pretty stars are made to shine,
And that the ladder of law has no top and no bottom,
Exchanging all precious gifts and things,
Finally had to give her up 'bout the time she begin to want me,
Aim well, my little one,
Most of the time I'm clear-focused all around,
I'd give you the sky high above,
I stand on highway, baby flag me down,
The cat's in the well, the wolf is looking down,
Well, I've walked two hundred miles, look me over,
Whose ebony face is beyond communication,
Enter Patty Valentine from the upper hall,
I went to see the gypsy staying in a big hotel,
I don't care if you analyze me,
Don't let yourself fall,
Sometimes I'm in the mood, I wanna turn my back to the wall,
Advertising signs, they con,
Poisoned in the bushes and blown out on the trail,
Want you,
And she wakes a-just like a woman,
She was there in the meadow where the creek used to rise,
I see pieces of men marching, trying to take heaven by force,
I just say no thanks,
The evening dust was rolling, I's a-walking down the track,
Heart of mine, so malicious and so full of guile,
They keep it all hid,
Walking-walking with you in my head,
Well, there's kissing in the valley,
And laughter down on Elizabeth Street,
People see me all the time and they just can't remember how to act,
I see a house in the country being a-torn apart from within,
One of the boss's hangers-on sometimes comes to call at times you least expect,
Cloak and dagger dangles,
She said, "Boy, without a doubt, gotta quit your mess and straighten out,
Genghis Khan, he could not keep all his kings supplied with sleep,
It was Rock-A-Day Johnny singing,
He said the name, Bojangles, and he danced a lick all across the cell,
The winter would hold no spring,
To stay closer than any friend,
She's got everything she needs, she's an artist, she don't look back,
Don't criticize what you can't understand,
And your long-time curse hurts, but what's worse is this a-pain in here,
Your cheeks too red and rosy for to face the cannonball,
Well, my temperature rises and my feet can't walk so hot,
But I could not hold on to her very long,
Take you where the grass grows green, you never will want for money,
Only a hobo, but one more is gone,
Well, she's got jet-pilot eyes from her hips on down,
Three fellas crawling on their way back to work,
I seen a shooting star tonight slip away,
She was the rose of Sharon from paradise lost,
We grew up together from the cradle to the grave,
One day the man in the moon went home and the river went dry,
She was fifty-one years old and gave birth to ten children,
Handy-dandy, controversy surrounds him,
While a loser in the gambling room lights up a candle, says, "Open up another deck",
Though her skirt, it swayed as the guitar played,
Whether you are right or wrong,
I can feel it in the night, in the night, in the night when I think of you,
And you take just like a woman,
I bargained for salvation and she give me a lethal dose,
I been meek and hard like an oak,
And you start getting chills and you're jumping from sweat,
Got a head full of ideas driving me insane,
Now, the medicine man comes and he shuffles inside,
Someone who don't pick herself up to make every man her friend,
She once was a true love of mine,
They're drinking and dancing, wearing bright-colored clothes,
I ain't looking to compete with you,
Fools rush in where angels fear to tread,
No, and I ain't looking to fight with you,
She walked up to me so gracefully and took my crown of thorns,
He got that soft, silky skin,
Father of loneliness and pain,
She's the worst you could ever have,
Put me outta doors, Lord, Lord,
Silvio, I gotta go,
I had to stand my trial, I had to make my plea,
But we never did too much talking anyway,
And, though our separation, it pierced me to the heart,
Every lady in the land told him lies,
Well, the medicine man comes, he shuffles inside,
I don't wanna fake you out,
Camping out all night on the veranda,
Cat's in the well, the gentle lady is asleep,
You're the other half of what I am, you're the missing piece,
I'm a fool, yes, but I love you, dear, I'll love you, dear, until the day--until the day I die,
But it will be back in the same old spot again,
I ain't gonna work for Maggie's ma no more,
Not the whiskey-drinking Indian or the marine who went to war,
Well, I know who I can depend on, I know who to trust,
Some are building monuments, others are jotting down notes,
They sang "Danny Boy" at his funeral and the Lord's Prayer,
I'm going down to Rose Marie's,
Well, your loveliness has wounded me, I'm a-reeling from the blow,
Too weary to talk and too tired to sing,
Well, my heart's in the Highlands, gentle and fair,
Stone you when you're reaching for the door,
Oh, the moon is shining bright, lighting everything in sight,
I had 'em once though, I suppose, to go along with all the ring-dancing Christmas carols on all the Christmas Eves,
Well, I just reached a place where I can't stay awake,
Don't think of me and fantasize on what we've never had,
"Get well, get well, love Henry," she cried,
A gentle breeze was blowing - you could feel it from inside,
Your lips are so tender, your heart is beating fast,
Where mercy walks the plank,
You were there in the winter, moonlight on the snow,
Nothing anymore seems to please me, except you, yeah, you,
'Twas in the spring one summer's day,
And I'm just like that bird,
And she aches just like a woman,
From early in the morning till way past dark, all you ever do is a-hustle,
Oh, a false clock tries to tick out my time,
Now, if you see Saint Annie, please tell her "Thanks a lot",
Catfish, million-dollar-man,
Makes no difference where she's been,
Or your eyes've turned filthy from the sight-blinding dirt,
And he's taught how to walk in a pack,
I threw it all away,
Whom nature's beast fears as they come,
He brags of his misery, he likes to live dangerously,
Well, she talks to all the servants about man and God and law,
Well, you never miss your water till your well runs dry,
Einstein, disguised as Robin Hood, with his memories in a trunk,
Purple clover, Queen Anne lace, crimson hair across your face,
We take great delight in our own company,
Ring them bells for all of us who are left,
With a time-rusted compass blade,
They took his head and turned it inside out,
I knew right away he was not ordinary,
And you search in vain to find just one law-abiding citizen,
Rips into your senses, through your body and your mind,
Her and her boyfriend went to California,
You think that, when you rest at last, you'll go back from where you came,
And there's two white horses following me,
Now I just pass mournfully by that place where bones of life are piled,
One by one until there were none,
A finger fired the trigger to his name,
Or do you remember St. James Street,
While preachers preach of evil fates,
From fixtures and forces and friends your sorrow does stem,
Her knees knock together walking down the street,
It all seemed so well-timed,
Gonna have to serve somebody,
Nothing wrong could make it right away,
Now, to her death is quite romantic, she wears an iron vest,
Gonna take dancing lessons, do the jitterbug rag,
I was knocked out and loaded in the naked night,
Going, going, gone,
Still I just don't know what I'm gonna do,
You say you're shaking and you're always a-breaking, but you know how hard you try,
Want you so bad,
But, you know, it's gonna be too late,
They started up Iwo Jima hill two hundred and fifty men,
The kingdoms of experience,
The soldier and the tiny man were crouched in the corner thinking of forbidden love,
I hear the ancient footsteps like the motion of the sea,
I ain't gonna work for Maggie's brother no more,
Well, the job that you used to have,
Well, I sailed through the storm strapped to the mast,
And sometimes I'm in the mood, I wanna change things in the town,
Move in next door, marry my daughter,
And the other starts slipping and the feeling is gone,
Well, well, well, so I can die easy,
No, no, no, no, it sure ain't me, babe,
They got Charles Darwin trapped out there on Highway Five,
It's too late to listen to that warning voice,
And make all kinds of money and chicks,
And she in between, the victim of sound,
It's never been my duty to remake the world at large,
I'm a-going where the chilly winds don't blow,
That sailed through the air and came down through the room,
And the ladies treat me kindly and they furnish me with tape,
Dad's in a alley looking hard for the fuze,
Oh, when the dawn is nearing,
I just can't beg you anymore,
Well, I just do what I'm told, so I did it of course,
But the crowd woulda booed, I'm sure,
"Well, I ain't gonna tell you no story, I ain't gonna tell you no lie,
"Pull off, pull off them long, blue gloves all made of the finest leather,
Well, George Lewis told the Englishman, the Italian, and the Jew,
Lay, lady, lay, lay across my big brass bed,
My friends and my loved ones I'll leave, there's no doubt,
I spied a fair maid at her labour, which caused me to stay for a while,
Love that's pure won't lead you astray,
Call girls in the doorway, all giving me the eye,
It's like my whole life never happened, when I see you it's as if I've never had a thought,
All of these awful things that I have heard,
Mother, you know, must hear the news,
Queen Mary, she's my friend, yes, I believe I'll go see her again,
You had enough of hatred,
If tonight was not a crooked trail,
I noticed at the ceremony your corrupt ways had finally made you blind,
She threw me outside, I stood in the dirt where everyone walked,
Well, I just been to the baggage car where the engineer's been tossed,
Farewell to the boardwalk that takes you to the screen,
Hoping to get you behind a wood piling,
I'm going down to Tennessee, get me a truck or something,
"And the same to you, gentlemen," we did reply,
You're the only thing alive that keeps me going,
Won't hold you back, won't get in your way,
One more cup of coffee for the road,
You can smell the pine-wood burning, you can hear the school-bell ring,
Your eyes were on fire, your feet were of brass,
Well, she puts her cigar out in my face just for kicks,
Well, well, well,
And pretend that we never have touched,
You can touch and twist and turn two kinds of doorknobs,
I would be crazy if I took you back,
Oh, winds, which rush my tale to thee, so it may flow and be,
Said I'm pressing on,
And he was standing on the side of the road, rain falling on his shoes,
Well, it's not because I'm an early riser,
You got the crazy rhythm when you walk,
And gathering storms may arise,
Oh, all the money that in my whole life I did spend,
Ain't no shortcuts, gonna dress in drag,
Alright, I'm so glad,
It was gravity which pulled us down and destiny which broke us apart,
Till one day my brother failed to come home,
You should be made to be wearing at all times a telephone,
I been hanging on the threads, I been playing it straight,
Last night I danced with a stranger,
The day would surely have to break,
I see nothing to be gained by any explanation,
Most of the time my head is on straight,
"Well, the whole thing started at three o'clock fast,
Well, this time I'm asking for freedom,
All day long I hear him crying out so loud,
Crimson flames tied through my ears,
Laying low,
Yes, I went down to the beanery at half past twelve,
I can follow the path, I can read the signs,
Don't let her see that you need her,
You might be rich or poor, may be a parasite too,
Saying over her shoulder, "We'll meet again someday on the avenue,
Says he's got a bad cough,
Then I'm laying out my winter clothes and wishing I was gone,
No, no, babe, I got blood in my eyes for you,
For the politician's gain,
Just what you're gonna say when you get home,
As human gods aim for their mark,
That, no matter how hard you rub,
Well, you can tell everybody down in old Frisco,
Oh, yes, I'm pressing on,
Where we longed for nothing and were satisfied,
Slap that drummer with a pie that smells,
Freedom from a world which you deny,
Whoa, come all without, come all within,
Not a word of goodbye, not even a note,
You walk into the room with your pencil in your hand,
Might like to drink whiskey, might like to drink milk,
I'm breathing hard, standing at the gate,
She turned around to look at him as he was a-walking away,
So I grabbed my shotgun from the floor,
And, if I see the day,
May God bless and keep you always, may your wishes all come true,
At pettiness, which plays so rough,
Well, you must tell me, baby, how your head feels under something like that,
A full-blooded Cherokee, he predicted it to me,
Maybe someday you'll see that it's true,
Or was it a day? I truly don't know -,
I can still hear that voice crying in the wilderness,
Summer days and the summer nights are gone,
I see the turning of the page, curtain rising on a new age,
Tell me that you love me only,
If I shut myself off so I can't hear you cry,
Well, they'll stone you when you are all alone,
One push of the button, then a shot the world wide,
One day you'll be in the ditch, flies buzzing around your eyes,
Your own empty-handed army is all going home,
Watch out, Lester, take it, Blue,
Feel like I'm knocking on heaven's door,
Time passes slowly up here in the daylight,
Yes, and you, I see you're still with her. Well,
John the Baptist, after torturing a thief,
And, on their promises of paradise,
Well, I see you got your brand-new leopard-skin pill-box hat,
Someone to close his hear,
Way out in the wilderness a cold coyote calls,
Cannot be happy without his mom and his pappy, let's stick together,
Footprints running 'cross a silver sand,
The servant spoke before she thought, "She's been with Blackjack Davey,
Well, there's a-fighting in the valley,
Staying far behind without you,
And with the child of the hoodlum wrapped up in your arms,
Honeysuckle blooming in the wild-wood air,
She's packing up a lease unknown,
Frankie went down to Twelfth Street, look up through the window high,
White lilies never grow on stalks of clover,
Let the bird sing, let the bird fly,
Well, I'm strolling through the lonely graveyard of my mind,
And later on, when the crowd thinned out, I was just about to do the same,
Mighty Mockingbird, he still has such a heavy load,
For the mistreated, mate-less mother, the mis-titled prostitute,
Heard the tongues of angels and the tongues of men,
Oh, sister, when I come to knock on your door,
Just as long as you stay with me,
Nine hundred miners had laid their money down,
May be sleeping on the floor, sleeping in a king-size bed,
Our words was told, our songs was sung,
I had a woman down in Alabama,
Got my mind made up,
They put me on a train and they brought me back,
She never does me wrong,
Honey, just for you to climb,
Won't pervert you, corrupt you with foolish wishes,
And they drove that car as far as they could, abandoned it out west,
I go half-crazy when she calls my name,
The highway is for gamblers, better use your sense,
When blackness was a virtue, the road was full of mud,
I got shoved down, got pushed around,
Thrown in like bandits and cast off like criminals,
I paid one thousand two hundred twenty-seven dollars and fifty-five cents,
I dreamed a dream that made me sad,
'Cause I'm leaving in the morning if I have to ride the blinds,
Reincarnation of Paul Revere's horse,
Let the wind blow low, let the wind blow high,
And keep your eyes wide - the chance won't come again,
But I'll see you in the sky above, in the tall grass, in the ones I love,
She was stolen from her mother when she was three days old,
To gather flowers constantly,
Maybe when we both get sober,
I pity the poor immigrant who wishes he would've stayed home,
The gravel road is bumpy, it's a hard, old road to ride,
Next to come in was a big, black snake,
Look, Mrs. Henry, there's only so much I can do,
And ye shall be a-changed,
Mercury, gravity,
Resting in the fields, far from the turbulent space,
When Ruthie says come see her in her honky-tonk lagoon,
Sometimes I have a nickel and sometimes I have a dime,
Well, I'm preaching peace and harmony, the blessings of tranquility,
Ring down when you're ready, baby, I'm waiting for you,
They say, in your father's house there's many mansions,
This situation can only get rougher,
Oh, mama's in the factory, she ain't got no shoes,
I don't cheat on myself, I don't run and hide,
Looking at the window at the pecan pie,
Everywhere you go, it's enough to break hearts,
Idiot wind blowing through the buttons of our coats,
Now, the moon is almost hidden, the stars, they're just pretending to hide,
Praise you, dear lady, from going insane,
Though her voice, it would be merry, 'tis sighing all the day,
Well, I try my best to be just like I am,
There's a woman by the river with some fine, young, handsome man,
They'll stone you when you try to be so brave,
Well, I'm sitting on my watch so I can be on time,
Well, there's a woman on my block, she just sit there facing the hill,
Went to the station down in the yard,
If another war comes, it's them we must fight,
Lately I've been having evil dreams, I wake up in a cold, blue lair,
And your gravity fails and negativity don't pull you through,
I said a quick prayer just to feel satisfied,
Come, baby, shake me, come, baby, take me, I would be satisfied,
Her father would emphasize you got to be more than streetwise,
To shoot you someplace and shoot you back,
He's got a new one out now, I don't even know what it's about,
Pack up my suitcase, give me my hat,
Yes, I'm pressing on,
Nothing a-really matters much, doom alone that counts,
Don't try No Doz,
Or maybe it's the weather or something like that,
My conscience is beginning to bother me today,
And your train-engine fire needs a new spark to catch it,
Come right down the highway, straight down the line,
Feel like my soul has turned into steel,
And they lived in an alley under the red sky,
Out on runway number nine, big 707 set to go,
Well, I have had some rotten nights, didn't think that they would pass,
On the stone that remains,
It's a price I'll have to pay,
Well, you can laugh at salvation, you can play Olympic games,
Get back, write Braille,
But, if you want me to,
You know, I love her, yeah, I love her,
And with the whole ship's company he was willing to engage,
He hears the ticking of the clocks, walks alone through the city blocks,
Everybody wants you to be just like them,
You used to ride on the chrome horse with your diplomat,
People'd call, say, "Beware, doll,
And the lightning's a-flashing and the thunder's a-crashing,
Who will judge the many when the game is through,
And sometimes I'm in the mood, I wanna change the whole world around,
We'll keep on loving, pretty baby,
Next animal that he did meet had wool on his back and hooves on his feet,
They took a clean-cut kid,
I got to leave you, baby, before my heart will break,
Don't know what to do without it,
Ruby was in the backyard hanging clothes, she had her red hair tied back,
When the younger of the girls, she came on deck,
Outside in the distance a wildcat did growl,
Of ancient history,
I believe in you even though we be apart,
Well, there's voices in the night trying to be heard,
Don't wanna judge nobody, don't wanna be judged,
Watered-down love,
Listen to me, pretty baby,
Friends with you,
Yeah, and the locusts sang off in the distance,
Spent my money on you, honey,
Now, he's a king of the drunk and he squeezes, too,
You got men who can't hold their peace, women who can't control their tongue,
I fought with my twin, that enemy within,
Nobody feels any pain tonight as I stand inside the rain,
I know I love her, yeah, I love her,
Hawlin Alley, I thought I heard a bulldog bark,
Saying, "Fist-fighting is here to stay,
I couldn't tell her what my private thoughts were,
Been shooting craps and gambling, mama, and I done got broke,
You feel to moan, but, unlike before,
Both were so glad to watch me destroy what I had,
Don't put on any airs when you're down on Rue Morgue Avenue,
When the rivers freeze and summer ends,
God knows there's a river,
I don't wanna straight-face you,
And a piece of an old ship that lies on the shore,
Now, you may call me Terry or you may call me Timmy,
"Stop all this weeping and swallow your pride,
I have gold chains and the finest I have,
People are crazy, times are strange,
They walk among the stately trees,
I woke up on the roadside daydreaming 'bout the way things sometimes are,
But I was feeling a little bit scattered and your love was all that mattered,
The sky too is folding over you,
Far past the frozen leaves,
Now, you can train on down to Williams Point,
And them distant ships of liberty on them iron waves so bold and free,
High up on the housetops, high as I can see,
If anything is gonna sell,
Or select you or dissect you,
He just needs you to talk or to hand him his chalk,
You must have been protecting someone last time I called,
You will start out standing, proud to steal her anything she sees,
I'm out here a thousand miles from my home,
Simplify you, classify you,
Senor, Senor, let's overturn these tables,
You've been avoiding the main streets for a long, long while,
Now, I don't care just a-what you do,
And her skirt, it swayed as the guitar played,
Jack the Cowboy went up north, he's buried in the past,
And there's one last favor I'll ask of you,
Well, all my fathers, they've gone down,
With what your fate is going to be,
The cavalries charged, the Indians fell,
Well, he catch you when you're hoping for a glimpse of the sun,
Without your love, I'd be nowhere at all,
God knows there's a chance,
Well, junk's piling up, taking up space,
Got blood in my eyes for you, baby,
Georgia Sam, he had a bloody nose,
Nobody to rescue me, nobody would dare,
"We going all the way till the wheels fall off and burn,
Truth is an arrow and the gate is narrow that it passes through,
They say every distance is not near,
Went back home to the yard,
A lover for your life, but nothing more,
Believes all things, won't pull no strings,
Don't put yourself over the line,
I don't wanna meet your kin,
Fill it with new-made corn mash and never more you'll toil,
People carry roses,
You and me, we had completeness,
But, you who philosophize disgrace and criticize fears,
But the time ain't tall,
But to think of how she left that night it still brings me a chill,
If you must cling to someone,
Well, everybody's building their boats,
Or if you just want a friend you can talk to,
At the mongrel dogs who teach,
All them prophets good and gone,
The empty rooms, where her memory is protected,
Since the madman, a-he's so glad,
Every step of the way we walk the line,
Don't put my faith in nobody, not even a scientist,
Over the hills and far away,
Well, there ain't no going back,
I've been saved - well, alright,
I saw a highway of diamonds with nobody on it,
You wear a blue scarf upon your head,
"Well, I've forsaken my house and home and I'll forsake my baby,
I ran into the fortune-teller, she said beware 'cause of lightning might strike,
In the night a hound dog bayed,
Legislature, perverted nature, doors that are rudely slammed,
Businessmen, they drink my wine and plowmen dig my earth,
And you can hitchhike on the highway,
Two by two they step in the dark,
Got a head full of ideas that are driving me insane,
Well, my daddy was a fireman and my mama, hey,
Stack-A-Lee turned to Billy Lyons and he shot him right through the head,
Well, it ain't no use in calling out my name, babe,
I tried three times to quit him, but he did argue so,
She is good to me, there's a-nothing she doesn't see,
How he died nobody can say,
Oh, the flowers of indulgence and the weeds of yesteryear,
You're gonna need - you're gonna need my help someday,
Knock--knock--knocking on heaven's door,
So, now as I'm leaving, I'm weary as hell,
Well, I'm living in a foreign country, but I'm bound to cross the line,
"Young maiden, I wish not to banter, 'tis true I come here in disguise,
"Lie there, lie there, love Henry," she cried,
Well, children cry for mother, I tell 'em, "Mother took a trip",
Well, it ain't no use to sit and wonder why, babe,
You hand in your ticket to go see the geek,
The peddler now speaks to the countess who's pretending to care for him,
But the dealer says, "Attendez-vous, s'il vous plait",
Your nose can only smell two kinds of hallways,
Like criminals they have choked the breath of conscience and good cheer,
Comes right outta nowhere and you're down for the count,
It's the end of the chase and the moon is high,
I can handle whatever I stumble upon,
While Rubin sits like Buddha in a ten-foot cell,
Well, my heart's in the Highlands at the break of day,
I've been hit too hard, I seen too much,
When the whip that's a-keeping you in line doesn't make him jump,
Father of air and father of trees,
Dragon clouds so high above, I've only known careless love,
If fire them we're forced to, then fire them we must,
Social clubs in drag disguise,
Broken dishes, broken parts,
From the fireplace where my letters to you are burning,
Oh, Lord, oh, Lord,
I could say that I'd be faithful - I could say it in one sweet, easy breath,
And, if I can save you any time,
We met at the station where the mission bells ring,
Love is all there is, it makes the world go 'round,
Hmm, I hope that you can hear,
Yonder stands your orphan with his gun,
At ships with tattooed sails,
There's a ship and it sails on the sea,
Wise man looking in a blade of grass,
That foreign sound in your ear,
Turn back, baby, wipe your eye,
I've been all around the world, boys,
"There are many here among us who feel that life is but a joke,
Up and down the block,
All I want for you to do is take my body home,
No, no, no, it sure ain't me, babe,
But, if I will save you the time,
Silhouetted by the sea,
They were in the air, they were on the ground,
In a world of steel-eyed death and men who are fighting to be born,
In a pine box for all eternity,
Don't untie the ties that bind,
Wallflower, wallflower, take a chance on me,
They said what's up is down, they said what isn't is,
You stole her love from me one day,
Agarrame, mi vida, soon the desert will be gone,
Broken idols, broken heads,
Sister Jacqueline, sister Carmela, and mother Mary all did weep,
Said when you been good now, can't do no more,
When you gonna wake up, when you gonna wake up,
I never can go because, you know,
I got two white horses following me,
Don't wear sandals,
If you see her, say hello, she might be in Tangier,
Yet I just don't know what I'm gonna do,
They'd like to drive me from this town,
That'd ease you, dear lady, from going insane,
A worried man with a worried mind,
Staying up for days in the Chelsea Hotel,
Daddy's in the hallway looking for the fuze,
Put your body next to mine and keep me company,
Stripes on your shoulder, stripes on your back and on your hand,
Searching everywhere I know,
In a world of steel-eyed death and men who are fighting to be warm,
As I travel down life's pathway,
It's too bad that he had to go,
And so, to conclude and to finish disputes,
Father who teacheth the bird to fly,
You might be [incomprehensible] on the start,
Love you more than madness, more than dreams upon the sea,
In the home of the brave, Jefferson in his grave,
I always thought you were straight, baby,
I been double-crossed too much, at times I think I've almost lost my mind,
Now, I'm starting to drain, my stool's gonna squeak,
I say goodbye to haunted rooms and faces in the street,
She's delicate and seems like the mirror,
And the windows are rattling and breaking, your rooftops're shaking,
Poor boy never say die,
Or down any movie star's blouse,
Oh, the gates are cast iron and the walls are barbed wire,
The last of leaves fell from the trees and clung to a new love's breast,
But it's not to stand naked under unknowing eyes,
Yes, I went down to the river on a Saturday morn,
One more night the stars are in sight,
We always did love the very same one, we just saw her from a different point of view,
Well, I ride on a mail-train, baby, can't buy a thrill,
This wheel's on fire, 's rolling down the road,
She pulls one out from behind her ear,
Unless you been inside a tunnel and fell down sixty-nine, seventy feet over a barbed-wire fence,
What kind of sign they need when it all come from within,
But you've picked up quite a story and you've changed since the womb,
Well, the nature of man is to beg and to steal,
The trailing moss and mystic glow, the purple blossoms soft as snow,
I said, whoa-whoa-whoa-whoa, I said, oh, babe, I'm in the mood for you,
But, oh, mama, you gonna miss your best friend now,
Ooh, baby, thank you for my tea,
Well, I don't deserve it, but I sure did make it through,
In a town without pity where the water runs deep,
And admit that the waters around you have grown,
That long, black train is pulling on down,
Because he can't be exploited by superstition anymore,
Go down to the river, babe,
Since every pleasure's got an edge of pain,
It's like I ain't here,
Well, the future for me is already a thing of the past,
And give him back the time he's done,
Well, I don't have to be no doctor, babe,
I wonder if that old oak tree's still standing,
My dogs are barking, there's must be someone around,
And pay the price and not take your advice,
They stamped him and they labeled him like they do with pants and shirts,
And it's true sometime, you could see it that way,
"Come along and take a trip,
Buy you shoes and clothes, Lord, Lord,
Come all without, come all within,
Like the lion tears the flesh off of a man,
Gave three loud raps and a very big roar, uh-huh,
Now everything's a little upside down - as a matter of fact, the wheels've stopped,
Got a magnifying glass like Sherlock Holmes,
Mama, wipe the blood outta my eyes,
He was on the baseball team, he was in the marching band,
But there's a woman on my block, sitting there in a cold chill,
The ocean wild like an organ played, the seaweeds wove its strands,
I woke up on the roadside daydreaming 'bout the way things a-really are,
Maybe someday you'll find out everybody's somebody's fool,
I don't need no alibi when I'm spending time with you,
Well, come all without, come all within,
But I musta been mad, never knew what I had,
I glanced into the chamber where the judges were talking,
In the days of old, in the days of gold, in the day-times I repine,
Got a little girl, who's little and low,
What drives me to you is what drives me insane,
Wasn't making any great connection,
Down boulevards of broken cars,
Well, our train leaves at a-half past ten,
Does it take much of a man to see his whole life go down,
You got a lotta nerve to say you are my friend,
It was late one evening during a poker game,
It's a one-track town, just brown and a breeze, too,
The confusion I'm feeling ain't no tongue can tell,
Sign on a street says "You Don't Own Me",
And, if anybody asks me,
You're a tearjerker, baby, but I'm under your spell,
I'd ask him what the matter was,
Everything runs by me just like water from a well,
Ah, but I was so much older then,
The way that you hold your head, cursing God with every move,
Exchanging all the precious gifts and things,
He pushed the table over to protect his family,
My love, she laughs like the flowers,
Well, the ocean took my baby,
See the cross-eyed pirates sit perched in the sun,
Who despise their jobs, their destinies,
High police walked on to Stack-A-Lee, he was lying fast asleep,
A damsel there from Lexington was pleasing to my mind,
Starting look on the sidewalk,
Well, I don't know how it happened, but the riverboat captain, he knows my fate,
And it ain't no use in a-calling out my name, babe,
And all the time you're holding the three queens,
Trapped by no track of hours for they hang suspended,
You don't want a love that's pure,
Mama, wipe the blood from my face,
He hears the ticking of the clocks and walks along with a parrot that talks,
I just wouldn't have a clue,
On this road I'm walking, on this trail I'm turning,
Don't let me drift too far,
To protect his white skin,
There's beauty in that silver, singing river,
So glad,
And your long-time curse hurts, but what's worse is this pain in here,
Stone you and say good luck,
No time to prepare for the victim that's there, no time to suffer or blink,
Now, you can run down to the White House,
"No, there's nothing you can send me, my own true love,
"Well, I'm not weeping for my house carpenter,
You know there's no drug that'll do for the healing,
Well, come out when the skating rink glistens by the sun near the old crossroads sign,
The priest wore black on the seventh day and sat stone-faced while the building burned,
Go all the way to the other side of the world, you'll find trouble there,
And when it all came crashing down, I was already south,
And we, having no money, paid them off in cracks,
Without ideals or violence,
Well, the time will tell who has fell, who's been left behind,
I can hear Him calling for my soul,
Wiggle, wiggle, wiggle like a bowl of soup,
Sleeping in the [incomprehensible] on the back of the dust,
I grabbed back hold of my picnic basket,
Come on, come on, stick together,
Out beyond the twinkling stars,
Well, I need a woman to take my own,
Without your love I'd be nowhere at all,
Well, I wake up in the morning, fold my hands and pray for rain,
Well, I'm hitting it too hard, my stones won't take,
All that's gold doesn't shine,
Saw you drift into infinity and come back again,
You say you're sorry for telling me stories you know I believe are true,
You been down to the bottom with a bad man, babe,
She's opened up a happy home,
Sorrow covers you up like a cape,
Yesterday is just a memory,
Look out across the fields, see me returning,
Who's a-gonna kiss your Memphis lips when I'm out in the wind,
For threatening my baby, unborn and unnamed,
They said, "Listen, boy, you're just a pup",
Saved,
Jewels and binoculars hang from the head of the mule,
Starry-eyed and laughing, as I recall, when we were caught,
They say that Pat Garrett's got your number,
She wears an Egyptian ring, it sparkles before she speaks,
It was gravity which pulled us in and destiny which broke us apart,
Bullets can harm you and death can disarm you, but, no, you will not be deceived,
I'm getting weary looking in my baby's eyes,
Well, they're doing the double shuffle, throwing sand on the floor,
Her folks, they said that their lives together sure was gonna be rough,
Badge out, laid off,
Oh, where is Little Maggie? Over yonder she stand,
Well, the Cuckoo is a pretty bird, she warbles as she flies,
Trust yourself,
You are right from your side and I'm right from mine,
Stay, lady, stay, stay with your man awhile,
Read books and repeat quotations,
Today on the countryside it was a-hotter than a crotch,
"I won't fly down, I can't fly down,
For the wise men and the fools,
It's too bad he had to go,
And make promises by the hours,
I'm going down for the last time, but by His mercy I've been spared,
I met a young girl - she gave me a rainbow,
Come running down your stairs, combing back your yellow hair,
Wiggle, wiggle, wiggle like a rolling hoop,
Yeah, today's been a sad, old, lonesome day,
Rosemary started drinking hard and seeing her reflection in the knife,
You hurt the ones that I love best, then cover up the truth with lies,
Well, I'm stranded in the city that never sleeps,
He told himself he didn't care, pushed the window open wide,
"I hit him, I hit him, yes, it's true,
Early one morning the sun was shining, I was laying in bed,
He shot poor Willie through the head, which was a tragic fate,
Climb into the frame and shout God's name,
Yes, call him "Drunken" Ira Hayes, he won't answer anymore,
It's people's games that you got to dodge,
As we listened one last time and we watched with one last look,
Open the door, Richard, I heard it said before,
I love her, yeah, I love her,
Spreading their wings 'neath the falling leaves,
Yes, the ocean took my baby,
Puts jawbones on their tombstones and flatters their graves,
Might be a conductor flagging down a train,
My woman needs it every day,
It was you who came right through,
I'm staring at your picture, I'm hearing your words,
There's a hymn I used to hear in the churches all the time,
To be on your own,
Tweedle Dee's on his hands and his knees,
Now yonder stands a man in this lonely crowd,
If you're looking for assistance, babe,
I won't let go and I can't let go,
When a trembling, distant voice, unclear,
Hear the mighty engines roar, see the silver bird on high,
And you're tired trying to get out of - of situations,
I could be unraveling wherever I'm traveling, even to foreign shores,
Get dressed, get blessed,
It's making you mad, it's making you mean,
The cold-blooded moon, the captain waits above the celebration,
I can stroke your body and relieve your pain,
Nine by nine they drank the wine,
Exchanging all precious gifts,
One look at you and I'm out of control,
Seeking out the poorer quarters where the ragged people go,
Be it mine right or wrongfully,
Seeming to be the chimes of freedom flashing,
They're throwing knives into the tree,
He walks with a swagger and he says to the bride,
Well, they got old Stack-A-Lee and they lied him right back in jail,
We'll just put some bleachers out in the sun,
Everybody, get ready to lift up your glasses and sing,
Well, if you can't quit your sinning,
I've been down on the bottom of a world full of lies,
Keep me where you are,
I wanna be your lover, baby, I wanna be your man,
Now, I feel like I'm coming to the end of my way,
"Without my uncle Rat's consent,
The table stands empty by the edge of the stream,
You find God in the church of your choice,
I can hear a sweet voice steadily calling,
There's smoke on the water, it's a-been there since June,
Cast down from heaven and he's out of his head,
The cry of the peacock, flies buzz my head,
Buy me a flute and a gun that shoots, tailgates and substitutes,
I can't cross the line, you know,
Everybody wants you to be like them,
To try and make me change a-my mind and stay,
The police department hounded him and called him "Mr. Smith",
Next to come in was a broken, black flea, uh-huh,
But they can't help you none when there's trouble,
Your sister sees the future like your mama and yourself,
Heard your songs of freedom and man, forever stripped,
I asked you, please, to cross me off your list,
Well, it's sugar for sugar and it's salt for salt,
And you're scared to your soul you just might forget it,
I hitched up my pony to a post on the right,
Where beauty goes unrecognized,
You touched me and you knew that I was warm for you and, then,
Love that's pure, it don't make no false claims,
There's a soft cotton dress on the line hanging dry,
Oh, the streets of Rome are filled with rubble,
Let's hear the story of the "Hurricane",
Yes, I'm leaving in the morning just as soon as the dark clouds lift,
Peggy Day stole my poor heart away,
Oh, though my friends forsake me,
I ain't no monkey, but I know what I like,
The sunny sky is aqua-blue,
Oh, there was a wealthy merchant, in London he did dwell,
But calm is my feeling, at rest is my soul,
Who walks up to you when he hears you speak,
I've been double-crossed now for the very last time and I think I finally see,
I'll walk to the depths of the deepest, dark forest,
They're taking a streetcar named "Desire",
You breathed on me and made my life a richer one to live,
Sara, oh, Sara, Scorpio Sphinx in a calico dress,
May be an actor in a plot,
You may be somebody's mistress, may be somebody's heir,
I'll buy you a diamond ring,
You're a man of the mountains, you can walk on the clouds,
Silly Nelly was there, she told him a yarn,
Fat man looking in a blade of steel,
And it ain't on Macy's window-sill,
I ain't looking to block you up,
To satisfy, ensure you not to quit,
You play with my world like it's your little toy,
Mack the Finger said to Louis the King,
Pressing on,
May be the head of some big TV network,
No direction home,
Watch waterfalls of pity roar,
Hide from the feelings that are buried inside,
Now, don't come running holding up your hand,
Cares not to come up any higher,
And take me disappearing through the smoke-rings of my mind,
She was working in a topless place and I stopped in for a beer,
God sees it all unfold,
He was always in a hurry, too busy or too stoned,
Searching for the truth the way God designed it,
Hey, farmer, farmer, put away that DDT,
Who'd turn you in for a tenth of a penny,
You've thrown the worst fear that can ever be hurled,
Say that he's a loser 'cause he got no common sense,
The trail is dark and dusty, the road, it's kind of rough,
Just like a rolling stone,
Take a message to Mary, but don't tell her where I am,
I'd get on the stage and sing and play,
On this new morning, new morning,
Ring them bells, ye heathen, from the city that dreams,
Stabbing my picture with a bowie-knife,
I can hear your trembling heart beat like a river,
Telling everybody in the neighborhood,
Bent out of shape from society's pliers,
Since the beginning of the universe, man's been cursed by trouble,
It's many a guard that stands around smiling,
"What should the wedding supper be?" Uh-huh,
Keep your eyes wide - the chance won't come again,
So, sing your praise of progress and of the doom-machine,
Beating for the dead that rise,
"Not us," said the angry crowd,
Eight by eight they got to the gate,
Memory, ecstasy,
And the midnight moon is on the riverside,
He moved across the mirrored room, "Set it up for everyone," he said,
Don't need a shot of whiskey help me be president,
Well, my baby went to Illinois with some bad-talking boy she could destroy,
They'll stone you when you're driving in your brain,
Well, I'm too old to lose, babe, I'm too young to win,
Socialism, hypnotism,
Sea breeze blowing, there's a hell-hound loose,
With the storms raging 'round us and the winds a-blowing gales,
I've been in and out of a-happiness,
Till the keys of the guards clicked the tune of the morning,
My mind, it was mangled. I ran into the night,
Somewhere down the road some day,
I am just a poor boy, baby, trying to connect,
"She's waiting at home like a patient saint,
A dream about you, baby,
Four by four they danced on the shore,
Well, the fog's so thick you can't spy the land,
New morning,
We set beside bridges and walk beside fountains,
I try my best to be just like I am,
To try and make me change my mind and stay,
If today was not a crooked highway,
Ten thousand men on the move,
I just wanna thank You, Lord,
It ain't no use in calling out my name, babe,
And, though it's only my opinion - I may be right or wrong,
High water rising, rising night and day,
I'm on the fringes of the night, fighting back tears that I can't control,
Mama in a factory ,she ain't got no shoes,
Oh, Sarah Jane, Sarah Jane,
Far between sundown's finish and midnight's broken toll,
I'd pour a drink for you, my dear Mary Ann,
They sat together in the park as the evening sky got dark,
Oh, when the night is disappearing,
Then, when I saw you break down in front of the judge and cry real tears,
I went back home, put on my tie,
Mama, wipe the blood outta my face,
For Halloween give her a trumpet and for Christmas buy her a drum,
I've seen pretty people disappear like smoke,
Now, the deputy walks on hard nails, preacher rides a mount,
In the end,
But this time 'round it's more correct, right on target, so direct,
Spoke from my skull, I dreamed,
You hand in your ticket and you go watch the geek,
You know I was straight with you, you know I never tried to change you in any way,
In each caress, in each tender kiss,
Wiggle, wiggle, wiggle in your boots and shoes,
And I got those worried blues,
Well, first to come in was the flying moth, uh-huh,
Preoccupied with his vengeance,
Far away from it all,
With his businesslike anger and his bloodhounds that kneel,
Now and then there's a fool--a fool such as I am over you,
Met Prince Phillip at the home of the blues,
Well, I gaze at passing strangers in case I might see you,
I've been around this whole country,
He could've sold insurance, owned a restaurant or bar,
Oh, mama, you gonna miss your best friend now,
A summer breeze is blowing, a squall is setting in,
Next to come in was the bumbly bee,
Fanning the flames in the furnace of desire,
Cat's in the well and the horse is going bumpety-bump,
I got a woman, she's so mean,
You can raise up your right hand,
Every moment of existence seems like some dirty trick,
And lonesome comes up as down goes the day,
If you can't do the time, don't do the crime,
Says he's got a bad bill,
He took Ms. Mousey on his knee, uh-huh,
Pouring off of every page like it was written in my soul, from me to you,
Never did get up and walk the floor,
When in a low whisper I heard something say,
Sleeping in the woods by a fire in the night,
He tried to find a way back into where he left behind,
If I'd'a thought about it, I never woulda done it, I guess I woulda let it slide,
Well, he jabbed him again and loudly said,
He wore no rings or fancy things like other gamblers wore,
I looked at a ho and I saw a mule,
I'll eat when I'm hungry, drink when I'm dry, and live my life on the square,
The beat is pumping,
Relationships of ownership,
She said, "This can't be the end, we'll meet on another day on the avenue,
She said, "Boy, without a doubt, have to quit your mess and straighten out,
And the sun beat down upon the steps of time to light the way,
You keep listening to something long enough, you're just bound to believe that it's true,
But it would not be new,
He fine you a nickel, he fine you a dime,
Broken cutters, broken saws,
I been walking the road, I've been living on the edge,
Yeah, there ain't no going back,
Don't know what I could say about Claudette wouldn't come back to haunt me,
With her picture books of the pyramid and her postcards of Billy the Kid,
To rule my heart with sweetness and boldness from on high,
Now, every time, you know, when the well breaks down,
Well, the road is rocky and the hillside's mud,
My weariness amazes me, I'm branded on my feet,
You're trying to reshape me in a mold, love,
By His grace I have been touched, by His word I have been healed,
When you're through running over things like you're walking 'cross the tracks,
"I didn't do it!" he says and he throws up his hands,
I heard her say over my shoulder, "We'll meet again someday on the avenue,
As I went out one morning to breathe the air around Tom Paine's,
At your feet to convince you of your pain,
Hold your bad-luck hand, babe, hold your bad-luck hand,
Did he make it to the top? Well, he probably did and dropped,
Sugar baby, get on down the line, you ain't got no sense no how,
Honey, I will meet you there,
Looks up at his hero, the Commander-in-Chief,
That you'd have liked me to,
And, before you can count from one to ten, do it all over again,
There's been rumors of war and wars that have been,
Well, I'm gonna baptize you in fire so you can sin no more,
Had no one to go my bail,
Winterlude, Winterlude, my little apple,
The sun turned cold over President Street and the town of a-Brooklyn mourned,
But, deep inside my heart,
Although she swore my life away, deprived me of my rest,
No matter what you're doing, if you start giving up,
Reaching out and touching her hand,
To be out on your own,
All the furniture, it say "Made in Brazil",
They'll stone you when you're walking 'cross the floor,
That of all the eyes out there I could see none,
And, though the line is cut,
I'm seeing your world of people and things,
I'm living in a foreign country, but I'm bound to cross the line,
Going home to stay, going home to stay,
Well, the moon going up like wildfire, I feel the breath of the storm,
Pardon me if I'm sentimental when we say goodbye,
His old eyes deepened in his head,
All of Rubin's cards were marked in advance,
"My--it wasn't me that knocked him down,
Where the people are many and their hands are all empty,
'Cause you're drifting too far from shore, yeah,
Look into infinity, all you see is trouble,
There was snow all winter and no heat, revolution was in the air,
And You chosen me to be among the few,
She screamed till her face got so red, then she fell on the floor,
It ain't easy to swallow, it sticks in the throat,
Seven by seven they headed for heaven,
Later he'll be shot for resisting arrest,
Backstage the girls were playing five-card stud by the stairs,
You pressed me once, you pressed me twice,
But you're drifting too far from shore, yeah,
They're one day older and a dollar short,
Oh, you want watered-down love,
Some speak of the future,
They'll stone you and they'll be back again,
I can see the turning of the key,
Then, when a letter finally came, saying, go down and meet the train,
They threw him in the hole one time for trying to stop a strike,
Yeah, the road's washed out, weather not fit for man or beast,
It's just that I haven't got no watch and you keep asking me what time it is,
Well, there are preachers in the pulpit and the babies in the cribs,
Forty-one days, forty-one nights,
Everybody, get ready, lift up your glasses and sing,
And your minutes of sun turn to hours of storm,
But you who philosophize disgrace and criticize fears,
I've dealt with your boss, who'd never known about loss,
It wasn't me that made him fall,
I looked high and low and I looked up above,
Don't let her see,
Well, I don't mind a reasonable amount of trouble - trouble always comes to pass,
Send for the doctor, who pull down the shade,
I hate myself for loving you and the weakness that it showed,
You can step on my name, you can try and get me beat,
When your foot of pride come down, ain't no going back,
I don't carry dead weight, I'm no flash in the pan,
I don't wanna be a fool that's starving for affection,
For a few crumbs and a place to hide,
I saw thousands who could have overcome the darkness,
Wise men say only fools rush in,
It's really something,
Lord, you shouldn't mistreat me, baby, because I'm young and wild,
Rubin's in South America, fighting for his name,
If she ain't feeling well,
There was a movie I seen one time - I think I sat through it twice,
Oh, it's fare-thee-well to the deep, hollow dungeon,
With his fist in a clinch,
Each time we meet, love,
He died drunk early one morning alone in the land he'd fought to save,
And it's a hard, and it's a hard, it's a hard, it's a hard,
Then Jake rampaged against a knife in the hands of old Bob Stein,
You suddenly find you've got nothing to fear,
Speak jealously of them that are free,
It's alright,
The weather was hot, a-nearly ninety degrees,
Fare thee well but for a while,
But I know God has mercy on them who're slandered and humiliated,
"They've all moved a way," said the voice of a stranger,
Broken buckles, broken laws,
Oh, watered-down love,
And I see you in the street, I begin to swoon,
We weren't on the wrong side, sweetness,
I love you more than ever, more than time and more than love,
I can drink like a fish, I can crawl like a snake,
I once loved a woman that's a child, I'm told,
I met the contagion and sank to the tomb,
Ring them bells for the blind and the deaf,
Don't show me no picture-show or give me no book to read,
He's the property of Jesus,
Our loyalty they tried to win,
Some are mathematicians, some are carpenters' wives,
Flashing for the warriors whose strength is not to fight,
Everything went from bad to worse, money never changed a thing,
Dupree came in pimping tonight to the Thunderbird Cafe,
Four in the morning and they haul Rubin in,
Strong men belittled by doubt,
Poverty and shame was theirs,
And played the fife lowly,
Now, his holiest books have been trampled upon,
Now, don't crowd me, lady, or I'll fill up your shoe,
Broken treaties, broken vows,
Won't buy back the beat of a heart grown cold,
I'm walking through streets that are dead,
Ain't gonna work for Maggie's pa no more,
Looking at my shadow, watching the clouds up above,
What's the matter with me? I don't have much to say,
May be working in a barbershop, you may know how to cut hair,
Oh, jewels and binoculars hang from the head of the mule,
I'm on the rolling river in a jerking boat,
Don't wanna marry nobody if they're already married,
Each one of them suffering from the failures of their day,
He's not selling any alibis,
Working for a system I couldn't understand or trust,
With a killer's pride, security,
I met Prince Phillip at the home of the blues,
You got innocent men in jail, your insane asylums are filled,
Some are mathematicians, some are doctors' wives,
Well, sweet, pretty things, they're in bed now of course,
Early one morning the sun was shining, she was lying in bed,
Now, the wintertime is coming, the windows are filled with frost,
All across the telegraph his name, it did resound,
Intercedes for you 'stead of casting you blame,
The way, it is long, but the end is near,
Well, he's surrounded by pacifists who all want peace,
In the violence of a summer's dream, in the chill of a wintry light,
And they wouldn't hurt a fly - to hurt one, they would weep,
High sheriff on my trail, boys, high sheriff on my trail,
See the craters and the canyons and where the waterfalls run,
Let me sleep in your meadows with the green, grassy leaves,
And I won't let go and I can't let go,
Don't wanna betray nobody, don't wanna be betrayed,
And your good gal leaves and she's long gone a-flying,
Cat's moo and calf's meow, you know, I--I can recite them all,
Well, I had to go down and see a guy named Mr. Goldsmith,
That can do what's never been done,
I'm sick of love, that I'm in the thick of it,
Yeah, but I would not feel so all alone,
Not a word was spoke between us, there was no risk involved,
My captain, he's decorated, he's well schooled, and he's skilled,
I'm just going down the road feeling bad,
Well, I got a new pony, she knows how to foxtrot, lope, and pace,
My thoughts of you don't ever rest - they'd kill me if I lie,
But you try with your whole soul,
I don't mind who you'll be waking with tomorrow,
It's like the earth just opened and swallowed him up,
Never weak but always strong,
You were striped, you were plain,
They're spoon-feeding Casanova, get him to feel more assured,
Well, it's march me away to the station with my suitcase in my hand,
Them distant ships of liberty on them iron waves so bold and free,
Though their voices are silent, their pleading looks will say,
My only prayer is if I can't be there,
All that and more and then some,
For Halloween buy her a trumpet and for Christmas buy her a drum,
Well, the doctor interrupted me just about then,
You keep me worried and bothered all of the time,
Ye shall be a-changed,
Vomit and jealousy's all that he sells us, he's contented when you're under his thumb,
Well, the Southern Pacific leaving at 9:45,
Well, I been gambling so long,
Waiting for the trains,
Done laid around, done stayed around this old town too long,
And it ain't made in no Hollywood wheat germ,
Someone to gather flowers constantly,
The ghost of our old love has not gone away,
God knows everything,
And you fake just like a woman,
Unto the shoe-less hunter who's gone deaf,
And the locusts sang, well, it give me a chill,
Doesn't have to say she's faithful,
I lived with them on Montague Street, in a basement down the stairs,
How many times have you heard someone say,
Heading out for the old East Coast - Lord knows, he's paid some dues getting through,
Oh, mama, can this really be the end,
The country doctor rambles,
As I ponder, hopes grow fonder,
Riding first-class train, making the round,
Masters of the bluff and masters of the proposition,
You lose yourself, but then you reappear,
Broken lines, broken strings,
If you have a woman and she don't treat you kind,
I have dined with kings, I've been offered wings,
You're the one I've been looking for, you're the one that's got the key,
Strangers, they meddled in our affairs,
House on fire, debts unpaid,
Human gods aim for their mark,
Father of day, father of night,
And, no matter how you try, you just can't say it,
Had a dream about you, baby,
Well, the captain, he is dead, our captain, he is dead,
Oh, I miss my darling so, I didn't mean to see her go,
Where charity is supposed to cover up a multitude of sins,
In the tune I'm humming, in the words that I'm thinking,
You don't have to yearn for love, you don't have to be alone,
And didn't even talk to the people at the table,
Put a gun in my hand and you hide from my eyes,
Well, I'm bound to get lucky, baby,
Made before the foundation of the world,
If I could only hear her heart a-softly pounding,
Rock me for a little while, rock me for a couple of months,
Summer days, summer nights are gone,
I broke into the tomb, but the casket was empty,
Yes, the last thing you said before you hit the street,
But you're disappointed now with those who did not deliver,
I've walked two hundred miles, now look me over,
--Bello and Bradley and they both baldly lied,
He sits in your room, his tomb, with a fist full of tacks,
Her eyebrows meet, she wears second-hand clothes,
And stopped into a strange hotel with a neon burning bright,
Distant ships sailing in through the mist,
Stay far from the fence with the 'lectricity sting,
Tell my woman I'll see her at home,
I think we oughtta take some of these people,
But I know that he don't talk,
Well, they'll stone you and say that it's the end,
With his ticket stub still in his hand,
That six diggers cannot bury him,
But the enemy I see wears a cloak of decency,
If I see and don't say, if I look right through you,
Prison walls are crumbling down, there is no end in sight,
Smoky autumn night, stars up in the sky,
Whole lotta hearts shaking tonight from the disease of conceit,
One day they blew him down in a clam bar in New York,
Trails of troubles, roads of battles,
Yes, we'll go out and see it sometime, we'll both just sit there and stare,
Getting harder and harder to recognize the trap,
Man's ego's inflated, his laws are outdated,
You will search, babe, at any cost,
In the image of someone you used to know,
When you think that you've lost everything,
You came through it all the way, flying through the skies,
You turn the tide on me each day and teach my eyes to see,
Hold me, baby, be near,
With silver bracelets on her wrists, flowers in her hair,
Three by three they danced on the sea,
Saying, "Boxing is here to stay,
When a horror broke out at the break of dawn and emptied out the streets,
Next to come in was a broken, black flea,
"So, take heed, take heed of the western winds,
It's a part of me now, it's been cherished and saved,
They tell me every man must fall,
Well, Jumping Judy can't go no higher,
A thousand miles from home,
Yes, I never did feel this way before,
Don't mind the driving rain,
I said, "My friend, John, Brigitte Bardot,
My money comes and goes, my money comes and goes,
The judge, he's holding a grudge and he's about to call on you,
I've heard all of them rumors and you have heard 'em, too,
Heart of mine,
Hoofbeats like castanets on stone,
I know Sal been doing them things again,
Went to my window, babe, I couldn't see through my blinds,
I'm telling myself I found true happiness,
Don't wanna burn nobody, don't wanna be burned,
And to come each time you call,
She cracks her knuckles and she snores in bed,
He bought the American dream, but it put him in debt,
In the summertime, oh, in the summertime,
And your magazine-husband, who one day just had to go,
There's a battle outside and it's raging,
Don't wanna touch nobody, don't wanna be touched,
And your cowboy mouth and your curfew-plugs,
I couldn't hear the robin sing,
Brownsville girl, show me all around the world,
You can knock on the President's gate, pretty mama,
He said every man's conscience is vile and depraved,
You know, I don't mind him cheating on me, but I sure wish he'd get that off his head,
Since you've been gone,
Well, anybody can be just like me, obviously,
The gallows' shadows shook the evening,
She gets all messed up, she faints,
Well, as we marched down, as we marched down,
Hawlin Alley on a dark and drizzly night,
Brownsville girl with your Brownsville curls,
I run the tape back in my mind wondering if I took the wrong road somewhere,
And it bothers you badly when you're laying in bed,
I went to get some help. I walked by a Guernsey cow,
Seen you in the door-way, I seen you in the park,
Like a needle in a haystack, I'm gonna find you yet,
Handy-dandy, he got a stick in his hand and a pocket full of money,
I wish I could give Brother Bill his great thrill,
You used to ride the chrome horse with your diplomat,
The air is getting hotter,
The endless road and the wailing of chimes,
And it still ain't me, babe,
They threw me in the alley when up comes this girl from France,
Let me eat when I'm hungry, let me drink when I'm dry,
On this curve I'm hanging, on this pathway I'm strolling,
No one in front of me and nothing behind,
Begging God for mercy, weeping in unholy places, Angelina,
That long, black train is pulling down,
Well, the Book of Leviticus and Deuteronomy,
Saying, "Boxing ain't to blame,
His mama walks the floor, his daddy weeps and moans,
And he just smoked my eyelids,
Santa Fe, dear, dear, dear, dear, dear Santa Fe,
I got a magnifying glass like Sherlock Holmes,
As the echo of the wedding bells, before the blowing rain,
I see people in the park forgetting their troubles and woes,
I seen a shooting star tonight and I thought of you,
I saw guns and sharp swords in the hands of young children,
Down the street the dogs are barking and the day is getting dark,
May your heart always be joyful, may your song always be sung,
Here's the story of the "Hurricane",
If not for you, my sky would fall,
Them charcoal gypsy maidens can strut their feathers well,
Feel bad this morning, ain't got no home,
Lord, I'm walking down the line, lord, I'm walking down the line,
There's a whole lotta people suffering tonight from the disease of conceit,
The cavalries charged, then the Indians fell,
Somebody got murdered on New Year's Eve,
And it ain't on a real rich kid's road-map,
Someday, if God's in heaven overlooking His preserve,
It rots in a cell misguided as hell,
'Cause he sinned, I got no choice, it run in my vein,
Blowing through the letters that we wrote,
It was all pointed out, the way to go, and scratched your name in sand,
You may call me R.J., you may call me Ray,
Well, howling wolf will howl tonight, a king snake will crawl,
Among the dead and dying, her darling love she found,
Bound by her boredom, her pride to protect,
I looked beneath the sofa, beneath the chair,
Mama, wipe the blood off of my face,
And it ain't no use in calling out my name, babe,
Pressing on - well, I can't turn 'round,
On this mandolin I'm strumming, in this song I'm singing,
I can hear them tribes moaning, hear that undertaker's bell,
Through many a dark hour I've been thinking about this,
In the great unknown,
"Come on over here, girl, and step into this light - ahh, you're right,
I don't wanna be a fool starving for affection,
The deputy sheriffs, the soldiers, the governors get paid,
I'm exiled, you can't convert me,
In the bitter dance of loneliness fading into space,
Princess up on the steeple and all them pretty people,
Then she went into the vessel to convey herself away,
I'm not the one you want, babe,
Don't let her know that you love her,
I been shooting in the dark too long, when something's not right, it's wrong,
May be noisemaker, spirit-maker,
Man put us together, now, you wanna make it stick together,
But the thing that scared me most, when my enemy came close,
The night blows rainy,
You need something to open your eyes,
Ain't no use jiving, ain't no use joking,
Nothing hypnotizes me or holds me in a spell,
'Cause you look and you start getting the chills,
When I met you, baby, you didn't show no visible scars,
Analyze you, categorize you,
He oversees his kingdom so no stranger does intrude,
Three by three, it don't set on me,
It was then that I got up to leave, but she said, "Don't forget,
I saw you drift into infinity and come back again,
Sometimes I wonder what's going on with Miss X,
Might like to eat caviar, you might like to eat bread,
One day the little boy and the little girl were both baked in a pie,
The next day everybody got up, seeing if the clothes were dry,
If you're traveling to the north country fair,
Can lead to hundred-dollar plates,
Well, he gambled in the White House and in the railroad yards,
Bringing me all of your charms,
I see the morning light, I see the morning light,
And, though her eyes are fixed upon Noah's great rainbow,
Well, I been looking at my shadow, I been watching the clouds up above,
All I remember about it was it starred Gregory Peck,
Go away from my window,
Who dwells in our hearts and our memories,
There's a lone soldier on the cross, smoke pouring out of a boxcar door,
What drives a-me to you is what drives me insane,
I own you're a maid I love dearly and you've been in my heart all the while,
And I feel like I'm knocking on heaven's door,
I woke up on the roadside daydreaming about the way things sometimes are,
Turn your back, wash your hands,
Sticks me with buckshot when I'm nude,
"Pull off, pull off them high-heeled shoes all made of Spanish leather,
Two big bags of dead man's bones,
"Strike up the band," they hit it,
You told me that you'd be sincere,
Where the angels stand high on the poles,
My existence led by confusion boats,
I was thinking 'bout turquoise, I was thinking 'bout gold,
"The calls of my master compelled me from home,
We paid no respect to their two bloody backs,
Tolling for the luckless, the abandoned and forsaked,
Sometimes feel so low-down and disgusted,
You know, capitalism is above the law,
I've torn my clothes and I've drained the cup,
Ain't complaining 'bout what I got,
By His truth I can be upright, by His strength I do endure,
Woman that I love, she got a hook in her nose,
It ain't in the cardboard-box house,
Your sons and your daughters are beyond your command,
And your pillows of feathers turn to blankets of lead,
Well, my ship's been split to splinters and it's sinking fast,
Don't know what you got that I want, don't know what I got to give,
Then, when we meet again, introduced as friends,
In the time of my confession, in the hour of my deepest need,
Money doesn't talk, it swears,
I'll say, "It's easily done,
Well, I'm forty miles from the mill, I'm dropping it into overdrive,
I keep listening for footsteps, but I ain't ever hearing any,
They run to the water their buckets to fill,
The Communists were coming around,
Dr. Filth, he keeps his world inside of a leather cup,
Next to come in was a little, black tick, uh-huh,
When I saw that my partner was just being friendly,
Sweat pouring down, I'm staring at the floor,
For Wichita in a pile of fruit,
The wind, it was howling and the snow was outrageous,
May you stay forever young,
The sun turned cold over President Street and the town of Brooklyn mourned,
You have given me life to live,
Because he has denied himself the things that you can't live without,
The meat is so tough you can't cut it with a sword,
I see the sailing boats across the bay go by,
We wanna put his ass in stir,
I shall be released,
There's a whole lotta hearts breaking tonight from the disease of conceit,
I tried to reach you, honey,
I wish to my soul I had seven years, uh-huh,
Followed some clues from my detective bag,
In death you face life with a child and a wife who sleepwalks through your dreams into walls,
Noontime and I'm still on the road, on the darkest part,
Categorize me or hypnotize me,
Feeling funny in my eyes, Lord,
Then you set back and watch while the death count gets higher,
You never understood that it ain't no good,
Sad-eyed lady of the lowlands,
Your mother says I'm a stranger,
Maybe someday you'll have nowhere to turn,
"Well, I spied me a girl and, before she could leave,
I met another man who was wounded in hatred,
But now morning is clear,
You can't take it with you and you know it's too worthless to be sold,
But that's what you need, man, and you need it bad,
Mama's in the factory, ain't got no shoes,
Well, I was feeling sad and kinda blue,
And every girl that ever I've hurt,
Sister Jacqueline and Carmela and mother Mary all did weep,
And your flesh like silk and your face like glass,
Meet me in the morning, 56th and Wabasha,
True love, they've been without it,
I got a bird that whistles,
I muttered something underneath my breath, she studied the lines of my face,
'Tell your ma, tell your pa,
I'd like to help you, but I'm in a bit of a jam,
Go get me my pistol, babe,
There's mirrors inside the minds of crazy faces,
The angels play on their horns all day,
But it ain't him to blame,
Don't say 'murder', don't say 'kill',
Don't wanna be with nobody tonight,
Move lightly from the ledge, babe,
With that half-wit comedian on it,
As I was out walking on the corner one day,
But he's the property of Jesus,
All the truth in the world adds up to one big lie,
That won't laugh at your looks, your voice, or your face,
I get my sweet reward,
Last time you would hear the sermon on the mount,
And I drove down Forty-second Street,
So, I watched that sun come rising from the little Minnesota town,
He jabbed him once with his bully club,
But my heart is not weary, it's light and it's free,
I moved in closer, got up on my toes,
Seen his family scattered, people hounded and torn,
I got to see you, baby, I don't care,
You might think he loves you for your money, but I know what he really loves you for,
Mixing up the medicine,
Made before the foundation of--of the world,
Heading out for the old East Coast, radio blasting the news straight on through,
Come, baby, rock me, come, baby, lock me into the shadows of your heart,
Gonna get low-down, gonna fly high,
Striking for the guardians and protectors of the mind,
If I ever lose her, I will go insane,
Ah, get sick, get well,
Went out last night just to take a little round,
You've tried to change me ever since you've met me,
Now, the judge and the jury, they took their stand,
The night would see me wide awake,
He saw an animal up on a hill chewing up so much grass until he was filled,
It was from her ship sailing,
I picked up a rose and it poked through my clothes,
Just like I did before,
Baby, let me follow you down,
They say everything can be replaced,
You may be standing there with a tear in your eye,
Come, now, sweet cream, don't forget to flash,
Hey, Mr. Tambourine Man, play a song for me,
And his jaws start closing with you underneath,
Your brain is bleeding and your legs can't seem to stand,
Marry me a wife, catch rainbow trout,
I had no one for to go my bail,
When you've decided that you've had enough,
They say that vanity got the best of him,
I'll forsake my husband too for the love of Blackjack Davey,
And tomorrow's morning seems so far away,
God knows that, when you see it,
Scratch your dad, do that bird,
I was burned out from exhaustion, I was buried in the hail,
Opened up a door no man can shut and You opened it up so wide,
They let him out in '71, I swear he did look great,
Blind man breaking out of a trance,
Tomorrow night, before the sun goes down,
Acting out his folly while his back is being whipped,
The Spanish moon is rising on the hill,
And they--they look at me and frown,
But she's drifting like a satellite,
Poor boy dressed in black,
Nothing 'round here I care to try for, 'cept you, yeah, you,
Stake my future on a hell of a past,
Now, it's day and night the irons clang and, like poor galley slaves,
I don't care how rough the road is, show me where it starts,
You've only murdered my father, raped his wife,
Spanish is the loving tongue,
There on the sidewalk he did lay,
Went back to my backyard,
Once I had a sweetheart, she was fine and good-looking,
We cut through iron and we cut through mud,
Need a woman [incomprehensible],
I heard the sound of a clown who cried in the alley,
I heard some footsteps by the front porch door,
I was raised in the country, I been working in the town,
God don't call it treason,
They're selling postcards of the hanging, they're painting the passports brown,
"Down the corner by the hot dog stand,
Wiggle till you wiggle right outta here,
To get their kicks, get out of it quick,
It's such a sad thing to see beauty decay,
I ain't too good at conversation, girl,
Covenant woman, intimate, little girl,
King of the streets, child of clay,
But it ain't me, babe,
Late last night I heard my screen door slam,
Delia was a gambling girl, gambled all around,
You to me were true,
Never slumbered or slept or waited for lightning to strike,
In the shadows of the Mesa she will lead you,
Something in the moonlight still hounds him,
Oh, the locusts sang such a sweet melody,
Down the highway, down the tracks, down the road to ecstasy,
Where the ways of nature will test every nerve,
Like in a dream when someone wakes up and screams,
Neighborhood bully, been driven out of every land,
That every other day buy a new pair of sunglasses,
One day you'll be in the grave, flies buzzing around your eyes,
As the tune drifted out, she breathed hard through the echo,
It's just that I'll be sleeping soon and it'll be too dark for you to find the door,
Everybody moving - if they ain't already there,
With men in every walk of life, which took her everywhere,
Black sunglass can't make pony run,
Won't sneak up into your room, tall, dark, and handsome,
Once upon a time you dressed so fine,
And your sidewalk starts curling and the street gets too long,
Looking at you and I'm on my bended knee,
If you'd see me this way,
Precious memories, how they linger,
I just can't do what I've done before,
I saw a black branch with blood that kept dripping,
Going to Ac--to see soft gut, going to have some fun,
That, as long as it takes to do this,
Something is burning, baby, something's in flames,
Well, sometimes I might get drunk,
The wicked know no peace and you just can't fake it,
'Twas in the summer one early fall,
Searching high, searching low,
They say that your ore ain't worth digging,
My hands never touched him none,
I return to the Queen of Spades, talk a-with the chambermaid,
Freight train was the one taught me how to cry,
I'm painting the town, swinging my partner around,
But you're doing it again,
I can't feel you anymore, I can't even touch the books you've read,
He had a-one too many lovers and none of 'em were too refined - all except for you,
When the pool of tears beneath my feet flood every newborn seed,
Hmm, see what you can do,
Lily took her dress off, buried it away,
She's delicate, she seems like the mirror,
I don't mean to say that she got nothing going,
Tomorrow's never what it's supposed to be,
'Cause today I'll be staying here with you,
Their folks, they said their lives together sure was a-gonna be rough,
Oh, the benches were stained with tears and perspiration,
He was wined and speeched and honored, everybody shook his hand,
Storm clouds are raging all around my door,
When the jelly-faced women all sneeze,
She talks to all the servants about man and God and law,
Yesterday's just a memory,
It blows their minds most bitterly,
I've seen love go by my door, it's never been this close before,
Looked behind the clothes, behind the chair,
Gon' walk down that dirt road until my eyes begin to bleed,
And, when I'm called up yonder and it's my time to go,
Early one morning the sun was shining, he was lying in bed,
Young man looking in the shadows that pass,
I grabbed my hat and away I'd run,
She got all the downtown boys all at her command,
I heard the song of a poet who died in the gutter,
Curtis in the jailhouse drinking from an old tin cup,
I'm singing love's praises with sugarcoated rhyme,
I heard one hundred drummers whose hands were blazing,
I can tell you fancy, I can tell you plain,
I might go insane if it couldn't be sprung,
He won a fortune from a man who folded in his chair,
Father of cold and father of heat,
Or you can go to Brooklyn State Hospital,
Now, after weeks and weeks of hanging around,
Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee,
I'm a long way from home and I miss my loved one so,
Beat or cheat or mistreat you,
At the close of the day,
But evidently she don't,
Cinderella, she seems so easy. "It takes one to know one," she smiles,
And it seems like I've gotta travel on,
It's mighty funny, the end of time has just begun,
Not one more night, not one more kiss,
I run right home and I went to bed,
I gave him my blanket and he gave me his word,
Smell the tail of the dragon,
And the rocks on the sand will proudly stand,
And, when the fight was over and Old Glory raised,
It don't matter no more what you got to say,
Meanwhile far away in another part of town,
The coachman, he hit me for my hook and--and he asked me my name,
Well, I'm tired of talking, I'm tired of trying to explain,
Going down to see soft gut, going to have some fun,
Just to know that you are near,
You can say she'd better not wait for me, but don't tell her I'm in jail,
Past the tree of smoke, past the angel with four faces,
There ought to be a law against you coming around,
You think you know the smile on her lips,
The reincarnation of Paul Revere's horse,
You know, I once knew a woman who looked like you,
He took whatever he wanted to and he laid it all to waste,
Maggie comes fleet-foot,
Open the door, Richard, I've heard it said before,
I know all about poison, I know all about fiery darts,
A change in the weather is always extreme,
It was like a revelation when you betrayed me with your touch,
Some old whore from San Pedro'll make advances,
Oh, with a pain that stops and starts,
And when it's time for leaving Mozambique,
Got no place to fade, got no coat,
But he knew his duty and the price he had to pay,
My daddy, he made whiskey, my granddaddy, he did, too,
Resent him to the bone,
Name of Martin Luther King,
There's a lonesome bell-tone in that valley of stone,
If you ever want to reach me, you know where to look,
When I get low, she sets me on my feet,
Yes, that's the story of the "Hurricane",
Big Jim was no one's fool, he owned the town's only diamond mine,
And sent for a physician to quickly heal his wounds,
Going back to Pittsburgh, count up to thirty,
Who eats, but is not satisfied, who hears, but does not see,
Time is piling up, we struggle and we scrape,
Praise be to Nero's Neptune, the Titanic sails at dawn,
At night I dream of bells in the village steeple,
If I got anything you need, babe, let me tell you in front,
Maybe I'd'a saved some life that been lost,
He's criticized and condemned for being alive,
He saw an animal as smooth as glass slithering his way through the grass,
Well, I quit my job so I could work alone,
Where Ma Rainey and Beethoven unwrapped their bedroll,
And looked for the girl who'd stared for so long,
Well, I've already had two beers, I'm ready for the broom,
I can't be good no more once like I did before,
I'm going out of my mind,
I was looking every place for them god-darned Reds,
That four ears cannot hear him,
Joey, Joey,
Don't wanna confuse nobody, don't wanna be confused,
And if I should die 'fore my time should come,
But one thing for certain: when it come my time,
In his anger and his shame,
People talk over situations,
Just don't put on any airs when you're down on Rue Morgue Avenue,
Some are mathematicians, some are truck drivers' wives,
Well, he rode right up to Ms. Mousey's door, uh-huh,
Mama, lay my guns into the ground,
The whole earth, in progression, seems to pass by,
He drank Coca-Cola, he was eating Wonder Bread,
Your pearly eyes, so fast and slashing,
Hollis Brown, he lived on the outside of town,
Adulterers in churches and pornography in the schools,
That must be what it's all about,
One bird-book and a buzzard and a crow,
Now there's spiritual warfare, flesh and blood breaking down,
Someone got a hold of my heart,
Papa's in the big house, his working days are through,
Now, I likes to do just like the rest, I like my sugar sweet,
A hand set the spark,
It was a girl I learned it from,
The curfew had been lifted and the gambling wheel shut down,
It's people's games you got to dodge,
May you grow up to be righteous, may you grow up a-to be true,
What good am I if I know and don't do,
Sara, oh, Sara, glamorous nymph with an arrow and bow,
Mama's in the factory. she ain't got no shoes,
Someone to open each and every door,
Who knows those most secret things of me that are hidden from the world,
I couldn't imagine doing anything else,
If you don't believe there's a price for this sweet paradise,
He cocked his rifle and began to shout,
If not for you,
And the point is slick,
All you can do is do what you must,
Everybody's doing something - I've heard it in a dream,
You're gonna make me wonder what I'm saying,
I've stumbled on the side of twelve misty mountains,
Time passes slowly up here in the mountains,
There's more frost on the window glass with each new, tender kiss,
But me, I'm still on the road, heading for another joint,
I noticed at the ceremony that you left your bags behind,
You gone to the finest school, alright, Ms. Lonely,
Brighton girls are like the moon,
Everything you've gotten you've gotten by sweat, blood, and the muscle,
And it ain't me, babe,
The haunted, frightened trees,
And give them kisses, one, two, three,
Got nothing for you, I had nothing before,
Don't let her hear where you're going,
She takes about fifteen baths a day,
To hang and to lynch,
When the judge saw Reilly's daughter,
She turned around to look at me as I was a-walking away,
Pistol-shots ring out on a barroom night,
Even though my eyes are hazy and my thoughts, they might be narrow,
Don't let her know,
Dead man, dead man, when will you arise,
Would you forsake your husband too to go with Blackjack Davey,
But whatever you wish to keep, you'd better grab it fast,
False-hearted judges dying in the webs that they spin,
Go lightly from the ledge, babe,
Oh, princess on the steeple and all the pretty people,
Don't wanna play with nobody, don't wanna be waylaid,
They say that every man must fall,
I would set him in chains at the top of the hill,
Just like you I'm wondering what I'm doing a-here,
You're beautiful beyond words,
I'm so tired of those who use you for their own pleasure,
Sheiks walking around like kings, wearing fancy jewels and nose-rings,
God don't call it wrong,
Straight was the track to the top of the hill,
Father of grain, father of wheat,
Ain't nobody but Sally Sue Brown,
You say you love me with what be--may be love,
Thunder rolling over Clarksdale, everything looking blue,
The answer is blowing in the wind,
The treasure can't be found by men who search,
Oh, and you are on dry land,
He had a lovely daughter, the truth to you I'll tell,
Now I've just got to cut loose before it gets late,
Your mama, she's hiding inside the icebox,
When they tried to strangle Larry, Joey almost a-hit the roof,
Crowded up above and crowded down below,
Now, Ira returned a hero, celebrated throughout the land,
And I said, "Oh, I didn't know that,
The Communists was a-coming around,
Cold, black glass don't make no mirror,
Baby, thank you for my tea,
She never stumbles, she got no place to fall,
There's only one road and it leads to Calvary,
No younger than twelve, no older than seventeen,
Standing on a corner a-ringing my bell,
He hands you a nickel, then he hands you a dime,
Had nothing to do with picnic,
That Jesus Christ was betrayed by a kiss,
Lotta water under the bridge, lotta other stuff too,
Trouble in the city, trouble in the farm,
Well, the Lone Ranger and Tonto were riding down the line,
There is no use in talking and there's no need for blame,
We drove that car as far as we could, abandoned it out west,
Ye shall be changed,
God knows you ain't pretty,
The tiny man bit the soldier's ear as the floor caved in and the boiler in the basement blew,
Try to flag a ride back home, pretty mama,
Just a minute 'fore you leave, girl,
Well, meet me, Jesus, meet me,
Something is burning, baby, here's what I say,
You'll never get rid of me as long as you're alive,
Get born, keep warm,
Nearly drove me crazy with the wagging of his jaw,
She tickles my nose, pats me on the head,
"Not me," said his manager,
Everybody from right now to over there and back,
Front door shut, back door too,
That carry 'round a fire-hose,
I snuck around the house with a huff and a hiss,
You may be the heavyweight champion of the world,
And there is no one there to dry your tears,
When you wake up in the morning, baby, look inside your mirror,
Feel the pulse and vibration and the rumbling force,
Stay away from the train line,
No, no, no, it ain't me, babe,
Alfred Bello had a partner and he had a rap for the cops,
She leave by the other and roam,
Coffins dropping in the street like balloons made out of lead,
By the night and been to some place new,
Wiggle to the front, wiggle to the rear,
Well, as we marched down to Fennario,
Blackness was a virtue, the road was full of mud,
Not a word was spoke between us, there was little risk involved,
He did ten years in Attica, reading Nietzsche and Wilhelm Reich,
All down in taken-for-granted situations,
Like as not, it's better so,
Freedom, just around the corner for you,
Every day is the same thing, out the door,
Now, the Spanish-American War had its day,
Give you my money, honey,
Puts the pied-pipers in prison and fattens the slaves,
Now she's opened up a lefty home,
As majestic bells of bolts struck shadows in the sounds,
I had a job in the Great North Woods working as a cook for a spell,
Yeah, the locusts sang such a sweet melody,
And joined the John Birch Society,
I got blood in my eyes for you, baby,
Underneath that tree there's just gonna be you and me,
You can tell her that I had to change my plans and cancel out the wedding-day,
Don't wanna cheat nobody, I don't wanna be cheated,
"It's too bright a light," he said, "for anybody's eyes,
Uttering idle words from a reprobate mind,
And your basement-clothes and your hollow face,
Oh, one more time at midnight near the wall,
Oh, but this old river keeps on rolling, though,
So, all you rambling gamblers, wherever you might be,
With a bottle of oil in his hand,
The winter wind is a-blowing strong, my hands a-got no gloves,
Written by an Italian poet from the fifteenth century,
He shook the land like a rolling thunder,
They'll stone you when you are young and able,
The words fill my head and fall to the floor,
Was that trainload of fools bogged down in a magnetic field,
I want you so bad,
When it costs too much to build it at home,
You came up behind me, I saw you go by,
For the misdemeanor outlaw, chained and cheated by pursuit,
My throat starts to tickle and my nose itches,
Sing it to you right, but you might think it's wrong,
She's holding them little, white shoes and that little, broken toy,
Well, she pulled off them high-heeled shoes made of Spanish leather,
There's always been people that have to cause fear,
Blowing down the backroads, heading south,
'Twas in another lifetime, one of toil and blood,
I took my potatoes down to be mashed,
When you gonna wake up, said when you gonna wake up,
Drunken politician leaps upon the street where mothers weep,
So, run here, baby, put your little hands in mine,
The one we can see and can feel,
Come over here, baby, 'cause I'm telling you this,
Eh, in somebody's room,
If that was you in the dream that was screaming,
Brains in the pot, they're beginning to boil,
You wanna ramble, uh, to the break of dawn,
I know that fortune is waiting to be kind,
I been good while I been waiting,
May be working in the wind down to the town,
I'm gonna stop at Carmangale and keep on going,
People disagreeing on just about everything, yeah, makes you stop and wonder why,
Oh, the hours that I've spent inside the Colosseum,
Make you spin or do you in,
Well, the rain beating down on my windowpane,
Leave your stepping-stones behind, there's something that calls for you,
They got him outnumbered 'bout a million to one,
Well, the rifleman's stalking the sick and the lame,
No more driver's lash for me, no more, no more,
The fewer words you have to waste on this,
The festival was over and the boys were all planning for a fall,
He hands--out in your face for kicks,
Well, I walked all night long hearing them church bells tone,
And there he spied his darling bride in the arms of Blackjack Davey,
Not out of spite, nor anger,
But you need it badly and it lays on the street,
Well, what will your mother say, what will your mother say,
If I'd knowed how bad you'd treat me,
The cloak-and-dagger dangles,
Tell-tale heart will show itself to anybody near,
Going to Acapulco, going on the run,
Felt that emptiness inside to which he just could not relate,
For she ain't the same,
Seen a shooting star tonight slip away,
Into my own parade,
Doing ninety miles an hour down a dead-end street,
But now we've got weapons of a-chemical dust,
God knows you've got to weep,
Hazel, stardust in your eye,
I couldn't see how you could know me,
Old-lady judges watch people in pairs,
I march in the parade of liberty,
There's guns across the river aiming at you,
Well, Georgia Sam, he had a bloody nose,
She's looking into my eyes, she's a-holding my hand,
But overlooked a hundred times or more,
Thin man looking at his last meal,
The desk clerk heard the woman laugh as he looked around in the aftermath and the soldier got tough,
Till both of us fell by the way,
Now, he looked so immaculately frightful as he bummed a cigarette,
They don't believe in mercy,
Doctor, can you hear me? I need some Medicaid,
That the laws are with him,
In a twinkling of an eye when the last trumpet blows,
Lily was a princess, she was fair-skinned and precious as a child,
The wagon come, they loaded him in,
You have many contacts out there among the lumberjacks,
Straightaway then he led her down into the hold,
My bewildering brain toils in vain,
And you want someone that you don't have to speak to,
She wears an Egyptian red ring, it sparkles before she speaks,
I hired out to Diamond Joe, boys, did offer him my hand,
Woke up this morning and I looked at the same old page,
You just kinda wasted my precious time,
Call me any name you like, I will never deny it,
But the funniest thing was, when I was leaving the bay,
You know I know the sun will always shine,
He woke up and she was gone, he didn't see nothing but the dawn,
I once held her in my arms,
Winterlude by the telephone wire,
You're gon' quit me, baby,
Working like in the mainline, working like the devil,
"The news of the day is on all the time,
Whose screams filled the arena loud,
Don't have to go to Russia or Iran,
Time and love has branded me with its claws,
Pardon me--pardon me if I'm sentimental when we say goodbye,
It still ain't me, babe,
Three-legged man and a hot-lipped hoe,
A complete unknown,
Whose heaven is like Ironside's, whose tears are like rain,
Eh, singing just for you,
Adios, mi corazon,
The ringleaders from the county seat say you don't have all that much time,
I met little Sadie and I blowed her down,
Always was a sucker for the right cross,
Then the volcano erupted and the lava flowed down from the mountain high above,
Skies are gray, I'm looking for anything that'll bring a happy glow,
The iron hand, it ain't no match for the iron rod,
I give her my heart, but she wanted my soul,
For me He was chastised, for me He was hated,
Down on the surface with a [incomprehensible],
You can stand all alone by the side of the road,
I've walked and I've crawled on six crooked highways,
Oh, I know it had to be that way, it was written in the cards,
Well, you take just like a woman,
Maybe someday you'll hear a voice from on high,
The guilty undertaker sighs, the lonesome organ-grinder cries,
Well, it may be the devil or it a-may be the Lord,
I believe in you even though I be outnumbered,
Alberta, don't you treat me unkind,
Ain't in the dime-store dummies and bubble-gum goons,
Sara, oh, Sara, wherever we travel we're never apart,
Always on the outside of whatever side there was,
You know I won't be next to you, you know I won't be near,
To strict party-platform ties,
Whole lotta people seeing double tonight from the disease of conceit,
They can exalt you up or bring you down bankrupt,
Well, it must be a holiday, there's nobody around,
No more booby traps and bombs, no more decadence and charm,
Well, they'll choose a man for you to meet tonight,
I've been ten thousand miles in the mouth of a graveyard,
When just then a passing stranger burst upon the scene,
I heard ten thousand whispering and nobody listening,
They're lying low and they're making hay,
Them Reds did it,
Many days you have lingered all around my cabin door,
My clothes are wet, tight on my skin,
If I could hear her heart a-softly pounding,
She never said nothing, there was nothing she wrote,
When you think you're too old, too young, too smart, or too dumb,
If I just turn away when I see how you're dressed,
The handmade blade, the child's balloon,
Yes, my guard stood hard when abstract threats,
And I hope that you die and your death will come soon,
And it's all afternoon you remember your hometown,
I'd already gone the distance,
I ain't gonna work on Maggie's farm no more,
And you jump from your bed from the last chapter of dreaming,
Near broken chains, mountain laurel, and rolling rocks,
There's just one last favor I'll ask of you,
The winds of change are blowing wild and free,
And there's no one there to comfort you with a helping hand to lend,
Oh, come all without, yeah, come all within,
Leaving the towns I love the best,
To your tambourine in time,
Some trigger-happy fool willing to take chances,
Shock or knock or lock you up,
You've never learned to read or write, there's no books upon your shelf,
Must be living in the shadow of some kind of evil star,
They'll stone you when you're trying to keep your seat,
"No, I never did engage in this kinda thing before,
But it would not make me tremble for to see ten thousand fall,
Me and my gal, my gal's son,
You belong to someone else and I do too,
Four by four, no illusion for,
All that false instruction, which we never could believe,
And our ship was high upon the sea when pirates came along,
Oh, I'll give the land a little shock, remember what I say,
Driven deep beneath the waves,
I'll look for you in old Honolulu, San Francisco, or Ashtabula,
My comrades, they all loved me well - a jolly, saucy crew,
If you give me back my baby, I won't worry you no more,
Men in Atlanta trying to pass for white,
Took me downtown and they dressed me in black,
Frighten you or up-tighten you,
I started out on burgundy, but soon hit the harder stuff,
Need something special-need something special, alright,
The tune that is yours and mine to play upon this earth,
The holy one called Jesus Christ,
I don't care how many letters they sent, morning came and morning went,
Madams light the candles,
I'm going where the chilly winds don't blow,
Shooting tin cans with a sawed-off shotgun,
She takes just like a woman,
I've tried my best to love you, but I cannot play this game,
I'm ready to go anywhere,
The wildest cat from Montana passes by in a flash,
All I know is that I'm thrilled by your kiss,
It hurts me, too,
Got a little girl, her name is Ball,
When I peeked out from a manhole cover,
Little rooster crowing, there must be something on his mind,
She'll surely turn to white,
They'll stone and they'll be back for more,
"Well, if you could have married a king's daughter there,
Tolling for the rebel, tolling for the rake,
Please her, please him, buy gifts,
When you've lost everything, you'll have nothing left to hide,
I'm going back to Colorado,
And I'm so glad - I'm glad,
She goes away for a minute and I slide out outta my chair,
He had a job in the old North Woods working as a cook for a spell,
Rosemary combed her hair and took a carriage into town,
Got to have your own harem when you come in the door,
Now, from Boston to Birmingham is a two-day ride,
Early one morning the sun was shining, I was a-laying in bed,
If you'd see me this a-way,
I'm a good old boy, but I've been sniffing too many eggs,
Mr. Frog went a-hopping up over the brook, uh-huh,
When the night comes falling,
Got to hurry on back to my hotel room,
Every moon is so sanctified,
Listen to that Duquesne whistle blowing,
Asking the cops wherever I go,
Like a fool, you're not gonna hear me say,
Standing by God's river, my soul's beginning to shake,
If you get close to her, kiss her once for me,
Well, you saw my picture in the Corpus Christi Tribune,
Sign on a window says "Lonely",
Leaves are rustling in the wood, things are falling off the shelf,
And, you know, there was something about you, baby,
The sword swallower walks up to you and he kneels,
Look at my skin shine, look at my skin glow,
Equality, liberty,
And some people thinking that the end is close by,
In the turning of twilight,
Gargles in the rat-race choir,
You angel, you, you got me under your wing,
But I'm saved,
Serve somebody,
For one more member, who had business back in town,
May be a construction worker working on a home,
Well, my sense of humanity has gone down the drain,
My own heart's in the [incomprehensible],
For the days of old when we dug up the gold, in the days of '49,
And my skin will surely crawl if he touches you at all,
I stood unwound beneath the skies and clouds unbound by laws,
I bought myself a herd of moose, one day she could call it her own,
Everybody said they'd stand behind me when the game got rough,
A true love of mine,
You can have the best there is, but it's gonna cost you all your love,
Flowers on the hillside blooming crazy,
And your rope is a-sliding 'cause your hands are dripping,
Well, don't know which one is worse - doing your own thing or just being cool,
Persecution, execution, governments outta control,
You have given me eyes to see,
He got that clear crystal fountain,
Oh, the years passed again and the giving was good,
No more affection that's misplaced, girl,
Oh, her skirt, it swayed as the guitar played,
Walk around with nowhere to go,
Where my friends and I spent many an afternoon,
My ears are ringing, ringing like empty shells,
But he can't be blamed,
Me and my baby walking down the street,
Well, I got eight carburetors and, boys, I'm using 'em all,
And all that you've held sacred falls down and does not mend,
Yet every distance is not near,
And so it did happen like it could have been foreseen,
And the locusts sang with that high, whining trill,
There's not even room enough to be anywhere,
West of the Jordan, east of the Rock of Gibraltar,
I know I can't win,
When my mother died, my uncle took me in, he run a funeral parlor,
That whirlpool of life that's in your eye,
Circled by the circus sands,
But I did it because he lied, because he took you for a ride,
I heard one hundred drummers whose hands were a-blazing,
Now, the jury found me guilty, then says the judge, says he,
And your gravity's down and negativity don't get you through,
He said, "I saw two men running out, they looked like middleweights,
Seen you in the sunshine, I seen you in the dark,
How does it feel,
Idiot wind blowing every time you move your mouth,
Oh, I see by the angel beside me that love has a reason to shine,
The tragic figure. her sister did shout,
Well, the high tide's rising, mama, don't you let me down,
I got no place left to turn,
Because he don't increase his worth at someone else's expense,
And your silver cross and your voice like chimes,
Most of the time it's well understood,
But you changed my life, you came along in a time of strife,
I helped you when you had no shoes on your feet, pretty mama,
I'm just whispering to myself, so I can't pretend that I don't know,
It's a feeling that I just can't trace,
Alberta, let your hair hang low,
I can make it all match up, I can hold my own,
Take me disappearing through the smoke-rings of my mind,
So, all you newsy people, spread the news around,
And your whole world's a-slamming and banging,
The iron ore poured as the years passed the door,
Said it was the land of milk and honey,
Shut the eyes of the dead not to embarrass anyone,
Every nerve is analyzed,
The hanging judge a-was sober, he hadn't had a drink,
I walked out to the valley, I turned my head up high,
We came to the pyramids all embedded in ice,
And rivers that ran through every day,
Don't know which is worse - doing your own thing or being cool,
To hide what they've got left behind their eyes,
I sung the song slowly as she stood in the shadows,
The gypsy undertaker cries, the lonesome organ-grinder sighs,
Don't wanna buy nobody, don't wanna be bought,
So he drifted down to New Orleans, lucky not to be destroyed,
I got my walking shoes and I ain't a-gonna lose,
Two by two they stepped into the ark,
Lying next to her by the ocean,
But they'll pinch themselves and squeal wnd they'll know that it's for real,
Feel like a broke-down engine, ain't got no whistle or bell,
She was a backwoods girl, but she sure was realistic,
Yeah, the locusts sang and they were singing for me,
Well, they ventured out behind the line and took five prisoners,
Every nerve in my body is so vacant and numb,
And you know that it's something special you're needing,
A self-ordained professor's tongue,
You may be somebody's landlord, you may even own banks,
Idiot wind blowing through the dust upon our shelves,
So swiftly the sun sets in the sky,
And I answer them most mysteriously,
We've reached the edge of the road, baby, where the pasture begins,
I leaned my back up against an oak,
You can look out across the fields, see me returning,
And it's keep down your head and stay in your number,
They're all drinking, thinking that they got it made,
And the whole world is on your case,
She's in Santa Fe, dear, dear, dear, dear, dear Santa Fe,
Sleeping in the saddle, sleeping in a king-size bed,
There's always another stranger sneaking glances,
You been through all of F. Scott Fitzgerald's books,
Admit that the waters around you have grown,
And it's like I ain't here,
That somebody someplace oughtta be hearing,
Still I don't know what I'm gonna do,
First degree and second degree,
The night blows cold and rainy,
You must leave now, take what you need, you think will last,
Shake the dust off of your feet, don't look back,
Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum,
Enter Patty Valentine from the outer hall,
His eyes were two slits - make any snake proud,
Rubin Carter and a couple of friends are driving around,
Thank You, Lord,
Well, it's sugar for sugar, it's salt for salt,
I'm looking up into the sapphire-tinted skies,
All except for Cain and Abel and the Hunchback of Notre Dame,
I saw a little chicken a-down on his knees,
What's lost is lost, we can't regain what went down in the flood,
Or make your heart pound, but, then again, you know when they're around,
Counterfeit philosophies have polluted all of your thoughts,
Next to come in was Mrs. Cow,
When the cities are on fire with the burning flesh of men,
Well, my captain, he's decorated, he's well schooled, and he's skilled,
To stay closer--closer than any friend,
You'll be doing society a favor,
It's too bad for his wife and kids he's dead,
I looked for my friends, but I never could find them,
Shadows even the silver spoon,
I'm a-wondering if she remembers me at all,
The crystal ball upon the wall hasn't shown me nothing yet,
They're all drinking and thinking that they got it made,
I just kept looking at the side of her face in the spotlight so clear,
And my heart stopped beating and my hands turned cold,
There's seven people dead on a South Dakota farm,
And they'll jerk from their beds and think they're dreaming,
They--they show me to the door,
You know--so nasty and you're so bad,
The words fill my head and they fall to the floor,
Handy-dandy, he got a basket of flowers and a bag full of sorrow,
She told me, though, that one day we would meet up again,
Dreams of strangling me with a scarf,
And the night blows rainy,
Broken bottles, broken plates,
I don't remember who I was or where I was bound,
But me, I'm still on the road, a-heading for another joint,
Now, the moon is almost hidden, the stars are beginning to hide,
My love, she speaks like silence,
Into her dark chamber she will greet you,
A lot of people don't have much food on their table,
Blood drying in my yellow hair as I go from shore to shore,
"Stop all this weeping, swallow your pride,
And your saintlike face and your ghostlike soul,
Mine've been like Verlaine's and Rimbaud's,
God knows it's true,
Well, I got here following the Southern Star,
Who shapeth the cloud up in the sky,
Who among them, do you think, could resist you,
Sailing down the Mississippi to a town called New Orleans,
It ain't no use in turning on your light, babe,
She said, "Your debutante knows what you need,
I couldn't walk, couldn't talk, smell, feel,
Didn't come close to a mountain,
They got some beautiful people out there, man,
Heart of mine, be still,
They say every man needs protection,
Lady Luck, who shines on me, will tell you where I'm at,
I got a God-fearing woman, one I can easily afford,
"I'll do your bidding, comrade mine,
One time ago a crazy dream came to me,
A million faces at my feet,
I must admit I felt a little uneasy when she bent down to tie the laces of my shoe,
Works up to her britches, up to her neck,
And about how she was thinking of bumming a ride back to from where she started,
We never much thought we could get very old,
Dad's in a hallway looking hard for the fuze,
Gon' walk down that road till everything becomes the same,
Took Ms. Mousey on his knee,
Billy, you're so far away from home,
Mama's in the factory, ain't got no shoe,
My dogs are barking, there must be someone around,
And his cheeks in a chunk, with his cheese in the cash,
But, if you gotta go, it's alright,
When you're gone, I will dream a little dream as years go by,
Oh, get born, keep warm,
Your lips on mine are like sweet, sweet wine,
Gonna sing it loud, sing it strong,
Now she's gone and I don't worry,
I ran right through the front door like a hobo-sailor does,
Father of night, father of day,
You say you love me and you're thinking of me, but you know you could be wrong,
A change in the weather is known to be extreme,
Is used, it is plain,
'Cept the one that you can't see with your eyes,
Say he's hard of hearing, say that he's a chump,
Two by two, into the foggy dew,
Take the motherless children off the street,
One push of the button and a shot the world wide,
Lenny Bruce is dead, but he didn't commit any crime,
I never asked you for nothing that you couldn't deliver,
There was talk they killed their rivals, but the truth was far from that,
Bring me my pipe, we're gonna shake it,
"Oh, I'm sailing away, my own true love,
Love that's pure no accident,
Yes, I'll buy you a wedding gown,
You angel, you, you're as fine as anything's fine,
And it ain't in the fifty-star generals and flipped-out phonies,
But I certainly don't want you thinking that I haven't got any respect,
Giving back all of what you owe,
There's a slow - there's a slow, slow train coming,
He saw an animal leaving a muddy trail, real dirty face and a curly tail,
She got a letter once in a while, her face broke into a smile,
If ever I prove false to you,
To be without a home,
And asked me if I was leaving with you or her,
The sky cracked its poems in naked wonder,
Build you a fire with hickory - hickory, ash, and oak,
Spend the night with some sweet senorita,
He got sweet gift of gab, he got harmonious tongue,
Give what I got until I got no more,
I was standing at the side road, listening to the billboard knock,
Sugar baby, get on down the line, you ain't got no brains no how,
Wants eleven dollar bills,
Too serious to fool,
Stone you when you're trying to make a pass,
And that pretty, dancing girl, she could not be found,
Don't need a shot of heroin to kill my disease,
Many try to stop me, shake me up in my mind,
So, if you gotta go, it's alright,
Well, they're going to the country, they're gonna retire,
Where the pellets of poison are flooding their waters,
And recently you've thought you've seen it all,
I told you, baby, right to your head,
Come gather 'round, people, wherever you roam,
Um, when your head gets twisted and your mind grows numb,
Just thinking of a series of dreams,
Say for me that I'm alright, though things get kind of slow,
A gypsy with a broken flag and a flashing ring,
Poor boy picking up sticks,
Short pants, romance, learn to dance,
How could they ever have persuaded you,
But I got to be going now 'cause I'm so dissatisfied,
A magnificent mantelpiece, though its heart being chipped,
Now, the bricks, they fall on Grand Street,
Well, there's black smoke rising, Lord,
Idiot wind blowing every time you move your mouth--teeth,
The bridge that you travel on goes to the Babylon girl with the rose in her hair,
Oh, sister, when I come to lie in your arms,
Cat's in the well, the wolf is looking down,
But her shadow was missing for all of my searching,
As he weeps to wicked birds of prey,
When I was in Missouri,
Can't turn back, you can't come back, sometimes we push too far,
They say every man must fall,
That old ship was sinking down in the water,
I don't know why I love her, but I just can't stop,
You know, you can make a name for yourself,
Hysterical bride in the penny arcade,
Well, I came ashore in the dead of the night,
Down the foggy ruins of time,
I long to see you in the morning light,
Your daddy, he's an outlaw and a wanderer by trade,
Handy-dandy, just like sugar and candy,
The answer, my friend, is blowing in the wind,
You've been with professors, they've all liked your looks,
I've already ripped out the phones, honey,
Lordy, Lordy, Lordy,
Wiggle, wiggle, wiggle like a ton of lead,
But ye shall be a-changed,
You give me the blues, I guess you're satisfied,
Come gather round, people, wherever you roam,
These be seven curses on a judge so cruel,
It's undeniable what they'd have you to think,
Yes, I'm walking kind of funny, Lord,
The line, it is drawn, the curse, it is cast,
"Fly down, fly down, pretty parrot," she cried,
They're spoon-feeding Casanova to get him to feel more assured,
Well, they were looking for somebody with a pompadour,
I take what I gets and I even the score,
I won't have my nature way,
Tell me the truth, don't tell me no lies,
So, it ain't no use in calling out my name, gal,
Like an ancient river so wide and so deep,
I've stepped in the middle of seven sad forests,
I'm so glad,
When you're standing on the crossroads that you cannot comprehend,
The sword swallower walks up to you and then he kneels,
Now, I'm waist deep, waist deep in the mist,
I see your lover man coming, coming 'cross the barren field,
When he knocked out a lynch mob, he was criticized,
You angel, you, you're as f--got me under your wing,
The dogs and pigeons fly up and they flutter around,
She never learned to read or write, there's no books upon her shelf,
High water rising, the shacks are sliding down,
The Yankee built boats to shoot them rebels,
Rambling outta the Wild West,
You're gonna have to leave me now, I know,
He went to Hollywood to see Peter O'Toole,
Precious father, loving mother,
That knows your troubles a hundred times over,
Love is so simple, to quote a phrase,
Well, I struggled through barbed wire, felt the hail fall from above,
Lights flicker from the opposite loft,
I left my life with you somewhere back there along the line,
And, though they could not produce the gun,
The ghetto that you build for me is the one you're living in,
They say eat, drink, and be merry, take the bull by the horns,
Dividing line ran through the center of town,
Pray that I don't die of thirst,
I'm stuck here on the ground where the cold winds blow,
I got the worried blues,
In the still of the night, in the world's ancient light,
Wiggle, wiggle, wiggle, rattle and shake,
And, after every plan had failed and there was nothing more to tell,
Leaving nobody to sing his sad song,
And she turned around to look at him as he was a-walking away,
Got a long, black feeling and it's hard to trace,
He would roar all day and he'd roar all night and I guess he's roaring yet,
A-don't take a-this heaven from one,
And all the couples dancing cheek to cheek,
Winterlude by the road tonight,
She ain't much to look at, but, like I said,
I return to the Queen of Spades, talk with her chambermaid,
Bird on the horizon sitting on a fence,
Who fills his mouth with laughing and who builds his town with blood,
See you fly or watch you die,
It's getting dark, too dark to see,
Ah, my friends from the prison, they ask unto me,
How many a year has passed and gone,
Well, I told my baby, I said, "Baby, I know where you been,
And even you, yesterday, you had to ask me where it was at,
I'm a stranger here and no one sees me, except you, yeah, you,
He was only a hobo, but one more is gone,
If I ever saw you coming, I don't know what I might do,
He tried to find a way back into the life he left behind,
But you could tell she was so broken-hearted,
To curbs 'neath holes where babies wail,
The rats have got your flour, bad blood, it got your mare,
Where I will always be renewed,
Someone who likes simple things, is not afraid to bend,
She's begging to know what measures he now will be taking,
Yes, I gaze at passing strangers in case I might see you,
They say I shot a man named Gray and took his wife to Italy,
That can do what's a-never been done,
Outsiders they can freely criticize,
You can bust your feet, you can rock this joint,
Oh, me and my cousin, one Arthur McBride,
I can't be good, baby,
Some people will offer you their hand and some won't,
Fools, they made a mock of sin,
Pulled me out of bondage and You made me renewed inside,
All day long I hear him shouting so loud,
To push fake morals, insult, and stare,
I heard one person starve, I heard many people laughing,
Who suddenly walks up to you when he hears you speak,
I know you haven't made your mind up yet,
I'll go to some bar-room and drink with my friends,
By the beautiful lake of the Black Swan,
And they'll raise their hands, saying, "We'll meet all your demands",
He'll teach you how to pick and choose and how to throw the blade,
I believe in you when winter turns--turns to summer,
Cat's in the well and papa is reading the news,
All I really wanna do,
By losers, cheaters,
Need a woman all the time,
Your breath is sweet, your eyes are like two jewels in the sky,
I have read all their statements and I've not said a word,
The judge made Rubin's witnesses drunkards from the slums,
Mr. Jinx and Ms. Lucy, they jumped in the lake,
The boulevards of cypress trees, the masquerade of birds and bees,
I can't see my reflection in the water,
And, though I can't sleep at night for trying,
And the wood's easy finding but you're lazy to fetch it,
Babe, I'd lay awake all night,
"There must be some way out of here," said the joker to the thief,
It's unbelievable like a lead balloon,
Don't need a shot of codeine to help me to repent,
Babe, please crawl out your window,
You can hear them tires squeal,
The crowd begun to riot and they grabbed hold of the man,
Where the winds hit heavy on the borderline,
For the disrobed, faceless forms of no position,
"And we have no desire to take your advance,
Why she did go,
A man with a badge skips by,
Who just happened to be feeling that way without warning,
I was thinking about turquoise, I was thinking about gold,
You've been through all of F. Scott Fitzgerald's books,
I'm leaving today,
To her death is quite romantic, she wears an iron vest,
And you want someone to put out your ambition,
They say every man need protection,
From the Grand Coulee Dam to the Mardi Gras,
To see the promised land with me as the time go by,
Yes, and only if she was lying by me,
I had a pony, her name was Lucifer,
I was born here and I'll die here against my will,
It wasn't us that made him fall,
We'll just lay there by the juniper while the moon is bright,
Outside the lights were shining on the river of tears,
"Don't you remember, ma, when I went off to war,
My creator, my comforter, my cause for joy,
Coming and going like a rabbit in the wood,
In a little hilltop village they gambled for my clothes,
And furnish me with tape,
The reason for fighting I never did get,
They run a brick and tile company,
I'm pledging my time to you,
The madman, he jumps up on the shelf,
Newspapermen eating candy,
Rainy days on the Great Lakes, walking the hills of old Duluth,
On a night like this I'm so glad you came around,
The multitude wanted to make Him king, put a crown upon His head,
And in the darkness of the room there was only Jim and him,
You that build the death planes, you that build all the bombs,
Summer's almost gone, winter's coming on,
Maybe he had some problems, maybe some things that he couldn't work out,
Well, they used to grow food in Kansas,
There's a wicked wind still blowing on that upper deck,
Broken hands on broken plows,
"I could have married a king's daughter there,
True love, true love, true love tends to forget,
Honey baby, don't leave me now,
Through the mad, mystic hammering of the wild, ripping hail,
Pacing 'round the room hoping maybe she'd come back,
Revolution [incoherent] no solution for trouble,
Now, his bread, it was corn dodger and his meat you couldn't chaw,
The joint is jumping,
While money doesn't talk, it swears,
Well, I don't look much like a lover,
You're the queen of my flesh, girl, you're my woman, you're my delight,
He said that he only deals in cash, would sell tickets to a plane crash,
My woman got a face like a teddy bear,
My arms and legs were broken,
"Hush up, hush up, my parrot," she cried,
Mama's in the factory, she ain't got no shoes,
Over your senses you have no control,
You better duck down the alleyway,
Well, but this old river keeps on rolling, though,
Wiggle, wiggle, wiggle like satin and silk,
Oh, every girl that ever I've touched,
We set out that night for the cold in the north,
Well, you're on your own - you always were - in a land of wolves and thieves,
Three angels up above the street,
Cat's in the well and grief is showing its face,
No, I have heard nothing about the man that you seek, Angelina,
Every brain is civilized,
Well, they'll stone you when you're walking on the street,
I seen your lover man coming, coming 'cross the barren field,
Heart of mine, go back where you been,
There ain't no limit to the amount of trouble women bring,
Over the fields where the good shepherd grieves,
Well, I'm leaving in the morning as soon as the dark clouds lift,
I don't sense affection - no, no gratitude or love,
Father who taketh the darkness away,
Love don't have any place,
Beneath a bare light-bulb the plaster did pound,
Man's ego's inflated, you know, his laws are outdated,
Walking through the leaves falling from the trees,
I had so much left to do,
Come, baby, find me, come, baby, remind me of where I once begun,
Watch a-waterfalls of pity roar,
I got a house on a hill, I got hogs out in the mud,
Beat that horse and saddle up the drum,
Got behind him on his horse and they rode off together,
And you start walking backwards though you know that it's wrong,
Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord,
Voices echo, "This is what salvation must be like after a while",
I got my mind made up,
Wiggle till you vomit fire,
The human mind can only stand so much,
I went down to the lobby to make a small call out,
Like in the middle of Life magazine,
Your best friend and my worst enemy is one and the same, Angelina,
Inside the museums infinity goes up on trial,
Hmm, with a pain that stops and starts,
Well, I got a harmonica job, begun to play,
Far away where the soft winds blow,
Ain't no going back,
"Oh, for life, Jim Jones, I'm sending you across the stormy sea,
Well, the desert is hot, the mountain is cursed,
Well, I took my counselor out to the barn,
Too much information about nothing, too much educated rap,
Used to work on Mr. Finley's farm, but the old man wouldn't pay,
Well, this Arabian doctor comes in, gives me a shot,
Disillusioned words a-like a-bullets bark,
People talk of situations,
I got those worried blues,
Her passport shows a face from another time and place, she looks a-nothing like that,
Got a little girl, she stays upstairs,
Do what the captain says, lotta medals you will get,
Stone you when you're standing at the bar,
I wouldn't know her if I saw her, she's that far behind,
The past don't control you, but the future's like a roulette wheel spinning,
It's unbelievable, it's fancy-free,
You got to believe it, you gotta give me one more kiss,
Coming down the road for a country mile or two,
So I drifted down to New Orleans where I lucky was to be employed,
Is, baby, be friends with you,
Try to be pure at heart, they arrest you for robbery,
Standing on the gallows with my head in a noose,
There was Poker Bill, one of the boys who was always in a game,
I put down my robe, I picked up my diploma,
Got all them buckets coming outta my ears,
They'll stone you when you try to take a bath,
The sweet, pretty things are in bed now of course,
And I don't want to drag you down,
I wish I could write you a melody so plain,
Ten thousand dollars at the drop of a hat,
Well, come over here, pony, I wanna climb up one time on you,
All I want you to do is take me when I die,
Don't wanna shoot nobody, don't wanna be shot,
And it's a hard, it's a hard, it's a hard, and it's a hard,
Shouldn't mistreat me, baby, because I'm young and wild,
You want watered-down love,
Not by works, by faith in Him who called,
Puffing on a big cigar,
I do not pace the floor bowed down and bent, but yet,
She was working in the blinding light and I stopped in for a drink,
My senses have been stripped,
Frankie went to the scaffold calm as a girl could be,
Far away and over the wall,
There'll be a time, I hear tell,
She saw that hanging branch a-bending,
That could hold you, dear lady, from going insane,
Well, I heard the hoot owl singing as they were taking down the tents,
And picking up Angel, who just arrived here from the coast,
The priest wore black on the seventh day and waltzed around while the building burned,
You have explained every mystery,
Builder of rainbows up in the sky,
Politician's got on his jogging shoes,
And you want somebody you don't have to speak to,
Twenty-four hours a day you can feel it and you can hear it,
And for each unharmful, gentle soul misplaced inside a jail,
You need something special, alright, you need something special to give you hope,
Come on, baby, give our love a try, let's stick together,
The only one my arms could ever hold,
Into her dark hall where she will lead you,
There's not much more to be said, it's the top of the end,
I ain't saying you treated me unkind,
Owns a tobacco farm of six hundred acres,
Judge and jury took their stand,
The train leaves at half past ten,
The wounded man looks up through his one, dying eye,
Might be the heavyweight champion of the world,
I didn't want to want you, now I have no choice,
Well, it's up in the morning trying to find a job of work,
Now, too much of nothing can make a man a liar,
Nothing too very scientific,
Broke her heart, lost my own,
God knows when,
Smell that sweet magnolia blooming, see the ghost of slavery ships,
She said she would always stay,
Well, first he's in the background and then he's in the front,
You got to serve somebody,
May you always be courageous, stand upright and be strong,
And accept it that soon you'll be drenched to the bone,
Well, the medicine man come and then he shuffles inside,
You should not treat me like a stranger,
That one doctor cannot save him,
Hang around the ink-well,
And to yourself you sometimes say,
Precious angel under the sun,
He took the crumbs of the world and he turned it into wealth,
Stand up straight and tall,
Well, I return to the Queen of Spades and talk with my chambermaid,
Yeah, I went down to the river on a Saturday morn,
My dear, sweet friend,
I seen the kingdoms of the world and it's making me feel afraid,
I got to know, babe, if it's you I'm wanting,
Because he's not afraid of trying, say he's got no style,
Wherever I am welcome is where I will be,
Walk upside-down inside handcuffs,
And along came Jones, emptied the trash,
Little by little you turn in the middle,
You say I'm a gambler, you say I'm a pimp,
My feet were splintered, and my head was cracked,
Born in Red Hook, Brooklyn, in the year of who knows when,
Well, feeling like I just climbed outta my casket,
Come, mothers and fathers throughout the land,
And point away from the past,
He laid his head on a pillow of down,
Everybody's building the big ships and boats,
Well, I may just swear,
We sat in an empty theater and we kissed,
And Uncle Remus can't tell you and neither can Santa Claus,
But you and I, we've been through that and this is not our fate,
I can't understand,
Don't tie no bows,
I'm here to create the new imperial empire,
I'm gonna let you pass,
Take a message to Mary, but don't tell her all you know,
Little red wagon, little red bike,
Try hard, get barred,
I see my light come shining from the west unto the east,
Someday, little girl, everything for you is gonna be new,
You know what they say about being nice to the right people on the way up,
Going down the back roads, heading south,
Under the microscope,
They'll stone you when you are walking home,
Seven more days she'll be coming,
Poor boy 'neath the stars that shine,
Tell me, tell me, I've got to know,
Felt around for the light switch, felt around for her face,
I'm locked in tight, I'm outta range,
She never stumbles, she's got no place to fall,
Working for a while in an airplane plant loading cargo onto a truck,
One by one they follow the sun,
Well, I'm walking kind of funny, Lord,
Well, my heart stopped beating, my hands turned cold,
Five by five, as I stay on the line,
Forget the dead you've left, they will not follow you,
When the children were babies and played on the beach,
Broken switches, broken gates,
What good am I if I'm like all the rest,
But I've been hanging on,
When I left my home, the sky split open wide,
I'm old Tom Moore from the bummers' shore in the good old, golden days,
Love to spend the night with Peggy Day,
To say goodbye to sand and sea,
Sometimes I'm in the mood I wanna change my house around,
Ms. Delilah is his, a Philistine is what she is,
Dust on my face and my cape,
Well, it's you and you only I've been thinking about,
Flung down by corpse evangelists,
The conductor, he's weary, he's still stuck on the line,
I picked up his body and I dragged him inside,
Yeah, and--well, I'm not gonna tell you why that is,
If you're traveling in the north country fair,
Well, your streets are getting empty,
That they do not respect in any degree,
Just as far as my eyes can see,
She'll do wondrous a-works with your fate,
But there's nothing-really nothing to turn off,
But I don't sense affection, no gratitude or love,
Like Judas of old, you lie and deceive,
You made it there somehow,
She heard the melody rise and fade, the sun was coming up,
Idiot wind blowing through the flowers on your tomb,
Princess on the steeple and all the pretty people,
I was sitting home alone one night in L.A., watching old Cronkite on the seven o'clock news,
Take my hand, take a-my whole life, too,
They called Joe "Crazy", the baby they called "Kid Blast",
And I'm gonna let you pass,
Believe me, ain't no lie, Lord, Lord,
You can stick your head in the sand,
In the valley of the giants where the stars and stripes explode,
I got the heart and you got the blood,
Oh, mama, is this really the end,
She looking into my eyes, she's holding my hand,
For they opened fire and somehow drove that pirate ship away,
Some warn victory, some downfall,
But don't get too close to make me change my mind,
She was married when we first met, soon to be divorced,
I'd go hungry, I'd go black and blue,
When someone is pulling the wool over me,
You taught me how to love you, baby, and you taught me oh so well,
I've had my eyes on you, baby, for five long years,
And you yell to yourself and you throw down your hat,
How my lone guitar played sweet for you that old-time melody,
No mother or dad, not a friend could I see,
Sign on a door said "No Company Allowed",
Well, the night is so empty, so quiet and still,
Steps into your room, eats into your soul,
Idiot wind blowing through the buttons of our coat,
Well, there's one kind of favor I'll ask of you,
Don't follow leaders,
She called with her eyes to the tune I's a-playing,
Yes, I wish that for just one time you could stand inside my shoes,
And ride a horse along the trail,
As some warn victory, some downfall,
As her thoughts pounded hard like the pierce of an arrow,
Everybody thinks with their stomach and there's plenty of spies,
Ah, but you who philosophize disgrace and criticize all fears,
Winterlude, it's making me lazy,
Somewhere Mama's weeping for her blue-eyed boy,
Pink that dream and nose that dough,
My woman's never sitting at home,
Honeybees are buzzing, leaves begin to stir,
Ceiling fan broken, there's a heat in my bed,
Ooh, you want watered-down love,
But you, you changed my life, came along in a time of strife,
I can make it through,
Woman that I love, she got two flat feet,
Please don't feel bad, no, no, no, no, don't, don't, don't feel bad,
From the fireplace where now my letters to you are burning,
And when it all came crashing down, I became withdrawn,
I'm drowning in the poison, got no future, got no past,
My love, she speaks softly,
Good as I been to you, Lord, Lord,
Just like bait in the fish's mouth,
It blows their minds a-most a-bitterly,
Up stepped the sheriff from Thomasville,
There's a rumbling in the skies,
Leaving only bells of lightning and its thunder,
It's the ways of the flesh to war against the spirit,
Ten thousand men looking so lean and frail,
You lose yourself, you reappear,
Going,
They say every man must need protection,
This time I'm asking for freedom,
Like you never did before,
Yes, everybody's wondering when your friendship's gonna end,
Outside of two men on the train tracks, there nobody in sight,
Just as sure as we're living, just as sure as you're born,
Next to come in was the old, gray cat, uh-huh,
Well, I'm going off to Libya,
You walk into the room like a camel and you frown,
On the jugglers and the clowns when they all came down to do tricks for you,
Ring them bells for the time that flies,
Well, you're the kinda woman makes a man lose his brains,
Now, pull that drummer out from behind that bottle,
And I was standing on the side of the road, rain falling on my shoes,
Like a river flows surely to the sea,
For something that he never done,
And the diamonds from the deepest ocean,
It's gonna be the meanest flood that anybody's ever seen,
The ladies down in Darktown, they're doing the Darktown strut,
Don't wanna learn from nobody what I gotta unlearn,
Wiggle till you're high, wiggle till you're higher,
She smiled all in her countenance, said, "They call me Jack-A-Roe,
Sends for the doctor, pulls down the shade,
By users, cheaters,
Told about Jesus, told about the rain,
Take me on a trip upon your magic, swirling ship,
Never being able to separate the good from the bad,
Of course, you're gonna think this song is a riff,
I don't care about economy, I don't care about astronomy,
Sometimes I'm thinking I'm too high to fall,
Babe, please come crawl out your window,
Ain't no reason to go to the fair,
And a drunken man is at the wheel,
I don't build up illusion till it makes me sick,
"Your waist is light and slender, your fingers neat and small,
Babe, come crawl out your window,
I know the reason that you talk behind my back,
He hands you a nickel and he hands you a dime,
Tolling for the outcast, burning constantly at stake,
I ran right outside, I hopped inside a cab,
My head tells me it's time to make a change,
I was burned out from exhaustion, buried in the hail,
She smiled and she went right down, she looked up and all around,
Next to come in was Mrs. Cow, uh-huh,
You were too hot to handle, you were breaking every vow,
Oh, my heart is sad 'cause I want you so bad,
A bullet from the back of a bush took Medgar Evers's blood,
Our conversation was short and sweet,
I just don't know what I'm gonna do,
Get behind me on my horse and we'll ride off together,
They'll stone you just like they said they would,
Wiggle, wiggle, wiggle like a swarm of bees,
I can deal with the situation right down to the bone,
And with all the ship's company they were willing to engage,
Well, I told my baby further down the line,
And, if breath to you is worth saving,
You got something better,
Atlantic City, by the cold, grey sea,
God knows there's a heaven,
Maybe someday there'll be nothing to tell,
Nothing 'round here to me that's sacred, 'cept you, yeah, you,
All I remember was a moaning sound,
The stage was set, the lights went out all around the old hotel,
In a crowded room full of covered-up mirrors,
If he needs a third eye, he just grows it,
The wind howls like a hammer,
Lone Wolf went out drinking - that was over pretty fast,
To be so useless and all,
If she's passing back this way, I'm not that hard to find,
Now you don't talk so loud,
See for me that her hair's hanging down,
Me if I don't get out the door in two seconds flat,
The cat's in the well, the leaves are starting to fall,
People tell me it's a crime to remember her for too long a time,
Alfred Bello laid this rap on the cops,
I saw them leaving," he says and he stops,
Yes, the wedding bells're ringing and the choir's beginning to sing,
If the wine don't come to the top of your cup,
By and by I'm breathing a lover's sigh,
You're the lamp of my soul, girl, and you torch up the night,
The light in this place is so bad, making me sick in the head,
I'm crossing the street to get away from a mangy dog,
And all the while he was alone, the past was close behind,
Oh, I got a letter on a lonesome day,
And placed them on a footstool just above the plotted plain,
And sometimes I'm in the mood, I wanna live in my pony-stall,
You can see the writing on the wall inviting the trouble,
A soldier sits beneath the fan, doing business a-with a tiny man, who sells him a ring,
Then she opened up a book of poems and handed it to me,
No llores, mi querida, Dios nos vigila,
Looking for a new fool,
Well, the whole earth is asleep,
Wanna thank You, Lord,
Don't know if I saw you if I would kiss you or kill you,
You're still gonna have to serve somebody,
I see-I see silhouettes in the window,
When you're sad and when you're lonely and you haven't got a friend,
Well, I can't understand,
There was a wicked messenger - from Eli he did come,
I'm sure your thoughts are not with me,
From the tribe of Pima Indians, a proud and a peaceful band,
I wouldn't be ashamed to be seen with you anywhere,
And my wig-hat was falling in my face,
With their humorless smile so easy to see through,
"It will lead you into some strange pursuits,
I can feel it in the wind, in the wind, in the wind and it's upside down,
He crosses himself and he clicks his high heels,
For the countless, confused, accused, misused, strung-out ones and worse,
The country I come from is called the Midwest,
Now, there's a woman on my block, she just sit there facing the hill,
Now you're here beside me, baby, you're a living dream,
Well, the way I love that woman,
I've had the Mexico City blues since the last hairpin curve,
You'll just lay there by the juniper while the moon is bright,
First to come in was the flying moth,
Whatever colors you have in your mind,
"Not I," said the referee,
She wears an Egyptian ring and it sparkles just before she speaks,
And the table's full and overflowed,
Sarah Jane, Sarah Jane,
You need something to open up a new door,
Wintertime in New York town,
You may be a socialite with a long string of pearls,
All the gold and silver being stolen away,
I like the cool way you look at me,
Dream about you, baby,
You're beautiful to me,
Well, Frankie Lee, he sat right down and put his fingers to his chin,
How did I meet you?--I don't know,
Make promises by the hours,
And we made a football of his rowdy-dow-dow,
Whatever you gonna do please do it fast,
So much oppression, can't keep track of it no more,
Watch the plain-clothes,
Whole lotta people crying tonight from the disease of conceit,
And he drifted down to New Orleans where they treated him like a boy,
That I've still got a dream that hasn't been repossessed,
You know that we are strangers in a land we passing through,
Winterlude, Winterlude, my little daisy,
I said a quick prayer and I felt satisfied,
Fanning the flames on the furnace of desire,
Saying, "Gold will never free your father,
Now, I know she ain't you, but she's here and she's got that dark rhythm in her soul,
The dividing line ran through the center of town,
Don't have the inclination to look back on any mistake,
All along this countryside he opened many a door,
Cities on fire, phones outta order,
No more auction block for me, no more, no more,
Any minute of the day the bubble could burst,
Stone you when you're walking on the street,
Drifting too far from shore, yeah,
Tweedle Dum said to Tweedle Dee,
Sara, Sara, glamorous nymph with an arrow and bow,
He rode right up to Ms. Mousey's door, uh-huh,
Judges will haunt you, the country priestess will want you, her worst is better than best,
Buckets of rain, buckets of tears,
The man in me will hide sometimes to keep from being seen,
May be rich or poor, may be blind or lame,
I'm going back out 'fore the rain starts falling,
Father of time and father of dreams,
Shine your light, shine your light on me,
They pray for it nightly that the bloodshed will cease,
Couldn't even see the floor,
Somebody better explain, she's got her iron chain,
She's tossing a baseball bat in the air,
She was thinking 'bout her father, who she very rarely saw,
Well, I need a woman [incomprehensible],
Now, if someone offers me a joke,
The deputy walks on a-hard nails and the preacher rides a mount,
They lowered him down as a king,
From the outside world the pressure will mount,
Private reasons, great or small,
I'll say goodbye to Colorado,
Just remember that death is not the end,
Need a woman every night to be with me and lonely as I am,
And maybe kept him from his fate,
Forgive me, baby, for what I didn't do,
If I had wings and I could fly, I know where I would go,
St. Bartholomew's burying ground won't catch your name, but he has the hound,
Uncle went riding, trip downtown, uh-huh,
Now, we heard the Sermon on the Mount and I knew it was too complex,
But there's no way I can compare all them scenes to this affair,
Oh, every thought that's strung a knot in my mind,
And if I could only hear her heart a-softly pounding,
Talk about salvation, people suddenly get tired,
Frankie went down to the corner saloon, get a bucket of beer,
See them big plantations burning, hear the cracking of the whips,
You may like to gamble, you might like to dance,
May be a city councilman taking bribes on the side,
All along the watchtower princes kept the view,
If none but Jack the sailor would ever suit your mind,
Well, yonder stands Little Maggie with a dram-glass in her hand,
Here's to Cisco, and Sonny, and Leadbelly too,
Oxford Town, Oxford Town,
I never could guess your weight, baby,
Trusting their fate to the hands of God,
I ain't looking for you to feel like me,
And I'm back in the rain,
Little boy lost, he takes himself so seriously,
You have given all there is to give,
Well, the devil's shining light, it can be most blinding,
She's dressed in silks and satins now, she cuts a gallant shawl,
In love and with kindness,
I got a heavy-headed gal, she ain't a-feeling well,
But all the while he was alone, the past was close behind,
We got you for that motel job. We were talking to your friend, Bello,
They took all the trees, they put 'em in a tree museum,
God knows it's a struggle,
When the last rays of daylight go down, buddy, you'll roll no more,
Little light blinking, red light glowing,
He danced for those at minstrel shows and county fairs throughout the South,
In the little church a-this side of town,
Seven days,
A man in the corner approached me for a match,
I went down where the vultures feed,
A-nobody feels any pain tonight as I stand inside the rain,
They may call you "doctor" or they may call you "chief",
There's guns across the river 'bout to pound you,
So now I'm going back again, I got to get to her somehow,
Well, the unions are big business, friend,
Change my way of thinking, bring myself a different set of rules,
In the days of old when we dug up the gold, how ofttimes I repine,
But I'm pressing on,
You hurt the ones that I love best and cover up the truth with lies,
God knows it's fragile,
It was on the northern border of Texas where I crossed the line,
Grandpa died last week,
Courage is a thing of the past,
So I got those worries blues,
You're gonna have to serve somebody,
That the clinging of the church bells blew far into the breeze,
Where I'm bound I can't tell,
I heard a deafening noise, I felt transient joys,
If the bible is right, the world will explode,
Handy-dandy, handy-dandy, just like sugar and candy,
When the storm clouds gather 'round you and heavy rains descend,
There was none but Jackie Frazier, her true love e'er to be,
Eh, and you are on dry land,
They tell me everything is gonna be alright,
It could even be like a myth,
Clergymen in uniform and young girls pulling bustles,
But all the while I was alone, the past was close behind,
And also by his feet,
Though we kissed through the wild, blazing nighttime,
Handy-dandy, if every bone in his body was a-broken, he would never admit it,
That run around gallant, make all rules for the ones that got talent,
Once I was wading in fortune and fame,
And think they're fooling you,
This wheel's on fire, it's rolling down the road,
Pounding print in his old typewriter,
Oh, the age of the inmates I remember quite freely,
No one doubted that he pulled the trigger,
You may be a state trooper, you might be a Young Turk,
"We'll meet on edges soon," said I,
A little piece of cornbread laying on the shelf, uh-huh,
Hattie Carroll was a maid in the kitchen,
I've been out in front of a dozen dead oceans,
The pot of gold is only make-believe,
Give you delusions of grandeur and an evil eye,
We learn to live and then we forgive,
Quick, Magdalena, take my gun,
'Bout all kinds of different gods, they have their point of view,
In the night the grounds was groaning,
The light I never knowed,
Look away, you rolling river,
We'll go out and see it sometime, we'll both just sit there and stare,
Senor, Senor, I can see that painted wagon,
Someday you'll learn when her love grows cold,
Warning signs are eve-flashing everywhere, but we pay no heed,
To wait for your future like a horse that's gone lame,
Kill that beast and feed that swine,
And I'll join the bravest rankers there, Jack Donohue and Co.,
He had a steady job, he joined the choir,
Using every angle under the sun,
The lights on my native land are glowing,
Gave to him her lily-white hand and say good-bye forever,
And you can't find it on the golf course,
Never needed to call you my whore,
Or have done something wrong,
Six months on the chain gang,
Don't let her hear,
You can either go to the church of your choice,
And an aching in my heart and my pockets full of sand,
Loaded deep as deep can be,
Sending his thoughts to a beloved maid,
Nicodemus came at night, so he wouldn't be seen by men,
The tuxedo that you're wearing, the flower in your lapel,
I pity the poor immigrant who tramples through the mud,
If your memory serves you well, we were going to meet again and wait,
Daddy's in the alley, he's looking for food,
And another soldier's deep in prayer,
She walked up to me so gracefully and she took my crown of thorns,
And the wind punched hard to make the wall-siding sing,
And, though the rules of the road have been lodged,
In your teardrops I can see my own reflection,
She's over 'bove the [incomprehensible] pad,
A lover for your life and nothing more,
Oh, baby, time for a new transition,
And he spoke through his cloak, most deep and distinguished,
Delia's daddy weeped, Delia's mama moaned,
To leave his native country and his darling girl behind,
Not the end, not the end,
Teachers teach that knowledge waits,
Houses are haunted, children are unwanted,
You're the reason I'm traveling on,
If you go when the snowflakes storm,
You came down on me like white thunder,
I've been saved by the blood of the lamb,
Crumble into one another,
Big-time negotiators, false healers, and woman-haters,
I should have left this town this morning,
I courted her proudly, but now she is gone,
You left me standing in the doorway crying,
Up on Housing Project Hill it's either fortune or fame,
Find it on the doorsteps made of papier mache,
They knew not my name and I knew not their faces,
If you got a lotta money, you can make yourself merry,
Feel like a prisoner in a world of mystery,
And, as the yellow fog is lifting, the Greek is quickly heading for the second floor,
"It wasn't me that knocked him down,
"I was feeling kinda lonesome and blue,
"But," says he, "My fine fellows, if you will enlist,
You kiss me, baby, in the coffee shop,
Tell me, tell me before I go,
Look out, kid,
Stone you and they'll say that it's the end,
The sun beat down upon the steps of time to light the way,
Don't steal, don't lift,
Tattooed my babies with a poison pen,
Thinking 'bout Rosemary and thinking about the law,
Paradise, sacrifice,
I know what it is that has drawn me to your door,
That's the day you die, Lord, Lord,
I been good,
Is looking for a new fool,
I'm in the wrong town, I should be in Hollywood,
You got something to say, speak or hold your peace,
Sara, Sara, wherever we travel, we're never apart,
When he died, I was hoping that it wasn't contagious,
And I know that He will do it 'cause He's faithful and He's true,
Now I've just got to go before I get to the ledge,
You know, it balances on your head just like a mattress balances on a bottle of wine,
The sun is beginning to shine on me,
First to come in was the flying moth, uh-huh,
I know I've seen that face somewhere, Big Jim was thinking to himself,
Well, these times and these tunnels are haunted,
The roving gambler was a-very bored,
Give to me your lily-white hand and we'll go home together,
Trouble,
They gave him dope to smoke, drinks and pills,
Temptation's page flies out the door,
No, nothing was delivered,
Get you a copper kettle, get you a copper coil,
Made the woods around him ring and he charmed the heart of a lady,
There's just a hot-blooded singer singing "Memphis in June",
Well, the rain-man comes with his magic wand,
Well, I'm standing in line in the rain to see a movie starring Gregory Peck,
So, never leave me lonely,
Saying, "Tell me, great hero, but please make it brief,
Screaming, she moans that I've just been made,
All your seasick sailors, they're all rowing home,
She is good to me and there's nothing she doesn't see,
Babe, I couldn't find the door,
And Miss Patty Valentine just nodded her head,
Saying, "I don't know when I'll be coming back again,
Senor, Senor, can you tell me where we're heading,
And their old, rusty rapiers that hung by their sides,
With his candle lit into the sun,
Took her by the hand and my heart was thumping,
Well, get sick, get well,
You'll play the fool and learn how to walk through doors,
Don't wanna be a bum,
But goodbye's a-too good a word, babe,
You may own guns and you may even own tanks,
Like a rolling stone,
The businessmen from Taos want you to go down,
There's a lone soldier on the hill, watching 'fore them raindrops pour,
I need someone to talk to and a new hiding place,
Give me the wings and I could fly,
Now, lamp-gates and [incomprehensible], I can recite 'em all,
When there is no more,
Ophelia, she's 'neath the window, for her I feel so afraid,
Drag you down or drain you down,
He buys obsolete weapons and he won't be denied,
And a soldier, he always is decent and clean,
Buy me some rings and a gun that sings, a flute that toots and a bee that stings,
What will your mother say to know you're going away,
Eyed through the I Ching yesterday, it said there'd be some thunder at the whelm,
Where the morning rain don't fall and the sun always shines,
Face full of black soot,
Heading out for the East Coast - Lord knows, he's paid some dues getting through,
What cannot be imitated perfect must die,
My hand's on the saber and you've picked up on the baton,
Nations are angry, cursed are some,
Stone-cold dead as I stepped out of the womb,
Might be living in a mansion, you might live in a dome,
Now and then there's a fool such as I am over you,
I was in a whirlwind, now I'm in some better place,
She walks across the marble floor where a voice from the gambling room is calling her to come on in,
For he that gets hurt will be he who has stalled,
"Those are the hills of heaven, my love,
They'll stone you when you're trying to make a buck,
am just a poor boy, though my story's seldom told,
There's none but Jack the sailor would have this heart of mine,
My limbs are shaking,
Now, his nurse, some local loser, she's in charge of the cyanide hole,
Well, the marriage vow, you know, it's very sacred,
But I have forsaken my king's daughter there,
He felt the heat of the night hit him like a freight train,
Laid him low in a cloud of mist,
But now we got weapons of chemical dust,
All I seemed to be doing was climb,
Oh, well, everybody says you're using voodoo, I've seen your feet walk by themselves,
When I saw you say goodbye to your friend and smile,
Don't fall apart on me tonight,
Yes, and I'll go last,
Look out your window and I'll be gone,
How he died nobody could say,
Every time we meet together, I feel like I'm on fire,
But something has changed,
Now, won't you tell me true,
Speaking to some French girl,
So, I'm a-walking down that long, lonesome road, babe,
Please understand me, I have no place I'm calling you to go,
Is it really any wonder,
Some things last longer than you think they will,
If every little sound just might be thunder,
Well, I got a woman five feet short,
Many a gamble has been lost and won,
In one the surface was frozen,
Stone you just like they said they would,
Ooh, baby, ooh-ee,
I've never forgotten her eyes,
Your grandpa's cane, it turns into a sword,
And he walked up to a stranger and he asked him with a grin,
I hurt easy, I just don't show it,
I noticed at the ceremony that your corrupt ways had finally made you blind,
Took Ms. Mousey on his knee, uh-huh,
Now, I've always been the kind of person that doesn't like to trespass,
To have--be on your own,
It ain't that I'm questioning you to take part in any kinda quiz,
Gon' walk on that dirt road till everything becomes the same,
Well, I been pacing 'round the room hoping maybe she'd come back,
Englishman stranded in a black-heart wind,
Now, play that low and pick it up,
I'm sick of love, I wish I'd never met you,
Covenant woman, shining like a morning star,
Nobody's ever taught you how to live out on the street,
Come running down your stairs, come running down your stairs,
For her to arrive,
Blowing on down the backroads, heading south,
The desk clerk said, "It happens every day",
There's a new grove of trees on the outskirts of town, the old one is long gone,
And your streetcar visions, which you place on the grass,
Fool's gold in your teeth and cemetery hips,
I began to think of what a deed I'd done,
An eternal flame quietly burning,
I just walk along and stroll and sing,
In the space where the deuce and the ace once ran wild,
When we meet again, introduced as friends,
She speaks a-with a stutter and she walks with a hop,
You might a janitor out on the [incomprehensible],
Well, underneath that tree there's just gonna be you and me,
He's always off somewhere when I need him most,
I couldn't see where we were going,
He said, "That's alright, babe, I love you too,
Well, they'll stone you when you're trying to be so good,
You came, you saw, just like the law,
You might be hungry, you might be [incomprehensible],
You got something I want plenty of,
He's surrounded by God's angels and she's wearing a blindfold, but so are you, Angelina,
Ma, wipe the blood from my face,
More people kept a-piling on,
That spot that you're standing, that space that you're sitting,
All your loved ones have walked out of the door,
I went out on Lower Broadway and I felt that place within,
My grandfather was a duck trapper, he could do it with just dragnets and ropes,
Looking 'bout the government,
While we seek mirth and beauty and music light and gay,
Sleeping in the alley, sleeping in the dust,
Come, you masters of war, you that build the big guns,
Of every earthly plan that be known to man He is unconcerned,
Wisdom is thrown into jail,
Oh, I miss that woman so, I didn't mean to see her go,
Give me back my baby, I won't worry you no more,
Your lover, who just walked out your door,
Where in youth's early dawn I was happy and free,
Yonder down here in this lonely crowd,
Now, the man on the stand, he wants my vote,
Broken words never meant to be spoken,
Listen to that cold whistle blow,
You may call me anything, don't matter what you say,
From silhouetted anger to manufactured peace,
That two healers cannot heal him,
Oh, you gone to the finest school, alright, Ms. Lonely,
The priest wore black on the seventh day, sat stone-faced while the building burned,
Then everyone commenced to do what they were doing before he turned their heads,
There was music in the cafes at night and revolution in the air,
And sometimes I'm in the mood, I ain't gonna do nothing at all,
She'll be coming forth,
There's a song that will linger forever in our ears,
Best never to think these thoughts and never to let them kinda thoughts gain ground,
And all of your children start to resent you,
I saw a newborn baby with wild wolves all around it,
I love you, baby, and you know that it's true,
It's the last temptation, the last account,
I can't speak the sounds to show no pain,
You have given everything to me,
Well, he got no allies to really speak of,
Whatever the pitch, they never would flinch, they never would fret or whine,
Sweet goddess, born of a blinding light and a changing wind,
"Could you please not stare at me like that?" he said, "It's just my foolish pride,
You're gonna make me wonder what I'm doing,
They'll stone you when you're riding in your car,
I thank the Lord,
China doll, alcohol,
The cabaret was quiet except for the drilling in the wall,
And you fear they might catch you sleeping,
You suddenly find you got nothing to fear,
When destruction cometh swiftly and there's no time to say a fare-thee-well,
All day long I hear him cry so loud,
One by one they followed the sun,
She said she would never forget,
Now, don't you try and move me, you're just gonna lose,
Well, it's king for king and it's queen for queen,
They're doing the double shuffle, they're throwing sand on the floor,
Somebody said from the Bible he'd quote,
And, although that we're single and free,
You broke a heart that loved you,
I blowed inside out and upside down,
Yesterday's gone, but the past live on,
Drinking white rum in a Portugal bar,
We live and we die, we know not why,
Tomorrow's just one step beyond,
Sometimes I'm in the mood, I'm gonna give away all my sins,
This is the key to the kingdom and this is the town,
There oughtta be a law against you coming around,
That the world ain't got you beat, it ain't got you licked,
And picking up Angel, who just arrived from the coast,
Everybody's out there feeding the pigeons out on the limb,
Next to come in was the bumbly bee, uh-huh,
Feel like a broke-down engine, ain't got no driving wheel,
Nothing was delivered,
Born in Red Hook, Brooklyn, in the year of a-who knows when,
And your heart feels sick like fish when they're frying,
If you wanna have a picnic, that's up to you,
And reflect from the mountain so all souls can see it,
I didn't know whether the world was flat or round, I had the worst taste in my mouth that I ever knew,
The man there said he loved my sound,
I went back to see the gypsy, it was nearly early dawn,
In the instant that I preach,
Left me blindly here to stand but still not sleeping,
Believe me, it ain't no fun, Lord, Lord,
I went down in my praying ground, fell on my bended knee,
Daddy's in the alley looking for the fuze,
I get up in the morning, but it's too early to wake,
Well, I gave you all my money,
Pull man down like a county hook, my man,
Shedding off one more layer of skin,
The cat's in the well and the barn is full of the bull,
I just don't see why I should even care,
Poor boy in the hotel called the "Palace of Gloom",
And I would send a message to find out if she's talked,
You hang the flame, you pay the price,
Written by an Italian poet from the thirteenth century,
Everybody knows baby's got new clothes,
The only thing I knew how to do was to keep on keeping on like a bird that flew,
With a long-distance look her eyes was on fire,
Now, I want you to know that, while you watched--discover that there was no one true,
Heart of mine, go back home,
If these wings should fail me, Lord,
I don't want to meet your kin,
To be one your own,
Forever young, forever young,
You will be alright, girl,
I rambled out of New York town,
But, if I can save you any time,
Well, they're living in a happy harmony,
From now on I'll be busy, ain't going nowhere fast,
It always has hit me from below,
Buckets of moonbeams in my hand,
It don't matter what you did,
Loyalty, unity,
Stay right with it when the road unwinds,
When I saw that my partner, he was just being friendly,
Windows were shaking all night in my dreams,
Make promises by the hour,
When I'm gone, you will remember my name,
In the company of strangers, in the quiet of the railroad station running scared,
And the dirt in the caves of the Rocky Mountain mines,
You'll look back and wonder 'bout the bridges you have burned,
Last night the wind was whispering something, I's trying to make out what it was,
"It's hard to say, it's hard to tell,
Well, it's always been my nature to take chances,
I could feel the heat and the pulse of her as she bent down to tie the laces of my shoe,
Blowing through the curtains in your room,
While paupers change possessions,
Bring the wife and family,
Stared at the person who killed for no reason,
Poor boy laying 'em straight,
Last night the wind was whispering, I was trying to make out what it was,
Better jump down the manhole,
I like the way that you move your hips,
I'm rolling slow, I'm doing all I know,
Tuba players now rehearse around the flagpole,
Nightclubs of the broken-hearted, stadiums of the damned,
Come down the [incomprehensible], don't leave me behind,
Yes, I do wanna thank You, Lord,
No, I do not feel that good when I see the heartbreaks you embrace,
Sugar baby, get on down the road, you ain't got no brains no how,
Two by two to their lovers they flew,
While riding on a train going west,
Summer's almost gone, winter's coming on, yes, it is,
That it's much cheaper down in the South American towns,
Baby, please stop crying,
Don't let yourself stumble,
I went to the wedding of Mary-Lou,
They say, "Lose your inhibition, follow your own ambition",
I was thinking about diamonds and the world's biggest necklace,
And Arthur and I, we soon drew our hogs,
No gentleman likes making love to a servant,
I went into the red, went into the black,
My mother was a daughter of a wealthy farmer,
Looked behind the kitchen, behind the door,
Though I know that evening's empire has returned into sand,
Now, I come in on a Ferris wheel and, boys, I sure was slick,
Living on your country or jobs offered you,
Well, it's way past midnight and there's a-people all around,
Through hostile cities and unfriendly towns,
Give you idea that you're too good to die,
Sweet Melinda, the peasants call her the "Goddess of Gloom",
The hostages were trembling when they heard a man exclaim,
Well, the--Mack the Finger said to Louis the King,
He took dead-center aim, but he missed just the same,
Now, it's that day of confession and we cannot mock a soul,
"Tell me, great hero, but please make it brief,
I met a young child beside a dead pony,
Trick on in, flower that smoll,
Oh, singing just for you,
I've known it from the moment that we met,
That lover, who just walked out your door,
I saw ten thousand talkers whose tongues were all broken,
Come, let us fly, my Magdalena,
Eye for eye and tooth for tooth, your love cuts like a knife,
I paid fifteen million dollars, twelve hundred and seventy-two cents,
Trouble in the water, trouble in the air,
Combing his hair back, his future looks thin,
Way out in the distance I know you're with some other man,
Oh, you five- and ten-cent women with nothing in your heads,
Going down to see soft gut, going down some fun,
She left here last early spring, is living there, I hear,
To know that some other man is holding you tight,
Gon' walk down that dirt road till someone lets me ride,
Don't you remember me, babe?  I remember you quite well,
I heard the roar of a wave that could drown the whole world,
Feed you coconut bread, spice buns in bed,
I was on the battleground, you were home acting proud,
And, if I pass this way again, you can rest assured,
I got me a secret membership card,
Well, I don't dare close my eyes and I don't dare wink,
And all your dreams have vanished and you don't know what's up the bend,
With great lawyers you've discussed lepers and crooks,
You think she's yours to have and to hold,
Someone showed me a picture and I just laughed,
"Last night I slept in a feather bed between my husband and baby,
Tough mama, meat shaking on your bone,
You can train on down to Williams Point,
The midnight rain follows the train,
Stick with me, baby, stick with me anyhow,
Now, I wish to my soul that I had seven years, uh-huh,
Look on over yonder. Cut the engines, change the sail,
I've been in and out of happiness,
If I'd'a paid attention to what others were thinking, the heart inside me woulda died,
And, if this war comes and death's all around,
Oh, some of us will wind up in St. Cloud Prison,
Mary, Mark, and Luke, and John,
Friend to the martyr, a friend to the woman of shame,
Oh, fare thee well, my own true love,
But Willie had a heart of gold and this I know is true,
A-lord, I'm walking down the line, walking down the line,
I'll be on my way,
I can't wait, wait for you to change your mind,
Dad's in the hallway looking hard for the fuze,
As the daylight hours do increase,
May be sitting in a [incomprehensible] smoking pearl,
And no liquor in the land to stop your brain from bleeding,
Pointed threats, they bluff with scorn,
Nothing is better, nothing is best,
But you're gonna serve somebody,
They'll stone you when you're trying to go home,
And pray to the Lord, pretty mama,
Seen a shooting star tonight and I thought of you,
Talks to servants about man and God and law,
As the present now will later be past,
"Not me," said the boxing writer,
I ain't gonna work for Maggie's pa no more,
I see my light come shining from the west out to the east,
But she turned unto another man, which so distressed my mind,
Shadows are falling and I've been here all day,
But you changed my life, came along in a time of strife,
But goodbye's too good a word, babe,
There was a man named Mahatma Gandhi,
Tell me,
But he practiced what he preached from the heart,
I grabbed my hat and I began to run,
You need a Greyhound bus that don't bar no race,
And I'm so glad,
I'm in Boston town in some restaurant,
Well, you walk into the room like a camel and then you frown,
You could make me cry, never say goodbye,
You give me the blues, I wanna lay down and die,
Whatever colors you have a-in your mind,
But I never did like it all that much and one day the ax just fell,
The jacks and the queens, they forsake the courtyard,
My flashlight's from Taiwan,
Well, I got up in the morning, looked under my bed,
He did ten years in Attica, [incomprehensible] and Wilhelm Reich,
Slipping and sliding like a weasel on the run,
And the whole world's watching with the "window-peek" stare,
And the hypnotic, splattered mist was slowly lifting,
Well, I've been to the mountain and I've been in the wind,
I've waited years sometimes for what I've wanted,
So, if you find someone who gives you all of her love,
Mr. Frog went a-hopping up over the brook,
The triangle tingles, the music plays slow,
And I just turn my back while you silently die,
"It's too bad he had to die that night,
When all will be well,
My love winks, she doesn't bother,
'Stead of going back off to sea and leaving me to meditate,
Well, when the pipeline gets broken and I'm lost on the river bridge,
He's sucking the blood out of the genius of generosity,
Well, I ride on a mail-train, baby, can't buy no thrill,
There's too many people, too many to recall,
Well, you know--even before I learned her name,
Gypsy undertaker sighs, the lonesome-organ grinder cries,
My love winks, she does not bother,
Well, I soon lost track of my kids and wife,
Where he got him a job on a fishing boat docked outside Delacroix,
Who's gonna throw that minstrel boy a coin,
Hmm, and I'm back in the rain,
Here comes the blind commissioner, they've got him in a trance,
Next to come in was the Juney bug, uh-huh,
She looked at me, begin to smile,
Outside of the gates the trucks were unloading,
With objects and material things, but I never was impressed,
His name was Willie O'Conley and he gambled all his life,
Come on, come on, let's stick together,
Don't matter what you did,
Took the wife and kids down to the pier,
This must be the day that all of my dreams come true,
There's a woman I long to touch and I'm missing her so much,
Where a woman, she slaved for sure,
I went down to scrub and rub,
To look up in the world from a hole in the ground,
Feel like a fighting rooster, feel better than I ever felt,
My warehouse eyes, my Arabian drums,
Oxford Town in the afternoon,
You better chew gum,
Sleep with one eye open when you slumber,
Going ninety miles an hour down a dead-end street,
But he never did like it all that much and one day it just a-went to hell,
Looked up my chimney-hole,
Come and listen for a moment, lads, and hear me tell my tale,
Well, I done laid around, done stayed around this old town too long,
I'm going back out 'fore the rain starts a-falling,
Just then Tom Paine himself came running from across the field,
"No, I never did engage in this a-kinda thing before,
Hot chili peppers in the blistering sun,
Well, they're not showing any lights tonight and there's no moon,
Love that's pure hopes all things,
You're the one I been waiting for, you're the one that I desire,
Everybody wants to be my friend, but nobody wants to get higher,
And is our purpose not the same on this earth,
Hmm, it's a price I have to pay,
I'm avoiding the south side the best I can,
And it's a hard, it's a hard, it's a hard, it's a hard,
Since that last, sad night I kissed her,
And every one of them words rang true and glowed like burning coal,
Of this I can't say very much,
Some're masters of illusion, some're ministers of the trade,
That old train pulled out, John's ma began to shout,
Her mouth was watery and wet,
Don't you tell Henry,
She promised this a-lad she'd stay,
The rebels they shot and shelled,
Every little sound just might be thunder,
Stares straight ahead and tries so hard to stay right,
By rivers of blindness,
Well, I'm driving in the flats in a Cadillac car,
Has taken all his blankets from the floor,
Can't find what I need,
Tonight there will be no quarreling,
Honest as the next jade rolling that stone,
That, while life's pleasures be few,
To hide 'neath a hood,
And Big Jim was standing there - you couldn't say - surprised,
You're the one that reaches me, you're the one that I admire,
So now I'm going on back again, maybe tomorrow or maybe next year,
Don't even feel like crossing the street and my car ain't acting right,
From a clear, blue sky and turn it off again,
And I'll tell it and speak it and think it and breathe it,
The only son of God Almighty,
I'll take you 'cross the river, dear, you've no need to linger here,
Well, the sword swallower, he comes up to you and then he kneels,
He's dressed up like a squire, bootlegged whiskey in his hand,
I will wear new boots and an earring of gold,
So, if you're traveling in the north country fair,
Seeing the metal brace that helped him stand,
Broke and hungry, ragged and dirty too,
The backstage manager was pacing all around by his chair,
Baby, please stop crying, stop crying, stop crying,
Farewell to the minutes they threaten you with it,
I rode all day and I'll ride all night and I'll overtake my lady,
I've been deceived by the clown inside of me,
Hazel, dirty-blonde hair,
The only thing I knew how to do was a-keep on keeping on like a bird that flew,
And ain't in the pimple lotion people are selling you,
Was there somebody looking when you give me that kiss,
Oh, my heart is so sad 'cause I want you so bad,
Bankers' nieces seek perfection,
Cat's in the well, gentle lady is asleep,
I had a dream about you, baby,
If you go when the snowflakes fall,
Past the Aztec ruins and the ghosts of our people,
Well, I sent you my feelings in a letter,
These people so pretty in their ribbons and bows,
With great lawyers you have discussed lepers and crooks,
I can finish this alone, honey,
I think you will find, when your death takes its toll,
Well, aching, tumbled, with all laid down,
I married Isis on the fifth day of May,
And your pleasure knows no limits, your voice is like a meadowlark,
He got a brother named James, don't forget faces or names,
Larry was the oldest, Joey was a-next to last,
We've killed each one,
Where life and death are memorized,
Me and Magdalena on the run,
But, though the rules of the road have been lodged,
And Madonna, she still has not showed,
Ten thousand men digging for silver and gold,
Well, the sweet, pretty things are in bed now of course,
With his pointed shoes and his bells,
Everybody will help you discover what you set out to find,
And don't criticize what you can't understand,
You'll change your last name, too,
When I seen him lose control,
May you build a ladder to the stars and climb on every rung,
Ranting and raving and taking your money and you thinks it's funny,
You gotta look some other place,
You belong to me, baby, without a doubt,
See for me if her hair is hanging long,
Well, that big dumb blonde with her wheel gorged,
You took a part of me that I really miss,
The police department hounded him, they called him "Mr. Smith",
There's always one more notch in four more aces,
Five by five they tried to survive,
Well, the devil's in the alley, mule's in the stall,
Businessmen, they drink my wine, plowmen dig my earth,
Any day now, oh, any day now, I shall be released,
Long distance operator, place this call, it's not for fun,
Oh, come all without, come all within,
I try my best to be like I am,
And, by any number of bets in the book,
My hands can't feel to grip,
They'll stone you when you're walking on the grass,
Is drawing crazy patterns on your sheets,
Sometimes I'm in the mood, I wanna leave my lonesome home,
To be--direction home,
"Those are the hills of hell-fire, my love,
Steal a little and they throw you in jail,
You do the work of the devil, you got a million friends,
I'm a sweet bourbon daddy and tonight I am blue,
There's a chain gang on the highway, I can hear them rebels yell,
From now on this'll be where you're from,
Open the door, Richard, heard it said before,
Let me walk down the highway with my brother in peace,
Oh, honey baby, don't leave me now,
And I got the worried blues,
Some things are too hot to touch,
Watch them jugs a-filling in the pale moonlight,
The man in the trench-coat,
He knew the deal was a-down and dirty,
You that build the death planes, you that build the big bombs-a,
Every head is so dignified,
I could have left this town by noon,
He saw an animal that liked to growl, big furry paws and he liked to howl,
They'll stone you and they'll say that it's the end,
The hanging judge came in unnoticed and was being wined and dined,
Now, little boy lost, he takes himself so seriously,
To the white folks who watched he was a revolutionary bum,
And may you stay forever young,
Yes, I know from darkness dreams are deserted,
In this room the heat-pipes just cough,
Well, you can read out your Bible,
They wished you'd accepted the blame for the farm,
Where black is the color, where none is the number,
Well, if you wanna see the sunrise, honey, I know where,
Oh, I already assumed that we're in the felony room,
As the night comes in falling, the dogs'll lose their bark,
The cat's in the well and the barn is full of bull,
In the Federal City you been blown and shown pity in secret for pieces of change,
The cities of a lonesome fear,
Though they could not produce the gun,
Struck by the sounds before the sun, I knew the night had gone,
And you wish you'd never taken that last detour sign,
Leaving nobody to carry him home,
I like the way you love me strong and slow,
And your eyes get swimmy from the tears in your head,
Well, your friends come by for you, I don't know what to say,
When I was deep in poverty, you taught me how to give,
Without a dream in my heart,
Santa Fe, dear, dear, dear, dear Santa Fe,
Ten thousand miles away from home,
I'm gonna spare the defeated, I'm gonna speak to the crowd,
To a solid rock,
Prayed in the ghetto with my face in the cement,
To shine in through,
Then she ran upstairs to pack her bags while a horse-drawn taxi waited at the curb,
As his youth now unfolds,
You may be rich or poor, you may be blind or lame,
Conceit is a disease that the doctors got no cure,
And you're knee-deep in dark water with your hands in the air,
Ooh, watered-down love,
Now, Ophelia, she's 'neath the window, for her I feel so afraid,
I murdered little Sadie in first degree,
The moon gives light and shines by night,
It's unbelievable, it's strange but true,
And to the black folks he was just a crazy nigger,
Please see she has a coat so warm,
The wind blowing the snow around,
A world war can be won you want me to believe,
Father of black, father of white,
There's a way to get there and I'll figure it out somehow,
They say that you've been seen with some other man,
Well, the emptiness is endless, cold as the clay,
Take a deep breath, feel like you're choking,
I'll buy you a velvet shirt,
Feeling funny in my mind, Lord,
I'd go crawling down the avenue,
By the old wooden stove where our hats was hung,
Don't be deceived by those big, bright eyes,
No more whip-lash for me, no more, no more,
Can't remember what I was thinking of, you might be spoiling me too much, love,
Four months later, the ghettoes are in flame,
Sent for the doctor, well, the doctor, he did come,
And you who philosophize disgrace and criticize all fears,
As we went a-walking down by the seaside,
Yes, to dance beneath the diamond sky with one hand waving free,
You didn't care that it hurt me,
And everybody likes to stop and speak,
Seen a shooting star tonight and I thought of me,
But you're gonna have to serve somebody,
Now, there's a woman on my block, she just sit there as the night grows still,
And, from where they stand, I'm sure it is,
You gave me babies, one, two, three - what is more? you saved my life,
I would not feel so all alone,
And I'm in the shade,
But I would not feel so all alone,
Hey, with a pain that stops and starts,
You know I love you and, furthermore,
He shook his head and then he shook his head, I heard someone ask him, "Please,
Dr. Filth, he keeps his world locked inside of his leather cup,
I went into the city, into the town,
Well, I'm scuffling and I'm shuffling and I'm walking on briars,
Last night 'cross the alley there was a pounding on the wall,
I came to a high place of darkness and light,
Three by three they're turning the key,
Mama, take this badge off of me,
Spellbound and swallowed till the tolling ended,
She looked at him and he felt a spark tingle to his bones,
It's pride, and prejudice, and superstition, indeed,
I was thinking 'bout the things that Rosie said,
Well, I's sitting home alone and I started to sweat,
Well, I looked at my watch, I looked at my wrist,
Got out of bed and put his clothes back on, pushed back the blind,
There was Ragshag Bill from Buffalo I never will forget,
Leave your stepping-stones behind, something calls for you,
"Gentlemen," he said, "I don't need your organization,
Join the monk, C.I.O.,
But the bottles are done,
I took you home from a party and we kissed in fun,
She sticks my boots in the washing machine,
Loneliness, tenderness,
Rock me, pretty baby, rock me all at once,
He gave me a string of horses so old they could not stand,
Well, the deputy walks on hard nails and the preacher rides a mount,
Looks like a-nothing but rain,
There's a black smoke rising, Lord,
Come on down to my ship, honey, ride on deck,
People tell me it's a sin to know and feel too much within,
The birdies were flying from tree to tree,
With no direction home,
Hound dog howling, bull frog croaking,
Dissolved into the bells of the lightning,
And I don't really care, ooh, what happens next,
Everybody's got their heads bowed down,
And you're sick of all this repetition,
Till they ventured out behind the lines and took five prisoners,
The ones that wheel and deal and whirl and twirl,
Don't know how it all got started, don't know what they're doing with their lives,
Ring them bells, sweet Martha, for the poor man's son,
May you always a-be courageous, stand upright and be strong,
In the foggy web of destiny,
No matter what happens to me, no matter what my destiny,
Bullet holes and rifles in their cases,
Lenny Bruce is dead, but his ghost lives on and on,
Wiggle till it whispers, wiggle till it hums,
Don't let me change my heart,
Walking the streets down by the hacienda,
Took the wife and kids and started home,
They'll stone you when you're walking on the floor,
I feel I'm knocking on heaven's door,
Just tell her that I went to Timbuktu, tell her that I'm searching for gold,
I've been walking forty miles of bad road,
Looks like tomorrow is a-coming on fast,
Be careful of the clean clothes,
Now, the winds in Chicago have torn me to shreds,
I'm strumming on my gay guitar,
Two by two, to another rendezvous,
Scale that wall and smoke that vine,
Some of these bootleggers, they make pretty good stuff,
"Oh, yes, sir, my name is Lee,
And your bell's banging loudly but you can't hear its beat,
And high office relations in the politics of Maryland,
That come knocking and tapping in Christmas wrapping,
The phone's tapped anyway,
And it's ride, Willie, ride,
They got mystery written all over their forehead,
Now, when they came down to Canada scarcely about half a year,
I'm watching the roads, I'm studying the dust,
If I have to beg, steal, or borrow,
Never did feel this way before,
The palace of mirrors, where dog-soldiers are reflected,
Drought and starvation, packaging of the soul,
Papa writes to Johnny - johnny can't come home,
Frankie got down upon her knees, took a-Albert into her lap,
In the home of the brave, Jefferson turning over in his grave,
Is there something I can send you from across the sea,
To know how much I really care,
Woke up this morning feeling blue,
It might be the devil, it might be the Lord,
Pull man down on a county hook, my man,
Spiritual advisors and gurus to guide your every move,
One more weekend, one more weekend with you,
The sky too is folding under you,
Turning and a-thrashing about,
I could be learning, you could be yearning to see behind closed doors,
We didn't mean for him to meet his death,
Well, my pa he died and left me, my brother got killed in the war,
Maybe someday, when you're by yourself, alone,
Now, all my fathers, they've gone down,
Your mind is your temple, keep it beautiful and free,
"Where shall the wedding supper be?" Uh-huh,
I wouldn't pay it any mind,
Father who build the mountain so high,
"No reason to get excited," the thief, he kindly spoke,
I once loved a woman - a child, I'm told,
You walk into the room like a camel and then you frown,
And it ain't in the cream-puff hairdo or cotton-candy clothes,
Her heart will be broken when I am gone,
Strangers all give me the news,
Oh, Angelina,
Don't wanna wink at nobody, I don't wanna be winked at,
One summer's day he came passing by,
They'll stone you when you're riding in your seat,
Preacher was a-talking, there's a sermon he gave,
And some of us'll end up to be lawyers and things,
You wanna ramble, yeah, to the break of dawn,
You've murdered your vanity, burned your sanity for pleasure you must now resist,
She fluttered her false eyelashes and whispered in his ear,
Drifting too far from shore,
You coulda done better, but I don't mind,
Papa writes to Johnny - Johnny can't come home,
This place ain't doing me any good,
If you don't wanna be a bum,
There's beauty in that rainbow in the sky,
My tablecloth's from Malaysia,
And, if my thought-dreams could be seen,
But me, I can't cover what I am,
Who've lost all ray of hope,
We eat and we drink, we feel and we think,
Well, I'm so glad,
Get jailed, jump bail,
If I--I didn't have to guess,
Next to come in was a broken-back flea, uh-huh,
Long distance operator, please place this call, you know, it's not for fun,
I thought that he was righteous, but he's vain,
He never done no wrong, he never done no wrong,
For his age he is wise,
Though they murdered six million, in the ovens they fried,
Trying to prove that your conclusions should be more drastic,
Well, give me a minute, let me get it together,
The thrill and the touch of her fingertips,
Way down in some Tularosa alley,
And she makes love just like a woman,
You wish for contentment, but you got an emptiness that can't be filled,
You fasten the trigger for the others to fire,
Now, don't you try and move me, mama, you just gonna lose,
She was working in a topless place, I stopped in for a beer,
To find out if she's talked,
But Louise, she's alright, she's just near,
He won't do nothing to you,
I punched myself in the face with my fist,
Gypsy Davy with a blowtorch, he burns out their camps,
Don't think twice, it's alright, babe,
In the slow-motion crawl or life's busy race,
Holding me back, not letting me stand,
Wasn't falling for any intricate scheme,
Well, I'm groaning in the hallway, pretty soon I'll be mad,
I like to spend some time in Mozambique,
There's a black Mercedes rolling through the combat zone,
Poisoned in the bushes, blown out on the trail,
You close your eyes and part your lips and slip your fingers from your glove,
Go melt back into the night, babe,
Or is it because you remind me of something that used to be,
It ain't no use to sit and wonder why, babe,
Yes, but, if you want me to,
I looked way up my chimney-hole,
Come, a-writers and critics who prophesize with your pen,
Well, the time will tell who has fell and who's been left behind,
All the silver, all the gold,
Whose suffering seemed to fit you like a glove,
Everything's a-hers or his,
Can't hear your name, you can't see your face,
When he drifted down to LA where he'd reckoned to try his luck,
He was just a blue-eyed Boston boy,
They was in the air, they was on the ground,
I met my little Sadie and I brought her down,
She speaks with a stutter and she walk with a hop,
A handle hid out in the dark,
Or disgrace you or displace you,
Soon as a man is born, you know, the sparks begin to fly,
With the juice running down my leg,
Well, I was eating with the pigs off a fancy tray,
Man gave names to all the animals in the beginning, in the beginning,
I'm sick of love, I hear the clock tick,
Lord, listen to that cold whistle blow,
Uncle Rat laughed and he shook his fat sides, uh-huh,
Some things are too terrible to be true,
There's a whole lotta people dying tonight from the disease of conceit,
He woke up, the room was bare, he didn't see her anywhere,
They say the darkest hour is right before the dawn,
There's only one step down from here, baby,
Winterlude by the corn in the field,
All that's gold wasn't meant to shine,
Now, love is gentle, love is kind,
You don't have to be afraid of looking a-into my face,
And later on, as the crowd thinned out, I's about to do the same,
Yes, you're right from your side and I'm right from mine,
I yelled for Captain Arab, I'll have you understand,
I woke in the morning, wandering, weary and worn out,
You harbor resentment, you know that ain't too much of a thrill,
Yeah, ninety miles an hour down a dead-end street,
Winter would have no spring,
The boiler busted and the whistler squalled,
Your back is straight, your hair is smooth on the pillow where you lie,
To get it to work for you like your nine-pound hammer did,
There's a whole lotta people in trouble tonight from the disease of conceit,
I'll call you tomorrow if there's phones where I am,
Spending the time that you borrowed,
They said "Aye" and away they rode,
I woulda followed you in the door, but I didn't have a ticket stub,
I landed up on the downtown side,
They're all drinking, thinking they got it made,
"Not me," says the boxing writer,
"Ah, but I just thought you might want something fine,
I'm a thousand years old, I'm a generous bomb,
I saw you in the wilderness among the men,
Someone who will die for you and more,
The dusky light the day is losing, orchids, poppies, black-eyed Susan,
The path you've endured has been rough,
I wish I a-was a magician,
I met one man who was wounded in love,
Call him "Drunken" Ira Hayes, he won't answer anymore,
We'll fly the night away,
I'm gonna establish my rule through civil war,
Where wisdom grows up in strife,
Some say they lived off gambling and running numbers too,
The lieutenant, he has gone, the lieutenant, he has gone,
Oh, your mouth used to be so naked, your eyes used to be blue,
They like to take all this money from sin, build big universities to study in,
When you're gone--when you're gone, I will dream a little, I will dream as years go by,
That fellow who never blushes,
Everybody's just standing 'round 'neath the trees feeding pigeons on a limb,
Through this open world I'm bound to ramble,
So, go on, boys, play your hands, life is a pantomime,
There's an Iron Cross still hanging down from around her neck,
Yeah, I see my light come shining from the west out to the east,
Skinny Moo and T-Bone Frank,
Won't let go and I can't let go,
But, baby, please stop crying, stop crying, stop crying,
I'll buy you rope and twine,
Your eyes can only look through two kinds of windows,
But I'll know my song well before I start singing,
Strike another match, go start anew,
Where do you look for this candle that's glowing,
You wanna drown love,
Here come the story of the "Hurricane",
You were drawing water for your husband, you were suffering under the law,
Got to be an important person to be in here, honey,
Carry the New York Times,
Don't forsake me, baby, don't sell me out,
It's a shadowy world, skies are slippery gray,
A change in the weather can be extreme,
I'm just waiting on the Lord to rebuild and fill me up,
"There must be some way outta here," said the joker to the thief,
Each invisible prayer is like a cloud in the air,
Way up in the border country far from the towns,
Well, you got something to say, speak now or hold your peace,
That chilly wind will soon begin and I'll be on my way,
He's wandered the earth an exiled man,
"I know my waist is slender and my fingers, they are small,
And you know I could never be your own,
Laugh at him behind his back just like the others do,
And watch the young torero stand alone,
Groundhog running by the country stream,
Well, the leaves are rustling in the wood, things are falling off of the shelf,
You turn around for one real last glimpse of Camille 'neath the moonshine, bloody and pink,
If we never meet again, baby, remember me,
Eh, see what you can do,
No, you can't find it neither in no night-club, no yacht club,
Trails of troubles, toads of battles,
Someone to close his heart,
I wish I'd have been a doctor,
Well, I was sitting home alone and I started to sweat,
Dressed in green robes with wings that stick out,
He'll put the priest in his pocket, put the blade to the heat,
But you're drifting too far from shore,
City's just a jungle, more games to play,
And I don't care if you feel like me,
Seem like, every time you stop and turn around,
Pick you up every time you fall,
Saved by the blood of the lamb,
But I will be back, I will survive,
You know, news of you has come down the line,
Let's try to get beneath the surface waste, girl,
She said, "Now, don't you tell Henry,
We got you for the motel job and you talking to your friend, Bello,
My lord and my savior, my companion, my friend,
Broken bodies, broken bones,
That fired the gun,
Thieving in the alley,
Well, the old men 'round here, sometimes they get on bad terms with the younger men,
"There's no time for mischief there," they say. "Remember that," says they,
I saw a white ladder all covered with water,
I went to church on Sunday and she passed by,
That long, black cloud is coming down,
Well, it ain't no use in a-turning on your light, babe,
Oh, tell my baby sister not to do what I have done,
Say for me that I'm alright, though new things come and go,
You took the silver, you took the gold,
There's a lion in the road, there's a demon escaped,
It can't get you crazy no matter how many times you might get kicked,
On some windy corner 'round a wide-angled curve,
Ain't nothing left here, partner,
Yes, when things go wrong, so wrong with you,
I've been walking through the middle of nowhere,
You could look at it and weep,
Don't wanna bury nobody, don't wanna be buried,
Take what you have gathered from coincidence,
"Oh, son, you look so fine, I'm glad you're a son of mine,
Oh, baby, baby, baby blue,
I've been broken, shattered like an empty cup,
With hungry hearts through the heat and cold,
Playing around with some sweet senorita,
Don't need a shot of turpentine - only bring me to my knees,
He rode right up to Ms. Mousey's door,
Frankie was a good girl, everybody know,
Up on the white veranda, she wears a necktie and a Panama hat,
Feel like I'm drifting, drifting from scene to scene,
Come, you ladies and you gentlemen, listen to my song,
In her honky-tonk lagoon,
Cat's in the well, horse is going bumpety-bump,
Build a fire, throw on logs, and listen to it hiss,
Laughing and singing till the early hours of the morn,
It felt out of place, my foot in his face,
Wiggle, wiggle, wiggle like a gypsy queen,
If I fall along the way and can't see another day,
I still believe she was my twin, but I lost the ring,
I'm twenty miles outta town, Cold Irons bound,
The next day was hanging day, the sky was overcast and black,
Now, Eisenhower, he's a Russian spy,
May your hands always be busy, may your feet always be swift,
You may call me Bobby or you may call me Zimmy,
Tearing through these quarters in the utmost misery,
Automobile coming into style,
I come into Pittsburgh at six-thirty flat,
Lord, I got the worried blues,
Samantha Brown lived in my house for about four or five months,
Invading my privacy and making my decisions for me,
No, no, ma'am, I can't wait,
There's a long distance train rolling through the rain,
And there's something on your mind that you wanna be saying,
Who will promise never to part,
I've been to Sugar Town, I shook the sugar down,
You've got to serve somebody,
Precious angel, you believe me when I say,
I heard his best friend, Frankie, say, "He ain't dead, he's just asleep",
You prayed to the Lord above, oh, please send you a friend,
Singing about conspiracy, wanting me to be afraid,
Grabbed hold of a subway car,
I'd be sad and blue,
I did it for - because he lied, 'cause he took you for a ride,
Men a-flying, fists a-flying, paper flying,
Uncle Rat went running downtown, uh-huh,
To the marketplace, merchants and thieves hungry for power,
In the little church a-this side of tow,
Thinking about the government,
When a war broke out at the break of dawn, it emptied out the streets,
I need your love so bad, turn your lamp down low,
The day you quit me, baby,
Mama's in a factory, she ain't got no shoes,
Curtis looking high, Curtis looking low,
Come, writers and critics who prophesize with your pen,
They pass by so silently,
Sister's on the highway with that steel-driving crew,
Oxford Town around the bend,
You can listen to my story, you can listen to my song,
Everybody says you're using voodoo, I've seen your feet walk by themselves,
God knows how to make it flow,
Well, the wind keeps blowing me up and down the street,
Be careful not to touch the wall - there's a brand-new coat of paint,
For all those who have eyes and all those who have ears,
I am a man of constant sorrow,
Dealing cards till dawn in the hacienda,
Later on, when the crowd thinned out, I was getting ready to leave,
Ring them bells, St. Catherine, from the top of the room,
I keep seeing visions of you, a lily among thorns,
Don't walk on your tip-toes,
I met somebody face-to-face, I had to remove my hat,
Pull man down in pulley hook, let 'em take me or take a look,
I's just thinking of a series of dreams,
"It's too bad he died that night,
It frightens me, the awful truth of how sweet life can be,
Hear a voice crying "Daddy!" I always think it's for me,
A pretty, dancing girl was there and she began to shout,
Then he started into dealing with slaves and something inside of him died,
Now, I watched you slowly disappear down into the officers' club,
I'm sure your mind is roaming,
She got great big hind legs,
Though the night ran swirling and whirling,
Wintertime is coming, the windows are filled with frost,
The carpet too is moving under you,
To be alone with you,
Made of silver or of golden,
Now he's buried in the rocks,
And on the highway of regret,
Opened up his eyes to the tune of an accordion,
They'll stone you when you're trying to be so good,
The wind, it whispers to the buckeye trees in rhyme,
And every cause that ever I fought,
We wanna put his ass in the stir,
I've given up the game, I've got to leave,
My eyes danced a circle across her clear outline,
Standing by God's river, my soul beginning to shake,
Cat's in the well and the servant is at the door,
Don't know how it all got started, I don't know what they're doing with their lives,
Broken threads, broken springs,
Hmm, and you are on dry land,
Hear the one with the mustache say, "Jeez,
Crickets talking back and forth in rhyme,
In the darkness of my night,
And the executioner's face is always well-hidden,
Well, this woman I've got, she's killing me alive,
Stone you when you're set down in your grave,
I'll go see them come down my way,
You can travel anywhere and hang yourself there,
We live in a political world,
The only thing I knew how to do was keep on keeping on like a bird that flew,
Everybody I met seemed to be a rank stranger,
God knows there's a purpose,
You can't hop a jet plane like you can a freight train,
It's a price I have to pay,
Might be reading "Art of Truth", might be outta luck,
We always did feel the same, we just saw it from a different point of view,
And them Caribbean winds still blow from Nassau to Mexico,
Where all the cars are stripped between the gates of night,
How to enter into the gates of paradise, no,
All day long I hear him shouting loud,
They're like babies sitting on a woman's knee,
He was an outlaw, that's for sure,
You know, I can't believe we've lived so long and are still so far apart,
Well, Phaedra with her looking glass,
"Give me a thousand policemen, throw me into a cell,
Listen to me, baby, there's something you must see,
Her folks, they said their lives together sure was gonna be rough,
Sure gonna be wet tonight on Main Street,
Never could learn to drink that blood and call it wine,
Where the sun never set, where the trees hung low,
God bless them pretty women, I wish they was mine,
Now, when you go home, you don't have to get along,
Carved next to his name,
Going, going,
Let the wind blow low and the wind blow high,
Hey, hey, babe, I got blood in my eyes for you,
Queen Mary, she's my friend. Yes, I believe I'll go see her again,
Well, the walls of pride are high and wide,
The cracked bells and washed-out horns blow into my face with scorn,
There's a kingdom called Heaven, a place where there is no pain of birth,
But whatever you wish to keep, you better grab it fast,
Going home,
You crawl into the room like a camel and you frown,
Where nothing comes up to the top,
Yeah, from the stage they'll be trying to get water outta rocks,
Ain't no reason to go up, ain't no reason to go down,
Oh, I know where I can find you,
'Twas down in Chaynee County, a time they talk about,
Don't wanna defeat nobody if already been defeated,
Living in the land of Nod,
Oh, my name, it ain't nothing, my age, it means less,
Turn to broken-down slums and trash-can alleys,
Drinking in some bar to hide your sorrow,
A-Me and my cousin, one Arthur McBride,
Well, I'm pressing on,
Sick man looking for the doctor's cure,
But this time behind your back, my friend,
Yes, I'm so glad,
The hysterical bride in the penny arcade,
"Lay at your bed, Sally Sue Brown,
And the lion's mouth opens and you're staring at his teeth,
Try to be a success,
Vanished from my hand,
May you build a ladder to the stars, climb on every rung,
Well, there's too much of nothing--can cause a man to weep,
Idiot wind blowing like a circle around my skull,
The glamour and the bright lights and the politics of sin,
You know, I don't mind him cheating on me, but I sure wish he'd take that off his head,
There's a lawman on your trail like to surround you,
You were telling him about Buddha, you were telling him 'bout Muhammad in one breath,
You can't live by bread alone, you won't be satisfied,
Without your sweet love,
So now I'm going back on again, I got to get to them somehow,
The air burns and I'm trying to think straight,
It always means so much,
Put your ear to the train tracks, put your ear to the ground,
They shaved her head, she was torn between Jupiter and Apollo,
I don't care if you feel like me,
Another man from Atlanta, Georgia,
Oh, you been with the professors and they've all liked your looks,
Well, I was feeling sad and kind of blue,
With my head bowed down to my shoes,
I ain't a-gonna get lost in this current,
Keep all your trouble or give it to the blind,
He oversees his kingdom, where no stranger does intrude,
A little piece of cornbread a-laying on a shelf, uh-huh,
There's a retired businessman named Red,
Every day your memory grows dimmer,
But it ain't gonna do no good,
I'd taken the cure and had just gotten through,
'Stead of slowing down the place, we keep a-picking up speed,
We pushed each other a little too far and one day it just turned into a raging storm,
All day long I hear his voice shouting so loud,
God knows it's terrifying,
I care so much for you, didn't think I could,
Then they drove that car as far as they could, abandoned it out west,
Stone you just like you got hit by a truck,
Come, all you fair and tender girls, wheresoever you may be,
When both of us, baby, were going though some kind of a test,
I can write you poems, make a strong man lose his mind,
And the sooner you come up with them,
Where her cape of the stage once had flowed,
I said, "Nothing, baby, and that's for sure." She leaned down into my face,
Time is a jet plane, it moves too fast,
Lord, if I can't come in here, baby, then just let me sit down in your door,
Don't ever try to change me,
If you can't quit your sinning,
But, when we meet again and are introduced by friends,
I went out last night to take a little round,
When she's near me, she's so hard to recognize,
Roll, Willie, roll,
Well, the neighborhood bully, he's just one man,
Ten thousand women all sweeping my room,
Stone you and then they'll close the door,
Well, she pulled off them long, blue gloves all made of the finest leather,
You follow, find yourself at war,
Warlords of sorrow and queens of tomorrow will offer their heads for a prayer,
Each one playing a horn,
Samantha Brown lived in my house for 'bout four or five months,
Now, grease that gig and play it blank,
I got this graveyard woman, you know, she keeps my kids,
And you feel the reins from your pony are slipping,
Next to come in was a big, black snake, uh-huh,
Blowing like she never blowed before,
On a night like this I'm so glad you're here to stay,
But don't tell me about it, I don't wanna hear it,
Thinking and drinking that they got it made,
Neither one gonna turn and run,
And I'm gonna ride into Omaha on a horse,
The lamp-post stands with folded arms,
Please see for me if she's wearing her coat so warm,
But, what'd I do? I let it slip through,
God don't make promises that He don't keep,
Maybe someday you'll be satisfied,
Don't wanna amuse nobody, I don't wanna be amused,
A foreign sound to your ear,
Yet he walked right into the clubhouse of his lifelong, deadly foe,
She went into the tailor shop and dressed in men's array,
Well, my heart's in the Highlands wherever I roam,
Who among them could ever think he could destroy you,
Corrina, Corrina,
Them playing leapfrog and hearing about Snow White,
Whether he lost or whether he won, to him it was always the same,
But she takes just like a woman,
This wheel's on fire, rolling down the road,
Beyond here lies nothing,
I love you, pretty baby,
You need a fast-flying train on a tornado track,
I ain't looking to make you cry,
Bouncing around a pinball machine,
Yes, but I would not feel so all alone,
Gonna serve somebody,
Till he started into dealing with slaves and something inside of him died,
On the very next day with a nose full of pus,
I was lying down in the reeds without any oxygen,
I'm beginning to hear voices and there's no one around,
I wanna be with you, girl, if you wanna be with me,
I'm just gonna let you pass,
Dogs a-barking, cats a-screaming, women a-yelling,
I met a white man who walked a black dog,
Who pounds the print in his old typewriter,
Like a dog on a chain,
Gay as a jewel when first it’s new,
One U-Haul trailer, a truck with no wheels,
I'm crestfallen, a world of illusions at my door,
Well, I don't mind dying,
Keep a clean nose,
I believe in you even on the morning after,
Who directed me down to the Bowery slums,
And I freeze in the moment like the rest who don't try,
I'm a fool, but I love you, dear, yes, I will until the day I die,
But there's no one to check, it's all a stacked deck,
Ashes in the furnace, dust on the rise,
She's crying like an evil stone,
That's how it is when things disintegrate,
You married young just like your ma,
Well, you bet on a horse and it, it ran the wrong way,
I have no one to meet,
Your partners in crime hit me up for nickels and dimes,
In the shadows of moonlight,
Next to come in was the Juney bug,
Someone to close his eyes for you,
Rubin Carter was a-falsely tried,
I'd only have to stay,
Well, it may be the devil and it may be the Lord,
I've been living the blues every night without you,
Broken pipes, broken tools,
The party's over and there's less and less to say,
I came in from the east with the sun in my eyes,
I am not pleading or saying "I can't forget you",
Just then the order came to charge,
I'm drifting in and out of dreamless sleep,
It's rising up above my head,
And comes to a permanent stop,
He's made a garden of paradise in the desert sand,
I've been walking that lonesome valley,
Build me a cabin in Utah,
Larry was the oldest, Joey was next to last,
There are thousands in the phone booth, thousands at the gate,
If'n you don't know by now,
I got a heavy-headed gal, I got a heavy-headed gal,
Well, he can be fascinating, he can be dull,
And I feel like I'm knocking on a-heaven's door,
Yes, I'm bound to get lucky, baby,
No, it ain't in the rumors people're telling you,
May be a rock-and-roll addict prancing on the stage,
I like the smile in your fingertips,
"Take care of all of your memories," said Mick,
Fix me one more drink, baby, and hold me one more time,
I'm stark naked, but I don't care,
This world is ruled by violence,
Silver angel, with the badge of the lonesome road written in your sleeve,
All I remember is waking up on the shore,
Gonna change my way of thinking, bring myself a different set of rules,
Everybody will help you, some people are very kind,
Well, the comic book and me, just us, we caught the bus,
Blackjack Davey come a-riding on by, whistling aloud and merry,
Sorry if I hurt you, baby, sorry if I did,
To keep up his hate,
Sky full of fire, pain pouring down,
And you're looking for something you ain't quite found yet,
Too noble to neglect,
And I know what you're thinking of,
And I--I don't mind the pain,
Everybody's in despair, every girl and boy,
I had to leave there in a hurry,
Pounced with fire on flaming roads,
Your baby's eyes look crazy, they're tugging at your sleeve,
Saying, "Ain't I pretty?" and, "Ain't I cute? Look at my skin,
You got a lotta nerve to say you got a helping hand to lend,
Got me a secret membership card,
Ten thousand men dressed in oxford blue,
Nevada, New Mexico, Arizona, Idaho,
And play games with each other in their sand-box world,
I believe in you even through the tears and the laughter,
I tried to be loving and treat you kind,
Mama, I can hear that thunder roar,
I'm listening to Neil Young, I gotta turn up the sound,
She doesn't have to say she's faithful,
Saw two men running out, they looked like middleweights,
Oh, see what you can do,
And the breeze will cease to be breathing,
You were snow, you were rain,
Old Reilly stole a stallion,
The call of the wild is forever at my door,
But I won't be a stand-in for an old love,
Her folks, they said our lives together sure was gonna be rough,
Roses are red, violets are blue,
All these people that you mention, yes, I know them, they're quite lame,
And, when we meet again, introduced as friends,
He stood so straight and tall in his uniform and all,
You always said people don't do what they believe in,
Stone you when you're waiting for a train,
Frankie pulled out a pistol, pulled out a .44,
Maybe they'll get me and maybe they won't, but not tonight and it won't be here,
Feel like falling in love with the first woman I meet,
From their fates try to resign,
Well, he puts his cigar out your face just for kicks,
Looked behind the sink and under the floor,
They let him out in '71, he'd lost a little weight,
Standing on a corner a-just ringing my bell,
If I didn't have to guess,
Just don't know what to do,
I want you,
She aches just like a woman,
My hands didn't touch him none,
My right hand drawing back while my left hand advances,
Ain't no reason to go in a wagon to town,
I saw a room full of men with their hammers bleeding,
She broke her leg and needed shooting,
May you grow up to be righteous, may you grow up to be true,
Nasty, dirty, double-crossing, back-stabbing phony I didn't have to wanna have to deal with,
With faces hidden as the walls were tightening,
"Without my uncle Rat's consent," - uh-huh,
Run your fingers down my spine and bring me a touch of bliss,
Don't use no green or rotten wood - they'll get you by the smoke,
Out to the windy beach,
Snuck around the house with a huff and a hiss,
She was married when they first met, soon to be divorced,
I got my back to the sun 'cause the light is too intense,
You're a rascal, I know exactly where you're going,
I been double-crossed now for the very last time and now I'm finally free,
I have gone from rags to riches in the sorrow of the night,
The cabaret was empty now, a sign said "Closed for Repair",
I pulled out for San Anton', I never felt so good,
Jesus said, "Be ready for you know not the hour which I come",
Way up yonder, great will be her reward,
I swung on to my old guitar,
She was married when they first met to a man four times her age,
A messenger arrived with a black nightingale,
Big Jim lay covered up, killed by a penknife in the back,
Then a lady in a bright orange dress,
Watch the river flow,
Might like to wear cotton, might like to wear silk,
See her in that very tight skirt,
Underneath the bridge where the water flowed through,
I can see through your walls and I know you're hurting,
Well, the woman that I love, she got a hook in her nose,
There's always someone who understands,
He saw an animal that liked to snort, horns on his head and they weren't too short,
And it's ride, a-Willie, ride,
You're the reason I'm a-traveling on,
Late one day in the middle of the week,
Hunts her down by the waterfront docks where the sailors all come in,
But, if you ride back and I am left,
I wanna thank You, Lord,
Well, my hat's in my hand, babe, I'm walking down the line,
Bow down to her on Sunday, salute her when her birthday comes,
Call your ma in Tallahassee,
I'm gonna spare the defeated, boys, I'm going to speak to the crowd,
Read books, repeat quotations,
I could make you happy, make your dreams come true,
Frog went a-courting and a-he did ride, uh-huh,
We got much to talk about and much to reminisce,
And for each and every underdog soldier in the night,
And you make love just like a woman,
Black crows in the meadow, sleeping across a broad highway,
With silver bracelets on her wrists and flowers in her hair,
And the poet and the painter, far behind his rightful time,
When my life is over and my time has run out,
And old men with broken teeth, stranded, without love -
You can say she'd better find someone new to cherish and to hold -
That's a-hanging in the Louvre -
Drive you from your fear, bring you through the mirror -
Catch the wild fishes that float through the stream -
I took too much for granted, I got my signals crossed -
Oh, mama, can this really be the end -
About having to be scrounging around for your next meal -
It can't be this way everywhere -
All non-believers and men-stealers talking in the name of religion -
Something about that movie, though - but I just can't get it outta my head -
Shenandoah, I will not deceive you -
Band is playing "Dixie", man got his hand outstretched --
I think to myself I might not take it anymore -
I played my guitar through the night to the day -
I seen her on the stairs and I couldn't help but follow--
Well, I've sung you my song - it ain't very long -
You got the ways of a devil sleeping in a lion's den -
Oh, Lucky's driving a long, long time -
We just wanted to see some sweat -
Well, we're driving this car and the sun is coming up over the Rockies -
Let the four winds blow around this old cabin door -
Without a reply I left by the moon -
Havana-gee-
Disconnect these cables--
What happened to him could happen to anyone -
I lived by the window as he talked to himself -
We'll fly it over the ocean just like you suspect -
Leave all the children home -
I didn't know that you'd be leaving -
From now on you'd best get on someone else -
Have a bunch of kids who call me "Pa" -
I long to reach out for you in the dead of the night -
Joliet prison and ninety-nine years -
As the leading actor hurried by in the costume of a monk -
Now, I've had enough, my box is clean -
We pulled up where Henry Porter used to live -
It nearly swept me off of my feet -
And it ain't no use to sit and wonder why, babe -
Now, the Missouri is a mighty river -
Bounty hunters, too, they'd like to get you -
Well, I'll sing you a song - it ain't very long -
New York Times said it was the coldest winter in seventeen years -
Maybe in La Rio Pecas valley -
As suicide remarks are torn -
Well, I don't know why I love you like I do -
And, when it's over, just as soon go on my way"--
Something there is about you that strikes a match in me -
But I know him as good as I'm knowing myself -
The man standing next to me, his head was exploding -
Remember me to one who lives there -
Too late, too late, for his case, it is sealed -
That may be true, he's got a sentence to serve -
Then I saw the old man's limousine head back towards the grave -
Just like old Saxophone Joe when he's got the hogshead up on his toe -
Hang out the whole next day -
With no other choice except but for to go -
That's where you belong --
I could never figure out why you chose that particular place to meet -
My heart is aching for Mary, Lord knows I miss her so -
And a thousand telephones that don't ring -
Judge had the papers in his hand -
Hope he falls upon himself - oh, won't that be sweet? -
When you know as well as me you'd rather see me paralyzed --
And your jackhammer falls from your hands to your feet -
The judge spoke out of the side of his mouth -
I think I'll go out and go for a walk --
You said you were going to Frisco, stay a couple of months -
The liquor tasted good and the women all were fast -
Oh, Shenandoah, I love your daughter -
The race of the engine that overrules your heart -
Oh, twice around went the gallant ship -
Somebody could freeze right to the bone -
Now, I hope you won't object to giving--
Every empire that's enslaved him is gone -
I didn't commit no ugly sin -
Can't stand the suspense anymore--
Well, they were sailing about two weeks -
Saying, "Could you kindly leave my office now, please?" -
You say my kisses aren't like his -
Oh, what is the charge of how this came to be? -
I long to hold you in the night -
Situations have ended sad, relationships have all been bad -
I'll stand in awe and I'll shake my face -
If I knew for sure that it was yours - but it was, oh, so hard to tell! -
Indians camp along her border -
A crash on the highway flew the car to a field -
The room was funny and I stood up so slow -
At that the judge jerked forward and his face, it did freeze -
Shake me up that old peach tree, little Jack Horner got nothing on me -
No matter what you think about it, you won't be able to do without it -
I took too much for granted, got my signals crossed -
Now your mouth cries wolf while your--
Tell me the trouble, tell me once to my ear -
Whispering your secret emotion -
That can win what's a-never been won -
In a game with death Bill lost his breath in the days of '49 -
Sometimes it gets so hard to care -
You've known it all the time, I'm learning it these days -
If only could hang on and just be her friend -
But I get no offers, just a come-on from the whores on 7th avenue -
"That a friend of mine would get ninety-nine years?" -
You know, a woman like you should be at home --
Fools glorify themselves trying to manipulate Satan -
Was looking to do just one good deed before she died -
She inherited a million bucks and, when she died, it came to me -
I know everything about this place - or so it seems -
And all the people say, "There goes Tom Moore," in the days of '49 -
Thought I'd shaken the wonder and the phantoms of my youth -
He's singing his song for me at his own expense -
I ask you how things could get much worse -
I walked down the hallway and I heard his door slam -
Everybody's asking why he couldn't adjust -
I'll be in Santa Fe about one -
When you ain't got nothing, girl, you got nothing to lose -
If I only could a-hang on and just be her friend -
When it's over, I'd just as soon go on my way"--
First degree and second degree -
Ten thousand miles or more -
And in that hole he roared out his soul in the days of '49 -
And there's really nothing anyone can say -
[incomprehensible] in the grave - in American future -
Well, the pressure's down, the boss ain't here -
Eclipses both the sun and moon -
Well, ask me why I'm drunk all the time -
Oh, those mighty kings of the jungle, I could hardly stand to see 'em -
The cops said, "A poor boy like you could use a break -
I was in your presence for an hour or so -
And it ain't no use in calling out my name, gal -
Ha-va-
I walked down the courthouse stairs and I did not understand -
And many a road taken by many a first friend -
Bringing home thirty cents a day to a family of twelve -
Yes, and only if she was lying by me -
To flesh-colored Christs that glow in the dark -
Conversing with my Flora there - it seemed so strange to me -
Havanagee-luh-
And old men with broken teeth, stranded without love -
But he was just a Pima Indian - no money, no crops, no chance -
Oh, God, 'cause when - Amsterdam and Paris -
With the mystery tramp, but now--but--his eye--
Think I'll go out and go for a walk --
From darkness dreams are deserted --
But it sure - my loved ones turning into puppets -
Rosemary right beside him, steady in her eyes -
You'd come back and you'd stay -
If I'm there in the morning, baby, you'll know I've survived--
Well, it's fare thee well, my dear, I'm bound to leave you -
And she winds back the clock and she turns back the page of a book that nobody can write--
He said-a, "All power is given to Me in heaven and on earth" -
All that foreign oil - American soil -
And I saw the old man's limousine head back towards the grave -
All that foreign oil controlling American soil -
Whatever pleases You, tell it to my heart -
I've just reached a place where the willow don't bend -
Thank--
Please don't mention the stage coach and the shot from a careless gun -
How badly they were shocked -
And I pass by from town to town, they call me the Rambling Sign --
And Ira started drinking hard, jail was often his home -
To know where you are -
I'm looking good to see you, yeah, and we can have some fun -
Like good, old bricks they stood the kicks in the days of '49 -
Oh, my-
For seven long years I courted Sally -
Oh, [incomprehensible] but your ace is red -
He looks so truthful - is this how he feels? -
No one tried to say a thing when they carried him out in jest -
But they got a lot of forks and knives -
I return to the Chinese flute - touching me, it wasn't cute -
Someone who will die for you and maybe more -
But that's just because he doesn't wanna turn into some machine -
Saying, "The witness who saw, he left little doubt" -
He was raving about how he loved my sound -
We just meant to see some sweat -
It don't matter who loves who - either you'll love me or I'll love you -
And was in his chambers by the next afternoon -
I can't see us going anywhere, girl --
Staring out the window to the stars high above -
Deciding America's future from Amsterdam into Paris -
I love to see you dress before the mirror -
Everything up to that point had been left unresolved -
You do what you must do and you do it well -
People starving and thirsting, grain elevators are bursting -
See for me if her hair is hanging long -
Let me know, babe - I'm nearly drowning -
But I don't think it's liable to happen -
There was four persons killed and he was at the wheel -
The sentence is passed and it cannot be repealed -
"Could you tell me the facts," I said without fear -
I was riding in a buggy with Ms. Mary-Jane -
Listen to the fiddler play when he's playing till the break of day -
To the shadows of the Mesa she will greet you -
But ninety-nine years he just don't deserve -
Friends will arrive, friends will disappear -
But I'm walking and wandering - my poor feet don't ever stop! -
Saddle me up my big, white goose, tie me on her and turn her loose -
To the courtyards of the jester, which is hidden from the sun -
I got no idea what I want -
Hava-na-
Oh, lose your inhibition [incomprehensible] -
Noontime and I'm still pushing myself along the road -- the darkest part --
"There goes Tom Moore, a bummer, sure" -- in the days of '49 -
I knew a man, Bojangles, and he'd dance for you in worn-out shoes -
You're the kind of woman I just don't understand -
The judge had the papers in his right hand -
They crammed me back into the county jail -
When a cop pulled him over to the side of the road -
Well, the death of life, then come the resurrection -
Out of that picture of you in your wheelchair that leaned up against -
Saying one of your friends is in trouble deep -
I'm happy just to see you, yeah, looking so good -
I'm sure it was not three -
And nothing would ever come between Lily and the king -
It won't matter who loves who - you'll love me or I'll love you -
Bad news, bad news came to me where I sleep -
Take a message to Mary, but don't say I'm in a jam -
I hope that you can hear--
We stared into each other's eyes till one of us would break -
Into the vacuum of his eyes--
You're the sweetest, gone mama that this boy's ever gonna get -
Yes, I know, from darkness dreams are deserted -
It was for her I'd cross the water -
Bounty hunters are dancing all around you -
They walked along by the old canal, a little confused - I remember well -
Where I've got me a date with Botticelli's niece -
I can still hear the sounds of those Methodist bells -
Though its glow is waxed in black -
I was three-fourths drunk, she looked alright -
Driven mad by desperation, I pierced him to the breast -
Straight for the hills, the black hills of Dakota -
Forty-one years to wear the ball and the stripes -
When you know as well as me you'd rather see me paralyzed -
I've gained some recognition, but I lost my appetite -
So, hang on to your woman if you've got one -
Private reasons - great or small -
Clouds so swift, the rain falling in, gonna see a movie called "Gunga Din" -
As her beauty fades and I watch her undrape--well, I won't, but then maybe again I might--
Democracy don't rule the world --
I can't believe it! I can't believe I'm alive, but without you it doesn't seem right--
Well, a white man loved an Indian maiden -
And he wouldn't harm a life that belonged to someone else -
And over Jake they held a wake in the days of '49 -
Clouds so swift, rain won't lift, gate won't close, railings froze -
I was riding on the Mayflower when I thought I spied some land--
I stood alone upon the ridge and all I did was watch -
I got knocked down and my head was swimming -
When you ain't got nothing, you got nothing to lose -
Oh, Shenandoah, I long to hear you -
Who carried on his shoulder a Siamese cat -
I a-hope you can hear--
And as for compensation there's a-little he would ask -
But it sure does bother me to see my loved ones turning into puppets -
Haven't seen her since that night -
In some lonesome shadow she might greet you -
Turn, turn, turn again -
One of these days - and it won't be long -
Let me know, babe, that--will you surround me? -
He saw him disappear by a tree near a lake -
Up to Boot Hill they'd like to send you -
Jesus gonna make up-Jesus gonna make up-
You will not hear a laugh -
Manslaughter in the highest of degrees -
Seven more years I longed to have her -
Stay, lady, stay, stay with your man awhile -
And it ain't no use in turning on your light, babe -
Explaining to the judge I'd be there on Wednesday night -
She was born in spring, but I was born too late -
But he ain't no criminal and his crime, it is none -
Dried the tears up from my dreams and pulled me from the hole -
About having to be a-scrounging around, scrounging around for your next meal -
I sat down and wrote the best words I could write -
About having to be scrounging for your next meal -
It nearly knocked me off of my feet -
With notions his canoe was laden -
At Napoleon in rags and the language that he used -
Ooh, mama, can this really be the end -
'Cause I love you more than ever now that the past is gone.
For Halloween give her a trumpet and for Christmas buy her a drum.
But she'd never met anyone quite like the jack of hearts.
Precious memories flood my soul.
We're both just one too many mornings and a thousand miles behind.
But farewell, Angelina, the sky, it is trembling and I must leave fast.
They'll stone you when you're playing your guitar.
And just for that one moment I could be you.
Right up until the break of day let me see you make him smile.
And the marshals and cops get the same.
You're gonna need my help someday.
As she takes your voice and leaves you howling at the moon.
And they arrive on the scene with their red lights flashing in the hot New Jersey night.
Sara, oh, Sara, don't ever leave me, don't ever go.
Well, I'm pressing on to the higher calling of my Lord.
Won't fall upon them naturally, life sometimes must get lonely.
About having to be scrounging your next meal.
They lay and they wait for this bully to fall asleep.
Is just looking for a needle that's lost in the sand.
It ain't me you're looking for, babe.
Even the president of the United States sometimes a-must have to stand naked.
The man, he left a diamond flush, Willie didn't even have a pair.
None of them doing nothing that your mama wouldn't disapprove.
They let me go right away - they were very paranoid.
Chain you down or bring you down.
From the city of seven hills, near the place of the cross.
And famines and earthquakes and train-wrecks and tearing down of the wall.
The driver came in after you left, he gave 'em all to me and then he resigned.
You are on the bottom.
And I need you, yeah, you, ah, I need you.
They're making a voyage to the sun.
Odeleyee-hoo-hoo-hoo.
We can hear the night watchman click his flashlight, ask himself if it's him or them who should be insane.
I'm your man, I'm trying to recover the sweet love that we knew.
All because his face was brown.
But she breaks just like a little girl.
Stay, lady, stay, stay with your man awhile.
I took a deep breath. I fell down, I could not stand.
"Well, I seen your Cadillac window up-town.
And ye shall be changed.
Billy Lyons and Stack-A-Lee had one terrible fight.
You see, I just lost all my picnic spirit.
That big, fat moon is gonna shine like a spoon, but we're gonna let it. You won't regret it.
I'll always be right by your side, I've got a covenant, too.
They don't want me around 'cause I believe in you.
I've followed the river and I got to the sea.
Every time I crawl past your door, I been wishing I've been somebody else instead.
Your son is coming back from the war.
As the dying gunfighter lay on the sun and gasped for his last breath.
But you'd better take your diamond ring, you'd better pawn it, babe.
"Pray for peace!" he said, you could feel it in the crowd.
I need every bit of it for the places that I go.
While they're beating the devil out of a guy who's wearing a powder-blue wig.
She knows that she's not afraid to look at her.
It's my duty to bring you down to the field where the flowers bloom.
Lily had already taken all of the dye out of her hair.
Not always easy kicking someone out, gotta wait awhile, it can be an unpleasant task.
If I don't get the girl I'm loving, won't go down Highway 51 no more.
To hold me in your arms.
She keeps this .410 all loaded with lead.
He gone north for a while.
Praise the good lord to get her out of your mind.
Unlike most of the songs nowadays are being written uptown in Tin Pan Alley - that's where most of the folk songs come from nowadays, this-this is a song-this wasn't written up there, this was written somewhere down in the United States.
Dear Landlord, please heed these words that I speak.
Means another poor boy is dead and gone.
The hour when the ship comes in.
"My trip hasn't been a pleasant one and my time, it isn't long.
But I had to sit in back of the tub.
For whom does the bell toll for, love? It tolls for you and me.
So long, honey babe.
I've seen all these decoys through a set of deep turquoise eyes and I feel so depressed.
Your loyalty is a-not to me but to the stars above.
I's looking around just to see who was born.
Have a-fallen from her curls.
But it's alright, ma, I can make it.
I am only human, but you are so divine.
I'll shoot those tyrants one and all, I'll gun the floggers down.
'Cause tonight I'll be staying here with you.
Reality has always had too many heads.
She looked like she stepped out of The Dolce Vita.
Father of love and father of rain.
And booked William Zantzinger for first-degree murder.
You knew that we should meet again if your memory served you well.
Well, I might look like Robert Ford, but I feel just like Jesse James.
He wants it all and he wants it his way.
You either got faith or you got unbelief and there ain't no neutral ground.
Her sister and I in a screaming battleground.
Because everybody must get stoned.
I seen a shooting star tonight and I thought of me.
And these visions of Johanna, they've kept me up past the dawn.
"Way down yonder in the hollow tree." Uh-huh.
He looked to me to be the eyes of age as he spoke right out.
Yeah, the locusts sang and they were singing for me.
The rich seduce the poor and the old are seduced by the young.
His bedroom window is made outta bricks.
Then I see the bloody face of Ramon.
I want everybody to be free.
The whole night through.
I can smell something cooking, I can tell there's going to be a feast.
With an iron chain around his neck.
About having to be scrounging for your next meal.
And crime don't have a face.
Know that sometimes Satan, you know, he come as a man of peace.
Till she finally sees that she's like all the rest with her fog, her amphetamine, and her pearls.
There were six thousand people there.
He wants to turn me in to the F.B.I.
Mona tried to tell me to stay away from the train line.
But it was just a funeral parlor and the man asked me who I was.
I can feel it in the dust as I get off the bus on the outskirts of town.
Until we're both one too many mornings and a thousand miles away.
Honey, because the world gone wrong.
Well, they sent for the ambulance and one was sent.
Oh, man has invented his doom, first step was touching the moon.
I was in for a pleasant, funny surprise.
'Twas a-then that I knew what he had on his mind.
She packed it all up in a suitcase.
To anyone passing by, that's who they're talking to.
I'm just sitting here thinking with my mind a million miles away.
I wonder if they'll know me next time 'round.
You were glowing in the sun while being peaceably calm.
Everybody says she's the brains behind pa.
And the car I drive is a Chevrolet.
We ain't paid no whiskey tax since 1792.
When I realized I hadn't eaten for five days straight.
I know you're long gone, I guess it must be up to me.
I had something to protect.
Heart of mine.
He not a gentleman at all, he rotten to the core, he's a coward, and he steals.
The National Guard stands around his door.
For your times, they are a-changing.
Flows out of their bodies and is buried in the mud.
Lead you to the land of forbidden fruits.
It was raining from the first and I was dying there of thirst, so I came in here.
Of when the red iron ore pits run aplenty.
You went years without me, you might as well keep going now.
You understand that my heart can't go on beating without you.
Darling, so it goes, some things were meant to be.
And I would leave so soon that your man won't never know.
Under the midnight moon.
Willie's cards fell on the floor, they were aces backed with eights.
Yes, this woman I've got, she's killing me alive.
Yes, I'm trying to get closer, but I'm still a million miles from you.
All this for lovely Flora, the Lily of the West.
Blinded by sleep and in need of a bed.
A pay-phone was ringing, it just about blew my mind.
I couldn't see when it started snowing.
Well, I saw you making love with him, you forgot to close the garage door.
A little piece of cornbread laying on the shelf.
I wouldn't marry the president." Uh-huh.
No, I ain't gonna work on Maggie's farm no more.
There ain't nothing in the world that I wouldn't do.
Nothing about it that's sweet, the disease of conceit.
With a worn heart, whose better days are over.
But you're gonna have to serve somebody.
Is, baby, be friends with you.
But she just reminded me you were the one.
Brought on by a simple twist of fate.
When I was down, you just stood there grinning.
But you're not even sure what it is.
She'll take the dark out of the nighttime and turn the daytime black.
At the old dance hall on the outskirts of town.
Memories of what used to be.
I believe I'm fixing to die, fixing to die.
There's man who swears he's not to blame.
My gun's steady, gonna hold it level.
While the wind blows high above the tree.
Blowing like it's gon' blow my blues away.
Preaching faith and salvation, waiting on the night to arrive.
But my heart just won't give in.
The truth that I'm seeking is in your missing file.
You'd know what a drag it is to see you.
Well, I've been looking all over for a girl like you.
Blowing like it's gonna sweep my world away.
Then they'll kill him with self-confidence after poisoning him with words.
You know what I'm saying and you know what I mean.
Or maybe I do, but I'm just really not sure.
Jeep to drive, blood to spill.
Ramona, come closer, shut softly your watery eyes.
That number eleven was closing.
Yes, I know that highway like I know the back of my hand.
She's funny, wants my money, calls me "honey".
The engine gave a crack and the whistle gave a squall.
Oh, that I can't provide for you no easy answer.
You're just gonna make everybody jump and roar.
If I'm not too far off, I think we did this once before.
Well, I'm standing on the table, I'm proposing a toast to the king.
But no charge held against him could they prove.
All inside the grounds of the walls of Red Wing.
I don't care what in the world you do.
I got love for you and it's all in vain.
You don't have to worry any more.
Well, I know that highway like I know my hand.
He said his name was Columbus. I just said "Good luck".
She can take the dark out of the nighttime and paint the daytime black.
Hmm.
He just had the insight to rip off the lid before its time.
Humility, simplicity.
"It will destroy your family, your happy home is gone.
I did not do it knowingly.
For the times, they are a-changing.
I ain't never gonna be the same again.
Perhaps I'll die on that train.
That hype you and type you, making you feel that you must be exactly like them.
You gonna have to serve somebody.
A man who swears he's not to blame.
I didn't know whether to duck or to run, so I ran.
I remember her whispering yet.
Sometimes I'm thinking I'm much too high to fall.
Here's a song about marriage. This is called "Isis". This is for a man if he's still here.
Bites the bullet and he looks within for dignity.
The walls collide, Mona cries.
If you'll only let your hair hang low.
And it never seemed strange.
I stamped out forty compasses, sure don't know what they cost.
You sound like a hillbilly.
Your grass is turning black, there's no water in your well.
I hear that sometimes Satan come as a man of peace.
Saying wants company.
Said she could get killed if she told me what she knew about dignity.
Dropping a barbell, he point to the sky.
Even deep down inside my toilet bowl.
He's buried somewheres in Louisiana-O.
I once held her in my arms.
Ain't gonna work for Maggie's brother no more.
Her name that she had was Pretty Peggy-O.
Honey, just allow me one more chance to ride your passenger train.
Come on, baby.
Tell me.
But then again-I think again-and then the-whoa-I said, oh-I said, oh, babe, I'm in the mood for you.
That must be what it's all about.
Are you still my friend, baby? Show me a sign.
Something there is about you that I can't quite put my finger on.
Wherever the children go, I'll follow them.
They got - all got outta here any way they could, cold rain can give you the shivers.
But I don't feel alone 'cause I believe in you.
But it ain't like changing horses in midstream.
There are no kings inside the gates of Eden.
Make a living by a-putting on airs.
Let the day turn to night, my dear Mary Ann.
More of an outlaw than you ever were.
There was dust on the man in the long, black coat.
You may not see me tomorrow.
I'm counting on you, love, to give me a break.
You break your promise all over the place.
Then they bury you from your head to your feet from the disease of conceit.
If you need somebody you can trust, trust yourself.
Seven more days and all that will be gone.
If you want anymore, you can sing it yourself, uh-huh.
We made a vow not to leave one another, never.
Gypsy gal, you got me swallowed.
Just another holy man who dared to make a stand.
Well, she don't make me nervous, she don't talk too much.
They're waiting for spring to come, smoking down the track.
That Duquesne train gon' rock me night and day.
Well, I'm lost somewhere, I must've made a few bad turns.
Wiggle like a big, fat snake.
That I made it so easy for you to follow me.
He was staring into space over at the jack of hearts.
And just set there waiting for me to come.
But farewell, Angelina, the night is on fire and I must go.
Blowing through another no-good town.
Feel like talking to somebody, but I just don't know who.
Well, I been mistreated and I swear I don't mind dying.
Welfare Department, they wouldn't give him no clothes.
I found they were all rank strangers to me.
What he gets he must pay for - he don't get it out of love.
I'm doomed to love you, I've been rolling through stormy weather.
Even before you came in the door.
That you just did what you're supposed to do.
"What time is it?" said the judge to Joey when they met.
I won't come here no more if it bothers you.
It'll never do, somehow.
And, no matter what they say, I believe in you.
As the stars fell down and the moons fade away on Black Diamond Bay.
Couldn't get a man around to go Stack-A Lee's bail.
Been treated like a farm animal on a wild-goose chase.
Now you stand here expecting me to remember something you forgot to say.
Well, you know, lots of people complaining that there is no work.
Then he said, "Yes, I think it can be easily done.
Jump into the wagon, love, throw your panties overboard.
You could ride like Annie Oakley, you could shoot like Belle Starr.
I didn't mean to make you so sad.
Know not what the years may hold.
But it was you who set yourself up for a fall.
I never could learn to hold you, love, and call you mine.
With strings of guilt they tried hard to guide us.
Father of whom we most solemnly praise.
Billy, you're so far away from home.
But then again, I said, oh-I said, oh-I said, oh-oh, babe, I'm in the mood for you.
And you never ask questions when God's on your side.
I'm leaving tomorrow, but I could leave today.
Well, I thought that the rain would cool things down, but it looks like it don't.
That I left in the French Quarter.
In an oil refinery.
Intending no harm, but meant to pass by for it being on Christmas morning.
To see what kinda words he could say.
Said I ain't gonna work on Maggie's farm no more.
She gone with the man in the long, black coat.
Give you an inch and you'll take the mile.
Carry for you deep down inside.
I pity the poor immigrant when his gladness comes to pass.
Sidesaddle on the Golden Calf.
I didn't know what I was a-gonna do.
Now, don't be modest, you know who you are and where you been.
When she did, she could not believe her eyes.
Well, I waited for you when I was half sick.
We just like to see a good, old-fashioned fight.
I and I, in creation where one's a-nature neither honor, nor forgive.
I left my dreams on the riverbed.
Please quit your low-down ways.
You spent your last, lone dollar on seven shotgun shells.
To some righteous king who wrote psalms beside moonlit streams.
I'm bound to ride that morning railroad.
Yeah, I tell myself something's coming, but it never does.
Ain't nothing too discreet 'bout the disease of conceit.
I'm taking you with me, a-honey baby, where I go.
Leave no stone unturned.
Othello told Desdemona, "I'm cold, cover me with a blanket.
It sure is right on a night like this.
Not the whiskey-drinking Indian or the marine who went to war.
Tell you now that the whole town is empty.
Well, our captain, he is dead - died for a maid.
That every hair is numbered like every grain of sand.
Looking into the lost, forgotten years for dignity.
Put in a prison cell, but one time he could've been the champion of the world.
Ooh, a little touch of your love.
Wiggle on your hands and knees.
Well, I walk on pins and needles, I hope my tongue don't slip.
When I paint my masterpiece.
Say anything you wanna, I have heard it all.
Please don't let on that you knew me when I was hungry and it was your world.
But simply because it's true.
No use in worrying 'cause the world gone wrong.
Gal, you're on my mind.
He must be running for office, got no time to lose.
Seemed like always they'd be caught between the mob and the men in blue.
I believe I'm fixing to die.
Fear to bring children into the world.
Down along the cove I spied my little bundle of joy.
I and I, creation where one's nature neither honor, nor forgive.
Like all tough sailors do when they're far away at sea.
But I know that I can't move.
Is a southbound whistle on a southbound train.
Blood on your saddle.
I know you always say that you agree.
And I'll stand over your grave till I'm sure that you're dead.
He spread his money far and wide to help the sick and poor.
They call, that simple twist of fate.
You can't roll away the stone if your hands are tied.
And time is running backwards and so is the bride.
Staring at the butterfly, who just drew the jack of hearts.
On the caboose of the train.
But maybe guilty of a-hesitating.
"It's my work," he'd say, "and I do it for the pay.
But the song, it was long and it was far to the end.
Achilles is in your alleyway, he don't want me here, he does brag.
Told me of a new day coming across the field.
I always said you'd be sorry and today could be the day.
Whatever's waiting in the future could be what you're running from in the past.
We're all boxed in, nowhere to escape.
He was standing in the doorway, looking like the jack of hearts.
Lord, I know I can't escape.
And you are the best thing that he's ever seen.
"Strike three," the umpire said, batter has to go back and sit down.
And that seven deaths shall never kill him.
Rita mumbled something 'bout her mother on the hill.
Stay, lady, stay, stay while the night is still ahead.
You give something up for everything you gain.
Oh, hard times, come again no more.
Now and then there's a fool such as I.
You can't rely no more to be standing around waiting.
Good intentions can be evil, both hands can be full of grease.
With sensitive instincts, she was the creative one.
When he played and we didn't dance.
Handy-dandy, just like sugar and candy.
You prayed to the Lord above, oh, please send you a friend.
No more mudcake creatures lying in your arms.
Lost time is not found again.
He never did plan to walk the high wire.
Suffering ridicule, they want me give it all up in disgust.
Just like you I'm wondering what's going on.
I am a lonesome hobo without family or friends.
Now I believe what the Bible told.
Oh, we toil and toil and, when we die, must fill dishonored graves.
He's not sentimental, don't bother him at all how many of his pals have been killed.
Now, I'm all used up and the fields've turned brown.
Shotgun fired and away I ran.
Somewheres in the distance there's seven new people born.
Worshiping a god with the body of a woman well-endowed and the head of a hyena.
There is plenty of room for all, so please don't elbow me.
Drifting too far from shore.
The time and the place that we'd part.
Just Like a Woman? Alright, we'll -- we'll try it.
You know the song in my heart.
Levels my head and eases my mind.
And left me here facing the wall.
I can't help it much if this train gets lost.
This is called "I Don't Believe You (It Used to Go Like That and Now It Goes Like This)".
If everything is as hollow as it seems.
She's a junkyard angel and she always gives me bread.
'Cause Tiny Montgomery's gonna shake that thing.
And someday maybe - who knows, baby? - I'll come and be crying to you.
He reached too high, was thrown back to the ground.
Say one more stupid thing to me before the final nail is driven in.
With all these promises you left for me.
Somebody got lucky, but it was an accident.
Yes, I could make it without you if I just didn't feel so all alone.
She longed to see that seaport town of Canadee-i-o.
And, in a matter of minutes, on bail was out walking.
"Well met, well met," cried she.
Gotta get up near the teacher if you can if you wanna learn anything.
I still can't remember all the best things she said.
Well, my heart stopped beating and my hands turned cold.
Well, I got the fever down in my pockets.
Just then the whole kitchen exploded from boiling fat.
Man, that girl is out of sight.
Nothing you can sell me, I'll see you around.
Please don't let on that you knew me when I was a-hungry and it was your world.
Where she bathed in a stream of pure heat.
Honey, I never would have come.
Some of these memories you can learn to live with and some of 'em you can't.
But our time has come and I'm seeing the real you at last.
They charge the people a dollar and a half just to see 'em.
Sometimes I wonder to just--what it's all coming to.
Poor man looking through painted glass for dignity.
As the storm clouds rise and the palm branches sway on Black Diamond Bay.
I watch upon your scorpion, who crawls across your circus floor.
A real suicide case, but there was nothing I could do to stop it.
The drinks are ready and the dogs are going to war.
Then he moved into the corner, face down like the jack of hearts.
Streets are filled with broken hearts.
I can't hear you anymore.
The branches cast their shadows over stone.
But deep inside my heart I know I can't escape.
Sit down here, you can have my chair.
I got a woman in Jackson - oh, I ain't gonna say her name.
It don't bother me, times are hard everywhere, we'll just have to see how it goes.
And they're breaking down the distance between a-right and wrong.
She was tired of the attention, tired of playing the role of Big Jim's wife.
Living down Sonora way.
Feeling so harmless, I'm looking at your second door.
Somebody had to unlock your heart, he said it was up to me.
If you just let me follow you down.
There's seven people dead on a South Dakota farm.
It's sadder still to feel your heart torn away.
The only place open is a thousand miles away and I can't take you there.
He was never known to make a foolish move.
Well, I see you got a new boyfriend, no, I never seen him before.
Looking for a new friend.
Don't put your hope in ungodly men or be a slave to what somebody else believes.
Set mosquito on his knee, uh-huh.
She's a man-eater, meat-grinder, bad loser.
She's never, never feeled so bad I went away.
He was only a hobo, but one more is gone.
And that failure's no success at all.
Got nothing here to live or die for, except you, yeah, you.
A-lord, protect my child.
When he was ten years old, he had a watermelon stand.
Leading me, going home.
Madmen oppose him, your kindness throws him, to survive it you play deaf and dumb.
I didn't know that you were saying goodbye for good.
Billy, and you're playing all alone.
You say you got some other kinda lover and, yes, I believe you do.
Everybody can't be as lucky as you.
But I know God is my shield and he won't lead me astray.
Well, we crossed the panhandle and then we headed towards Amarillo.
Manipulator of crowds, you're a dream-twister.
Well, my house is on fire, burning to the sky,.
Sky that cries and a bird that flies, a fish that walks and a dog that talks.
And it makes me feel so sorry.
And, foaming at the mouth, he began to make his midnight creep.
Baby, I'll be at the same hotel.
I got a poison headache, but I feel alright.
You know, we made a vow not to leave one another, never.
Trust yourself to find the path where there is no if and when.
And it's been the ruin of many a poor girl - and me - oh, God! - I'm a one.
When you ain't got nothing, you got nothing to lose.
Well, once I was rather prosperous, there was nothing I did lack.
You got unrighteous doctors dealing drugs that'll never kill your ills.
So I beg you: let it be me.
He wore a gun and he was shot in the back.
And your highway's getting filled.
He could've been an accountant or a tennis star.
Far from the twisted reach of crazy sorrow.
Oh, me, I busted out - don't even ask me how.
That come with the dust and are gone with the wind.
If'n you don't know by now.
Nothing can heal me now but your touch.
Turn you into anything that they want you to be.
Trapped in the heart of it, trying to get away.
Looks at his hero, the Commander-in-Chief.
In God's truth, babe, tell me what you want and you'll have it of course, just step into the arena.
He did a lot of nice things for me and I won't forget him.
And forgot about a simple twist of fate.
He got his big, bushy tail dragging all over the ground.
Either one of us could do what we do best.
Go away from my door and my window too, right now.
Don't remember one thing more.
I'm sick and tired of the war.
And the wind blows high above the tree.
Everybody is making love or else expecting rain.
And there's no use in trying to deal with the dying, though I cannot explain that in lines.
The engineer gone through the hole in the wall.
The naked truth is still taboo whenever it can be seen.
He's a bad man, gonna land him right back in jail.
Then, she says, "You don't read women authors, do you?" At least that's what I think I hear her say.
Where I'm bound I can't tell.
Hear me singing through these tears.
I'm looking for a woman with a head mixed up like mine.
You must always remember, baby, you was once a child.
Sometimes I wanna take to the road and plunder.
Yet there's no one to beat you, no one to defeat you 'cept the thoughts of yourself feeling bad.
Orders from the D.A.
You don't get anything you don't deserve where we were born in time.
If it's you my lifelines trace.
I scarcely feel the glow.
Food was flying everywhere - I left without my hat.
Yes, march me away to the station, I'm off to some far, distant land.
In order to deal in this game, got to make the queen disappear.
And to all the good people that traveled with you.
Remember me to one who lives there.
And, if you don't underestimate me, I won't underestimate you.
I spied the fairest damsel that ever did walk in chains.
Just what this song is all about.
Lay, lady, lay, lay across my big brass bed.
The dogs are barking and what's done is done.
Humming all the drivers with my lullaby.
The drilling in the wall kept up, but no one seemed to pay it any mind.
And the only pleasure he gets out of life is rambling from town to town.
Friends with you.
Silver hair, ragged shirt, and baggy pants, that old soft shoe.
Seen a shooting star tonight slip away.
I left all my dreams and hopes buried under tobacco leaves.
I got nothing left to burn.
So I'm going, I'm going, I'm gone.
Wrapped up with Blackjack Davey.
The lonesome sparrow sings.
Why should I beg you? You said good-bye.
You never mentioned one time the man who came and died a criminal's death.
She made well sure her neighbors understood.
No kindred or relative nigh.
She saw her father's body broken.
I never asked you to set yourself up for a fall.
'Cause I got my little lady right by my side.
And you turn and run farther when the fast bullets fly.
It runs both cold and deep.
It's tough out there, high water everywhere.
And watched out for a simple twist of fate.
And I feel like I just a-wanna travel on.
Who came running to the deck, said, "Boys, forget the whale.
Get you facts when someone attacks your imagination.
Someday maybe I'll remember to forget.
Wondering where you are tonight, sweet Marie.
Catch you when your troubles feel like they weigh a ton.
What was it you wanted? Tell me again, I forgot.
You can have love, but you might lose it.
Their minds are filled with false ideas, images, and distorted facts.
He just took the folks in high places and he shined a light in their beds.
"Oh, tell me, my darling son, tell me what they've done.
With a .44 smokeless under my head.
When my memory is not so short.
And to you always so grateful I will forever be.
You been two-faced, you been double-dealing.
You looked a little burned out, my friend, I thought it might be up to me.
If I was still the same, if I ever became what you wanted me to be.
Till the break of day let me see you make him smile.
In the palace of the Pope.
That I myself really thought it was just a childish thing to do.
There's a crash on the levee and, mama, you been refused.
Either someone needing mercy or maybe something I've done wrong.
She walks like Bo Diddley and she don't need no crutch.
The pump don't work 'cause the vandals took the handles.
I know I will sustain 'cause I believe in you.
Your eyes fix on the shotgun that you're holding in your hand.
Tomorrow will be another day.
It's nothing - it's something I learned over in England.
Joking and talking about the world outside.
I'm sitting here listening to every mind-polluting word.
Cast your dancing spell my way, I promise to go under it.
And he pays all his debts without sorrow or strife and he always lives pleasant and charming.
He grabbed his pants for a better stance, oh, he jumped so high and clicked up his heels.
I'm in love with my second cousin, I tell myself I could be happy forever with her.
Turn you into a piece of meat, the disease of conceit.
Take care of yourself, get plenty rest.
Last night I knew you, tonight I don't.
We got met with a tear gas bomb.
Everybody tells me she's the brains behind pa.
"I think I'll call it America," I said as we hit land.
For only fifteen hundred dollars you can have anybody killed.
Your brain is bleeding and your legs can't seem to stand.
I feel like I'm looking at a-heaven's door.
His voice was low with pain.
All because I'm falling for a curly-headed, dark-eyed gal.
But I'll just sit down on this bank of sand and watch the river flow.
All inside the walls, the walls of Red Wing.
In the dark land of the sun.
You got some big dreams, baby, but in order to dream you gotta still be asleep.
Proud 'neath heated brow.
There stood Rita, looking just like Tony Perkins.
Said, "Ms. Mouse, be you within?" Uh-huh.
We have no desire strange places to see although that your offers are charming.
Precious, sacred scenes unfold.
But, yeah, I think it can be very easily done.
He's riding down in Texas with the rodeo.
Walking around with no one else.
But it's just like a dead man's last pistol shot, baby.
His hair is falling out and all of his daughters need shoes.
Judge says to the High Sheriff, "I want him dead or alive.
Love and only love - it can't be denied.
But all I see are dark eyes.
You have slayed me, you have made me.
But the town has no need to be nervous.
No contract he signed was worth what was it written on.
The snow is so cold, but our love can be bold, Winterlude, this dude thinks you're fine.
But it's alright, ma, it's life and life only.
Turn, turn to the rain and the wind.
Someday gonna need my help, someday.
You're invisible, you got no secrets to conceal.
"And light on my right knee.
It was the best acting I saw anybody do.
Starlight in the east, you're finally released, you're stranded with nothing to share.
I'll give it to him right away, then I hung my head in shame.
Without a love of my own.
And you'll see you look much better with me than you do with him.
Gather there together, ain't room for no more.
So don't think twice, it's alright.
Takes too much skill, takes too much will, it's too revealing.
She used to call me "sweet daddy" when I was only a child.
And puts her hands in her back pocket Bette Davis-style.
If I had my way, I'd sell it right back.
All the friends I ever had are gone.
But I made up my mind that I had to go on.
Pack up your suitcase, mama, don't you make a sound.
Everything inside my pockets your uncle steals.
Each one of 'em got seven wives, each one of 'em just out of jail.
I'd be grateful if this golden ring you'd receive.
I don't wanna be your boss, baby, I just wanna be your man.
You must pick up one or the other, neither of them are to be what they claim.
I'm wondering what in the devil could it all possibly mean.
Swamp's gonna rise, no boat's gonna row.
It's done with a flick of the wrist.
I could hold you for a million years to make you feel my love.
To understand you know too soon there is no sense in trying.
About having to scrounge your next meal.
Wasn't any difference to me.
She's a-drinking down her troubles over courting some other man.
I didn't go to sleep last night.
You got no reason to wander, no reason to roam.
Let the echo decide if I was right or wrong.
I was under the dome where nothing is sung, you changed my life.
I got my hammer ringing, pretty baby, but the nails ain't going down.
I gagged in contradiction, tears blinding my sight.
You wanted all them rounders, never had time for me.
You say you told me that you wanna hold me, but you know you're not that strong.
I think this time we should escape.
I'm not the one you need.
Going down in the valley and sing my song.
Check to see that no one is escaping to Desolation Row.
I would wave a wand and tie back the bond that we've both gone beyond.
Oh, don't tell her I'm in jail.
But her heart is like an ocean, so mysterious and dark.
'Bout the shape that he's in.
Behind a man's brain.
It's all just a scheme, babe, a vacuum, a dream, babe, that sucks you into feeling like this.
You're always spilling juice on me like you got some place to go.
Things fall to pieces in my face.
Yes, I could make it without you, honey, if I just did not feel so all alone.
Took an untrodden path once where the swift don't win the race.
It's all in your eyes and the way that you move.
You'll find them both in Grand Canyon, sundown.
Now I can't go back to what was, baby, I can't unring the bell.
She said she would always stay.
And light on your right knee.
Keeping one step ahead from the persecutor within.
Whether he was bluffing or whether he was true.
Yes, my temperature rises and my feet can't walk so hot.
So interchangeable, so delightful to see.
But you said you knew and I took your word.
O'er the road we're bound to go.
You remember only 'bout the brass ring, you're forgetting all about the golden rule.
Magic in a magical land.
I've made shoes for everyone - even you - while I still go barefoot.
You kind of remind me of her when you laugh.
The branches bare like a banjo moaned to the winds that listened the best.
My head is vibrating, I feel a sharp pain.
Lord, I'm walking down the line - my feet'll be a-flying - to tell about my troubled mind.
That hype you and type you and making you feel that you gotta be just like them.
We'll play it out the best we know, whatever it is worth.
Gonna give you back what you wishing on someone else.
Step lightly on the ground.
I'd do it, but I-I just can't remember how.
I just could not be what she wanted me to be.
And he went and did the Cat instead.
Sacrifice was the code of the road.
Till she started peeling off her onion gook.
I can feel it in the light, in the light, in the light and it's got to be true.
'Steada acting like we never met.
Better get away from Oxford Town.
And I want you to be that woman.
Rain would gather too.
It was January the thirtieth and everybody was feeling fine.
You know, you made a vow not to leave one another, never.
She rolling up a lots of bread to toss away.
Talking too many people, drinking too many kegs.
You shouldn't take it so personal.
And, if things don't change soon, he will.
You can have your cake and eat it, too.
Nothing but the moon and stars.
The law of the jungle and the sea are your only teachers.
People bending broken rules.
If I never no more return to you, Mary Ann.
I trusted you, baby, you can trust me now.
Stay in my kitchen, have a [unintelligible], have a picnic in my bathroom.
I crossed that river just to be where you are.
Where you fought for my soul and made up against the odds.
And you give me the blues, I wanna lay down and die.
Tyranny, hypocrisy.
But it's not like the sun that used to be.
I long to reach for you in the night.
At the head of the Chamber of Commerce.
And his ghost is lying thirsty in the ditch where Ira died.
On anything 'cept a simple twist of fate.
And I need you, yeah.
The night is so long and the table is oh so full.
Now, the bricks lay on Grand Street, where the neon madmen climb.
Throwing all my memories in a ditch so deep.
I'm falling in love with you.
Hope you're ready.
Its curfew-gull, it glides.
Wants to get it paid off.
And I want you to be that woman every time.
Ceased to come for about ten months or more.
She also keeps the cards that read "Have Mercy on His Soul".
I froze right to the bone.
On the fifth day of May in the drizzling a-rain.
That last night I was with.
And there's a slow--there's a slow train coming up around the bend.
He's had twenty-seven children, yet he's never had a wife.
I can't a-hear you anymore.
Well, ninety miles an hour down a dead-end street.
And this weekend in hell is making me sweat.
She had chrome-brown eyes that I won't forget as long as she's gone.
God knows the secrets of your heart, He'll tell them to you when you're asleep.
You look into the fiery furnace, see the rich man without any name.
Everyone was there and nobody tried to hide.
It's a hard rain's a-gonna fall.
That I just don't fit? Yes, I believe it's time for us to quit.
So can a woman who passes herself off as a male.
There he still sits on top of the hill.
I fought it full without regret or shame.
I put my fingers against the glass and bowed my head and cried.
And now people just get uglier and I have no sense of time.
I gotta get a message to my baby, you know, she's not just anyone.
From Washington Heights to Harlem on down.
Wondering if she'd changed at all, if her hair was still red.
She passes him on the spiral staircase, thinking he's the Soviet Ambassador.
Time passes slowly and fades away.
And the only time he's satisfied is when he's on a drunk.
Writes me letters, and sends me checks.
Like the men that followed Jesus when they put a price upon His head.
I'll flip the channel to number four.
It's late, I'm trying to walk the line.
Till the white man stole their water rights and the running water hushed.
He shot poor Delia down with a cruel .44.
I can't shoot them anymore.
Your mama's working, your mama's moaning.
All because of the color of his skin.
And a pathway that leads up to the stars.
And keep away from pranks.
This is called "A Sacrilegious Lullaby in--in D Minor". (Strums some strings.) That's the D minor. No, in all seriousness-- (Audience member interjects: "Why'd you pick it?") Well, I don't know why. This is, this a love song. It's called the "Gates of Eden".
I'll lead you there myself at the break of day.
She acts like we never met.
So, darling, you better come through.
A woman just gave birth to a prince today and dressed him in scarlet.
And Louise holds a handful of rain tempting you to defy it.
Well, I rapped upon a house with the U.S. flag upon display.
But it sure feels right on a night like this.
Off the Golden Gate Bridge into China Bay.
Maybe in the next life I'll be able to hear myself think.
Folks lose their possessions, the folks are leaving town.
Sara, Sara, radiant jewel, a mystical wife.
They've done a lot of research on it, but what it is they're still not sure.
Everything passes, everything changes. Just do what you think you should do.
But I was raised on the other.
Nobody stops to ask why.
Everybody sees you on your window ledge.
They said a mass in the old church near the house where he was born.
When a bowling ball came down the road and knocked me off my feet.
I'm younger than that now.
And I will always be emotionally yours.
"Yes, that's the one," said the stranger, as quiet as a mouse.
But I can't figure out whether I'm too good for you or are you too good for me.
I just can't keep from crying.
I just ain't - can't face to tell 'em, honey, you just went away.
Get ready 'cause today I'll be staying here with you.
I'll be your baby tonight.
One more weekend, one more weekend'll do.
Where these visions of Johanna have now taken my place.
There was a one-way wind a-blowing, it was blowing at my back.
Oh, the country was young with God on its side.
If you don't a-wanna be a brokenhearted lover.
I've got something to tell you, baby, I know that will change your mind.
They asked me for some collateral and I pulled down my pants.
He knows just where to touch you, honey, and how you like to be kissed.
Oh, his darling girl behind.
I'm gonna take a trip on the big McMillan.
Soon you will be dancing the fandango.
This is a somewhat new song called "Seven Days".
Blowing like she's blowing right on time.
So the radio didn't work so well.
Crammed me back into the county jail.
Lay your hand upon my head.
When I come a-knocking, don't throw me no bone.
You must pick one or the other though neither of them are to be what they claim.
Yes, you do, you know you do.
Louise, she's alright, she's just near.
They gotta sleep together in a home they don't own.
Well, I thought it would rain, but the clouds passed by.
You got to be made to be wearing a telephone.
Something is the matter, baby, there's smoke in your hair.
To marry John Thomas, a miner.
A whore will pass the hat, collect a hundred grand, and say thanks.
Is when I'm alone with you.
For playing the electric violin on Desolation Row.
And it never give up till the battle's lost or won.
Brownsville girl, you're my honey, love.
His enemies say he's on their land.
I'd be lost if not for you and you know it's true.
If I can't find my baby, I'm gonna run away and hide.
What it's like to be in society with a shackle on your hand.
Nobody in the world can get along with you.
Dark beauty, with that long night's journey in your eyes.
About the greatest gambler, you all should know him well.
Give my blankets to my buddies, give the fleas to Diamond Joe.
'Cause I don't think about it.
They got a million things to do, they're all so inspired.
I didn't realize how young you were.
He said, "I guess you're tired." He said it kinda sly.
She knows too much to argue or to judge.
Said Tweedle Dum to Tweedle Dee.
It's hard times, in the country, living down in New York town.
Sing "Amazing Grace" all the way to the Swiss banks.
And pretend that we never have touched.
So quickly into autumn.
Big, white clouds like chariots that swing down low.
Don't trust me to show you the truth when the truth may only be ashes and dust.
They gave it to somebody down in El Salvador.
There's a million reasons for you to be crying, you been so bold and so cold.
Tonight you got the power to take it, tomorrow you won't have the power to keep it.
Quicker than anyone I knew.
To anything I might have tried.
And a fake beard plastered on her brow.
Yes, you gonna have to find yourself another best friend somehow.
Well, by the dirt 'neath my nails I guess he knew I wouldn't lie.
Well, I'd tell you what she wants if I--but I just don't know how.
Right now I'm having trouble.
That's the way I remember her best.
Sometimes it's just plain stupid to get into any kind of wind.
Because he doesn't pay tribute to the king that you serve.
That he needs you to test his inventions.
The sooner you can go.
Startles your sleeping ears to hear that somebody thinks they really found you.
I'm not about to argue, I'm not about to move to no other place.
"I beg you, sir," she pleaded from the corners of her mouth.
You're very well-read, it's well-known.
I'd a-done anything for that woman if she'd only made me feel obligated.
Who says she knows me well.
Now you can seal up the book and not write anymore.
He fought a war on a battlefield where every victory hurts.
Charm the whistle off an evening train.
Time passes slowly when you're lost in a dream.
I just don't think that I could handle it.
And then I turn my head for you're approaching me.
You know-a sometimes Satan'll come as a man of peace.
Some kinda things you can never kill.
But you can't see in and I--it's hard looking out.
And you even make love just like a woman, but you break just like a little girl.
Just to take somebody's money away.
Maybe you'll beg me like a dog to take you back.
I lit a cigarette on a parking meter and walked on down the road.
Is tell me that it isn't true.
By the man who invented iron and disappeared so mysteriously.
And laid his life on the line.
Come on, honey.
The Phantom of the Opera in the perfect image of a priest.
All the way to the Statue of Liberty.
It came up tails, it rhymed with sail, so I made it back to the ship.
And guarded them as they fell.
And neither have I wings to fly.
I didn't mean to treat you so bad.
All the latest gossip, all the latest rhyme.
And there wasn't any difference to me.
I never wanted to go back there, I'd rather have died.
Can't live for today when all you're thinking of-a is tomorrow.
I finally got a job in New York town.
The way you walk and the way you talk, I swear, it would make me sing.
I was shadow-boxing early in the day.
Don't think twice, it's alright.
Said it was a bad dream.
And a thousand telephones that don't ring.
Got to play your harp until your lips bleed.
Give her all my salary on the waters of oblivion.
He traveled a-with a gun in every hand.
Ooh, for the touch of your love.
Baby, they ring in my head like a bell.
But then they took him to the jailhouse, where they try to turn a man into a mouse.
'Cause the times, they are a-changing.
He was her man, he done her wrong.
Is the saving grace that's over me.
I'm everybody's brother and son.
To know which way the wind blows.
Under the hedges.
Over everything which he had made while the mission-bells did toll.
It always seemed they got caught between the mob and the men in blue.
They asked me my name and I said Captain Kidd.
Just you coming and spilling juice over me.
Come, baby, teach me, come, baby, reach me, let the music start.
By the saving grace that's over me.
"And stay all night with me.
Feeling like a stranger nobody sees.
Never did get any Golden Globe Award, never made it to Synanon.
Told the first father that things weren't right.
Any minute now I'm expecting all hell to break loose.
Not somebody that you play around with much.
Ooh, I can't stand it, I can't stand it, pretending that you're so smart.
My mind is breaking.
Other times I'm thinking I'm so low I don't know if I can come up at all.
I'll go along with the charade until I can think my way out.
To flesh-colored Christs that glow in the dark.
Lord, in my time of dying, don't want nobody to cry.
And I covered her up and then thought I'll go look through her drawer.
Of your useless and pointless knowledge.
Sooner or later you're gonna meet them coming down.
Up over my head nothing but clouds of blood.
The First World War, boys, it came and it went.
But, as long as I love you, I'm not free.
That it is not he or she or them or it that you belong to.
Wishing I'd never got up that morning.
To understand you know too soon that there is no sense in trying.
The next day could be your last.
Honey, just allow me one more chance to get along with you.
All the women came and went, barefoot servants too.
And all of the remnants of her recent past are scattered in the wild wind.
Come on out, the dark is just beginning.
Sara, oh, Sara, beautiful lady so dear to my heart.
Sweet goddess, must be time to carve another notch.
I took some comfort there.
And I know no one can sing the blues like Blind Willie McTell.
Wiggle till the moon sees you.
Join the army if you fail.
Hoping you'll come through too.
And they'll yet regret they've sent Jim Jones in chains to Botany Bay.
Rolls me over, and kicks me out of bed.
You know I want your loving, honey, but you're so hard.
So give me your hand and say you'll be mine.
The D.A. said he was the one who did the deed and the all-white jury agreed.
Tell me behind what door your treasure lies.
I'll hold it down for you.
And the pump don't work 'cause the vandals took the handles.
Yet I know when the time is right to strike.
Well, my wrist was empty, but my nerves were kicking, ticking like a clock.
Feel further away than ever before.
He throws us all in jail for carrying harpoons.
When the jelly-faced women all sneeze.
Take a woman like you to get through to the man in me.
I never seen him quarrel with my mother even once, things come alive or they fall flat.
"Get well, get well," said she.
There's gladness in his heart, he's young and he's wild.
I fell asleep for to take my rest.
Come on, darling.
She went with the man in the long, black coat.
If you go down in the flood, it's gonna be your fault.
Yes, I received your letter yesterday 'bout the time that the door knob broke.
Some of these women, they just give me the creeps.
When out comes a farmer - he musta thought that I was nuts.
I got my black dog barking, black dog barking.
You put your eyes in your pockets and your nose into the ground.
Who always was too proud to beg.
It sure feels right on a night like this.
Everybody's in despair, every girl and boy.
Were handing out the flowers that I'd given to you.
Well, I cried for you, now it's your turn, you can cry a while.
Just the holy son of man I'll never understand.
But then again-and then again, I said, oh-whoa-whoa-oh, babe, I'm in the mood for you.
He's on some other shore, he didn't wanna live anymore.
Outside of two men on a train platform, there's nobody in sight.
And both shall row, my love and I.
Put your eyes in your pocket and your nose in the ground.
For the wild, unknown country where I could not go wrong.
I was dreaming I was sleeping in Rosie's bed.
But, if you gotta go, go now or else you gotta stay all night.
From her mother and sister, though close did they stay.
But his bodyguards and silver cane were no match for the jack of hearts.
Everything was exactly the way that it seems.
Toiling in the danger and in the morals of despair.
Into the arms of Judas Priest, which is where he died of thirst.
Just like my own false love to me.
You know that sometimes Satan come as a man of peace.
Being sacrificed to it while lullabies are being sung.
She's crying, you know, she's trying, you know, you better go now.
I ain't gonna work for Maggie's brother no more.
I'll be back in a minute, you can get it together by then.
Who falls in love with wealth itself and turns his back on me.
Not much happening here, nothing ever does.
You're invisible now, you got no secrets to conceal.
"Rip down all hate!" I screamed.
Everybody wants to make a long distance call, but, you know, they're just gonna have to wait.
People can't wait, they're gathered around.
Oh, quickly, heal his wounds.
Baby, let me follow you down.
Oh, but what a shame! that all we've shared can't last.
And don't criticize what you can't understand.
Down along the cove we walk together hand in hand.
Oh, when there's too much of nothing, no one has control.
And she steals your voice and leaves you screaming at the moon.
A true love of mine.
Oh, it's shameful and it's sad, I lost the only pal I had.
Two riders were approaching, the wind began to howl.
May you stay forever young.
Well, I'll sell it to you at a reduced price.
And I'll rock you too.
This is called "Talkin' John Birch Paranoid Blues". This is a fictitious story.
I had so little time to fail.
Where teardrops fall.
In the jingle-jangle morning I'll come following you.
And accept it all bravely with God on my side.
We thought we could sit forever in fun.
No one ever knew for sure where they were really at.
Everybody's gone but me and you and I can't be the last to leave.
Use your hands and legs, it won't ruin you.
But with the cold eyes of Judas on him his head began to spin.
And I need you, ah.
Well, I wanna be your lover, baby, I don't wanna be your boss.
I might need a good lawyer, could be your funeral, my trial.
And there was no man around who could track or chain him down.
Thank you.
If I ride back again.
I'm staying with Aunt Sally, but, you know, she's not really my aunt.
All the people we used to know, they're an illusion to me now.
And it seems like I want to travel on.
Like I see through the water that runs down my drain.
Sure was a good idea till greed got in the way.
But everybody else - even yourself, they're just gonna have to wait.
There's nothing 'round here to me that matters, 'cept you, yeah, you.
You're an idiot, babe, it's a wonder that you still know how to breathe.
Talking to myself in a monologue.
That we could sit simply in that room again.
Or define you or confine you.
Got my mind made up.
Just like the time before and the time before that.
I'm thinking and wondering, walking down the road.
About the TV god and all the pain that it invokes.
Must've been old Stack-A-Lee stumbling in the dark.
My heart is telling me I love you still.
She got a pretty face and long, white, shiny legs.
With a picture of a tall oak tree by my side.
That I really did try to get close to you.
He supported all his children and all their mothers too.
Making me feel like a stranger in a strange land.
You want a watered-down love.
Ooh, I can't stand it, I can't stand it, taking me down to hell.
And wait for you to come and grab hold of my hand.
Forget the dead you left, they will not follow you.
Looked in the glove compartment of my car.
Nobody can sing the blues like Blind Willie McTell.
The night will soon be gone.
Crying like a fire in the sun.
They know the secrets of the breeze.
I just can't beg you anymore.
I can tell you are torn between staying and returning on back to the South.
Well, my heart's in the Highlands, I'm gonna go there when I feel good enough to go.
Old, young, age don't carry weight, it doesn't matter in the end.
You're trying to break into another world, a world I never knew.
Everything inside here is made of stone.
That she's my little lady and I love her so.
I'm thinking of you and all the places we could roam together.
I ain't saying you treated me unkind.
That son-of-a-bitch is brave and getting braver.
And your golden loom.
We're idiots, babe, it's a wonder we can even feed ourselves.
Under your brand-new leopard-skin pill-box hat.
See the groom still waiting at the altar.
Your pawnbroker roared and also so did the landlord.
I can hear the church-bells ringing in the yard, I wonder who they're ringing for.
Mortality, reality.
I'm thinking about that girl who won't be back no more.
You looked for work and money and you walked a ragged mile.
Yes, I disobeyed his orders, I came to see you, but I found him there instead.
Then in comes his daughter, whose name was Rita.
To the falling gods of speed and steel.
This is from the Mojave Desert.
Your paupers and peasants and princes and kings.
Now you don't talk so loud.
Throw my ticket in the wind.
Death kept following, tracking us down, at least I heard your bluebird sing.
And time is beginning to crawl.
Eating that obsolete garbage while being so discreet.
But you will wind up peeking through her keyhole down upon your knees.
But rather get you down in the hole that he's in.
All the money you made will never buy back your soul.
But we just like to see a fight.
It didn't amount to anything more than what the broken glass reflects.
I'm letting the cat out of the cage, I'm keeping a low profile.
And she makes love just like a woman, and she breaks just like a little girl.
Long distance operator, I believe I'm strangling in this telephone wire.
She's a humdinger, folksinger.
Gone as the season she's taken.
I would've gone deeper, but there wasn't any need.
One more cup of coffee before I go to the valley below.
Baby, caught between heaven and hell.
To anything I mighta tried.
I wish she'd tell me what it is, I'll run and hide.
With guns in their hands and God on their side.
Won't you come with me, baby? I'll take you where you wanna go.
Well, I wish I was on some Australian mountain range.
It's easy to see without looking too far that not much is really sacred.
But you got to watch her closely 'cause she ain't no woman, she's a man.
Well, I cried for you, now it's your turn to cry a while.
Where the nights are always sadder than the day.
Oh, babe, that fire is still smoking.
God knows there's gonna be no more water but fire next time.
Struck down by the strength of the will.
My thoughts began to wander, but his voice was ringing loud.
Make me feel so good inside, so peaceful, so sublime.
I told her I didn't really care, high water everywhere.
Saying, "She'll stay all in sailor's clothes, her color shall be blue.
Just another holy man who dared to be a friend.
I'm gonna get my coat - I feel the breath of a storm.
Sometimes I turn, there's someone there, other times it's only me.
Billy, don't you turn your back on me.
The way you walk and the way you talk is the way it oughtta be.
I'd like to know.
And, as she was letting go her grip, up Tom Paine did run.
Said he'd give me information if his name wasn't used.
Any day now, oh, any day now, I shall be released.
Timber, two foot six across, burns with the bark still on.
But not as deep as the love I’m in.
Trying to keep from falling between the cars.
I'll just bid farewell till we meet again.
Oh, the rag-man draws circles up and down the block.
Your empty pockets tell you that you ain't got no friend.
But he's badly-built and he walks on stilts - watch out he don't fall on you.
And you say, "Impossible!" as he hands you a bone.
If you only got a nickel, it's the Staten Island Ferry.
I'd wish she'd tell me what it is, I'll run and hide.
I come home last night, you wouldn't even let me in.
I'm lost in the haze of your delicate ways with both eyes glazed.
Was the great-granddaughter of Mr. Clean.
And I never did plan to go anyway to Black Diamond Bay.
He said, "There's a body I'm a-trying to find.
He made his usual entrance, looking so dandy and so fine.
Shouting at this lovely girl and commanding her to yield.
But I don't know what "alright" even means.
It's a shame the way she makes me scrub the floor.
They believed me, but they wanted to know what exactly that I did.
"How are you?" he said to me, I said it back to him.
I'll leave this old world with a satisfied mind.
Finalize you or advertise you.
She's 68, but she says she's 54.
Hanging down from the heavens to the ground.
That can win what's never been won.
God knows you can rise above the darkest hour of any circumstance.
They've been talking about a war now for a-many long years.
A foreign sound to your ear.
Pressing on to the higher calling of my Lord.
He wanted money up front, said he was abused by dignity.
'Specially when he's in his father's house.
Don't even have anything for myself anymore.
They smile to your face, but behind your back they hiss.
Your cracked country lips I still wish to kiss as to be by the strength of your skin.
Happiness can come suddenly and leave just as quick.
The cavalries charged, the Indians died.
Dodging lions and wasting time.
Crying out that he been framed.
When he's got a hungry mouth to feed.
Plenty of places to hide things here if you wanna hide 'em bad enough.
They'd probably put my head in a guillotine.
You discover that you'd just a-be one more person crying.
Into the land of the midnight sun.
And I'll go last.
Trying to create a next world war.
Supposed to lay down and die when his door is kicked in.
But, when war came, he volunteered and forgot the white man's greed.
But I'm richer by far with a satisfied mind.
I need a shot of love.
She wanted a whole man, not just a half.
Believe me, it ain't no fun.
My beautiful comrade from the north.
But we never did too much talking, anyway.
Ain't gonna hang no picture, ain't gonna hang no picture-frame.
Jumped into a white car with out-of-state plates.
I know you've suffered much, but in this you are not so unique.
"I've come to win some money," Gambling Willie says.
For me to return to or chase.
Go to him now, he calls you and you can't refuse.
And maybe fall in love, just me and you.
Sure seems lonesome, Lord, when the sun goes down.
But all his sexless patients, they're trying to blow it up.
To make me think I'm wrong.
"There's many here among us who feel that life is but a joke.
Well, I feel just like that rooster, honey, you treat me so unkind.
Don't fall apart on me tonight.
I'm sad and lonely too.
But darting fumes and making haste, it ain't my cup of meat.
Now, your dancing child with his Chinese suit, he spoke to me, I took his flute.
Sometimes I have ten dollars just to pay Little Maggie's wine.
You're coming through to me in black and white when we were made of dreams.
It hurts me all over, it doesn't seem right.
We're gonna start this again, the band was way ahead of me. [incomprehensible] We're gonna tune, we're gonna tune these instruments too.
The crying rain like a trumpet sang and asked for no applause.
You don't understand it, my feeling for you.
Puts bubblegum in my food.
It is only He who can reduce me to tears.
You're a big girl all the way.
She can do the Georgia Crawl, she can walk in the spirit of the Lord.
Thirty pieces of silver, no money down.
I seen a shooting star tonight and I thought of you.
Calling out that he's been framed.
Pick up your money and pack up your tent, you ain't going nowhere.
Everybody's having them dreams.
To the old folks' home and the college.
They're still talking about that card game on that Jackson Queen.
I can't tell my heart that you're no good.
The vows that we kept are now broken and swept 'neath the bed where we slept.
Ever since we've been apart.
And the answer that she gave to him, it so did me oppress.
Danced a jig with the bumbly bee, uh-huh.
Again she comes down the thruway ready to sew me up with the thread.
Lily called another bet and drew up the jack of hearts.
Take a tip from a-one who's tried.
Lord, I'm a-going where I never been before.
Never needs to be proud, loud, or restlessly yearning.
And I was brought up by my brother.
Gonna get that girl that money will buy.
Stripped of all virtue as you crawl through the dirt, you can give but you cannot receive.
Two men in front of me were coming to blows.
He's got plans of His own to set up His throne when a-He returns.
Evidently she won't.
And I still got their advice oozing out of my ears.
Because the cops don't need you and, man, they expect the same.
That you were just kidding me, you weren't really from the farm.
That just struck me kinda funny.
Wives would keep their husbands home when Willie came to town.
With the heat rising in my eyes.
Everything is criticized when you are in need.
And they're going out like a dinosaur.
Your eyes fix on the shotgun that's hanging on the wall.
No doubt in my mind where you belong.
Now you stand with your thief - you're on his parole.
To keep her from the howling winds.
But he sure was funny and he sure told the truth and he knew what he was talking about.
Who pick up on his breadcrumb sins.
Steal a lot and they make you king.
And nobody has to think too much about Desolation Row.
You're very-well read, it's well-known.
Buildings going up to the sky.
Yes, I just wanna see if it's really the expensive kind.
Lovers obey you, but they cannot sway you, they're not even sure you exist.
Is to say I've been hitting some hard traveling too.
I'm not even acquainted with my own desires.
Don't say I never warned you when your train gets lost.
Veronica's not here, Mavis just ain't right.
Well, it looks like I'm never gonna lose the freight train blues.
Then he went off sniffing drainpipes and reciting the alphabet.
His mama's face broke out into a grin.
I never can remember anything that you've said.
I want you.
Mama, take this badge off of me.
He not a-busy being born is a-busy dying.
In fourteen months I've only smiled once and I didn't do it consciously.
A-move a-lightly on the ground.
The next sixty seconds could be like an eternity.
Through the holes in the pockets in my clothes.
Tomorrow's gonna be another day.
Out to the country club and the golf course.
To show you where the dead angels are that they used to hide.
Girls like birds fly away.
Mocked my God, humiliated my friends.
I got nothing, ma, to live up to.
Must be the mother of Our Lord.
He had a steady job and a pretty face and everything seemed to fit.
She might think that I've forgotten her - don't tell her, it isn't so.
I don't want to believe them, all I want is your word.
Just what you're gonna say when you get home.
And then she aches just like a woman, but she breaks just like a little girl.
But I did it for you and all you gave me was a smile.
Till one day all of his slaves ran free, something inside of him died.
Well, the real truth is that I may be afraid to find it.
That Tiny Montgomery's coming down to say hello.
You discover that you'd just be one more person crying.
If you really believe that, you know you got nothing to win and nothing to lose.
And don't go mistaking paradise for that home across the road.
Cannot hold you to its heat.
And you-you took me in, you loved me then, you never wasted time.
But right now I'll just sit here so contentedly and watch the river flow.
I'm going where I never been before.
What's real and what is not.
Don't say I never warned you if your train gets lost.
They would not let me be.
And all I see are dark eyes.
But, baby, please stop crying--it's tearing up my mind.
Where the angels' voices whisper to the souls of previous times.
When I'm alone with you.
I seen that silver lining that was hanging in the sky.
He was shot down by a hungry kid trying to make a name for himself.
Well, I wake up in the morning, fold my hands and pray for rain.
And there's no time to think.
Just tell me where it hurts and I'll tell you who to call.
I was playing a show in Miami in the theater of divine comedy.
And they're beating the devil out of a guy who's wearing a powder-blue wig.
Gonna break in the roof, set fire to the place as a parting gift.
And, every time I pass that way, I always hear my name.
They say that you're planning to put me down.
Come on, baby...
And try to avoid the scandals.
And no time to think.
Billy, you been running for so long.
'Twas then that I knew what he had on his mind.
They stopped and stared and they went their way.
I couldn't find any.
They put me on a train and they sent me back.
And they set him on a path where he's bound to get ill.
Well, if I fall down dying, you know, she bound to put a blanket on my bed.
It don't satisfy the hurt inside, nor the habit that I feed.
And now you're better--you're gonna have to get used to it.
But the joke was on me, there was nobody even there to bluff.
And I'll be with you when the deal goes down.
I see better days and I do better things.
I don't even know why we come.
If you ever try to interfere with me or cross my path again, you do so at the peril of your life.
You're bound to fall." You thought they're all kidding you.
Look up, look up, seek your maker 'fore Gabriel blows his horn.
I'll only let you down.
Then he fines you every time you slam the door.
Twenty miles outta town, Cold Irons bound.
I asked the captain what his name was and how come he didn't drive a truck.
You ain't worth the blood that runs in your veins.
She knows where I'd like to be, but it doesn't matter.
I stood there and hummed, I tapped on her drum, I asked her how come.
Visions of your chestnut mare shoot through my head and are making me see stars.
But, when there's too much of nothing, it just makes a fellow mean.
Just do your thing, you'll be king if dogs run free.
Peggy Day stole my poor heart away.
And I do hope you receive it well, depending on the way you feel that you live.
Even the pawn must hold a grudge.
Your children are so hungry that they don't know how to smile.
Each one of 'em got a fireproof floor.
As the last ship sails and the moon fades away from Black Diamond Bay.
Passed this way an hour ago with his friend, some jealous monk.
She laid out the tablecloth, uh-huh.
'Neath the rose bush.
When the bottle gets empty, it sure ain't worth a damn.
You coulda done better, but I don't mind.
That the whole, wide world is watching.
Where people carried signs around saying "Ban the bums".
Oh, but I don't know how much longer I can wait.
"Come and go with me, my pretty, little miss, come and go with me, my honey.
Oh, honey, after all these years you're still the one.
And I never saved a dollar in the pay of Diamond Joe.
He could die happily ever after.
For me He was rejected by a world that He created.
I'm a-going where I never been before.
Go to him now, he calls you, you can't refuse.
And your flashing diamond teeth.
The man, he can't get it, he's almost dead.
They're full of cheating, misery, low-down lies.
And I'd lie in my bed once again.
Leaving all of love's ashes behind me.
Both eyes are looking like they on a rabbit hunt.
Paved paradise, they put up a parking lot.
Whose gods are dead and whose queens are in the church.
You're bound to fall." You thought they were all kidding you.
When it's you who must keep it satisfied.
Telling me he loves all kinds of people.
He still waits for me, constant on the sly.
If she was ever with me or if I was ever with her.
So many dead-ends, I'm at the edge of the lake.
Is Cinderella sweeping up on Desolation Row.
There's something I've gotta do tonight - you go inside and stay warm.
And she couldn't even recognize his face.
Someone said that Dignity was the first to leave.
And bid farewell and not give a damn.
I don't blame him too much, though. He didn't know me.
There's a guy I gotta see.
Only game he could play was Russian roulette.
Somewheres in this universe there's a place that you can call home.
At Napoleon in rags and the language that he used.
I find it so difficult to leave.
Moving with a simple twist of fate.
Well, he hands you a nickel, he hands you a dime.
But I never yet found Fennario.
I threw it all away.
Alright, once again, it's that time of the hour we have to run.
She's everything I need and love, but I can't be swayed by that.
Got to do unto others like you'd have them--said like you'd have them do unto you.
He owned a wrecking lot outside of town about a mile.
I dreamt I was walking in World War III.
She robbed me of my liberty, deprived me of my rest.
My eyes were closed, I was half asleep.
Get your mind off wintertime, you ain't going nowhere.
So I'm going, I'm just going, I'm gone.
And build you a house made outta stainless steel.
Can't see over to the other side.
I'm just average, common too.
Oh, even that couldn't make me go back.
To which a scoundrel clings.
Yes, I'd tell you what it means if I just didn't have to try so hard.
For I can't help falling in love with you.
Take a tip from one who's tried.
I'm gon' remember forever the joy we've shared.
Are being stolen by bandits, I must follow the sound.
You've turned your hair to brown, love to see it hanging down.
You got a heart of stone.
You're my baby.
But tonight I'm as lonesome as can be.
Underneath it it said, "A man with no alibi".
Waitress comes over, nobody in the place but me and her.
And they were both out on Highway 61.
Here's a story 'bout a ghost come back from out in the sea, come to take his bride away from the house carpenter.
Sara, Sara, so easy to look at, so hard to define.
No, I ain't gonna work for Maggie's ma no more.
Saying, "Hey, I've been having the same old dreams.
It don't matter anyhow.
Then he destroyed a bomb factory, he--nobody was glad.
Tried to create a next world war.
Just a little shanty by the railroad track.
Anyway, I put money on him to win.
But she had some way of finding them out.
Pay for your ticket and don't complain.
It's all much cleaner than the New York kind.
Sun don't shine above the ground.
That, if God is on our side, He'll stop the next war.
Go to the ends of the earth for you to make you feel my love.
In the north end of town my own children're grown.
No martyr is among ye now whom you can call your own.
If I say I'm loving you not for what you are but what you're not.
His mama sure was proud of him.
The morning breeze like a bugle blew against the drums of dawn.
Though it's funny, honey: I'm outta touch, don't feel much like a scarecrow today.
Well, you know, I've even outrun the hound dog, honey, you know I've earned your love.
Everything about you is bringing me misery.
Mine alone.
I was sleeping like a rat when I heard something jerking.
Going down from God's distant shore.
Well, I go to pet your monkey, I get a face full of claws.
She's wearing a multi-thousand dollar gown.
I just want you to know I can a-see through your mask.
Things I never meant nor wished to say.
It probably wouldn't matter to you anyhow.
It's rising up above my head, up above my head.
With His serpent eyes of obsidian.
Or maybe I'm one up on you.
The milkman comes in, he's wearing a derby hat.
You know, if you didn't wanna be with me, that you didn't have to stay.
Is standing in the clothes that you once wore.
That night, the boss came home inquiring about his lady.
It would go up against every rule.
I'm wondering if she remembers me at all.
You know sometimes Satan'll come as a man of peace.
We may not make it through the night.
I seen a man.
I'm painting the town, making my last go-round.
Well, the Lord created it, mister, about the same time that He made the earth.
He said, "I got a bed for you underneath the stove.
Love is pleasing, love is teasing, love not an evil thing.
Trust yourself.
But he dressed like Jimmy Cagney and I swear he did look great.
Yes, I received your letter yesterday about the time the door-knob broke.
TV crew was there to film it, they jumped right over me.
Soft as music, light as spring.
May you always know the truth and see the light surrounding you.
You tamed the lion in my cage, but it wasn't enough to change my heart.
That's really and truly an American.
And, now, I know you're dissatisfied with your position and your place.
All he ever wanted was somebody to trust.
You've had time to think about it for a while.
By His hand I've been delivered, by His spirit I've been sealed.
I hate myself for loving you, but I should get over that.
Then come back and cook up a meal.
Mama, you been on my mind.
Until he came up to the spot where Judas Priest did stand.
Crying out that he was framed.
They found him dead in the street one day.
You can play with fire, but you'll get the bill.
Must be and that is all.
Instant inner peace and every step you take's got to be approved.
You put your eyes in your pocket, you put your nose in the ground.
I got trouble in my mind.
Then I went back to find Isis just to tell her I love her.
I can't provide for you no easy answers.
I know every scene by heart, they all went by so fast.
Like a-she a-broke a-this a-heart of mine.
It's unbelievable it would get this far.
Police at your back.
I and I, in creation where one's nature neither honors, nor forgives.
Take me as I am or let me go.
Oh, I wish I was on some Australian mountain range.
Took him to the hospital and they brought him upstairs.
And relive my dreams.
Pull out your six-shooter and rob every bank you can see.
Upon the beach of sunny Mozambique.
Somebody is out there beating on a dead horse.
He bought your city on a one-way track.
Now I'm trying to get to heaven before they close the door.
For there's a slow - there's a slow, slow train coming.
I can't even remember what it was I came here to get away from.
Maybe down in Mexico or a picture upon somebody's shelf.
"Good morning, good morning," the Sergeant, he cried.
She could be respectably married or running a whorehouse in Buenos Aires.
With a mind that multiplied the smallest matter.
Never been so easy or so slow.
I couldn't see what you could show me.
I ain't gonna work for Maggie's pa no more.
You say, "Impossible!" as he hand you a--a bone.
As a crutch for her scenes and her society.
Your voice was all that I heard.
Wouldn't bow down, he would not fight.
Won't let go and I can't let go no more.
Then sends 'em out to the jungle.
In fond memory appear.
There's no excuse for you to say that we don't think alike.
He sees your deeds, He knows your needs even before you ask.
But that's what I am paid to do.
But I was just too stubborn to ever be governed by enforced insanity.
I got a head full of ideas that are driving me insane.
And I's left alone with three children.
But I'm just as happy as you, baby, I just can't say it so well.
Don't be angry--don't be angry with me should I cry.
He and Arthur Dexter Bradley went a-prowling around.
I can bite like a turkey, I can slam like a drake.
Bent over backwards from a hurricane breeze.
That even Jesus would never forgive what you do.
Havanageeluh.
Down to New Orleans.
The last radio is playing.
Don't look it--like it will anytime soon.
She was with Big Jim, but she was leaning to the jack of hearts.
Four by four they turn it some more.
In this thing she called a good, old-fashioned war.
I've only got me one good shirt left and it smells of stale perfume.
Bringing everything that's near to me nearer to the fire.
Had to go to Florida, dodging them Georgia laws.
I need a woman that's mine alone.
Ain't nothing to do but to set down and sing and rock about my Sarah Jane.
Night or day, it doesn't matter where I go anymore, I just go.
From my toes up to my ears.
I don't wanna drown in someone else's wine.
By a guy making thirty cents a day.
Well, I'm crying to the lord, trying to be meek and mild.
You know, I'm pressing on to the higher calling of my Lord.
Said I ain't gonna work for Maggie's ma no more.
But that's alright, baby, you know I always understand.
Tell 'em all that Tiny's gonna say hello.
Heart-fixer, mind-regulator, true to the end.
No, there's nothing that I wouldn't do to make you feel my love.
The beauty parlor is filled with sailors, the circus is in town.
But he never did like to talk about it all that much.
We're all gonna meet at that million dollar bash.
And the sails are spread.
Lay dead beside him there.
It was raining from the first and I was dying of thirst so I came in here.
Some place so high above this wall.
You just want to be on the side that's winning.
Her rosy cheeks, her ruby lips like arrows pierced my breast.
Everything looks a little far away to me.
And his mother had to turn her face away.
Someone's watching over you.
Paid one hundred dollars for Albert's new suite of clothes.
Both of their futures so full of dread -- you don't show one.
And the saviors, who are fast asleep, they wait for you.
He stayed behind the assembly hall. It was there he made his bed.
When your foot of pride come down, ain't no going back.
The only thing I could do was be me and get on that train and ride.
And he's following a star, the same one them three men followed from the East.
Don't turn away, you'll create sorrow.
Waiting to play tennis in the noonday sun.
I broke into the tomb, but the casket was empty.
I'd be lost if not for you.
They let him raise the flag there and lower it like you'd throw a dog a bone.
Well, the policeman come and he looked around.
Yes, he is, now-yes, he is outside my yard.
Yeah, here's one for ya.
Let me forget about today until tomorrow.
And let it burn, burn, burn, burn on a night like this.
I'd ask him what the matter was, but I know that he don't talk.
With the glory that is to be.
With her head tilted sideways she called me again.
But farewell, Angelina, the sky is erupting and I must go where it is quiet.
It seems there was an earthquake that left nothing but a Panama hat and a pair of old Greek shoes.
Hold on to me, pretty miss, and say you'll never go away to stray.
And she also keeps the cards that read "Have Mercy on His Soul".
I hear them semis rolling too.
And, if it don't work out, you'll be the first to know.
No matter what you think about it, you just won't be able to do without it.
Got ice water in my veins.
I thought some of 'em were friends of mine, I was wrong about 'em all.
There's seven breezes blowing all around the cabin door.
It's alright, ma, I can make it.
I'm on the dark side of the road.
Your days are numbered, so are mine.
Yes, I'm one too many mornings and a thousand miles behind.
Standing at my window, wishing me goodnight.
In hunger and need you made my heart bleed, you changed my life.
He's a weird monkey, very funky.
And a little wee drummer intending to camp for a day being pleasant and charming.
I'm down on my knees and I ain't got a dime.
Where men bathed in perfume and practiced the hopes of free speech.
God knows there ain't anybody ever gonna take the place of you.
From the little Minnesota town.
His bedroom window, it is made out of bricks.
Look out your window and I'll be gone.
I swear it's bound to get me killed.
Greenwich Village.
And it's alright, ma, I can make it.
Never had to be faithful, I never wanted you to grieve.
They say "Sing!" while you slave and I just get bored.
Well, there's no way to tell by that first kiss.
Stayed in Mississippi a day too long.
Don't worry, baby, I don't mind leaving, I'd just like it to be my idea.
If you're a real hot mama, come and drive away Daddy's weeping spell.
Whatever you got to say to me won't come as any shock.
Trust yourself to know the way that will prove true in the end.
Oh, oh, oh, Jokerman.
On a cold, dark night on the Spanish Stairs.
Baby, outside of your graveyard lips.
When it comes to scratching for my meat.
All the young men with the young women looking so good.
But to you that would be cruelty and to me it surely would be death.
The fog is so thick that you can't even spy the land.
No more auction block for me, many thousand gone.
She slipped in through the side door, looking like a queen without a crown.
You were born with a snake in both of your fists while a hurricane was blowing.
Don't have to put her in my house, Lordy, just lead her to my door.
But the fighter still remains.
They just do what's most convenient, then they repent.
And clouds cover up the ground.
Someday, little girl, you'll have a-a diamond as big as your shoe.
Through the back alleys, through the blinds, another one of them endless days.
Is that his name wasn't Henry Porter.
I said for the Pope of Eruke I was employed.
There was no actor anywhere better than the jack of hearts.
But I can't remember why I was in it or what part I was supposed to play.
I'm in love with the ugliest girl in the world.
With the lunch bucket filled every season.
Please don't fade away on me, baby, like the midnight train.
To ease the pain of idleness and the memory of decay.
Threw him down in the hole and I put back the cover.
I wouldn't let him do it for all the farms in Cuba.
Well, I asked the doctor if I could see you. "It's bad for your health," he said.
With twenty pounds of headlines stapled to his chest.
I got my dark sunglasses, I got for good luck my black tooth.
68, but says she's 24.
Thunder from the barrel of his gun.
I don't wanna see you bleed, I know what you need and it ain't what you deserve.
Delia's in the graveyard, boys, six feet outta sight.
She spends her time peeking into Desolation Row.
Seven more days all I gotta do is survive.
Split up on a dark, sad night, both agreeing it was best.
You got all the love, a-honey baby, I can stand.
You'll never see me frown.
Everything that I dreamed of to get a start in life's game.
Rode slowly back again.
Happen for days, didn't know your name.
Albert said, "I'm leaving you, won't be gone for long.
The man you were loving could never get clean.
I've seen trouble all my days.
And a-say you'll always let it be me.
What was it you wanted? You can tell me, I'm back.
Sound like it's on a final run.
Got a five-inch smile, but her breath is sweet.
Don't trust me to show you love when my love may be only lust.
But my soulful mama, you know, she keeps me hid.
So I'll just say "Fare thee well".
Now, I'm liberal, but to a degree.
In every leaf that trembles and in every grain of sand.
It only trouble for you if you let her in.
The words to say "I'm sorry" I haven't found yet.
But farewell, Angelina, the sky's changing colors and I must leave.
That Johanna's not here.
It's unbelievable you can get this rich this quick.
"Don't trill no news on me.
Egypt and Rome, even the great Babylon.
Nothing matters to me and there's nothing I desire, 'cept you, yeah, you.
Where the current is strong and the monkey dances to the tune of a concertina.
Standing on your window, honey - yes, I've been here before.
But sometimes you just find yourself over the line.
If you really believe that, you know you have nothing to win and nothing to lose.
Oh, you got to trust yourself...
What looks like the easy way out.
I was a-hungry and it was your world.
I spoke like a child, you destroyed me with a smile while I was sleeping.
People'd ask about you, I didn't tell 'em everything I knew.
Look away, we're bound away across the wide Missouri.
Into the ditch of what each one means.
But you said you knew me and I believed you did.
What some people are gonna do for money.
Until the break of day let me see you make him smile.
I'm just like him, the same as you.
You say you're assuming that you're kind of a-hurting, but you know sometimes you lie.
The fast, fading words that rolled from my tongue.
The sooner you can leave.
Our chances really was a million to one.
When she returned, little Delia had gone to rest.
You'll see the honor I have gained by the wearing of the blue.
Well, I've been up all night leaning on the windowsill.
When the night comes falling from the sky.
If you just let me come home with you.
Too many thoughts get in the way in the day, but you're always what I'm thinking of.
But I ain't gonna hear it said no more.
Come back to me, baby, where I live, that's where you belong.
Honey, because the world done wrong.
A pink hotel, a boutique, and a swinging, hot spot.
Look a-the other way.
But then again, I said-again, I said, whoa-whoa, babe, sometimes I'm in the mood for you.
I'm rolling slow, going where the wild roses grow.
I think Abraham Lincoln said that.
That hollow place where martyrs weep and angels play with sin.
99, 100, 101, 102, your ma won't even recognize you.
Is what this thing here is for.
Could you ever be true? I think of you and I wonder.
Where no one will be a stranger to me.
I give her my heart, but she wanted my soul.
Which led me to my fatal doom, to wander off in shame.
I can walk anytime around the block.
Thanks for coming. We'll be in the area for a few days. Maybe we'll see you tomorrow at 9.
And they made a killer outta him is what they did.
We all wear the same thorny crown.
To live it you had to explode.
I hope you're ready.
One rich man in ten with a satisfied mind.
Everything is broken.
Today Medgar Evers was buried from the bullet he caught.
Means another poor boy is underground.
Well, the National Guard stands around his door.
But I'm already there in my mind and that's good enough for now.
As someone who has had you on his mind.
You put your eyes in your pocket and your nose on the ground.
Honey, just allow me one more chance, I'll do anything for you.
He talked of life, he talked of life, laughed and slapped his leg a step.
Alright, thank you very much.
You were trying to break into another world, a world I never knew.
Gonna serve somebody.
I'm going back to end my life down in the Rising Sun.
And all your raging glory.
I said, "Fee, fie, fo, fum, Cassius Clay, here I come.
Or stay all night with thee.
My eyes feel like they're falling off my face.
Your flaming feet are burning up the street.
I'm just glad it's over, I'm seeing the real you at last.
Now somebody's got to show their hand, time is an enemy.
Looking for them rounders looking out for me.
Eclipses both the sun and moon.
But I guess that's better left unsaid.
I ain't hauling any of my lambs to the marketplace anymore.
Hope I don't blow it.
Don't have to look no further - you're the soul of many things.
Trying to read a letter to me somebody wrote about dignity.
For Halloween buy her a trumpet and for Christmas give her a drum.
In one of them coffeehouses on the block.
Of every man who put me here.
I know something is changed.
Suffering like a fool.
Where the miners work almost for nothing.
All clean-shaven, all coming in from the cold.
Everybody got to move somewhere.
Throw my suitcase out there too.
You'll do as much for me.
Gonna keep on walking till I hear her holler out my name.
When my name comes up he pretends to barf.
And tapestry of rhyme.
They've been there since Christmas morn.
I said, "Where we going?" He said we'd be back by the fourth.
I know the kinds of things you like.
It always does when you're with me.
I didn't know what I was gonna do.
I'm going back to New Orleans - my race is almost run.
I swear it hurt me more than it coulda hurted her.
You can always come back, but you can't come back all the way.
All about that John B. Stetson hat.
And he wore a metal brace around his waist.
Meet me in the middle of the air.
He spoke with tears of fifteen years of how his dog and him just traveled all about.
She ate so much she made us sick, uh-huh.
She still lives inside of me, we've never been apart.
Ain't no use to talk to me.
May you have a strong foundation a-when the winds of changes shift.
I wish to my soul that I could see the gal I'm a-thinking of.
Wanna save my money and rip it up.
Even though you only seen 'em one time or two.
Some place so high above the wall.
Threw him down in the hole, I put back the cover.
With disaster you somehow managed to escape.
I can hear that lonesome whistle blowing.
On the cliffs of your wildcat charms I'm riding.
At my window with a broken wing.
Then you ache just like a woman, but you break just like a little girl.
Everybody watching us a-go by knows we're in love, yes, they understand.
With his lady by his side he took a stand.
Mama, you're just on my mind.
You're better than them, you been born with white skin, they explain.
Until my dying-day.
You told yourself a lie, that's alright, mama, I told myself one too.
To win friends and influence his uncle.
And the flowerpot's from Pakistan.
When the wind blows through the piney wood.
This song is called "Hurricane". If you got any political pull at all, maybe you can help us get this man outta jail, back onto the streets.
Believe me, ain't no lie.
You know, he keeps on saying everything twice to me.
But your love just hasn't proved true.
I know this dream, it might be crazy, but it's the only one I've got.
At bringing back any help for my friends and Captain Arab.
To get you facts when someone attacks your imagination.
A hound dog bayed beyond your trees as I was packing up my uniform.
In bed with nobody, under no one's command.
Come out tonight, everything'll be tight, Winterlude, this dude thinks you're grand.
Oh, got my mind made up.
Somebody said dignity was the first to leave.
Thank you, you're so very kind, you really are. We will play you this song - I wrote this also about fifteen years ago, it still means a lot to me, I know it means a lot to you, too.
Just a one kind favor I ask of you: allow me just one more chance.
And I've served time for everything 'cept begging on the street.
Let's call it a day, go our own different ways before we decay.
Most of the time I'm strong enough not to hate.
Tangled up in blue.
Just some old wild shirts and a couple pairs of pants, which nobody really wanted to touch.
My heart's in the Highlands, can't see any other way to go.
But Mona Lisa musta had the highway blues, you can tell by the way she smiles.
And he dropped his medals down into her hand.
That there never was a rounder that could lie like Diamond Joe.
Honey, come and see about me.
Like the universe has swallowed me whole.
"Oh, yes, he is my friend," said Frankie Lee in fright.
Your baby's eyes look crazy, they're tugging at your sleeve.
You're gonna need - you're gonna need my help someday, my help someday.
Still I love my faithless Flora, the Lily of the West.
Got a head full of ideas driving me insane.
Till she sees finally she's like all the rest with her fog, her amphetamine, and her pearls.
Who don't how to do you wrong.
Got to do unto others like you'd have them--like you'd have them do unto you.
Funny how the things you have the hardest time parting with are the things you need the least.
Cursing the dead that can't answer him back.
I will only let you down.
To hear again the songbird's sweet, melodious tone.
The dogs were barking, the neighbor passed, mama, of course she said hi.
Well, our captain fell in love with a lady like a dove.
He died on the road, he died on the road.
And she had left him to die in there.
For deep in my heart I know there's no help I can bring.
Be grateful for what we've shared together and be glad.
Easy to see without looking too far not much is really sacred.
Gon' get me a freight train, the work done got hard.
I dreamt the only person left after the war was me.
Draw conclusions on the wall.
To anything I might've tried.
I watch them till they're gone and they leave me hanging on to the shadow.
High police get Stack-A-Lee and a-he jumped forty feet.
You're gonna need - you're gonna need my help someday, oh, yes, you.
Let us hope they've found mercy in their bone-filled graves.
They overtook me down in Jericho.
Finest of the ladies down Canadee-i-o.
She said that all the railroad men just drink up your blood like wine.
Well, there ain't nothing here now to hold them.
Late last night you come rolling across my mind.
Lotta things they'd like they would never buy.
You wanna ramble to the break of dawn.
But then now again not too many can be like you, fortunately.
After losing every battle.
Duality, mortality.
Farewell, Angelina, the sky's flooding over and I must be gone.
Wouldn't've been so bad if the poor girl died at home.
I'm short on gas, my motor's starting to stall.
Meantime life outside goes on all around you.
And the dust of rumors covers me.
The Germans now too have God on their side.
Somebody's got to cry some tears, I guess it must be up to me.
He dressed like Jimmy Cagney, but he did - lost a little weight.
Fixing to die, fixing to die.
"Arise! Arise!" he cried so loud with a voice without restraint.
Like a poor fool in his prime, yes, I know you can hear me walk.
Some of 'em going down, some of 'em gonna get killed.
I was only following instructions when the judge sent me down the road with your subpoena.
I'm well dressed, waiting on the last train.
But the sun goes around the heavens and another day just drives on through.
From the boat I fish for bullheads, I catch a lot, sometimes too many.
I stood wondering which way to go.
If you were just here by my side to show me how.
Mary wore three links of chain.
To tie up the time most forcefully.
But the song, it was long and I'd only begun.
Figuring a way to get back home.
Trouble...
She's a brown-skin woman, but I-I love her just the same.
You can't walk the streets in a war.
Heard my best friend a-coming and I thought I heard my baby cry.
So I can know if I'm really real.
He ain't-a got no name.
In the world you had made they had made you an outcast.
Then he fine you every time you slam the door.
And that the land that I live in has God on its side.
We can start it all over, get it back on the track.
And you only got ten.
That some people rob you with a fountain pen.
If he wanted to dance, he had a face like a mask.
I can't help it if I'm lucky.
Water pouring into Vicksburg, don't know what I'm gonna do.
Remember before you come, at least please first telephone.
Half asleep 'neath the stars with a small dog licking your face.
Blame it on a simple twist of fate.
Down the hallway footsteps were coming for the jack of hearts.
I just can't be happy, love, unless you're happy too.
Well, I'd trade places with any of 'em in a minute if I could.
Going back where we come from.
To do anything they wish to do, but die.
As the present now will later be past.
Ain't no loving since she been gone.
Wiggle till it answers, wiggle till it comes.
Everybody must get stoned.
Your temperature is too hot for taming.
You only got ten.
The National Guard stands around the door.
Goodnight, my love, may the lord have mercy on us all.
I was alright till I fell in love with you.
They say times are hard, if you don't believe it, you can just follow your nose.
Visions of your smoking tone shoot through my head and are making me see stars.
But I will always be emotionally yours.
If it's information you want, you can get it from the police.
This silence of tongues, it was building.
Headed out for the western skies.
Tell 'em Tiny Montgomery says hello.
Something there is about you that brings back a long-forgotten truth.
Everybody singing a sorrowful tune.
In my Cadillac.
What make me love my woman she can really do the Georgia Crawl.
But she ain't gonna make a move, I guess it must be up to me.
And come away with me.
"Yes, kind sir, I sit and spin." Uh-huh.
I just want you to know I can see through your masks.
A few stolen kisses and no harm was done.
Train, moving with a simple twist of fate.
So I picked up my guitar and began the next song.
Put me outta doors.
How across the sea from England I was condemned to sail.
The beauty parlor's filled with sailors, the circus is in town.
Searching for the very souls whom already have been sold.
Took sickness and disease and he turned it into health.
Who think they've got the line up for me on love.
Honey, 'cause the world's gone wrong.
You put your eyes in your pocket and you put your nose into the ground.
Even tore loose the kitchen floor.
Never will want for money.
One more cup of coffee 'fore I go to the valley below.
The timeless explosion of fantasy's dream.
Just trying to find my little all and all.
That he'll live by the rules that the world makes for him.
And there are no truths outside the gates of Eden.
Going through all these things twice.
And old Mr. Rockefeller never says a word.
The words that her lover had said.
The peaches, they were sweet and the milk and honey flowed.
Well, you'd be honest with me if only you knew.
Last radio is playing.
It's just the same as talking to you.
Even the bloodhounds of London couldn't find you today.
She saw her Albert there a-loving up Alice Fry.
A few hard cases I will recall, though they all were brave and true.
Tell her she can look me up if she's got the time.
So, darling, I'm counting on you.
She can't find him anywhere.
I just wanna thank You, Lord - well.
Wiggle, you can raise the dead.
And these visions of Johanna are now all that remain.
I was betrayed by Flora, the Lily of the West.
While my conscience explodes.
But it's only the silence in the buttermilk hills that call.
And that's gonna set her on her own every day.
I love you more than ever and I haven't yet begun.
Because I'm up on a hill and still you're not there.
I got to laugh halfways off my heels.
They'll kick you when you're up and knock you when you're down.
Into reach of your rattling drums.
Sometimes it gets so hard to care.
Things are breaking up out there, high water everywhere.
I'll remember you.
'Cept pat me on the back one time when I was on my knee.
If I say I'm loving you not for you're-what you are but what you're not.
Father who turneth the rivers and streams.
'Cause he doesn't tell you jokes and fairy-tales, say he's failed to make you smile.
You're gonna make me give myself a good talking-to.
Delia's dear mother took a trip out West.
And they gotta cut something.
I'm going, I'm going, I'm gone.
Every link was Jesus's name.
May you have a strong foundation when the winds of changes shift.
Just gotta pick myself up off the floor.
Well, it's all of a fair and a handsome girl, she's all in her tender years.
Could never do you justice in reason or rhyme.
Take it on down to give me grow.
"I never knew it was gonna be this way.
That the Bear Mountain picnic was coming my way.
That backs up their views, but your face is so bruised.
I've heard you say many times that you're better than no one and no one is better than you.
I'm gon' do whatever circumstances require.
What can I say about Claudette? Ain't seen her since January.
Somebody just asked me if I've registered to vote.
Try to bully you, strong arm you, inspire you with fear, it has the opposite effect.
Tell 'em all that Montgomery says hello.
They say "Sing!" while you slave -- I get bored.
And discovered her invisible self.
But, when Quinn the Eskimo gets here, them pigeons'll go to him.
Nothing standing there, high water everywhere.
There's nothing I'm wishing to be owning.
So today I'll be staying here with you.
Go lightly on the ground.
My tears keep flowing to the sea.
Where I can watch her waltz for free 'neath her Panamanian moon.
That keep us so tightly bound.
To weep not for me now I'm gone.
And I nearly starved to death, boys, he did mistreat me so.
Lot of things can get in the way when you're trying to do what's right.
Tell 'em all that Tiny Montgomery says hello.
Honey, I want you.
To see that you're madly in love.
There's something I got to do tonight, you go inside and stay warm.
I used to care, but things have changed.
It's called the land of permanent bliss.
26, 27, 28, 29, I'm gonna make your face look just like mine.
They say the nighttime is the right time to be with the one you love.
They took him to the hospital and they brought him upstairs.
The place that I started from.
It curls and falls all down her breast.
But, now, lord God, let my poor voice be heard.
Waiting on my burying ground.
See him at play makes me smile.
Not this time, baby, no more of this.
And I don't know how much longer I can wait.
My feet are so tired, my brain is so wired, and the clouds are weeping.
Well, in my time of dying, don't want nobody to mourn.
I shall be released.
At misunderstood visions and at the faces of clocks.
And when I was through, I filled up my shoe and brought it to you.
With the golden loom.
You better talk to her about it, you're her lover now.
When you made everybody pay.
I told 'em I was the editor of a famous etiquette book.
While the eyes of the idol with the iron head are glowing.
And he was a friend of mine.
And look not for answers where no answers can be found.
Deep down inside, you know, you know - need a whole new beginning.
And gives it to me for a song.
You say, "Impossible!" as he hands you a bone.
Now, each of us has his own special gift and you know this was meant to be true.
You gave me a map and a key to your door.
Hmm, tell me.
I got a long-haired woman, she got royal Indian blood.
He said, "There's a body I'm trying to find.
I don't have no sports car and I don't even care to have one.
Build you a house out of mortar and bricks.
You know, I just couldn't make it by myself, I'm a little too blind to see.
And you find out now you're gonna have to get used to it.
Highway 51 runs right by my baby's door.
You'll understand I'm only a man doing the best that I can.
The empress attracts you, but oppression distracts you, it makes you feel violent and strange.
I went back in the house and mama met me and then I shut all the doors.
Nobility, humility.
Every street is crooked, they just wind around until they disappear.
You got my money, now you're trying to break this date.
You'd better do something quick, she's your lover now.
You can have your cake and eat it too.
At one time, there was nothing wrong with me that you could not fix.
Blowing like the sky's gonna blow apart.
Lord, she took it away to Italy, Italy.
The captain gone through the hole in the wall.
I was crossing the street when shots rang out.
You're the kinda woman drives a man insane.
Molotov cocktails and rocks behind every curtain.
But lately I see her ribbons and her bows have fallen from her curls.
Honey, I will pay your fare.
Or inspect you or reject you.
You have to pay to get out of going through all these things twice.
It's inconceivable it could happen to you.
They seem determined to go all the way.
William Zantzinger with a six-month sentence.
Wishing my long-lost lover would walk to me, talk to me, tell me what it's all about.
It'd be great to cross paths in a day and a half, look at each other and laugh.
My pockets are loaded and I'm spending every dime.
It ain't quite the end.
I'm sailing away in the morning.
Then, go, my lovely Flora, the Lily of the West.
It's just the old American way.
As they carried him from the courtroom and were taking him away.
"Stack-A-Lee, oh, Stack-A-Lee, please don't take my life.
No, I ain't gonna work for Maggie's pa no more.
And place them at the feet of a harlot.
I come in like a ton of bricks, laid a few tricks on 'em.
I cannot move, my fingers are all in a knot.
And another man named Bello, moving around mysteriously.
Rolling through the rain and hail, looking for the sunny side of love.
Blowing my lungs out for a dollar a day.
He's pulling her down and she's clutching onto his long, golden locks.
It can cure the soul, it can make it whole if dogs run free.
You say you're sorry for telling stories that you know I believe are true.
And the mailbox is locked.
I haven't known peace and quiet for so long I can't remember what it's like.
Take it to your heart, don't let it stray.
I had to rearrange their faces and give them all another name.
As the island slowly sank, the loser finally broke the bank in the gambling room.
Was the boy with the curly hair.
Satan got you by the heel, there's a bird's nest in your hair.
Obscenity - who really cares? - propaganda all is phony.
Something there is about you that moves with style and grace.
Let hot iron blow as you raise the shade.
But you break just like a little girl.
Honey, just allow me one more chance to ride your aeroplane.
The only person on the scene missing was the jack of hearts.
The waitress, he was handsome. He wore a powder-blue cape.
To try and make me change my mind and stay.
Saviors are fast asleep, wait for you.
Don't think I'm leaving you here without a kiss goodbye.
If you throw it all away.
Cost a quarter, half-price.
Won't let go and I can't let go.
In the brightness of my day.
And, when you go back to find it, there's nothing there to find.
While you're doing it, keep that juice to yourself.
I hope I'm ready.
Now they wanna grow it on the moon and eat it raw.
Nobody can throw the ball like Catfish can.
And she never done nothing to William Zantzinger.
He could see it coming through the door as he lifted up his fork.
And I ain't never gonna be the same again.
That big, old boat started to sink.
I know you're sorry, I'm sorry too.
She ain't hearing a thing, silence is a-sticking her deep.
But he sure left here in style.
You might say that I'm young, you might say I'm unlearned.
And accept it that soon you'll be drenched to the bone.
Mistake your shyness for aloofness, your silence for snobbery.
One day the little boy and little girl were baked in a pie.
Just like so many times before.
The world's being slaughtered, it's such a bloody disgrace.
Besides it's just a shadow you're seeing that he's chasing.
Behind every beautiful thing there's been some kinda pain.
With four-and-twenty windows and a woman's face in every one.
You can't win with a losing hand.
Nothing done and nothing said.
But no one sends flesh and blood to fight by his side.
What look large from a distance close up is never that big.
You've been fooled into thinking that the finishing end is at hand.
Won't fall upon 'em naturally, life sometimes must get lonely.
In her fog, with her amphetamine and her pearls.
I been in trouble ever since I set my suitcase down.
They complained in the East - they are paying too high.
Follow her down past the fountain, where they lifted her veil.
You-when you knew I had some other place to be.
It's too hot to sleep and time is running away.
He helped her out of a jam, I guess, but he used a little too much force.
She used to love me, but she don't no more.
Her bedroom window, it is made outta bricks.
And if I don't make it, you know my baby will.
Maybe, then, you'll realize what it would've taken to keep me cool.
His voice, it trembles as he's calling out for another plate of food.
See like me or be like me.
They paved paradise, they put up a parking lot.
Everybody went down to that million dollar bash.
And I--I never took much, I never asked for your crutch, now don't ask for mine.
Take the rag away from your face! Now ain't the time for your tears.
Come, baby, show me, show me you know me, tell me you're the one.
Telling everybody 'bout the chief of police.
But he cursed me when I proved to him. Then I whispered and said, "Not even you can hide.
Nothing can hold you down, nothing that you lack.
I'm gonna go down to the river and get some stone.
Walking a road other men have gone down.
You make me so mad I tell you to stop.
'Cause I'm stuck here on the ground, cold and drunk as I might be.
Always kinda wondered if you ever made it through.
When my last dream exploded, I noticed your light.
I'm twenty miles outta town and Cold Irons bound.
I followed the winding stream.
Even the softest touch.
I'm sick of love, I'm trying to forget you.
Peggy Night makes my future look so bright.
If not for you.
If I walk too much farther, my crane's gonna leak.
The townspeople wanted to crush that kid down and string him up by the neck.
Like you never done before.
They went down the Ohio, the Cumberland, the Tennessee, all the rest of them rebel rivers.
Hold on to me so tight and heat up some coffee grounds.
In the early morning rain with nowhere to go.
I'm gonna win my way to wealth and to fame.
We can hear the night watchman click his flashlight, ask himself just who that--if it's them or him that's really insane.
If we expect to live off of the fat of the land.
What you'll say when you get home.
Someone musta told 'em that I was doing fine.
Well, the hobo got to hide, but he came to me naturally.
She got a weird sense of humor that's all her own.
About an old man that never done wrong.
Will no--not make you envious, won't make you suspicious.
There are things I could say but I don't, I know the mercy of God must be near.
That set everybody free.
I just can't see through it anymore.
Tapping [incomprehensible], tapping across your floor.
Here's an unrecorded song. See if you can guess which one it is.
Yes, I can take him to your house, but I can't unlock it.
Your hurts used to be so nameless and your tears used to be so few.
When I leave New York, I'll be standing on my feet.
But I would never do you wrong.
If you want me, a-honey baby, I'll be here.
You to me were the best.
Not unless you mail them from Desolation Row.
They placed me in the witness box and then commenced on me.
'Cause he was a friend of mine.
Paths of victory we shall walk.
Try to make things better for someone, sometimes you just end up making it a thousand times worse.
One hand is tied to the tight-rope walker, the other is in his pants.
Lily had two queens, she was hoping for a third to match her pair.
Or else your hearts must have the courage for the changing of the guards.
Then send out for some pillars and Cecil B. DeMille.
I needed somebody to talk to.
Yesterday everything was going too fast, today it's moving too slow.
He stole a Rolls Royce and drove it in a swimming pool.
Where another man's life might begin, that's exactly where mine ends.
I shot my Albert dead and now I'm going to hell.
Lady-killers load dice on me behind my back while imitators steal me blind.
"Till the flesh rots off your bones.
The water smooth ran like a hymn and like a harp did hum.
That you'd be coming back in a little while.
Is tearing up your mind.
'Stead of learning to live, they are learning to die.
I see that stationmaster too.
Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee.
We flung them as far as we could in the tide.
And every window made of glass.
Adios, mi corazon.
He left her penniless in a state of regret - it was time to bust outta the cage.
Trying to read a note somebody wrote 'bout dignity.
Than people who are most content.
It's President Kennedy calling me up.
There's a slow, slow train coming up around the bend.
When I left my long-time darling, she was standing in the door.
It was raining from the first and I was a-dying out there of thirst so I came in here.
I'm crashing my car trunk-first into the board.
I'm trying to read your portrait, but I'm helpless like a rich man's child.
I'll bid farewell and be down the line.
With your golden loom.
Your wife's screams're stabbing you like the dirty, driving rain.
And the pearls are from Japan.
I'm in love with a woman that don't even appeal to me.
Who passionately hates his life and likewise fears his death.
I got my dark sunglasses, I'm carrying for good luck my black tooth.
But most of all she was thinking 'bout the jack of hearts.
When you go your way and I go mine.
Doctor, lawyer, Indian chief, it takes a thief to catch a thief.
For her parasite sister I had no respect.
And she makes love just like a woman, but she breaks just like a little girl.
In the summertime when you were with me.
They got some hungry women there and they really make a mess outta you.
I'd just about convinced myself nothing had changed that much.
But, if he was sick, he shoulda said.
It's been nice seeing you, you read me like a book.
And, if whiskey don't kill me, then, I don't know what will.
Want me to fly like an eagle while being chained to the floor.
And, after finding that I'd forgotten my shirt, I went back and knocked.
And you know that we shall meet again if your memory serves you well.
Well, I'm walking down the road with my head in my hand.
I helped her out of a jam, I guess, but I used a little too much force.
Please don't take away my highway shoes.
I just wanna thank You, Lord.
I believe in the impossible, you know that I do.
Well, he threw a Reader's Digest at my head and I did run.
That brave and devoted band.
You say you love me and you're thinking of me, but you know you could be wrong.
Now and then--now and then there's a fool--a fool such as I.
She lit a burner on the stove and offered me a pipe.
An innocent man in a living hell.
You can't find no salvation, have no expectations any time, any place, anywhere.
And rest yourself 'neath the strength of strings no voice can hope to hum.
Well, the world is set against but will never destroy.
So I get brown rice, seaweed, and a dirty hot dog.
Your daddy walks in wearing a Napoleon Bonaparte mask.
It doesn't haunt me like it did before.
So many people I never saw in my life.
"This body you may imprison, my heart you can't confine.
I done pawned my pistol, baby, my best clothes been stoled.
I wish someone'd come and push back the clock for me.
You know, I loved her just the same.
I ain't gonna work for Maggie's ma no more.
They both rode off together.
And she aches just like a woman, but she breaks just like a little girl.
The could-be dream lover of my lifetime.
You gonna have to find yourself another best friend somehow.
That don't come back with stories untold are hanging on a tree.
You're gonna need my help, sweetheart, you can't make love all by yourself.
Your grandma prays to pictures that are pasted on a board.
I always kinda wondered if you ever made it through.
Far down the street we stray.
Well, it can't be no guitar player, it must be convent bells.
Did so many things I never did intend to do.
Maybe we just better call off the picnic.
Handy-dandy, pour him another brandy.
I can't remember your face anymore, your mouth has changed, your eyes don't look into mine.
Oh, Jokerman, you don't show any response.
It was all that easy to tell wrong from right.
Your magnetic movement still captures the minutes I'm in.
He brags of his misery, he likes to live dangerousl,.
I thought somehow that I would be spared this fate.
And, anyway, I'm not alone.
The same as my father before him.
I looked for a cow and I saw me a few.
Started to hug and kiss him, but there was no bringing him back.
And, if there is eternity, I'll love you there again.
And a lot of 'em, they seemed to be looking my way.
I wouldn't mistreat you, baby, nothing in this world is like you.
You got gangsters in power and lawbreakers making rules.
Look how sweet she sleeps, how free must be her dreams.
Well, Frankie Lee and Judas Priest, they were the best of friends.
You can see that my grave is kept clean.
For, when you pull that dead man's hand, your gambling days are up.
Ain't gonna work on Maggie's farm no more.
So impossible to even learn the tune.
It was a normal day.
I've paid the price of solitude, but at least I'm out of debt.
But the song, it was long and it had to get done.
I said that.
Every time I come into your door, you leave me standing in the middle of the air.
Funny way to start a picnic.
Tree trunks uprooted 'neath the high crescent moon.
Is it something important? Maybe not.
Alberta, don't you treat me unkind.
I'm not quite as cool or forgiving as I sound, I've seen 'nough heartache and strife.
I'm having a hard time believing some people were ever alive.
...if you only just wouldn't clap so hard.
Honey, we could be in Kansas by the time the snow begins to thaw.
They got him on conspiracy, but they never said who with.
I was sitting down thinking of you.
Handing out free tickets to the wedding of his son.
You're my honey.
In this age of fiberglass I'm searching for a gem.
I'd like to get you to change your mind, but it looks like you won't.
Well, the Commander-in-Chief answers him while chasing a fly.
He must have loved me oh! so much to send me someone as fine as you.
Leave at your own chosen speed.
Six by six...
There ain't nothing wrong in that.
And the Good Samaritan, he's dressing, he's getting ready for the show.
But you know you only used to get juiced in it.
Couldn't see, I didn't know where I was, I was bald.
Could be the Fuhrer, could be the local priest.
As they follow each other back up the hill.
And the mountains are filled with lost sheep.
Need that woman straight and true.
You ain't seen nothing like me yet.
And we'll leave this old highway behind.
John Wesley Harding was a friend to the poor.
I was told I was looking good and to have a nice day.
Don't keep me knocking about from Mexico to Tibet.
The earth and sky that melts with flesh and bone.
Blues wrapped around my head.
I went to the church house, every day I go an extra mile.
She's nobody's child, the law can't touch her at all.
Got to have done some evil deed.
He's eating bagels. He's eating pizza. He's eating chitlins.
You're the only love I've ever known.
The streets of heaven are lined with gold.
God knows it could snap apart right now, just like putting scissors to a string.
Life don't mean a thing.
Soon the horse will take us to Durango.
Stone you, they'll be back again.
I'm not sleepy and there is no place I'm going to.
Your brand-new leopard-skin pill-box hat.
I can't find nobody so you'll have to do.
'Stead of acting like we never have met.
I took a chance, got caught in the trance of a downhill dance.
A man named Martin Luther King...
Someone I really could care for.
All for a moment's glory and it's a dirty, rotten shame.
Walk like a duck, and smell like a skunk.
They wait for this bully like a dog waits to feed.
He's always on trial for just being born.
It's just escaping on the run, and but for the sky there are no fences facing.
Or pick it up after he throws it.
Alright, I'll take a chance, I will fall in love with you.
She did whatever she had to do, she had that certain flash every time she smiled.
"We got him cornered in the churchyard!" I heard somebody shout.
For she once was a true love of mine.
I got troubles, I think maybe you got troubles, I think maybe we'd better leave each other alone.
And everything that she ever planned just a-had to be postponed.
My baby told me I would have to go.
I cannot move, my fingers, they're all even in a knot.
He immediately looked at me and stuck a gun into my guts.
When I picked it up and said hello, this foot came through the line.
We all know for sure that it's real.
Said I ain't gonna work for Maggie's brother no more.
I think what I need might be a full-length leather coat.
Welfare Department wouldn't give him no clothes.
But, when Quinn the Eskimo gets here, everybody's gonna doze.
And there are no trials inside the gates of Eden.
Take it on in in a bowl-cup.
Good as I been to you.
You always got to be prepared, but you never know for what.
To buy his niece a wedding gown, uh-huh.
You came down the line, gave me a new mind, you changed my life.
I'm looking for a woman needs a worried man.
When the game finally ended up, the whole darn boat was his.
This kind of love, I'm so sick of it.
I'll see you on God's golden shore.
Give you an inch and you'll take a mile.
Got their noses to the grindstones.
Heading for the gates of Eden.
And I'm one too many mornings and a thousand miles behind.
To kill with no pain.
Ms. Mary-Jane got a house in Baltimore.
Said, "Ms. Mousey, will you marry me?" Uh-huh.
About a man riding 'cross the desert and it starred Gregory Peck.
There was no greater love than what I had for you.
But you were tangled up in blue.
Ate up all of the wedding cake, uh-huh.
Ain't going down to Oxford Town.
I got nothing to go back to now.
Everything is gonna be fine.
The air is so cold outside and the snow's so deep.
But it's not that way, I wasn't born to lose you.
"I've got to talk to someone quick!" But the Greek said, "Go away!", and he kicked the chair to the floor.
I always liked San Francisco, I was there for a party once.
Mutiny from stern to bow.
Somebody's got to find your trail, I guess it's gonna be up to me.
And now you'd throw us all aside and put us on our way.
She was gazing to the future, riding on the jack of hearts.
Wouldn't know the difference between a real blonde and a fake.
Rifle on her shoulder, six-shooter in her hand.
Went into the land of the midnight sun.
Bring that bottle over here.
Like every sparrow falling, like every grain of sand.
Oh, yes, they did.
But we're all gonna make it at that million dollar bash.
And to see an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.
That something for nothing is everybody's plan.
You can say I was on anything but a roll.
No more pint of salt for me, many thousand gone.
Standing at the side road, listening to the billboard knock.
And it drifted to the bottom of the sea.
"There's too much confusion, I can't get no relief.
To some righteous king who wrote psalms beside moonlight stream.
You're the one I adore, come over here and give me more, Winterlude, this dude thinks you're fine.
And, while everybody knelt to pray, the drifter did escape.
Where the geese into the countryside have flown.
I'm not that eager to make a mistake.
And you're the best thing that he's ever seen.
They'll stone you when you're set down in your grave.
While I'm in the hall.
You see, you forgot to leave me with the key.
Sorry, that's a-nothing you would need to know.
You got it, baby.
My burden is heavy, my dreams are beyond control.
Sweet goddess, your perfect stranger's coming on in at last.
From Santa Fe, dear, dear, dear, dear, dear Santa Fe.
But, when Quinn the Eskimo gets here, everybody'll jump for joy.
Everybody that was hanging out.
Leaving no one to pick up the trail.
I ain't your dog that's gone astray.
Blowing like it's gon' kill me dead.
I can't even remember El Paso, a-honey.
And the sun is a-going down upon the sacred cow.
With all of his traveling, but I'm still on that road.
But happiness to me is you and I love you more than blood.
The name she bore was Flora, the Lily of the West.
Oh, use your hands and legs, it won't ruin you.
I don't wanna believe them, all I want is your word.
I and I, in creation where one's nature neither honor, nor forgive.
Strap yourself to the tree with roots, you ain't going nowhere.
But the poor white man's used in the hands of them all like a tool.
Love my Blackjack Davey.
But, baby, please stop crying 'cause it's tearing up my mind.
And split up on a dark, sad night, both agreeing it was best.
My friends, they couldn't have been kinder.
You know that I know, honey, but, honey, please don't.
Setting my dial on the radio, I wish my mother was still alive.
And you turn and run farther when the fast bullets a-fly.
But don't think twice, it's alright.
It'll scramble up your head, drag your brain about.
Be only trouble for you if-a you let her in.
There is nothing to prove, everything still is the same.
Lord, I'm walking down the line - my feet'll be flying - to tell about my troubled mind.
Seems like a long time ago, long before the stars were torn down.
My father was a traveling salesman, I never met him.
But I made up my mind that I had to get on.
I've been burned before and I know the score, so you won't hear me complain.
He made it to Kansas City, Twelfth Street and Vine.
That I liked, that was always too good for this world.
Some things in life, it just gets too late to learn.
Do what they do just to be nothing more than something they invest in.
I always thought that he was well.
I've spent all my money on whiskey and beer.
Well, the long winter's wait from the window I watched.
You're taking all my money and give it to another man.
And it's hard times, from the country, living down in New York town.
You find out you can always lose a little more.
Wanna get married? Do it now! Tomorrow all activity will cease.
God knows we can get all the way from here to there if we've gotta walk a million miles by candlelight.
I don't know any more than this.
To sit down on this bank of sand and watch the river flow.
I'm a-going where the climate suits my clothes.
And, when he sees his reflection, he's fulfilled.
Yeah, ninety miles an hour down a dead-end street.
Oh, her darling love she found.
Things should start to get interesting right about now.
Now and forever let it be me.
And at home nobody cared what Ira done and the wind did the Indians' dance.
You taught me how to love and now you say that we are through.
Cold, black water don't make no tears.
He never did know what it was all about.
Your servants are half-dead, you're down to the bone.
Of the two sisters, I loved the young.
Sara, Sara, radiant jewel, mystical wife.
Trust yourself to do the things that only you know best.
The hour that the ship comes in.
But to search for love, that ain't no more than vanity.
Ten by ten they drank it again.
Later on that evening I watched it on TV.
On the jugglers and the clowns when they all did tricks for you.
The world could come to an end tonight, but that's alright.
Fighting every inch of the way.
It's almost like-almost like I don't exist.
I once loved a woman - a child, I am told.
Or put up against the wall.
I can hear my ancestors calling from the land far beyond.
You cast your spell and I went under.
And I feel like I just a-want to travel on.
I can see what everybody in the world is up against.
Rain would gather, too.
When you bite off more than you can chew, you got to pay the penalty.
And I-I never took much, I never asked for your crutch, now don't ask for mine.
Have fallen from her curls.
Epitome, rigidity.
When it's time to go, you got an open door.
I know that the men that shot him down will get what they deserve.
Unthought of, though, somehow.
Things will be alright by and by.
I'm T-boned and punctured, I've been known to be calm.
I would have gone on after you, but I didn't feel like letting my head get blown off.
You know, it's funny how things never turn out the way you had 'em planned.
But he drinks and drinks can be fixed.
Lincoln and Jefferson and that Roosevelt guy.
That I a-just don't fit? Yes, I believe it's time for us to quit.
And fades away like some morning dew.
Thank you. I'll be here for four more nights, then we'll see you again.
She passed the door where the Greek had locked where a handwritten sign read a-"Do Not Disturb".
I see my light come shining from the west out to the east.
The Phantom of the Opera in a perfect image of a priest.
Quite clear. no doubt, somehow.
Without this love that we call ours.
Well, if you wanna see the sunrise, honey, I know where.
And maybe say hello with just a glance.
And passion rules the arrow that flies.
You caused me to leave old Kingsport Town with a high sheriff on my trail.
Delia's in the graveyard, she might never, never get up.
But this time I'm not gonna tell you why that is.
But wouldn't tell me what it was that I got.
Your old road is rapidly aging.
Anita Ekberg, Sophia Loren.
If she wake up now, you know, she'll just a-want me to talk.
High society, notoriety.
That I never really meant to do you any harm.
Baby, two feet from the well.
You'd be honest with me if you only knew.
I know they're not what they seem.
Someone always gets hurt, a fire always starts.
She had a face that outshined the sun in the skies.
Sometimes it gets so hard to see.
Swallowed the mouse and ate up the rat, uh-huh.
For the love of a lousy buck I watched them die.
I spied an old hobo, in the doorway he lay.
When they rode with Villa into Torreon.
Something else just a-hit the ground.
Yes, for telling all those lies.
Startles your ears to hear somebody thinks that they really have found you.
Chain you down or be your clown.
What was it you wanted? Tell me again, so I'll know.
No midnight ramblers like they did before.
Right in the middle of an air-raid drill.
I guess I was too off the handle, not sentimental enough.
I's looking around just to see myself.
And now you're gonna have to get used to it.
All my connections too.
But I'll be with you when the deal goes down.
In the record-breaking heat where we were born in time.
Can get me a woman quick as you can get a man.
They're all gonna be there at that million dollar bash.
On footprints in the snow and silence down below.
Flows outta their bodies and is buried in the mud.
My grandmother could sew new dresses out of old cloth, I don't know if they had any dreams or hopes.
The petals pink and white the wind has blown.
Crystal wanted to talk to him, I had to look the other way.
So he packed his glove and took his arm and one day he just ran away.
Just to hear a voice of some kind.
So I'll bid farewell in the night and be gone.
He let go a laugh, he let go a laugh, shook back his clothes all around.
I know plenty of people put me up for a day or two.
In the days of old and the days of gold, those were days of '49.
Kind ladies and kind gentlemen, soon I will be gone.
Hope that it don't sleet.
Please let me ride you home.
As I am one too many mornings and a thousand miles behind.
As the rain beats down and the cranes fly away from Black Diamond Bay.
She brought the water jug, uh-huh.
She's married this bold captain, who called her his dear.
The Tenth Avenue bus going west.
This kind of love, I-I'm lovesick.
You tried and tried, you made me slide, you left me reeling with this feeling.
Guess I owe You some kind of apology.
In your brand-new leopard-skin pill-box hat.
Startles your sleeping ears to hear someone thinks they really found you.
He stole my baby and he wanted to steal me.
The silver saxophones say I should refuse you.
You know, I feel pretty good, but that ain't saying much.
It must have been Don Pasquale making a 2 AM booty call.
'Steada burning every bridge I crossed.
Fixing everybody's troubles - everybody's 'cept mine.
The light I never knowed.
Well, the room is so stuffy, I can hardly breathe.
We chopped through the night and we chopped through the dawn.
He unleashed His power at an unknown hour that no one knew.
Well, there's fistfights in the kitchen, they're enough to make me cry.
I never saw the man again.
You're invisible, you've got no secrets to conceal.
My woman said she'd meet me there and of course I knew she would.
Man there said, "Come back some other day.
But jumping Qs and making haste, you know, it ain't my cup of meat.
The one was Texas medicine. The other was just railroad gin.
All he believes are his eyes and his eyes, they just tell him lies.
Just like you told me, it's just like you said it would be.
He feeds off of everyone that a-he can touch.
I'm just going, I'm going, I'm gone.
The lieutenant, he has gone, long gone.
And I need you, ah, yeah.
Valentines can't buy her.
I knew that very instant she meant to do me harm.
Find out something only dead men know.
Darling, I'm a-counting on you.
But, when Quinn the Eskimo gets here, the pigeons gonna run to him.
Turned my skies to blue from gray.
My belt buckle's from the Amazon.
Trying to get to heaven before they close the door.
And into every masterpiece of literature for dignity.
But the post office's been stolen and the mailbox is locked.
I'm still punching cattle in the pay of Diamond Joe.
Black crows in the meadow, across a broad highway.
And ye shall be a-changed.
Throw my ticket out the window.
But every day of the year like playing Russian roulette.
Even a pawn must hold a grudge.
Well, my telephone rang, it would not stop.
I know the men that shot him down will get what they deserve.
Few things you find are worthwhile.
And disregards the rest.
She should still be there sleeping when I get back.
I'd do it myself, it's not so unreal.
Half-wracked prejudice leaped forth.
And I thought of a goddess of beauty, the blooming, bright star of Bright Isle.
For that's the way I remember her best.
I make a few lines and I show it for her to see.
I've got something to tell you, I know you're gonna change your mind.
And then go on home and have my fun.
So I turned on my Conelrad.
My sweetheart was a gambler, Lord, down in New Orleans.
Sara, Sara, don't ever leave me, don't ever go.
Wherever you're a-gambling now nobody knows.
Gonna put my good foot forward, stop being influenced by fools.
And the Santa Fe.
And wait for succeeding kings.
With all of them ladies, you know, he's the--lonely still.
She saw us come rolling up in a trail of dust.
Now, mark what followed and what did betide for it being on Christmas morning.
For the saving grace that's over me.
Got three little children and a weeping, loving wife.
Thank y'all.
He ate Burger Kings, he was well fed.
Then the mailman comes in - even he's gotta take a side.
Capture your soul and hold it for ransom.
Most of the time I can keep both feet on the ground.
Singing for me, well, singing for me.
Take heed of the stormy weather.
Well, so don't think twice, it's alright.
Concerning myself and the first few friends I had.
Besides, if she wakes up now, she'll just want me to talk.
Advances on your spirit and your soul.
Some people, they ain't human, they got no heart or soul.
But there was a pressure on me too, you know.
Yes, I'd pour a drink for you, my dear Mary Ann.
As if a wedding vow.
And when I looked, my moon had turned to gold.
'Specially when it's nine below zero and three o'clock in the afternoon.
That don't apply no more - all from parts of Paris.
Come to me now, you know, we're so alone and life is brief.
Even the butler, he's got something to prove.
I can hear that whistle blowing.
There was me and Danny Lopez, cold eyes, black nights, and then there was Ruth.
All except when 'neath the trees of Eden.
I've still got the scars that the sun did not heal.
There's a man who swears he's not to blame.
And may you always a-know the truth and see the light surrounding you.
And ask me to open up the gate for you.
And there are no sins inside the gates of Eden.
I'm in trouble with the tombstone blues.
God knows you ain't gonna be taking nothing with you when you go.
For his tongue, it could not speak, but only flatter.
Don't stand in the doorway, don't block up the hall.
Yeah! going to have some fun.
Then they bury him with stars, sell his body like they do used cars.
You, you, you, you, you got a hold of my heart.
When I took up his offer, I must've been mad.
Thank you, that was called "Maggie's Farm".
Well, I'll sing this verse, ain't gonna sing no more.
And you--you took me in, you loved me then, you never wasted time.
Someone else is speaking with my mouth, but I'm listening only to my heart.
I know a place where there's still something going on.
Just you and me.
I was mighty, mighty tired. I had come a long, long way.
Way out in the wilderness a cold coyote calls.
Her Jamaican rum and, when she did come, I asked her for some.
Oh, I awoke in anger, so alone and terrified.
Splitting up on a dark, sad night, both agreeing it was best.
A .44 smokeless under my head.
Nobody feels any pain tonight as I stand inside the rain.
Tell me where it a-hurts you, honey, and I'll tell you who to call.
I'm a poet, I know it.
With the sun beating down over the chimney-tops and the one I love so close at hand.
You're an idiot, babe, it's a wonder that you still can even breathe.
No, nothing ever would, except maybe the jack of hearts.
I went to tell everybody, but I could not get across.
He was going down slow, just barely staying alive.
For an instant hand touched hand.
You're gonna need - you're gonna need my help someday, oh, wait and see.
I keep asking myself how long it can go on like this.
In the border-towns of despair.
When a can of black paint did fell on my head.
But it seem like you're never right, you got no loyal mind.
One of us has got to hit the road, I guess it must be up to me.
If I'm a fool, you can have the night - you can have the morning, too.
You talk to her, she's your lover now.
I'm calling you to-I'm calling you to please come home.
Till suddenly we found that the brakes were gone.
But the Pennsylvania line's in an awful mess and the Denver road is about to melt.
You had no faith to lose and you know it.
Come on, sit by the logs in the fire.
With my suitcase in my hand.
But I ain't got Corrina.
Trees that've stood for a thousand years suddenly will fall.
To get some bail for Arab and all the boys back in the tank.
It may be some place, baby, you say where.
The lonesome days, they have gone by.
And the answer is blowing in the wind.
Hard times, hard times, come again no more.
Billy, you're so doggone far away from home.
There's this book coming out and they asked me to write, uh, something about Woody, uh, sort of like, "What does Woody Guthrie mean to you in 25 words?" And, uh, I couldn't do it, I wrote out five pages. And, uh, I have it here-it's, uh-have it here by accident, actually. Ha, but, but, uh, I'd-I'd like to say this out loud, so, uh, if you could sorta roll along with this thing here, this is called "Last Thoughts on Woody Guthrie".
That he not busy being born is busy dying.
Well, my love for her has taken such a long time to die.
While the law looks the other way.
And another man named Bello, moving mysteriously.
The strongest wall will crumble and fall to a mighty god.
When a trusty shillelagh came over their head and bid them take that as fair warning.
On anyone that lives in a vault.
I kissed goodbye the howling beast on the borderline which separated you from me.
I got a bird that sings.
Yes, I guess I loved him too, I can still see him in my mind climbing that hill.
In the pale moonlight.
All you got to do is wait and I'll tell you when.
So you might not know exactly how I feel.
You to hand over your check to tax-deductible charity organizations.
Charmed the heart of a lady.
You been rolling your eyes, you been teasing me.
Baby, baby...
It's a shame the way she make me scrub the floor.
Now I feel like a stranger in a world I'm living in.
And you did it with strength that belonged to the gods.
My baby stole my heart from me.
"Yes, I guess so," said ma, then she asked me if the clothes were still wet.
When I picked up his offer, Lord, musta been mad.
That I just can't fit? Yes, I believe it's time for us to quit.
Honey, because the world's gone wrong.
I cursed her one time, then I rode on ahead.
Two men died 'neath the Mississippi moon.
Now her vengeance has been satisfied and her possessions have been sold.
And your fall-by-the-sword love affair with Errol Flynn.
I see the shadow of a man, baby, making you blue.
It's just a shadow you're seeing that he's chasing.
Kisses she gave him three.
I know it looks like I'm moving, but I'm standing still.
I and I, in creation where one's a-nature neither honors, nor forgives.
Like pendulums swinging on chains.
Well, the whiskey's in the jar and the money's in the bank.
When there was blood on the moon, in the cotton belt.
I didn't feel so cold then.
But tonight no moonlight will shine on me.
Hoof-beats pounding in my head at breakneck speed and making me see stars.
Honey, I can't tell right from wrong.
With no doors or windows, so no thieves can break in.
I just go pump on it some.
He said, "Who's not for me is against me", just so you know where He's coming from.
Won't write it up and make you sign a false confession.
I was thinking 'bout Isis, how she thought I was so reckless.
Though you just thought that it was nothing more than a place for you to stand.
If you don't mind sleeping with your head face-down in a plate.
Somebody's got to tell the tale, I guess it must be up to me.
And rivers that ran through every day.
You went years without me, might as well keep going now.
But the song, it was long and there was more to be sung.
The newspapers, they all went along for the ride.
And you must realize the danger.
Her profession is her religion, her sin is her lifelessness.
Or remember the sounds of my own name.
And that smile's so hard to resist.
Somebody better investigate soon.
I once loved a girl. Her skin, it was bronze.
She's the one you been wondering about, but there's a-really nothing much to tell.
She was waiting, putting flowers on the shelf.
Who looked so fine at first, but left looking just like a ghost.
And I love you more than ever with that love that doesn't cease.
I know I'm 'round you, but I don't know where.
Picking up the cherries falling off the plate.
I'm gon' to teach peace to the conquered, I'm gonna tame the proud.
There's been a crash on the levee and, mama, you been refused.
Well, you give me the blues, I wanna lay down and die.
On the jugglers and the clowns when they all came down to do tricks for you.
Ever since I seen you there.
Now, don't make me play this waiting-game.
And it's all over now, Baby Blue.
Now I just can't rest without you, love, I need your company.
He's only a pawn in their game.
Kneeling 'neath your ceiling - yes, I guess I'll be here for a while.
Just a minute 'fore you touch the door.
No sound ever comes from the gates of Eden.
Until I threw it all away.
And cleaned out the bank safe - it's said they got off with quite a haul.
Well, I been praying for salvation, laying 'round in a one-room country-shack.
In your busted down Ford and your platform heels.
Swamp's gonna rise and no boat's gonna row.
Just when she left me, she gon' to stay.
Even though Rita moved away and got a job at a motel.
If I don't get the gal I'm loving, won't go down Highway 51 no more.
I know it was all a big joke, whatever it was all about.
Alright, thank you.
Joey and his brothers suffered terrible defeats.
While evening slips away.
How can you say you love someone else? You know it's me all the time.
But you must realize first I'm not another man you can hire.
Now and then there's a fool--a fool such as I.
That which is not permanent don't last.
I decided to have him arrested and I went looking for a cop.
Tell 'em all Montgomery says hello.
Down along the cove I spied my true love coming my way.
And the silent night will shatter from the sounds inside my mind.
I never know what the poor girl's gonna do to me next.
Like a-she a-broke a-this heart of mine.
But I ain't neither one.
Threw it in the tide for to rock and to roll and bade it a tedious returning.
That, if God's on our side, He'll stop the next war.
You in a marketplace in Savanna-la-Mar.
She did not see her soldier son in sight.
And nailing her in the ruins of her pettiness.
Love to spend the day with Peggy Night.
5, 4, 3, 2, 1, Cassius Clay, you'd better run.
Yes, I cried for you, now it's your turn, you can cry a while.
On the way out of Egypt through Ethiopia to the judgment-hall of the Christ.
I'm going back to New York City, I do believe I've had enough.
Lord, Lord, I'm bound to die trying.
When my working day's through.
Well, the-the judge, he holds a grudge, he's gonna call on you.
It can cause some men to sleep on nails, it can cause others to eat fire.
For there's a slow--said there's a slow, slow train coming.
I can see the unknown rider, I can see the pale white horse.
Like a thief in the night He'll replace wrong with right when He returns.
Oh, Angelina.
She knows I'm not afraid to look at her.
Because he can't be bribed or bought by the things that you adore.
No one else could play that tune, you knew it was up to me.
Well, that woman that I got, man, she does just what she feels.
And a crown in the bargain for to kick up the dust and drink the king's health in the morning.
"Oh, stop that cursed jury!" cried the attendant and the nurse.
Most of the time I wouldn't change it if I could.
My baby took my heart from me.
And we gazed upon the chimes of freedom flashing.
Say you got some other--other kind of lover and, yes, I believe you do.
Alright, that's straight from Chicago.
When I go to my grave, my head will be high.
True love, true love, true love tends to forget.
As the sun went down and the music did play on Black Diamond Bay.
And the morning will be breaking.
Ring them from the fortress for the lilies that bloom.
Well, I lean into your hallway, lean against your velvet door.
And landed fully blast in his garden flowers.
But your heart is like an ocean, mysterious and dark.
And I made it on over to that million dollar bash.
Keeping away from the women, I'm giving 'em a-lots of room.
Then they bury him in stars, sell his body like they do used cars.
My toes, too numb to step, wait only for my boot-heels to be wandering.
Billy, and you're going all alone.
With my hat in my hand and my boots on my feet.
These memories I got, they can strangle a man.
Of two mules, trains, and rain.
The louder they come, the bigger they crack.
As the step was his pillow, the street was his bed.
Even joined a union, paid my dues.
And ordered him to do the Dog.
Sunken cheeks and his blood is mixed.
Just the dust of a plague that has left this whole town afraid.
"Fried mosquito in a black-eyed pea." Uh-huh.
I would only let you down.
Went into a laundry to wash my clothes down.
She showed 'em to the people from next door.
You know, there's some things that you put out, it's gonna come back on you.
"Has your luck run out?" she laughed at him, "Well, I guess you musta known it would someday.
I gave you all of what I could provide.
He was [incomprehensible], there was nothing I could do to stop it.
Washing them dishes, feeding them swine.
They stashed them away in a basement, called 'em "amateurs".
Somewhere so high above this wall.
And, even if the flesh falls off of my face, I know someone will be there to care.
Knock--knock--knocking on heaven's door.
That's where I'll be when I get called home.
Wanna thank You, Lord.
My old man, he's like some feudal lord, got more lives than a cat.
To the sin of love's false security.
You'll shine with diamonds in your wedding gown.
Will be fully aware of how precious she is.
Running from up Wisconsin way down to no man's land.
It's not dark yet, but it's getting there.
There are frail forms fainting at the door.
Well, I'm trying to get closer, but I'm still a million miles from you.
Yes, I see you got your brand-new leopard-skin pill-box hat.
And we slept near the Alamo - your skin was so tender and soft.
As the sun burns on and the smoke drifts away from Black Diamond Bay.
But there's a slow - yeah, there's a slow - there's a slow train coming.
Oh, the truth to you I'll tell.
Stone you and they'll be back again.
Well, I'm just thumping.
Ring them bells so the world will know that-a God is one.
Know every song of love that-a ever has been sung.
If I had a conscience, well, I just might blow my top.
Well, it's sundown on the union and what's made in the USA.
Remind him of what he used to be when he comes walking through.
Things will be OK, you wait and see.
Her fond face pale with woe.
You were my first love and you will be my last.
Captain Arab, he started writing up some deeds.
The water is wide and I can’t cross over.
68, but says he's 24.
Into the narrow lanes where I can't stumble or stay put.
Tomorrow keeps turning around.
Then I'd lie in my bed once again.
Is simply that one should never be where one does not belong.
Well, I'm gonna quit this baby-talk now - I guess I should have known.
Going, going, gone.
Ring them bells with an iron hand so the people will know.
For not breaking down no bedroom door to get at you.
It's that million dollar bash.
They don't make nothing here no more.
When you get a crazy notion of jumping all over me.
And my best friend, my doctor, won't even say what it is I've got.
Sons becoming husbands to their mothers, old men turning young daughters into whores.
He just showed the wise men of his day to be nothing more than fools.
Putting her in a wheel-barrow and wheeling her down the street.
Farewell, Angelina, the sky's flooding over and I must go where it is dry.
Then I rode back to find Isis just to tell her I love her.
Sara, Sara, beautiful lady so dear to my heart.
Yes, you do, you know you do...
Yes, tell me.
They're killing nuns and soldiers, there's fighting on the border.
I gotta find someone among the women and men whose destiny is unclear.
And then I kiss your lips as I lift your veil.
I'd give it all gladly if our lives could be like that.
You can have what's left of me where we were born in time.
To find that the judge had never spoken.
Got a shock from my feet that hit my brain.
Bluebells blazing where the Aberdeen waters flow.
Where she was born on midsummer's eve near the tower.
Either one, I don't care." High water everywhere.
They sent him to a napalm health spa to shape up.
Who carried on his shoulder a Siamese cat.
The crashing waves like cymbals clashed against the rocks and sands.
Looking for the places only they would know.
Passed this way an hour ago with his friend, a jealous monk.
No one really knew for sure wherever they were at.
The memory of you keeps calling after me like a rolling train.
Mama, you are on my mind.
"Depart from me this moment," I told her with my voice.
We're both one too many mornings and a thousand miles behind.
I don't know.
Know that sometimes Satan come as a man of peace.
For as long as love will last.
Using ideas as my maps.
But to live outside the law you must be honest.
Watch the parking meters.
All under strong delusion, all of their beds're unmade.
Spilling my buttermilk, sweeping it up with a broom.
All the laughter is just making me sad, the stars have turned cherry-red.
Lord, your highway's getting filled.
That old oak tree, the one we used to climb.
She knows that I'm not afraid to look at her.
It's unbelievable it go down this way.
Ooh, I can't stand it, I can't stand it, it's making me feel so sad.
I haven't tasted peace and quiet for so long it seems like living hell.
Your scarf, it kept your mouth well-hid.
And, every time you get this close, it makes me want to scream.
Ah, but you were right, it was perfect as I got in behind the wheel.
To Rockefeller Plaza and the Empire State.
And each one I've never seen again.
Just remind me to show you the scars.
That linger in the fireball heat.
And now you find out you're gonna have to get used to it.
His bedroom window, it's a-made outta bricks.
Jesus gonna make up my dying bed.
But you're gonna serve somebody.
At the sorority sisters' home.
And she don't wanna remind me, she knows this car would go out of control.
Shoot a few holes, blow their minds.
Believe in His power - that's about all you got to do.
But the clear road's of yonder with the cinders on the side.
I was riding on the Mayflower when I thought I spied some land.
But it's alright, ma, if I can't please him.
'Cause today I'll be staying here with you.
Your loyalty is not to me but to the stars above.
If you won't come out your window.
Wondering who turned the lights on us.
You can make it too.
You can have the truth, but you got to choose it.
Only a fool here would think he's got anything to prove.
A big, yellow bulldozer took away the house and land.
The stores one by one, they're folding.
And they lived in an alley under the red sky.
Trust yourself to do what's right and not be second-guessed.
Just for a second there I thought I saw something move.
I wish I knew what it was keeps me loving you so.
I could stay with you forever and never realize the time.
All the faces we used to know, they're an illusion to me now.
She stepped to the light as my silver strings spun.
But these visions of Johanna, they make it all seem so cruel.
Five believers, five believers all dressed like men.
I got new eyes, everything looks far away.
Someone had to reach for the rising star, I guess it was up to me.
Yes, I've been up all night, baby, leaning on the windowsill.
Then said, "Yeah, I think it can be easily done.
Mi amor, mi corazon.
But even Mona Lisa musta had the highway blues, you can tell by the way she smiles.
Karl Marx has got you by the throat and Henry Kissinger's got you tied up into knots.
I know for a fact he hates Commies 'cause he picketed the movie Exodus.
Down along my restless palms.
You're drifting too far from shore.
And I am bound away for the sea, Mary Ann.
From silver and gold, from what man cannot hold, you changed my life.
Sweet lady.
Don't trust me to show you beauty when beauty may only turn to rust.
It's hard times, from the country, living down in New York town.
From inside the grounds of the walls of Red Wing.
That I remember in my true love's eyes.
Come out and round up everyone that knows more than they do.
That the one road we traveled would ever shatter or split.
I can see that your head has been twisted and fed with worthless foam from the mouth.
Oh, you got to trust yourself.
No, I ain't gonna work for Maggie's brother no more.
Take what you have gathered from coincidence.
Full of emptiness and wrath and the fire that burns in it.
She threw me outside, I stood in the dirt where everyone walked.
And I dreamed I was amongst the ones that put him out to death.
And the locusts sang and they were singing for me.
And your long-time curse hurts, but what's worse is this pain in here.
Don't know how much more of this I can take.
They farmed the Phoenix Valley in Arizona-land.
Through ice and snow, sleet and rain.
She's in some foreign land.
I'm trying to get closer, but I'm still a million miles from you.
Tumbled all down into pieces.
I said, "No, no, no! I'm a doctor and it's true.
It's so sweet of you to be so nice to me.
Everybody says he's the brains behind ma.
Dollar a day's worth.
Her profession's her religion, her sin is her lifelessness.
Saying, "We'll tie her hands and feet, my boys, overboard, we'll throw her.
The whole world is my throne.
I got nothing but affection for all those who've sailed with me.
Well, she came out the very next day to see where they had flown.
For Halloween buy her a trumpet and for Christmas buy her a drum.
But he was never known to hurt an honest man.
That's a lot of territory indeed.
Check to see that nobody is escaping to Desolation Row.
I always have respected her for doing what she did and getting free.
He'll put both his arms around you, you can feel the tender touch of the beast.
To be alone with you.
I helped you when you had no food to eat.
Valentino-type tangos while the heroes clean hands.
You have no idea what you do to me.
But, if you got to go, go now or else you got to stay all night.
Stand in one place till your feet begin to hurt.
Yeah, but, you know, it's not the one that I had in mind.
Tell her her baby's on the line.
Well, you probably don't know me at all, but I've seen your laughter and I've seen your tears.
She's a hypnotist collector, you are a walking antique.
Hollow man looking in a cotton-field for dignity.
But my heart is telling me I love you still.
You say you disturb me and you don't deserve me, but you know sometimes you lie.
I forgot more than you'll ever know about her.
His voice, it trembles as he calls out for another plate of food.
Turned on my record player.
We both heard voices for a while, now the rest is a-history.
One day you'll open up your eyes and you'll see where we are.
She had bullets in her eyes and they fire.
Yes, and I'll go last.
People are expecting a false peace to come.
You just to give away your check to tax-deductible charity organizations.
And get something quick to eat.
The sun was coming up and I was running down the road.
And I guess he'd been there for the whole night or more.
And I'll play for Magdalena as we ride.
Come sit by me, don't say a word.
Broken voices on broken phones.
For the times, they-they are a-changing.
Your old road is rapidly fading.
And I've never been too impressed.
I had fourteen-karat gold in my mouth and silk upon my back.
Come, baby, hold me, come, baby, help me, my arms are open wide.
I used to be among the crowd you're in with.
In the broken mirror of innocence on each forgotten face.
Pull him down in a county hook, my man.
To reach of your rattling drums.
Just what he was talking about.
You're on the bottom.
And it seems like I've gotta travel on.
I'd'a paid the traitor and killed him much later, but that's just the way that I am.
You got to do unto others like you'd have them--like you'd have them do unto you.
Honey, baby.
This is called "It's Alright, Ma (I'm Only Bleeding)".
I just walk and watch you talk with your memory on my mind.
I found myself a vacant seat and I put down my hat.
To each his own, it's all unknown if dogs run free.
Till she sees finally that she's like all the rest with her fog, her amphetamine, and her pearls.
Yes, it sure has been a long, hard climb.
My mother was a tailor - she sewed these new blue jeans.
I got a woman in Jackson - I ain't gonna say her name.
Sometimes somebody wants you to give something up and, tears or not, it's too much to ask.
Is gonna be against the law.
And then our shadows meet and then we drink the wine.
And, when bringing her name up, he speaks of her farewell kiss to me.
The answer is blowing in the wind.
Whoever it is, I wish they'd cut it out, but when they will I can only guess.
He's going to the carnival tonight on Desolation Row.
Watch them jugs a-filling in the pale moonlight.
You just happened to be there, that's all.
I love you more than ever and it burns me to the soul.
The game is the same, it's just up on another level.
And they're waiting for spring to come, smoking down the track.
I had no idea what a woman in love would do.
Bury the rag deep in your face for now's the time for your tears.
And like Goliath they'll be conquered.
He could be standing next to you, the person that you notice least.
Only for a mile and a half, seemed like it took a couple of months.
Yeah, but she breaks a-just like a little girl.
That's the day you die.
"Turn him loose, let him go, let him say he outdrew me fair and square.
But it will be back here tomorrow the same old time again.
Unless they're from another world.
Now they say it's the land of money.
Love to spend the night with Peggy Day.
We were the wrong side.
"Well, saddle for me my coal-black stud, he's speedier than the gray.
While all the women came and went, barefoot servants too.
He's running for office on the ballot note.
All except inside the gates of Eden.
Oh, convey herself away.
Each one wishing for what the other has got.
So I best be on my way in the early morning rain.
Taking him to the cemetery, but they failed to bring him back.
Blowing like she ain't gon' blow no more.
Delia was a gambling girl, she laid her money down.
Never could learn to look at your face and call it mine.
The captain is down, but still believing that his love will be repaid.
Then "lonesome" would mean nothing to you at all.
I got a woman who works herself blind.
In this concrete world full of souls.
If I'm still among the living, I'll be Dixie-bound.
She studies me closely as I sit down.
And then unto eternity.
I don't have any regrets - they can talk about me plenty when I'm gone.
To all give a check to tax-deductible charity organizations.
You'd better get that in your head.
I'm twenty miles outta town, Cold Irons bound.
Well, Judas, he just winked and said, "Alright, I'll leave you here.
Forty-one years to wear the ball and the stripes.
But I can't get close to her at all.
So, I hocked my sailor suit and I got a coin to flip.
Dear Landlord, please don't dismiss my case.
Just like you've always smiled before.
But the bitter taste still lingers on, it all came down so hard.
You know-a sometimes Satan come as a man of peace.
No use to ask me, baby, 'cause I'll never be back.
'Neath her Panamanian moon.
I'm in the kitchen with the tombstone blues.
I dreamed I saw Saint Augustine, alive with fiery breath.
Everybody telling me she's gone to my head.
All the things that I'm saying and many times more.
It's only people's games that you got to dodge.
He's the neighborhood bully.
Who ever crawled across cut glass to make a deal.
Yes, I waited for you when you hated me.
For tonight no moonlight will shine on me.
They got him on conspiracy - they were never sure who with.
I'm locked in tight, I'm outta range.
Ain't no reason to go anywhere.
To get you facts if someone attacks your imagination.
But I ain't the judge, you don't have to be nice to me.
So I'm going to unpack all my things and sit before it gets too late.
Through the darkness on the pathways of life.
Writing "Sad-Eyed Lady of the Lowlands" for you.
Blowing like my woman's on board.
When someone disappears, you never even know.
But I'd rather have joined that pirate ship than gone to Botany Bay.
The old Rounder in the iron mask, he slipped me the master key.
Whatever you wanted slipped out of my mind.
My sister, she ran off and got married, never was heard of anymore.
Slowly into autumn.
He's got his mother's eyes.
Suck that pig and bring it on home.
And you won't be disappointed when vain people let you down.
In every leaf that trembles, in every grain of sand.
New morning.
So I waited all night till the break of day, hoping one of us could get free.
Gon' make you see just how loyal and true a man can be.
There she goes, my friend, she's a-rolling down at last.
If this is love, then give me more and more and more and more and more.
I came here to fulfill our last promise and hoped to give you a surprise.
May you always do for others and let others do for you.
The bombs were meant for him, he was supposed to feel bad.
By that soft and shining sea.
Down by the banks of Loch Eiron where beauty and pleasure were known.
You were just a painted face on a trip down Suicide Road.
Who always has respected her for doing what she did.
And, as long as it does, I'll just sit here and watch the river flow.
Till your error you clearly learn.
In her fog with her amphetamine and her pearls.
Blowing like she's at my chamber door.
Lenny Bruce was bad, he was the brother that you never had.
I'm gon' buy me a barrel of whiskey, I'll die before I turn senile.
Don't get up, gentlemen, I'm only passing through.
Sara, Sara, loving you is one thing I'll never regret.
God knows...
Only a matter of time till night comes stepping in.
Seven shots ring out like the ocean's pounding roar.
Said he, "Ms. Mouse, are you within?" Uh-huh.
A messenger sent me in a tropical storm.
But there's only one authority - that's the authority on high.
But, like Louise always says, "You can't look at much, can you, man?" as she herself prepares for him.
Said she could get killed if she told me what she knew 'bout dignity.
You can show me a new place to start.
You could make me cry if you don't know.
I've been living the blues every night without you.
And she'll only know he's dead.
But everybody wants you to be just like them.
And you say "Impossible!" as he hands you a bone.
On this new morning with you.
Don't know how much time I got, don't know how long I'll live.
Let me feel your love one more time before I abandon it.
I already told you, won't tell you again.
I been worrying about you, baby.
Blueberry, apple, cherry, pumpkin, and plum - call me for dinner, honey, I'll be there.
It's all just a dream, babe, a vacuum, a scheme, babe, that sucks you into feeling like this.
You ain't gonna cross the line, I guess it must be up to me.
Sometimes I wonder what it's gonna take to find dignity.
Couldn't help but make me feel ashamed to live in a land where justice is a game.
Only taking one shot to kill Billy Lyons dead.
Papa gone mad, mama, she's feeling sad.
Throw my mattress out there too.
And, though this man could hardly see, they told him he could identify the guilty men.
At the end of the trail.
Deny, defy, or crucify you.
Let me eat off his head and you can really see.
Seems sick and it's hungry, it's tired and it's torn.
Cops a-coming, me a-running.
There's a note left in the bottle, you can give it to Estelle.
'Bout having to be scrounging for your next meal.
I'm glad I fought, I only wish we'd won.
Close your eyes, close the door.
See for me that her hair's hanging down.
It's bad out there, high water everywhere.
And gallantly handed her my very last piece of gum.
But, mama, you been on my mind.
But power and greed and corruptible seed seem to be all that there is.
I asked Fat Nancy for something to eat, she said, "Take it off the shelf.
For you don't count the dead when God's on your side.
He went out that night to seek revenge, thinking he was bulletproof.
The rats have got your flour, bad blood, it got your mare.
Patriotism, materialism.
Lord, I ain't going down to no racetrack see no sports car run.
I don't believe you.
Nobody can see through him, no, not even the Chief of Police.
Just remember that death is not the end.
If the Russians happen to get up there first.
That today I'll be staying here with you.
I pounded on a farmhouse looking for a place to stay.
Their breath is as sweet as the dew on the vine.
And know I'm one too many mornings and a thousand miles behind.
All the way from New Orleans to Jerusalem.
While we all sup sorrow with the poor.
Well, I'm trying to get closer, I'm still a million miles from you.
Oh, something's telling me I wear the ball and chain.
I been in this thing too long.
And anyone can fill his life up with things he can see, but he just cannot touch.
Don't let me down, don't let me down.
Drink up your blood like wine.
And a fistful of coins showed the money he bummed.
To this thing called the Bear Mountain Picnic.
I'll show them to you and you'll see them shine.
On the fifth day of May in the drizzling rain.
Neighborhood bully.
You won't get it for money.
Not as tight as the corner that I painted myself in.
I was ripping it to shreds when this coast-guard boat went past.
I can't fight them anymore.
Was to haul your picture down off the wall near the cage where I used to work.
One of the men who held it high was the Indian, Ira Hayes.
But even the president of the United States sometimes must have to stand naked.
Into the narrow lanes, I can't stumble or stay put.
But she changed the subject every time money came up.
Well, you can go back to him any time that you want to.
You shouldn't let other people get your kicks for you.
I'd lie in my bed once again.
She gave her heart to the man in the long, black coat.
Said I ain't gonna work for Maggie's pa no more.
Long, black, shaggy hair hanging in her face.
The wind knocks my window, the room, it is wet.
Their minds are filled with big ideas, images, and distorted facts.
Soon shattered as a child to the shadows.
I don't like playing cat-and-mouse.
They're all gonna take on down by the bounded bank.
I'd rather have drowned in misery than gone to New South Wales.
With his wife and five children and his cabin broken down.
Stashed 'em away in a basement, called 'em "amateurs".
He wanted money up front, he said he'd been abused by dignity.
You should never let other people get your kicks for you.
Oh, babe, truer words have not been spoken or broken.
And one day he came passing by.
He bites the bullet and he looks within for dignity.
Baby, please come home.
To understand, you know too soon there's no sense in trying.
It's a shame the way she keeps a good man broke.
But it was more than I could do.
I'm ready when you are, Senor.
He went down to Oxford Town.
I said, "Who's in the fireplace?" And you tell me Santa Claus.
They want me for a gambling fight.
She tried to dance, but she didn't know how, uh-huh.
The way you walk and the way you talk - I feel I could almost sing.
On her twenty-second birthday she already is an old maid.
And the newspapers, they all went along for the ride.
Inside the judge was stepping down while the jury cried for more.
Two inches of water in a lonely ditch was the grave for Ira Hayes.
Are waiting in line for their geranium kiss.
We forgave the Germans and then we were friends.
Your babies're crying louder, now, it's pounding on your brain.
Everything is gonna be alright.
Oh, her true love e'er to be.
Lord, protect my child.
"Don't point your finger at me.
Let me die in my footsteps before I go down under the ground.
Let me die on this land 'fore I die underground.
Lenny Bruce moved on and yet the ones that killed him are gone.
I love you more than life itself, you mean that much to me.
I can't see through it anymore.
I only saw what they let me see.
Baby, that I wouldn't do.
You give me something to think about, baby, every time I see you.
You all been down and lonesome, you know just how a poor man feels.
And his brain has been mismanaged with great skill.
If you just once drive me outta my mind.
I don't know how much longer I can wait.
I just can't do what I done before.
I have heard rumors all over town.
Tell your mama not to worry because, yes, they're just my friends.
And my best friend, the doctor, he won't even tell me what it is that I've gots.
It's indescribable, it can drive you to drink.
Then they'll stone you and then they'll come back again.
I feel like the whole world got me pinned up against the fence.
Just thinking of a series of dreams.
For the days of old when we dug up the gold, in the days of '49.
Toiling in the danger, in the morals of despair.
The fortune-telling lady has even taken all her things inside.
For he that gets hurt will be he who has stalled.
They sent him back into the rat race without any brakes.
Been so long since a strange woman has slept in my bed.
With a sword and a pistol by his side, uh-huh.
Eventually we'll hang ourselves on all this tangled rope.
But all his sexless patients, they are trying to blow it up.
And on Lily Pond Lane when the weather was warm.
Wear a long dress fire-engine red.
We'll bring you up there on a ship.
And you'll die in your footsteps before you go down under the ground.
But I hate to leave my children crying.
'Bout an East Coast city that you all know well.
I've made shoes for everyone -- even you -- while I still go barefoot.
I'm going off into the woods, I'm hunting bare.
You don't have to be afraid.
You can come to me sometime, nighttime, daytime, any time you want.
Her and her boyfriend done changed their tune.
In a world that's been raped, raped and defiled.
But I swear I love you, yes, I do.
Went into the laundry to wash my clothes down.
How to carry a burden too heavy to be yours.
You're gonna make me lonesome when you go.
If you don't wanna have to go back to jail, be a nice fellow.
Well, the judge, he cast his robe aside. A tear came to his eye.
I said, "Where are we going?" He said we'd be back by the fourth.
Baby, I'm under your spell.
Handy-dandy, handy-dandy.
That I just don't fit? Yes, I believe it's a-time for us to quit.
Like Cain I now behold this chain of events that I must break.
I'm pressing on to the higher calling of my Lord.
Look up in the hills, that flash of light.
And old Minu--Mister--et paid for his dream.
I wish to my soul I could see the gal I'm a-thinking of.
She yells and hollers and screams and snorts.
Back-alley Sally's doing the American jump.
Same old rat race, life in the same old cage.
He can ride down Niagara Falls in the barrels of your skull.
Into the valley of dry-bone dreams.
Guess it's too late to say the things to you that you needed to hear me say.
Pretty girls are made for boys' love, Little Maggie was made for mine.
But you'd better take your diamond ring down, now, you'd better pawn it, babe.
Just as far as my poor eyes can see.
Goes rolling by, all good people are praying.
And it is time for me to slide.
Come on, give it to me, I'll keep it with mine.
Go find out something only dead men know.
And got a shock from my feet that hit my brain.
One man's temper rises, well, another man's temper might freeze.
Lenny Bruce is gone, but his spirit's living on and on.
But the good road is a-waiting and, boys, it ain't far off.
Smoke a custom-made cigar, wear an alligator boot.
As the morning light breaks open, the Greek comes down and he asks for rope and a pen that will write.
I ain't gonna work on Maggie's farm no more.
They'll stone you when you're walking to the door.
But shun that house in New Orleans they call the Rising Sun.
You loved all them rounders, never did love me.
And we lathered them there like a pair of wet sacks, and left them for dead in the morning.
But I forgot more than you'll ever know about her.
I'm going back to New Orleans to wear that ball and chain.
Handy-dandy, Handy-dandy.
You know, that's a lotta money to her.
"There's too much confusion, I can't get no release.
Well, my heart's in the Highlands, I can only get there one step at a time.
Give me spots on my apples, but leave me the birds and the bees please.
Went into the valley of dry-bone dreams.
He found a promoter, who nearly fell off the floor.
But a-you wouldn't know it by me, every day's been darkness since you been gone.
He'd jump so high, he'd jump so high, then he'd lightly touch down.
You say, "Impossible!" as he hands you the bone.
You say I let you down, you know it's not like that.
But I'm not up in the castle, a-honey.
Most of the time.
People sleeping in broken beds.
For the bitter taste still lingers on from the night I tried to make her stay.
She'll be flying over my home in about three hours' time.
Then that's how--as long as you'll remain.
Billy, they don't like you to be so free.
When all the people passed, she saw her son at last.
With the serpent eyes of obsidian.
Till there's nothing left to see, till the chains have been shattered and I've been freed.
For so long I've been hindered, for so long I've been stalled.
Never took much trouble with the process of the law.
She put down in writing what was in her mind.
Well, it's one foot on the platform and the other foot on the train.
I hate myself for loving you and I'm glad the curtain fell.
My attempts to please you, they were all in vain.
The old man then rolled off the curb.
I saw three ships sailing, they were all heading my way.
Or I'm bound to die trying.
And these visions of Johanna, they kept me up past the dawn.
I say, "How much you want for that?" I go into the store.
At not getting their money's worth.
Johnny's been out on the road too long.
If you lean your head out far enough from Desolation Row.
Splitting up on a dark, sad night, both agreeing that it was best.
That he's tall, dark, and handsome and you're holding his hand.
And hold your judgment for yourself lest you wind up on this road.
Up the steps into the nearest bank.
Handy-dandy, sitting with a girl named Nancy in a garden feeling kind of lazy.
But I was cruel, I treated her like a fool.
Bid farewell forever.
My hands are sweating and we haven't even started yet.
Oh, how can I explain? It's so hard to get on.
In the night the price was paid.
Lights flicker from the opposite loft.
Gun went off a-rootie-toot-toot and Albert fell on the floor.
That's George Lincoln Rockwell.
For we were the lads who'd a-give them hard clouts and bid them look sharp in the morning.
I said, oh, babe, I'm in the mood for you.
You make me nervous when you start to talk.
Here's a simple love story, happened to me.
With a crashing, but meaningless blow.
All inside the walls on the grounds of Red Wing.
To break a trusting heart like mine was just your style.
For tonight when I'll be staying here with you.
'Cause I'd already promised that I'd milk his cows.
And the people that confronted him were many.
You'll know the love that I had for you was never my own.
Time passes slow when you're searching for love.
I ain't looking for nothing in anyone's eyes.
But you'd better take your diamond ring down and pawn it, babe.
I'm preaching the word of God, I'm putting out your eyes.
You were always so close and still within reach.
But everybody still talks about how badly they were shocked.
With the twang of the arrow and the snap of the bow.
You always got more than enough rope.
I figured I was ready for Cassius Clay.
Street band playing "Nearer My God to Thee".
And tell Jesus make up my dying bed.
By and by on you I'm casting my eye.
It looks like it's dying and it's hardly been born.
Daylight sneaking through the window and I'm still in this all-night cafe.
Oh, when the dawn came over the river bridge, I knew it was up to me.
It was you who understood.
And it seems like I've a-gotta travel on.
When everything I'm saying you can say it just as good.
I was looking around, I was outta sight.
They tell you "Time is money" as if your life was worth its weight in gold.
Sara, oh, Sara, loving you is one thing I'll never regret.
I won't let you down, I won't let you down, no, I won't.
And I ducked as he swung at me with all his might.
They put ideas in his head that he thought were his.
Foundationed deep somehow.
Farewell, Angelina, the sky is folding, I'll see you after a while.
What was it you wanted? I ain't keeping score.
Than to see you be another man's darling and to know that you'll never be mine.
As I waited for the sun to go sinking.
It doesn't matter inside the gates of Eden.
That was married to the deputy sheriff of the jail.
Sign on a porch says that "Three's a Crowd".
And the girl with me behind the shades, she ain't my property.
You tamed the lion in my cage, but it just a-wasn't enough to change my heart.
Then he staggered out into the streets of Little Italy.
Any day now, any day now, I shall be released.
A lily-white duck come and swallowed him up, uh-huh.
Forget this dance, let's go upstairs.
She just acts like we never have met.
The bottom of the barrel is too.
You and I, we've been through that, this is not our fate.
Darkness was everywhere, it smelled like a tomb.
Good car to drive, after a war.
And the harmonica around my neck, I blew it for you free.
For to go off to sea with him like she did not know how.
Wherever there was people, there was Willie and his cards.
All of us at times, we might work too hard to have it too fast and too much.
Where the women can't follow and see what I spend.
Myself, for what I did I cannot be excused.
Your bones are breaking, can't find nothing sacred.
Buy you shoes and clothes.
Just crying out that he was framed.
You walk the floor and wonder why with every breath you breathe.
Either I'm too sensitive or else I'm getting soft.
It's for myself and my friends my stories are sung.
I offered her my hand, she took me by the arm.
And shot it fulla holes.
The Persian drunkard, he follows me.
Well, I got back, took the parking ticket off the mast.
Quinn the Eskimo gets here, everybody's gonna wanna doze.
They never did like mama's homemade dress, papa's bankbook wasn't big enough.
You can say I didn't give to you.
The conductor, he's still stuck on the line.
"Oh, well," I said, "it's a pretty big ship.
Trouble, trouble, trouble, nothing but trouble.
With the innocence of a lamb, she was gentle like a fawn.
Maybe next time I'll let the dead bury the dead.
But I can't help falling in love with you.
But mine was a little different, you see.
I'm gonna look at you till my eyes go blind.
But the tears on her cheeks are from laughter.
And, you know, it blows right through me like a ball and chain.
What look good in the day at night is another thing.
Without freedom of speech, I might be in the swamp.
We've done nothing to each other time will not erase.
She pretends like we never have met.
You got my attention, now go 'head, speak.
But I'll see him in anything, so I'll stand in line.
With disaster that you somehow managed to escape.
Kick your shoes off, do not fear.
Well, I had to move fast and I couldn't with you around my neck.
But he shoulda stayed where his money was green.
It's your brand-new leopard-skin pill-box hat.
I see you kiss her on the cheek every time she gives a speech.
Ninety miles an hour down a dead-end street.
But my heart is telling me I love you, but you're strange.
You don't wanna have to go back to jail, be a nice fellow.
Were finally delivered down to the penitentiary.
I guess he had to say one last goodbye to the son that he could not save.
A man lost all his money, said Willie was to blame.
It's rough out there, high water everywhere.
His room was dark and crowded, lights were low and dim.
For the child that cries when the innocence dies.
Don't know how it looked to other people, I never slept with her even once.
Meantime, life outside goes on all around you.
In the days of old, in the days of gold, in the days of '49.
This is, uh-- This is a song about a boxer--boxer. This is gonna be to do with boxing. This is a song about a boxer. And, uh, it's, uh, it's not even having to with a boxer really. It's got nothing to do with nothing. Well, I shit all these words together. That's all. This is, uh, taken out of the newspapers. Nothing has been changed 'cept the words.
No more driver's lash for me, many thousand gone.
Me, I romp and stomp, thankful as I romp.
This is the blind horse that leads you around.
Then they'll stone you when you're there all alone.
I just can't fight 'em anymore.
The stars above the barren trees was his only audience.
Preacherman seeks the same -- who'll get there first is uncertain.
Speaking to some French girl, who says she knows me well.
But nobody can sing the blues like Blind Willie McTell.
Swords piercing your side, blood and water flowing through the land.
If you want somebody you can trust, trust yourself.
To a half a day's shift with no reason.
Whether Judas Iscariot had God on his side.
'Bout the madness of becoming what one was never meant to be.
But she breaks a-just like a little girl.
It goes to the worthy, who can divide the word of truth.
Most of the time I know exactly where it all went.
If it just don't make me hurts.
He got no place to 'scape to, no place to run.
They all fall there so perfectly - it all seems so well-timed.
Saying, "I'll dress you up in sailor's clothes, your jacket shall be blue.
Thanks.
Shut the light, shut the shade.
When they didn't wanna know or see.
When she's better only time'll tell.
It was all over by a quarter past.
'Cause there's not many men that done the things that you've done.
Everything inside is made of stone.
What would I do with it anyway? Maybe take it to the pawn shop.
But you're never sure why you're here.
Don't ask me nothing about nothing - I just might tell you the truth.
Yellow fields with twisted oaks that groan.
I'd like to think I could control myself, but it isn't true.
And, when bringing her name up, he speaks of a farewell kiss to me.
You're a big girl now.
Looking for them Reds everywhere.
"Oh, I'm as good as dead!" cried Reilly.
And puts her hands into her back pocket Bette Davis-style.
I have tried my hand at bribery, blackmail, and deceit.
Well, my back's been to the wall so long it seem like it's stuck.
She murdered mortal he.
Six by six they were playing with tricks.
By the jealousy of others around her.
I got eight carburetors, boys, I'm using 'em all.
But I'd sacrifice the world for you to watch my senses die.
Where I was born and partly raised.
I've been trying to get as far away from myself as I can.
You don't want me, give my money back.
Michelangelo indeed could've carved out your features.
And I've a-never been too impressed.
They got a parade permit and a police escort.
It was supposed to last a season, but it's been so strong for so long.
The holy one called Jesus Christ.
When I've forgotten all the rest.
And these visions of Johanna that conquer my mind.
Lord, I ain't got much more to lose.
And, when there's too much of nothing, nobody should look.
Lord, I'm sitting on top of the world.
Wants me to grow a mustache on my face.
He screamed a bit and away he flew.
Of war and peace the truth just twists.
Well, your railroad gate, you know I just can't jump it.
Everyone is either making love or else expecting rain.
For he was always known to lend a helping hand.
"How far are you all going?" Ruby asked us with a sigh.
Well, that mockingbird's gonna sail away - we're gonna forget it.
There's no words that need to be said.
When Willie finally left the room, he owned the whole darn town.
Ooh, I can't stand it, I can't stand it...
And then you ache just like a woman, but you break just like a little girl.
Every time you look at it, your situation's worse.
That you're just doing what you're supposed to do.
I could offer you a warm embrace to make you feel my love.
I just kept looking at her face so white, I didn't know what to think.
There's a man going 'round calling names.
Dear Landlord, please don't put a price on my soul.
But, when Quinn the Eskimo gets here, everybody's gonna jump for joy.
But these to tell what's true.
Puts her hands in her back pocket Bette Davis-style.
And a license to kill him given out to every maniac.
Never wanted to go home till the last cent was lost.
He stood beneath the silver skies and his heart began to bleed.
Who knocked me out and robbed my boots, and I was on the street again.
They can be a terror to your mind and show you how to hold your tongue.
But it grieves my heart, love, to see you trying to be a part of a world that just don't exist.
He was her man, but he done her wrong.
It can't be this way everywhere.
You rise up and say goodbye to no one.
She was the only daughter of the engineer.
And, every time that he'd get full, he was spoiling for a fight.
Wiggle till it bites, wiggle till it cuts.
But take your diamond ring down and pawn it, babe.
And the bright light of salvation shines in dark and empty skies.
And watch the parking meters.
All of your [incomprehensible] and let's talk about your soul.
Look out your window, baby, there's a scene you'd like to catch.
Johnny can't come home, Johnny can't come home.
I'm no pig without a wig, I hope you treat me kind.
So many dead-ends, and I'm at the edge of the lake.
Drumming in the morning, in the evening they'll be coming for you.
That old ship was a-going down.
My children will go as soon as they grow.
Round that horn and ride that herd, gonna thread up.
You'd be honest with me if only you knew.
Thought I was a communist.
Queen Mary, she's my friend. Yes, I believe I'll go see her again.
There's always some new stranger in the night to lend a sympathetic ear.
Tweedle Dum, he'll stab you where you stand.
And told him what a nice, pretty farm he had.
Put 'em on a boat, send 'em up to Bear Mountain for a picnic.
He gets wise in his own eyes and he's made to believe a lie.
We can hear the night watchman click his flashlight, ask himself if it's him or them that's insane.
But with the country to where you're going.
There was an all-night poker game, lasted about a week.
Running out the clock, time standing still.
And a noble truth is a sacred creed.
Expecting all the gifts that wise men bring.
I hate bears.
I first heard this from Rick von Schmidt. He lives in Cambridge. Rick's a blues guitar player. I met him one day in the green pastures of Harvard University.
It's alright, ma, I'm only sighing.
So she bargained with the sailor boy all for a piece of gold.
The cavalries charged, then the Indians died.
Man gave names to all the animals in the beginning, a long time ago.
But the mountains of the past.
I watched them from the distance with the music in my ears.
I went into a restaurant looking for the cook.
With gold and silver in her hand.
My face you'll never see no more.
And you dare not change them one night for you know, if you do, you'll be flogged in the morning.
Tell me that it isn't true.
That he not busy being born is a-busy dying.
I repeated that my friends were all in jail with a sigh.
So they've hired Mr. Garrett, he'll force you to slow down.
I got no reason to be there, but I imagine it would be some kinda change.
I got nothing to say, 'specially about whatever was.
As I landed on the psychiatric couch.
I step outside back to the busy street, but nobody's going anywhere.
It looks like I'm never gonna lose the freight train blues.
Sweet beauty, meet me at the border late tonight.
I got a real gal I'm loving, Lord, I'll love her till I'm dead.
Every urge is so satisfied as long as you're with me.
I seen a shooting star tonight slip away.
It's a hard rain's gonna fall.
But they made a killer outta him is what they did.
You find out now you're gonna have to get used to it.
For they couldn't go no further without the jack of hearts.
I'm longing for that sweet fat that sticks to your ribs.
And seized him by the collar, boldly made him stand.
Check to see that no one is escaping Desolation Row.
You to give your check to tax-deductible charity organizations.
We died and were reborn and then mysteriously saved.
Rita said "Come back!" and he started to load.
But we're heading for a wall of stone.
And there's a slow, slow train coming up around the bend.
"Eternity?" said Frankie Lee with a voice as cold as ice.
And the hoof-beats pound in his brain.
Well, I took me a woman late last night.
And, if you don't like me, you can leave me alone.
I know not if I sink or swim.
Ain't gonna hang no picture or hang no picture-frame.
But lately I see her ribbons and her bow have fallen from her curls.
Man gave names to all the animals in the beginning, long time ago.
He nearly went mad in Baton Rouge, he nearly drowned in Delacroix.
It hurts me, too.
When I run outta things to investigate.
The summer is gone, the ground's turning cold.
And say you'll always let it be me.
They don't apply no more, you can't rely no more to be standing around waiting.
Man in the moon went home and the river went dry.
Way down in Mexico you went out to find a doctor and you never came back.
To think his niece would be a bride, uh-huh.
I've got a hole where my stomach disappeared.
I must be guilty of something, you just whisper it into my ear.
Now there's nothing that reminds me of that old, familiar chime, except you, yeah, you.
They're dripping with garlic and olive oil.
I said Highway 51 runs right by my baby's door.
She once was a true love of mine.
When everything that I'm saying you could say it just as good.
Love is all there is, it makes the world go 'round.
Seen a shooting star tonight and I thought of me.
Got what it takes just to make you hurt.
Well, my heart's in the Highlands, only place left to go.
Parked across from a building advertising brotherhood.
All the bombardiers're trying to force her outta town.
When I--he built a fire on Main Street and shot it full of holes.
But, yes, I think it can be very easily done.
I can tell you are torn between staying and returning back to the South.
Well, there's too many people and they're all too hard to please.
I'll be homeward bound, I'll be homeward bound.
Would let me know if I should go back to ship or back to jail.
And the ancient, empty street's too dead for dreaming.
That I wanted you, baby, in every kind of way.
I can't use it anymore.
Snap out of it, baby. People are jealous of you.
Whose visions in the final end must shatter like the glass.
Ever since I seen her smile.
Baby, baby.
Streets up there're lined with gold.
You left me standing out in the cold.
Now, all he believes are his eyes and his eyes, they just tell him lies.
I've been up all night, baby, leaning on the windowsill.
And be buried on the bottom of the ocean.
I'd give anything to be with you.
Come over here from over there, girl.
Oh, but what a shame! if all we've shared can't last.
Tell 'em all that Tiny says hello.
If you're a doctor, I need a shot of love.
Make me proud to know you wear the gun.
Him and Arthur Dexter Bradley were just out prowling around.
Everybody had a ticket for the trip.
If I didn't leave you, I would have to kill you dead.
You're not even sure 'bout your wife and kids no more.
You're like a time bomb in my heart.
If it rolls and flows all down her breast.
Smoking a cheap cigar.
Look how sweet she sleep, how free must be her dream.
You're too hot, darling.
I was so mistaken when I thought that she'd be true.
Up and down the lonesome town.
I can't fire them anymore.
I'm hungry and I'm irritable and I'm tired of this bag of tricks.
So I'll bid farewell and be down the road.
But, if you gotta go, go now or else you got to stay all night.
See that my grave is kept clean.
It only brings me sorrow.
Is just equality in school.
But they wouldn't let me on the tennis court.
She weighs more by the foot than she does by the inch.
Oh, this feeling's still here in my heart.
Your old road's rapidly aging.
If he don't expect to be housing flushes.
At the man whose clothes and shoes were torn.
His dog up and died, he up and died, and after twenty years he still grieves.
What looks large from a distance close up ain't never that big.
When something he doesn't know about suddenly appears.
If this is love, then give me more and more and more and more.
Old women condemned him, said he should apologize.
A dollar when I'm hard up, religion when I die.
About an old man, he never done wrong.
Twenty years of schooling and they put you on the day shift.
If you're black, you might as well not show up on the street 'less you wanna draw the heat.
It's unbelievable the day would finally come.
Ooh, pressing on to the higher calling of my Lord.
But my heart's just not in it, I might as well pass right on by.
I can't recall your face anymore, your mouth has changed and your eyes don't look into mine.
Take off your heavy make-up and your shawl.
As Lady and I look out tonight from Desolation Row.
You can go back to him any time you want to.
He found a promoter nearly fell on the floor.
Take a woman like your kind to find the man in me.
But you're back where you belong.
Here's a foreign song I learned in Utah.
And the cops are putting the screws to him, looking for somebody to blame.
I ain't crying for no religion, Lord, give me back my good gal please.
It don't matter, anyhow.
Hoping to find one circumstance of dignity.
There was nobody around.
You just build it cheaper someplace else.
Try to avoid the scandals.
I haven't known about peace and quiet now for so long I don't even remember what it's like.
Seen a shooting star tonight and I thought of you.
And I'm walking down the line - my feet'll be flying - to tell about my troubled mind.
You say you're shaking and you're always aching, but you know how hard you try.
He's pointing to the sky and he's hungry like a man in drag.
Yet she's true like ice, like fire.
I know I can trust you to stay the way you are.
Sara, oh, Sara, you must forgive me my unworthiness.
You came in like a wind, like Errol Flynn, you changed my life.
You went out on a limb to testify for me, you said I was with you.
You're bound to fall" - you thought they were all kidding you.
Whoever it is, I wish they'd cut it out quick, but when they will I can only guess.
For, if the sailors prove false to you, well, the captain, he might prove true.
"I don't call it anything," said Frankie Lee with a smile.
'Bout a funny, old world that's coming along.
Honey, 'cause the world gone wrong.
They'll be there when you got something, they'll take it all in the end.
I'm'a ever, ever, ever long to sail away.
Yes, but the joke was on me, there was nobody even there to call my bluff.
Feel I'm knocking on heaven's door.
Just then this cop comes down the street, crazy as a loon/
Oh, the history books tell it, they tell it so well:
Time is an ocean, but it ends at the shore:
In that last hour of need we entirely agreed:
And I leaned my head and I give a yell:
The moral of the story is very plain to see:
But, let me just warn you all before I do pass on:
In Paterson, that's just the way things go:
Sister, let me tell you about a vision that I saw:
Oh, man is opposed to fair play:
Howard just pointed off a-with his gun:
Why you don't never play with me anymore:
I feel displaced, I got a low-down feeling:
But there's one thing I know, though I'm younger than you:
There are those who worship loneliness, I'm not one of them:
Told her first own father that things weren't right:
Don't you cry and don't you die and don't you burn:
There's just one kind of favor I'll ask of you:
If I could only turn back the clock to when God and her were born:
Like the sound of a-one hand clapping:
The trial was a pig-circus, he never had a chance:
Hunted like a crocodile, ravaged in the corn:
In Paterson, that's the way things go:
I offered up my innocence, I got repaid with scorn:
You'll be grand at the end of the line:
And Old Howard just pointed off with his gun:
Now, the history books tell it, they tell it so well:
I offered up my innocence, got repaid with scorn:
One of these days you're gonna serve somebody:
Just to think that it all began on a noneventful morn:
Oh, there ain't no use in me working all the time:
But I finally realize there's no room for regret:
But there's one promise, darling:
Yes, you're gonna have to serve somebody:
The whole world's a bottle and life's but a dram:
And, yes, there's something you can send back to me:
There's just one last favor I'll ask of you:
In harmony with the cosmic sea, true love needs no company:
Now, everybody's asking why he didn't adjust:
And the one-eyed undertaker, he blows a futile horn:
Can't help but wonder what's happening to my companions:
Yes, indeed, you're gonna have to serve somebody:
Go to him now, he calls you, you can't refuse:
But take a trip before you ship to join the iron gang:
It's true that in his later years he would not carry a gun:
There's a lonesome freight at six o' eight a-coming through the town:
There's a man that hates me and he's swift, smooth, and near:
Man is opposed to fair play:
A South politician preaches to the poor white man:
Answer me, baby - a casual look will do:
It was true that in his later years he would not carry a gun:
Try imagining a place where it's always safe and warm:
I'll always a-do my best for her, on that I give my word:
Walk with a swagger and he say to the bride:
Just one condition, you can go to sleep right now:
I made a good run, but I run too slow:
Just to think that it all began in a noneventful morn:
Yeah, serve somebody:
No one knew the circumstance, but they say that it happened pretty quick:
There's a wall between you--what you want and you got to leap it:
I came in from the wilderness a creature void of form:
And he was told but these few words, which opened up his heart:
If you cannot overlook my faults, forget me:
Till I come into New York town:
I'll always do my best for her, on that I give my word:
His epitaph plain:
Well, it is so obvious that something has changed:
If I got anything you need, babe, let me tell you in front:
Too much of nothing can make a man ill at ease:
And you'll be fine at the end of the line:
Serve somebody:
A-go to him now, he calls you, you can't refuse:
Genghis Khan and his brother, Don, couldn't keep on keeping on:
Ohh, he found a promoter, nearly fell on the floor:
Yes, you are, you're gonna have to serve somebody:
And then, "Yeah, I think it can be easily done:
"Sorry, darling, that I'm late," but he didn't seem to hear:
I tell you something, tell you the facts:
Until one day he just appeared with a note in his hand, which read:
Can't help but wonder what's a-happening to my companions:
Never robbed any churches, nor cut off any babies' heads;
And to part from my vows and my promise is more than my heart can endure;
He would ante up and draw his cards and would you go a hatful blind;
Why only yesterday I saw somebody on the street who just couldn't help but cry;
I find complete love;
So many things that we never will undo;
About everybody that was hanging out;
Had to be held down by big police;
Anyone with any sense had already left town;
Nobody can get any sleep - you know, there's someone on everybody's toes;
He asks you with a grin if you're having a good time;
Everybody that was hanging out;
All lies and jest;
Outside the crowd was stirring - you could hear it from the door;
Why only yesterday I saw somebody on the street that was a-really shook;
You got a way of tearing a world apart. Love, see what you've done?
Why didn't you just leave me if you didn't want to stay?
When you cease to exist, then who will you blame?
Who am I helping? What am I breaking?
And who did you meet, my darling young one?
Why don't you look my way and pump me a few?
Would you remind me again, if you'd be so kind?
Is that the heat of the beat of your pulse that I feel?
Before she sleeps in the sand?
Tell me, mama, tell me, mama, tell me, mama, what is it?
Who among them, do you think, would employ you?
I seen better times, but who has not?
And you know something's happening, but you don't know what it is, do you, Mr. Jones?
Have you decided whether you wanna be in heaven or in hell?
What did you hear, my blue-eyed son?
Why run any longer when you're running in vain?
Ah, has anybody seen my love?
Can't you hear me, baby, rapping on your door?
Has the record been breaking? Did the needle just skip?
What made them want to come and blow you away?
And you ask why I don't live here! Honey, how come you don't move?
Who are you that I should have to lie?
That's fine, but she's coming on so strange, can't you tell?
Who's a-gonna stroke your cold, black hair and sandy-colored skin?
And when the whistle blows, I got to go - baby, don't you know?
Are you ready for the judgment? Are you ready for that terrible, swift sword?
Won't you meet me out in the moonlight alone?
Something is burning, baby, are you aware?
Have I surrendered to the will of God or am I still acting like the boss?
Oh, mama, ain't you gonna miss your best friend now?
Well, you wear it so pretty. Honey, can I jump on it sometime?
You promised to love me, but what do I see?
Greasy kid stuff. What I want to know, Mr. Football Man, is what do you do about Willy Mays? Martin Luther King? Olatunji?
Something is happening, but you don't know what it is, do you, Mr. Jones?
After he's taken everything he can steal?
Raspberry, strawberry, lemon, and lime - what do I care?
Adjust to what? A dream that bust?
Will I be able to count on you or is your love in vain?
Who are these people that are walking towards you?
Will you please tell that to your friend in the cowboy hat?
Oh, sister, am I not a brother to you?
Must everybody bow?
Who's gonna let it down easy to save his soul?
Too many people have died?
Where do you come from? Where do you go?
Don't the moon look good, honey, shining through the trees?
Poor boy, where you been?
Can you get back in?
Is the love in your heart for me turning blind?
Oh, won't you come see me, Queen Jane?
When they came for Him in the garden, did they know?
Oh, what did you see, my blue-eyed son?
Someone there in the shadows, someone that I might've missed?
When He spoke to them in the city, did they hear?
You never know what you got till it's gone?
Who's a-gonna walk you side by side and tell you everything's alright?
Oh, can it be that I am slain?
Could I been used and played as a pawn?
Is the scenery changing? Am I getting it wrong?
Will it buy you forgiveness? Do you think that it could?
How long can you hate yourself for the weakness you conceal?
If I kiss you, would it be a sin?
Can I come home with you?
If I've had every chance and yet still fail to see?
Will it lead me to glory or lead me to disgrace?
Are you so fast that you cannot see that I must have solitude?
I said I'd send for you and I did - what did you expect?
How many tomorrows have they given away?
Is there something you needed, something I don't understand?
This couple they got married, so why not you and me?
Oh, why must I fall into the sadness? Do I look like Charles Atlas?
Just pointed out Stack-A-Lee, said, "Now what have you done?
Am I ready?
Why'd you have to treat me so bad? Did it have to be that way?
Well, I risked my neck for you. Didn't I take chances?
My back's to the wall: where can I run?
But am I still dreaming yet?
How many of their brothers and sisters lingered in jail?
Yes, but, you know something's happening, but you don't know what it is, do you, Mr. Jones?
Well, look it here, buddy, you wanna be like me?
Why is the light in your eyes nearly gone?
But is your heart made out of stone, or is it lime, or is it just solid rock?
Before he can hear people cry?
How'm I supposed to get any riding done?
The love that a stranger might receive?
Baby, is there anything left to tell?
How long must I keep my eyes glued to the door?
Oh, where are you tonight?
But something is happening, but you don't know what it is, do you, Mr. Jones?
Before it's washed to the sea?
But, what's a sweetheart like you doing in a dump like this?
You know I want your loving. Honey, why are you so hard?
Am I mixed up too much? Am I mixed up too hard?
What's happening in there? What's going on in your show?
How does it feel?
Pain sure brings out the best in people, doesn't it?
Can't you hear that Duquesne whistle blowing?
Didn't I-didn't I try to love you?
Alberta, what's on your mind?
When what's lost has been found, what's to come has already been?
She say, "You can't repeat the past." I say, "You can't?
But am I no longer a part of your plans or your dreams?
Something is happening and you don't know what it is, do you, Mr. Jones?
Won't you let me in your room one time before I finally disappear?
When you asked me how I was doing, was that some kind of joke?
When I am in the darkness, why must you intrude?
How come you get someone like him to be your guard?
With the rain blowing in your hair, oh?
Does he change the course of rivers?
When you can't even sense has it got any insides?
'Steada turning her back to my face?
How many black cats crossed their trail?
"If I had his money, I'd do things my way"?
If You find it in Your heart, can I be forgiven?
Don't the moon look good, mama, shining through the trees?
They call me a bummer and a gin sot, too, but what cares I for praise?
Who would deliver him from the death he's bound to die?
What's your position, baby? What's going on?
What good are you anyway if you can't stand up to some old businessman?
But who among them really wants just to kiss you?
Can't you hear that motor turning?
Where were you when it started? Do you want it for free?
Is it something comes natural? Is it easy to say?
Does that fire still burn? Does that flame still glow?
You threw the bums a dime in your prime, didn't you?
Tomorrow night will you be with me when the moon is bright?
What is it that you're trying to achieve, girl?
And you know something is happening, but you don't know what it is, do you, Mr. Jones?
And one deserving of affection?
And pretend that he just doesn't see?
What are you trying to overpower me with, a doctrine or a gun?
What's a sweetheart like you doing in a dump like this?
No, I wasn't very cute to him, was I?
Oh, where have you been, my blue-eyed son?
When he's standing in front of you?
Did I miss the mark, overstep the line that only you could see?
Don't you understand it's not my problem?
Who's a-gonna look you straight in the eye and hold your bad-luck hand?
Did you know about Betty Ross?
How weak was the foundation I was standing upon?
Is there any truth in that, Senor?
Do I need your permission to turn the other cheek?
Yes, but you know something's happening, it's just that you don't know what it is, do you, Mr. Jones?
Who's a-gonna kiss your Memphis mouth when I'm out in the wind?
Do you think we can talk about it some more?
Alright, I'll set you straight, can't you see I'm a union man?
One more time for a simple twist of fate?
Am I ready to lay down my life for the brethren and to take up my cross?
To be stuck here inside of Mobile with the Memphis blues again?
Don't the brakeman look good, mama, flagging down the Double E?
How could they let you go?
Trying to kill somebody or die trying?
What was it you wanted? Do I have it here in my hand?
Was it me that shot him down in the cantina?
Oh, so why not you and me?
My best friend said, "Now, didn't I warn you?
No use to apologize, what difference would it make?
After he's taken everything he could steal?
'Cause something is happening and you don't know what it is, do you, Mr. Jones?
You think He's just an errand boy to satisfy your wandering desires?
Will there be any comfort there, Senor?
Sara, Sara, whatever made you wanna change your mind?
What happened to the real you? You've been captured, but by whom?
Through a hole in the wall to where the long arm of the law cannot reach?
How long can you falsify and deny what is real?
Where did you hide your halo?
Or has it died out and melted like the snow?
How you willingly surrender to me, but, darling, will it last?
Oh, what would I do if not for you?
Just how much abuse will you be able to take?
Or, sad-eyed lady, should I wait?
When they heard him speak in the city, did they hear?
Ain't there no one here that knows where I'm at?
If it's not that, then what is it you're trying to conceal?
In the words that I'm writing, in this ocean of hours I'm all the time drinking?
Honey, why not go alone, just you and me?
How long can I listen to the lies of prejudice?
Wallflower, wallflower, won't you dance with me?
What can I do for You?
And what'll you do now, my darling young one?
Who's a-gonna sing to you all day long and not just in the night?
Do you know them or will there be a fight?
He says, "Young man, is your name Brown?
When He rose up from the dead, did they believe?
With the drumsticks in his pants?
Yes, because something is happening and you don't know what it is, do you, Mr. Jones?
What was it you wanted? Could you say it again?
What's wrong with you this time?
Yes, but something's happening and you don't know what it is, do you, Mr. Jones?
How come you don't send me no regards?
Ever done the opposite of what the experts say?
Put your hand on my head, baby, do I have a temperature?
How many more without any reward?
Are you willing to risk it all or is your love in vain?
Well, we all got on, what do you think?
Don't the ghost-child look good, baby, sitting on this madman's knees?
But, don't my gal look fine when she's coming after me?
In this space I'm taking, in this air I'm inhaling?
But something is happening here and you don't know what it is, do you, Mr. Jones?
Before they're forever banned?
Threw the bums a dime in your prime, didn't you?
Will He know you when He sees you or will He say, "Depart from Me"?
Did they know right then and there what that power was worth?
Why did they have to come blow you away?
Just like a rolling stone?
Or for what I didn't do? Or for keeping it hid?
Ever meet your accusers face-to-face in the rain?
Do you need me half as bad as you say or are you just feeling guilt?
Delia, oh, Delia, how can it be?
Have you got some unfinished business? Is there something holding you back?
Tell me, are those rock-and-roll dreams in your eyes?
Who you thought you were talking to?
And you willingly surrender to me, but, darling will it last?
Got to start some place, baby. Can you explain?
You thought it was the best thing I could do?
If you're so hurt, why then don't you show it?
Tomorrow night will you remember what you said tonight?
Do you know my world, do you know my kind, or must I explain?
Now, what you wanna go and do that for?
Tears of rage, tears of grief, why am I always the one who must feel the thief?
Can you tell me what we're waiting for, Senor?
How much do I know, to talk out of turn?
Can I cast it aside, all this loyalty and this pride?
When I am in the darkness, why do you intrude?
Are you thinking for yourself or are you following the pack?
Tomorrow night would you say those lovely things you said tonight?
Ain't it hard to stumble and land in some muddy lagoon?
Is it the way your body moves or is it the way your hair blows free?
What makes the wind wanna blow tonight?
Will I ever learn that there'll be no peace, that the war won't cease until He returns?
Didn't I-didn't I try to care?
I humbled myself to her beauty: "Fair maiden, where do you belong?
And when the whistle blows, I got to go - oh, mama, don't you know?
Blinds pulled down, what you gonna do?
What?
But where are you tonight, sweet Marie?
That too many people have died?
Oh, what dear daughter would--'neath the sun--would treat her father so?
To get caught without a ticket and be discovered beneath a truck?
Do you love me or are you just extending goodwill?
Where the sad-eyed prophet says that no man comes?
But who did I see but the one I love?
I do it for you, a-honey baby, can't you tell?
Before he can see the sky?
Before they're allowed to be free?
Whatever you wanted, what can it be?
Like a rolling stone?
Will it come to me after you're gone?
Does he pollute the moon and stars?
You ever feel like you're never alone even when there's nobody else around?
How's everything in heaven?
Who ever thought they'd ever make that stick?
What will your mother say, Pretty Peggy-O?
But, something is happening and you don't know what it is, do you, Mr. Jones?
What would life be?
Why did He slip away to a quiet place instead?
Won't you come see me, Queen Jane?
Did somebody tell you that you could get it from me?
Should I hold you close or let you go by?
Won't you let me see your smile before I turn you loose?
"What are those hills yonder, my love?
Tomorrow night will all the thrill be gone?
Did I hear someone's distant cry?
Or just another song that's in my heart to linger on?
Will you let me be myself or is your love in vain?
To be stuck inside of Mobile with the Memphis blues again?
Ever gone broke in a big way?
Who tied them and why and where must I have been?
After he's taken everything that he can steal?
Do you have any faith at all? Do you have any love to share?
Did they speak out against Him, did they dare?
And the mercy that you showed to me - who ever would have guessed?
To lie in the gutter and die with no name?
Why and what's the reason for?
Is your main friend someone who's an old, known acquaintance of ours?
Do you ever wonder just what God requires?
And where have you been, my darling young one?
Cobwebs in your mind, dust upon your eyes?
And you, just what do you do anyway? Ain't there nothing you can say?
Are you anybody someone prays for or cries?
Oh, how could you refuse?
The crime was murder one, guess who testified?
What good am I?
Because something is happening here, but you don't know what it is, do you, Mr. Jones?
Are you ready?
Have you ever heard them church bells toll?
Why wait any longer for the world to begin?
Why am I walking? Where am I running?
But whatever could it be makes you think you've seen me before, Angelina?
Gal, where you been so long?
Oh, what did you meet, my blue-eyed son?
If there's anyone that knows, is there anyone that cares?
A lover for your life - a-but what more?
Is the whole thing going backwards? Are they playing our song?
My voice is gone, man. You wanna try it again?
Seen a good-looking girl, can I make love with you?
Ain't it just like the night to play tricks when you're trying to be so quiet?
Remember you said you saw the getaway car?
Are you ready for Armageddon? Are you ready for the day of the Lord?
Why don't you know you got nothing to prove?
Baby, can't you tell?
Who's a-gonna walk you side by side? Who's a-gonna be your man?
How can you say he will haunt you?
Now you stand here saying you forgive and forget. Honey, what can I say?
For all these earthly things?
When you gonna wake up, strengthen the things that remain?
When He healed the blind and crippled, did they see?
Don't the brakeman look good, baby, flagging down the Double E?
Do you think I still got what you still got, baby?
To show me I was blinded, to show me I was gone?
To love and follow His direction?
Before you call him a man?
Crime was murder one and guess who testified?
Why are your eyes just staring off in the night?
Can they tell you what's wrong from what's right?
Did you respect me for what I did?
Is there somebody waiting? Was there a slip of the lip?
Do I understand your question, man, is it hopeless and forlorn?
If you can read my mind, why must I speak?
Don't the sun look good going down over the sea?
How many more can they afford?
You say my eyes are pretty and my smile is nice?
But how long, babe, can you search for what is not lost?
Was it my hand that held the gun?
It's a wicked life, but what the hell?
Why don't you just come out once and scream it?
Who killed Davey Moore?
To wait upon him hand and foot, yet always answer "no"?
You promised to love me, but what do I know?
Did I hear someone tell a lie?
How many compared to yesterday?
But does anyone hear the music they play?
When He said, "Pick up your bed and walk!", why must you criticize?
Ah, how can I live here, baby, Lord, and feel at ease?
Can't you feel that sun a-shining?
Oh, child, why you wanna hurt me?
Do you have any secrets that will only come out in time?
Are you the same person that was here before?
How much poison did they inhale?
If I clean up, sweet mama, can I stay all night with you?
And something is happening here, but you don't know what it is, do you, Mr. Jones?
When He rose from the dead, did they believe?
What was it you wanted when you were kissing my cheek?
Where do you look for this hope that you know is there and out there somewhere?
But why did they pick you to sympathize with their side?
Is it rolling, Bob?
Tell me, will you go back and take another look?
Is that a smile that I see on your face?
Did they hear when He told Peter, "Peter, put up your sword"?
And something is happening, but you don't know what it is, do you, Mr. Jones?
Saying, "Christ, do I gotta be like that?
Tears of rage, tears of grief, why I'm always the one who must feel a thief?
Tell me, tall man, where would you like to be overthrown, in Jerusalem or Argentina?
"Oh, what are those hills yonder, my love?
Tell me, what are you focused upon?
Do you lay in your bed? Do you stare at the stars?
Well, you look so pretty in it. Honey, can I jump on it sometime?
When you gonna wake up and strengthen the things that remain?
Have they missed you?
Ready, George?
The scene is so crazy, wasn't it?
But, oh, mama, ain't you gonna miss your best friend now?
Yes, now you're positive something's happening and you wish you knew what it was, don't you, Mr. Jones?
Why would I want to take your life?
Where you blew Jackie P.'s mind?
Across the swooping plain?
Dark beauty, won't you move over and give me some room?
Did you ever hear that coffin sound?
Why should I worry or crave you in vain?
How can I live for You?
Who is he, baby, and what's he to you?
So I can know if I'm really real?
Why don't you break my heart one more time just for good luck?
Why do you want it? Who are you, anyway?
The changes we put on each other's heads?
Can you tell me who to contact here, Senor?
Shining like some diamonds, like some diamonds in the sky?
Can you cook and sew, make flowers grow, do you understand my pain?
Who among them could think he could outguess you?
"What God has given to us no man can take away"?
"Would you forsake your house and home? Would you forsake your baby?
After he's taken anything he can steal?
"Oh, how can-how can you ask me again?
Won't you bury my body out on Highway 51?
You're never, never, never coming back-i-O?
What's anybody indebted to him for?
What do you think about that, my friend?
Am I still dreaming yet?
What else can a poor boy do?
Baby, what more can I tell?
Where did you lose your wings?
And you ask why I don't live here! Honey, how come you have to ask me that?
Alright, so, where are you tonight, sweet Marie?
Please, Mrs. Henry, won't you take me to my room?
Don't you know it--don't you know it hurts me, too?
Does anyone even try?
Let's take a chance - who really cares?
Is it some kinda game that you're playing with my heart?
All their earthly principles they're gonna have to abandon?
Yes, and you think something's happening, but you don't know what it is, do you, Mr. Jones?
When men will beg God to kill them and they won't be able to die?
And what did you hear, my darling young one?
Where the sad-eyed prophets say that no man comes?
Do you have any morals? Do you have any point of view?
Why wait any longer for no need to complain?
Didn't I rise above all the most unfortunate circumstances?
Can't you hear that rooster crowing?
And I was born to be with you, you were born to be my bride?
Saying, "Are you Frankie Lee, the gambler, whose father is deceased?
Don't you remember making baby love?
When did you leave heaven?
Baby, can I come home with you?
Am I supposed to set back and wait until he's here?
Did you ever have a dream that you couldn't explain?
How long's it gonna take for you to get off the edge?
Tell me, is that my name in your book?
What has he done to wear so many scars?
How long can I stay drunk on fear out in the wilderness?
Of everything you see?
Who cares?
To blur the focus of my mind and keep my isolated?
"Remember that murder that happened in a bar?
Now you stand here, why are your fingers going up my sleeve?
How can I live here, baby, Lord, and feel at ease?
Oh, who do they think could bury you?
But, don't my gal look fine when she's chasing after me?
Ain't it hard to stumble and land in some funny lagoon?
Yes, because you know something is happening, but you don't know what it is, do you, Mr. Jones?
If I can't help falling in love with you?
And you ask why I don't live here! Honey, do you have to ask?
"Remember that murder that you--happened in a bar?
Lincoln County Road or Armageddon?
Think you'd like to play ball with the law?
Yes, and you, you just sit around and ask for ashtrays. Can't you reach?
But, with the truth so far off, what good will it do?
Oh, where are you tonight, sweet Marie?
Ooh, I can't stand it, I can't stand it, what are you trying to prove?
But something is happening and you don't know what it is, do you, Mr. Jones?
What can I give to You?
Well, the [incomprehensible] in my soul, why was it created?
She said, 'Hey, man, you crazy or something?
Oh, I figured I'd lost you anyway. Why go on? What's the use?
How many paths did they try and fail?
By golly, what more can I say?
Don't the moon look good, mama, shining down through the trees?
Who's a-gonna hold your hard-luck hand and who's a-gonna be your man?
How could they ever mistake you?
Did you ever hear them church bells toll?
How come you send someone out to have me barred?
When I'm out in the wind, babe, when I'm out in the wind?
But still something's happening and you don't know what it is, do you, Mr. Jones?
Who's gonna let it roll?
Hey! Who could your lover be?
Now, where are you tonight, sweet Marie?
What was it you wanted? Are you talking to me?
Why should we needlessly suffer?
Be in the palm of some fool's hand?
Please, Mrs. Henry, won't you take me to your dad?
Oh, don't you see that crow fly high?
Has anybody seen my love?
And what'll you do now, my blue-eyed son?
Ain't that the way it oughtta be?
To be hunted by the man who was your friend?
Are you ready to meet Jesus? Are you where you oughtta be?
Was that the thunder that I heard?
When the truth's in our hearts and we still don't believe?
After he took from you everything he could steal?
Where the sad-eyed prophets say that no man's come?
And what did you see, my darling young one?
Ain't that just like my heart, babe, when you kiss my lips?
When you asked me how I was doing, was that some kinda joke?
What's happening, baby, to make you act so strange?
And how does it feel?
Senor, Senor, do you know where she's hiding?
How long must I suffer such abuse?
But, oh, what kind of love is this, which goes from bad to worse?
Was I still the same? Had I ever became what you wanted me to be?
But what's the sense of changing horses in midstream?
Before it is washed to the sea?
Why should we go on watching each other through a telescope?
Just what in the world has come over you?
Well, how often's a man dance to the beat of the palm?
Across the swamp of time?
Ain't there no one here that knows how I feel?
With the one who tries to hide what he don't know to begin with?
How long are we gonna be riding?
Did they know He was the son of God, did they know that He was Lord?
Something that's crossed over from another century?
Let me ask you one question: Is your money that good?
Why must you always try to make me over?
Won't you meet me with another pair?
Remember in El Paso once you shot one?
How deep must I go? Where do I start?
Don't my gal look fine when she's coming after me?
Why was it so hard for you, if you didn't wanna be with me, just to leave?
Just what do you think you have to guard?
Tough mama, can I blow a little smoke on you?
Was she a child or an angel? Did we go too far?
Was I a fool or not to protect your real identity?
Won't you descend from the throne from where you sit?
When did you leave heaven, angel mine?
But where do you live, baby, and where is the light?
'Cause time was on his side and because I
And because time was on his side and because I
This feeling that I
She [incomprehensible]
[incomprehensible]
"I've just returned from the salt, salt sea
The storms are raging on the rolling sea
It was put together down in Argentina
Well, the dog collar's from India
You have to pay to get outta
I'll take all the smog in Ca-li-for-ni-a
I'd have you to follow your own, true love whenever he goes to sea
And pensively stood by his tomb
Well, by this time I was fed up at trying to make a stab
When questioned who had sent for him he answered with his thumb
Oh, when all of your advisers heave their plastic
When your [incomprehensible] all advisers heave their plastic
Well, I waited for you inside of the frozen traffic
Wasn't thinking of anything specific
Everything stays down where it's wounded
For he that gets hurt will be he who has stalled
That he'd always make sure I'd understand
She let go of my hand
I live in another world
And that even the nobles get properly handled
Now, whenever I get up and
And those whom doom and death had spared
Well, I been in jail where all the mail showed
His closest friends were black men 'cause they seemed to understand
Now, when all the clowns that you have commissioned
Just what you had in mind
Used to run in the cemetery, dance and run and sing when I was a child
He fills his glasses up to the brim and he'll pass the cards around
Then came the warning that was before the flood
To see him obviously framed
But she ain't gonna find the road
And he just walked along alone with his guilt so well-concealed
In a soldier's stance I aimed my hand
Yes, and how many times can a man turn his head
Just carry yourself back to me unspoiled
Many times I've often prayed
Sixteen years, sixteen banners united
"Equality". I spoke the word
Yes, and I just got to tell you that I do intend
I hate that foolish game we played and the need that was expressed
Please get out of the new one if you can't lend your hand
Yet on time you depend, and no word is possessed
And the words that are used for to get the ship confused
Well, a childish dream is a deathless need
I've been walking around
All I remember about it was-is Gregory Peck and the way that people moved
The clouds are turning crimson, the leaves fall from the limbs, and
You will seek me and you'll find me in the wasteland of your mind
Yonder down here in this lonely crowd
I still can remember the way that you smiled
Now yonder stand with me in this lonely crowd
--Arthur Dexter Bradley and Bello and they both lied
He thought they were successful, she thought they were blessed
Even though a cloud's white curtain in a far-off corner flared
'Cause I love you more than all of that with a love that doesn't bend
And the tide will sound and the waves will pound
And things would be different the next time we wed
Nothing was delivered
Fifty-two gypsies now file past the guard
Well, I don't know, but I've been told
"It's all been designed," he said, "to make you lose your mind
They took a clean-cut kid
Who invited me to her house. I went, but she had a friend
As he saw me leap a hot-dog stand and a chariot that stood
And the sands will roll out a carpet of gold
It's a restless, hungry feeling and it don't mean no one no good
Down their ditches for a thousand years the sparkling water rushed
Silvio, silver and gold
Now, a very great man once said
If there's a traveller on this road, then let him have my load
But love grows old and waxes cold
He never had enough money to pay his room or board
So I'll make my stand
As I stand upon the sand
How many times can a man turn his head
Throw my letters in the sand 'cause you got to understand
I immediately tried to cool it with her dad
What I got ain't painful, it's just bound to kill me dead
But now something has changed
With a face that any painter would paint as he walked through the crowd
If there's a traveller on the road, then let him have my load
Now you don't act so--so proud
We'll drink tequila where our grandfathers stayed
Wish I was back in the city instead of this old bank of sand
Nobody has to guess that baby can't be blessed
There was no jewels, no nothing! I felt I've been had
So, when you see your neighbor carrying something, help him with his load
The changes I was going through can't even be used
With a penny knife that she held in her hand
And old homes, scenes of my childhood
Mr. Empire sits up as high as a bird
If you're making love to her, kiss for the kid
But hope's just a word that maybe you said and maybe you heard
Standing on the water, casting your bread
I want you, baby, just to understand
I stole away and cried, I stole away and cried
I can't help it if you might think I am odd
Now, the teen-preacher looked so baffled when I asked him why he dressed
In the darkness by the riverbed they waited on the ground
Then time will tell just who has fell and who's been left behind
Somebody seen him hanging around
Through the city's melted furnace, unexpectedly we watched
Now, Jack, he's gone a-sailing with trouble on his mind
When all the clowns that you have commissioned
The door to the dressing room burst open and a Colt revolver clicked
It's something you did
Now you don't seem so proud
I will not go down under the ground
Just surrender to God and He'll move you right here where you stand
"Oh, don't you see my own heart's blood
'Cause somebody tells me that death's coming 'round
For what you sold that's not been received
It's a restless, hungry feeling that don't mean no one no good
I waited for you on the running boards near the cypress tree while the springtime turned
It might be tough for a while, but consider the child
Maybe I'd'a done some good in the world
There's a million dreams gone, there's a landscape being raped
I run right home and I went to bed
When all - all of the bandits you have commissioned
And I turn my head back to the room where my love and I have laid
You used--be so proud
You used to be so amused
All the sweethearts you can hold
You hide in your mansion while the young people's blood
But there's violence in the eyes, girl, so let us not be enticed
In the fury of the moment I can see the master's hand
Then the padre will recite the prayers of old
Please get outta the new one if you can't lend a hand
In another lifetime, she must have owned the world or been faithfully wed
Well, I never been to heaven, but I've been told
Just like you always said, there was something about me you liked
We live in a political world
And they laid him down in the jail-house ground
And that the strings in the books ain't pulled and persuaded
Drink tequila where our grandfathers stayed
And you hide in your mansion while the young people's blood
Yes, and I just gotta tell you that I do intend
Yes, you got your steam drill, now you're looking for some kid
So, the mining gates locked and the red iron rotted
Nobody has to guess that a-baby can't be blessed
But something has changed
There ain't nothing in this world
There was no jewels, no nothing! I felt I'd been had
Once I had mountains in the palm of my hand
But you meant more than everything and I could not pretend
Turtle, that friend of hers with his checks all forged
Please get outta the new one if you can't lend your hand
Covenant woman got a contract with the Lord
I musta been mad, I never knew what I had
Well, he's hell-bent for destruction, he's afraid and confused
He was a clean-cut kid
"Well, I remember seeing some ad
Noticing not that I'd already slipped
The silent night will shatter from the sounds inside my mind
In the early morning rain with a dollar in my hand
I'll always thank the Lord
And now I stand here looking at your yellow railroad
You took my reality and cast it to the wind
Things would be different the next time we wed
Maybe someday you will understand
Just Louise and her lover so entwined
On the wheels of fire, but will offer no reward
Poor little chauffeur, though, she was back in bed
Its iron claws attached
And then you told me later as I apologized
And your trouble is you know it too good
The poor little chauffeur, though, she was back in bed
The savage soldier sticks his head in sand
He looked so baffled and so bewildered
Dreams where the umbrella is folded
The enemy is subtle: how be it we're deceived
And like a fool I mixed 'em and it strangled up my mind
Now, the roving gambler, he was very bored
You need the time to make amends and stay behind
I thought that it was well-understood
You got a lotta nerve to say you are my friend
But it's trapped on your tongue and sealed in your head
Roving gambler, he was very bored
The doors to your cage shall be decked with gold
Well, the last thing I remember before I stripped and kneeled
Seen the arrow on the door-post saying this land is condemned
My eyes collide head-on with stuffed
He wagged his tail and shook his head
'Cause I never had too much money and I never been quite satisfied
I had to say something to strike him very weird
A-nobody has to guess that baby can't be blessed
Hmm, but little they know, hmm, it's so hard to find
Then time will tell who has fell and who's been left behind
By no special friend
Did I lose my mind when I tried to get rid
But all that suffering was not to be compared
Down here next to me in this lonely crowd
While some, on principles baptized
Well, I'll do anything in this God-Almighty world
Yes, and I just gotta tell you I do intend
And I'll watch while you're lowered down to your deathbed
You try so hard, but you don't understand
I'll give you more gold than your apron can hold
Then, onward in my journey, I come to understand
Yes, I'll do anything in this God-Almighty world
Now, he's hell-bent for destruction, he's afraid and confused
Now, you know, nothing was delivered
Yes, and how many times must a man turn his head
Either from the mountains of Madrid
I can't help it if you might think that it's odd
He look so righteous while your face is so changed
And into the path you are hurled
I's out there painting on the old woodshed
With your holy medallion in your fingertips now that fold
It's getting dark, too dark to see
Well, it's all new to me
The constant scapegoat, she was easily undone
Three bodies lying there does Patty see
And her silver-studded phantom cause
The crashing waves roll over me
I owe my heart to you and that's saying it true
What's probably got you baffled more
I rode with him in a taxi once
What about that millionaire
Now, his nurse, some local loser, she's in charge of the cyanide hole
Maybe someday you will look back and see
King Kong, little elves in the rooftops, they dance
How was I to know you'd be the one
I don't know if I'm smart, but I think I can see
As soon as you're awake, you're trained to take
Took a stranger to teach me to look into justice's beautiful face
"It's only you that he does crave
And the names of the heroes I was made to memorize
It's turned away from the door to wander some more
Yet he walked right into the clubhouse of his lifelong, deadly foe
All I feel is heat and flame
In the days of old, in the days of gold, how ofttimes I repine
Why wait any longer for the one you love
And suddenly there appeared before me
She should've caught me in my prime, she would've stayed with me
"Well, I thought when I was there, Lord, what am I doing here
Got killed by a blow, lay slain by a cane
And the boat drifts onto the shoreline
Feel to moan, but unlike before
So I look like a walking mountain range
But I wouldn't feel too all alone
Oh, the farmers and the businessmen, they all did decide
City fathers, they're trying to endorse
I do declare
When that steamboat whistle blows, I'm gonna give you all I got to give
Beauty walks on a razor's edge, someday I'll make it mine
I don't even notice she gone
To show you something you seen before
And his holdings are in Texas and his name is Diamond Joe
Beauty walks a razor's edge, someday I'll make it mine
For you've only the lend of them as I suppose
Suddenly I'm like crawled up in my side
And I would send a message
For making your prayers known unto heaven for me
Hunger pays a heavy price
I'm ready for to fade
What you're gonna say when you get home
Tuba players now rehearse around the flagpole
The air is thick and heavy all along the levee
You could almost think that you're seeing double
Some pretty, little girl in Cornersville
But, when the shadowy sun sets on the one
I'm sure you're the one to blame
Don't even remember what her lips felt like on mine
Nor is it my intentions to sound a battle charge
They say that patriotism is the last refuge
We see this empty cage now corrode
No, no, no, it ain't me, babe
Should I put them by your gate
Are free to drink martinis and watch the sun rise
Don't hurt me none, it don't hurt my pride
From the crossroads of my doorsteps my eyes, they begin to fade
Should I leave them by your gate
And if you hear vague traces of skipping reels of rhyme
If your memory serves you well, you'll remember you're the one
He was well connected, but her heart was a snare
Like a slave in orbit, he's beaten till he's tame
Just being next to you is a natural thing for me
Well, they take him and they teach him and they groom him for life
I see the hungry clouds up above your face
First, we wash our feet near the immortal shrine
I'm an old boll weevil looking for a home
Says it's closing time
Then sends out for the doctor, who pulls down the shade
And like Pharaoh's tribe they'll be drownded in the tide
The ghost of 'lectricity howls in the bones of her face
She been gone
And I'll never know the same about you, your holiness, or your kind of love
And the dirt of gossip blows into my face
Found a note she'd left behind, but he could not concentrate
And I ain't complaining none
I gaze into the doorway of temptation's angry flame
Breaking hearts up and down the line
At dawn my lover comes to me
But I can get another one
The driver peeks out, trying to find one face
To give the special one you seek a chance
Smoke gets in your eyes, you draw the smile
With no attempts to shovel the glimpse
But the first it bent and then it broke
"That I might be gone a long, old time
I been wondering all about me
And the names of the heroes I's made to memorize
And that is that one must always flush out his house
While them that defend what they cannot see
I said, "Sometime, not all the time." Then my neighbor, he blew his nose
If dogs run free, why not me
With the mystery tramp, but now you realize
You into thinking you're the one
Frog went a-courting and a-he did ride
If you're looking to get silly, you better go back to from where you came
Now, when the captain, he heard the news, well, he too fell in a rage
While one who sings with his tongue on fire
Got a long, black feeling and it's hard to trace
This old airport's got me down, it's no earthly good to me
I have seen you standing in the smoky haze
Where I could watch her waltz for free
The city fathers, they're trying to endorse
You smiling through the fence at me
And through the roar and smoke the string, it finally broke
In the clearing stands a boxer and a fighter by his trade
The same hand that led me through seas most severe
Saying, "Take good care of your daddy while I'm gone
If dogs run free, why not we
Just then a bolt of lightning struck the courthouse out of shape
Yes, and how many ears must one man have
The gypsy's door was open wide, but the gypsy was gone
Knows there's no success like failure
You'll never know the hurt I suffered, nor the pain I'd rise above
Just for a while 'cause they know it's in style
Little did I realize
I can survive and I can endure
In the days of old, in the days of gold, how oftentimes I repine
She dropped a coin into the cup of a blind man at the gate
At the corrida we'll sit in the shade
On the rising curve
Con you into thinking that you're the one
That called on me to call on them to get you your favors done
But I learned to accept it, accept it with pride
I can't recall a useful thing you ever did for me
Remember me to one who lives there
He tried his best to talk, but his mouth could hardly move
When you're lagging behind and losing your pace
You cannot depend on it to be your guide
"Oh, father, you will surely die
Well, sometimes you're as sweet as anybody wanna be
Yep, she promised that she'd be right there with me
I am homeless, come and take me
You should be made to be wearing a telephone
There were times when I was so lonesome
Throw my troubles out the door, I don't need them anymore
She dropped a coin into the cup above a blind man at the gate
One evening for pleasure I rambled to view the fair fields all alone
Now, they take him and they teach him and they groom him for life
Remember me to the one who lives there
Looking at hands for the lines that were
And you see why it's so unique to be
I was listening to the voices of death on parade
So up she picked her babies three
When Reilly's daughter got a message
Now, I got a friend who spends his life
One look at his face showed the hard road he'd come
For they're deep and they're wide and the world's on its side
I got to know, babe: will you surround me
That she's the same one
Limited in sex they dare
Then they bring them to the factory where the heart-attack machine
Taking care of somebody nice
Breaking a-hearts up and down the line
So happy just to be alive underneath the sky of blue
You'll know all about it, love, it'll fit you like a glove
And he always is blessed with a charming, young wife
While Arthur Dexter Bradley's still in the robbery game
Yeah, but I wouldn't feel too all alone
You'll never know the hurt I've suffered, nor the pain I'd rise above
And handed out strongly for penalty and repentance
When the rain is blowing in your face
Wasn't looking for any special assistance
Me with my belt wrapped around my head and you just sitting there
The pangs of your sadness will pass as your senses will rise
And the Negro's name
But, as he turned to leave, he called his mother close
Just pick anyone
From all the plans they do pursue
It's all new to me
Push fake morals, insult, and stare
A bed that is never mine
"Oh, daughter, oh, daughter, your body I will confine
Lies that life is black-and-white
There's lots of pretty girls in Mozambique
Gypsy queens will play your grand finale
You'll know everything I know down below and up above
So happy just to see you smile underneath the sky of blue
Way down in yonder shady grove a man of high degree
From the start by the rule
Is strapped across their shoulders and then the kerosene
And never sat once at the head of the table
But I'm too over the edge and I ain't in the mood anymore
Well, I gave to you my heart, my bed, and treasure
Well, I've heard newborn babies wailing like a mourning dove
With your sheets like metal and your belt like lace
Though its shadow's metal badge
Who just cleaned up all the food from the table
Looking at his hands for the lines that were
But I can't say I sympathize
So I remember every face
I've heard newborn babies wailing like a mourning dove
And here I sit so patiently waiting to find out what price
But the dark does die
I's taught and brought up there the laws to abide
Well, there was this movie I seen one time
They say don't come back no more
Then you better start swimming or you'll sink like a stone
It's a mighty long ways from the Golden Gate
Suddenly I turned around and she was standing there
So, I called up the operator of time
Mona tried to tell me
She plunged him into well water where
Come gather 'round, friends, and I'll tell you a tale
For the lies that I told her in hope not to lose
Blue moon, now, I'm no longer alone
And after a rocking, reeling, rolling ride
From the crossroads of my doorstep my eyes begin to fade
I was standing on the steps feeling most alone
You just pick anyone
Suddenly I turned around, she was standing there
And it ain't on that dim-lit stage
Well, the last I heard of Arab, he was stuck on a whale
Who carried the dishes and took out the garbage
You said you'd never compromise
The cause was there before we came
Puts his both hands in the pockets of chance
The bakery truck stops outside of that fence
Now, when the other sailors heard the news, well, they fell into a rage
Till one morning's wake the bed, it was bare
"Well, are you weeping for your house and home
While his genocide fools and his friends rearrange
It'll be with me unto the grave
It was raining from the first and I was dying there of thirst, so I came in here
You know, it's not even safe no more
Oh, the French girl, she's in paradise
Well, six white horses that you did promise
See the primitive wallflower freeze
Let me know, babe, all about my fortune
When the roses fade
From the crossroads of my doorstep my eyes start to fade
Among the lovely people living free
And wrap it up in a sailor's knot and hide it in your case
You cut to the core
And plenty time for good romance
She knows there's no success like failure
But I can't think for you, you'll have to decide
A thousand miles from home and he never harmed no one
A girl who would murder her own, true love
The man the authorities came to blame
You say you're looking for someone
"For a soldier, he leads a very fine life
But it won't be over till they clear his name
Princess on the steeple and all pretty people
If dogs run free, then what must be
Full of hope and desire
With all memory and fate
He'll see by his grave
To push fake morals, insult, and stare
If your memory serves you well, I was going to confiscate your lace
The geometry of innocent flesh on the bone
Up into some paradise
Where the trout streams flow and the air is nice
What good am I then to others and me
Better stay away from those
There's a babe in the arms of a woman in a rage
By His power I've been lifted, in His love I am secure
One thing for sure: there ain't no cure
Smoke is in your eyes, you draw a smile
All hazards and dangers we barter on chance
But I feel nothing for their game
Redeemed men who have escaped from the noose
How many ears must one man have
As he rises to fame
And I'm just the same as anyone else
And a longtime, golden-haired stripper onstage
When I'm all alone
All my powers of expression and thoughts so sublime
Then you're gone and then all I seem to recall is the smell of perfume
Most of the time I can't even be sure
Got the message this morning, the one that was sent to me
Waiting to find out what price
I was born and brought up there all the laws to abide
You're not free to belong to me
From the Golden Gate Bridge
Just what you will say when you get home
Man thinks, 'cause he rules the earth, he can do with it as he please
And your deck of cards missing the jack and the ace
Oh, can't you see that you were born to stand by my side
Took a hold of my sweetheart and away we did drive
I peeked behind the picture frame
The tall, dark man who rode by his side
Leaving men wholly, totally free
Say he outta step with reality as you try to test his nerve
Puts both of his hands in the pockets of chance
I'm gonna grow my hair down to my feet so strange
Everybody's wearing a disguise
It was all very, very painless when you ran out to receive
I waited in the hallway, she went to get it, and I tried to make sense
There's a neon light ablaze in a green, smoky haze
There was someone in my body that I could hardly see
Blue moon, you saw me standing alone
I've been wondering all about me
Rather be in some lonely hollow where the sun don't ever shine
Graveyards, false goals, I scuff
When she said, "Don't waste your words, they're just lies," I cried she was deaf
Graveyards and false goals, I scuff
Trust yourself
Everybody sees hisself
I know you're gonna think this song is just a riff
Oh, trust yourself
It's not a bad way to make a living
The battle outside raging
By this time I'd'a thought that I would be sleeping
But then a whistle will be blowing
The seasons, they are turning and my sad heart is yearning
And my schooling was cut as I quit in the spring
And the sands on the shoreline will be shaking
May you build a ladder to the stars and climb on every rung
I know that you know that I know that you show something
Oh, your love comes on so strong and I've waited all day long
But the soldiers on our convict ship were full five hundred strong
Well, the moral of the story, the moral of this song
Deceived me into thinking
And I'll know the wind blows snowing
Where the time and the tempo drag
They're drinking up and walking
Every time I think about him now, lord, I just can't keep from crying
Hey, hey, Woody Guthrie, I wrote you a song
Oh, the lines are long and the fighting is strong
Now, every boy and girl's gonna get their bang
With your childhood flames on your midnight rug
The drag lines and the shovels, they was humming
It was known all around that Lily had Jim's ring
It sets my a-heart a-reeling
Oh, the gentlemen are talking
When the sad, silent song made the hour twice as long
I've escaped death so many times I know I'm only living
Yes, and only if my own true love was waiting
And there's no telling a-who that it's naming
Please see for me if her hair's hanging long
Through a bullet of light her face was reflecting
She said, "I know what you're thinking, but there ain't a thing
She wakes him up forty-eight hours later, the sun is breaking
Man was saying something 'bout children when they're young
I glanced at my guitar and played it, pretending
And swear-words and sneering and his tongue, it was a-snarling
'Cause the battle outside raging
Oftentimes he could be seen returning
And you can't-you remember for the best of your thinking
I'd forever talk to you, but soon my words, they would turn into a meaningless ring
There's nothing in here moving
At a Baltimore hotel society gathering
And the seagulls, they'll be a-smiling
Early in the morning, early in the morning
I can hear their hearts a-beating
And the cards are no good that you're holding
Well, he rode all night till the broad daylight till he came to a river raging
But it's like I'm stuck inside a painting
Wedding bells ring and angels sing
For your weary toes to be touching
Every time I hear his name, lord, I just can't keep from crying
Beyond here lies nothing
Done laid around, done stayed around this old town too long
A-there's a-nothing in here that's a-moving
For one thing for certain, you will surely be a-hurting
'Cause sometimes you hear 'em when the night times come creeping
Well, I set my monkey on the log
As I look around this world, all that I'm finding
And the shoreline sands will be shaking
Oh, yes, I've done laid around, done stayed around this old town too long
You left me standing in the doorway crying
May your heart always be joyful and may your song always be sung
You say to yourself, "Just what am I doing
And the room smelled heavy from drinking
And swear-words and sneering and his tongue, it was snarling
Well, this silk dress is from Hong Kong
Only yesterday I know that you've been flirting
And there's no telling who that it's naming
The order is rapidly fading
And the sounds of the night, they made my ears ring
For your weary toes to be a-touching
My faith keeps me alive, but I still be weeping
If I was with her too long
She rode by night and came by morning
What am I saying? What am I knowing
The order is a-rapidly fading
And the seagulls, they'll be smiling
But, oh, what a wonderful feeling
But I know that you know that I know that you show something
And I know that you know that I know that you show something
I'm singing you the song, but I can't sing enough
The ship is waiting and the wind blows high
You go north and you go south
And how I know I'll make it through
Look out, the saints are coming through
I coulda stopped it in the eighth
The fishes will laugh as they swim out of the path
And you figured you failed in yesterday's rush
I have fallen far beneath
Can they imagine the darkness that will fall from on high
Then she told us how times were tough
When you were faked out and fooled while facing a four flush
Oh, the fishes will laugh as they swim out of the path
Girls' faces formed the forward path
In the wee hours of youth, my mother took sick
Now, I didn't mean to be nosy, but I went into a bank
Disillusioned words like a-bullets bark
One time in London I'd gone out for a walk
Mercury rules you and destiny fools you like the plague with a dangerous wink
"And I could not help but think through the thunder-rolling stink
Six big horses and a rubber-tired hack
And me, I nearly got busted - and wouldn't it be my luck
But it's all been done before, it's all been written in the book
Betrayed by a kiss on a cool night of bliss in the valley of a missing link
Then the Greek appears on the second floor in his bare feet with a rope around his neck
Her voice once and talk
You know you can't keep her and the water gets deeper that is leading you onto the brink
Fools making laws for the breaking of jaws and the sound of the keys as they clink
The man in me will do nearly any task
You fight for the throne and you travel alone, unknown as you slowly sink
Oh, these costly beads around my neck
But they caught him and they brought him back
When the ship all of a sudden, it sprung a leak
Make everything from toy guns that spark
Who walks up to you when he hears you speak
Who immediately walks up to you when he hears you speak
But the magician is quicker and his game is much thicker than blood and blacker than ink
It can pierce through dust no matter how thick
Now, the only thing a gambler needs is a suitcase and a trunk
You glance through the mirror and there's eyes staring clear at the back of your head as you drink
Twilight on the frozen lake, a north wind about to break
Till a man come to speak and he said in one week
Well, there ain't no going back
The only decent thing I did when I worked as a postal clerk
You turn around to take a final peek
There's a noose at his neck and a gun at his back
Past a place called Hyde Park where people talk
Shoot in the back
Disillusioned words like bullets bark
And remember when you're out there trying to heal the sick
He looked into her eyes when she stopped him to ask
I wish she'd unlock
Well, Frankie Lee, he trembled. He soon lost all control
All and all can only fall
No man alive will come to you with another tale to tell
Muttering small talk at the wall
And to think of how she left that night it still brings me a chill
But I didn't pay the Con Ed bill
"Well, I rung the fallout shelter bell
We had a falling-out like lovers often will
Then why don't she tell
To make all that should be killed to crawl
And if my love is real
I'm gazing out the window of the St. James Hotel
Come 'round, you roving gamblers, and a story I will tell
Oh, how does it feel
How does it feel
And, sure as hell, you're bound to tell
She fell in love with a sailor boy, it's true she loved him well
As his fist, it hit the icebox, he said he's gonna kill
As the last fire-truck from hell
I chased me a woman up the hill
There's no one to write to the blue-eyed girl
National Bank is selling road-maps to the soul
Now, he worships at an altar of a stagnant pool
I see the trembling lion with lotus flower tail
Beneath his boundaries - what more if I can tell
But among the dead that were left on the hill
Can be seen in the eyes of those that call
But me, I expected it to happen, I knew he'd lost control
Gather 'round, you people, and a story I will tell
There was a little boy and there was a little girl
Let every state in this union seep deep down in your soul
A-how does it feel
Listen to the engine, listen to the bell
I'll go to some hollow and sit at my still
And the National Bank at a profit sells road-maps to the soul
You're a hard worker, baby, but I know you well
How many seas must a white dove sail
He's sure got a lot of gall
Ring bell, hard to tell
Well, I don't figure I'll be back there for a spell
Because my dreams are made of iron and steel
You find Woody Guthrie in Brooklyn State Hospital
Therefore, I remain at my service and go through all my hardship and toil
They ask me how I feel
Yeah, but if I die on top of the hill
Ring bar, hard to tell
How many seas must the white dove sail
Don't stand in the doorway, don't block up the hall
To show that all's equal and that the courts are on the level
I traveled through East Texas where many martyrs fell
He's taught in his school
About a brave, young Indian you should remember well
And the National Bank at a profit sells road-maps for the soul
Just a little glimpse of a story I'll tell
William Zantzinger killed poor Hattie Carroll
Two doors down the boys finally made it through the wall
Well, if I die on top of the hill
There soon came a horrible, dying yell
In the courtroom of honor the judge pounded his gavel
Soul to soul our shadows roll
Well, he worships at an altar of a stagnant pool
A girl by the whirlpool
But I can hear another drum
With rich, wealthy parents who provide and protect him
Gypsy gal, the hands of Harlem
See for me if she's wearing her coat so warm
And that is that there's a certain way we all must swim
"For you cannot relive them
You better not chew gum
My pulse is running through my palm, the sharp hills are rising from
So, one morning when the sun was warm
With half-damp eyes I stared to the room
But then the crowd began to stamp their feet and the house lights a-did dim
Mr. Hudson come a-sailing down the stream
There's a white-diamond gloom on the dark side of this room
And remain as I am
For I can blow my plum and break my rum
But, with the sea at your feet and the phony false alarm
And the cops was called in and his weapon took from him
You drift away on a summer's day where the wildflowers bloom
Lay down your weary tune, lay down, lay down the song you strum
Now, they asked me to read a poem
Moonlight on the water, fisherman's daughter looking in to my room
The gray-flannel dwarf to scream
Now, there's a certain thing that I learned from Jim
Two eyes took the aim
Once that the cops have chased after and caught 'em
But the next time I looked there was light in the room
Well, the chance is against it and the odds are slim
You'll look back sometime when the lights grow dim
She speaks good English and she invites you up into her room
I am hanging in the balance of the reality of man
There was an old man and he lived in the moon
Some beautiful day I'll meet 'em in heaven
His clothes are dirty, but his a-hands are clean
Have died in battle or in vain
The sea may freeze and the earth may burn
I don't even care if I ever see her again
The ones that jump on the wagon
Shall I stay, would it be a sin
She'll be standing on the bar soon with a fish-head and a harpoon
Why did you trade heaven
I'll follow your casket on the pale afternoon
In the empty lot where the ladies play blindman's bluff with the key-chain
I'll be waiting at the station
To my knowledge there's just one man
Well, the funniest woman I ever seen
There is a house down in New Orleans they call the Rising Sun
But all their daughters put me down
Well, you fake just like a woman
Number one contender for the middleweight crown
As you sit on the box you keep him in
"Not me," said the gambling man
Till I gaze back to the streets, the sidewalks, and the sign
And some dark night when everything is silent in the town
I come back to the town from the flaming moon
But me, I expected it to happen
What with three babies born, the work was cut down
Had no idea what kind of shit was about to go down
Try to steal back your numbness, all your pain
Must meet the dawn
The harmonicas play the skeleton keys in the rain
Darkness at the break of noon
He just stood there staring at that big house as bright as any sun
You take just like a woman
To remember the times when I was your only man
Pointed threats, they bluff with scorn
I am hanging in the balance of a perfect, finished plan
But the post office has been stolen
I wish-I wish-I wish in vain
And there's no exit in any direction
"I can't get down and I shan't get down
And don't speak too soon for the wheel's still in spin
She takes just like a woman
It certainly was possible as the gay night wore on
And the fire in the air, it felt frozen
She picked him up all in her arms and carried him to town
But you were closer to me than my next of kin
We'll just put some bleachers out in the sun
I can see the day coming when even your home garden
Will not be understood as they're spoken
Please don't let on a-that you knew me when
Plays wasted words, it proves to warn
Well, I wish that I could write you a melody so plain
I will follow your casket on the pale afternoon
I did a somersault as I seen him get his gun
In the finest of clothing he's constantly seen
That could ease you and cool you and cease the pain
Well, I keep seeing this stuff and it just comes a-rolling in
And the smell of their roses does not remain
Here's to the hearts and the hands of the men
In this earthly domain, full of disappointment and pain
She got such a sweet disposition
For the loser now might be later to win
The foreign sun, it squints upon
Come to the door, he couldn't get in
Have beat out your destruction or your pain
I wish I could write you a melody so plain
But I swear I see my reflection
Well, meet me in the middle of the ocean
She said that all the railroad men
Don't speak too soon for the wheel's still in spin
They bragged about her son with his uniform and gun
Are they lost or are they found? Have they counted the cost it'll take to bring down
If my hands are tied, must I not wonder within
From heights that they could not gain
Two-wheeled, gypsy queen
For the loser now will be later to win
Well, the crowd gathered one fine morn
As they rode him in custody down to the station
Where the home in the valley meets the damp, dirty prison
Well, Frankie Lee, he sat back down, feeling low and mean
And she aches just like a woman
And I hear her name a-here and there as I go from town to town
How can the life of such a man
There was little to say, there was no conversation
I wander around from town to town just like a roving sign
But only twenty-seven lived to walk back down that hill again
His clothes are dirty, but his--his hands are clean
Ease you and cool you and cease the pain
The next morning she had awoken
You could be known as the most beautiful woman
I've heard the tongues of angels and the tongues of men
All lay down their bandanas and complain
Trying to get a lead on
At the peak of the night the king and the queen
Poor boy in a red-hot town
In the pigpen
Nothing we can call our own
The number one contender for the middleweight crown
And the corner sign
I wandered again to my home in the mountain
Hollis Brown, he lived on the outside of town
You need something to make it known
How many roads must a man walk down
In ceremonies of the horsemen
My heart's in the Highlands at the break of dawn
And you ache a-just like a woman
Stop this weeping, this useless pain
Yes, and someone must explain
All their daughters put me down
Advertising signs that con
But it's hard to think on
Well, Frankie Lee, he panicked. He dropped everything and ran
Yes, and I just got to thank you once again
I figure maybe we're even
And I gaze back to the streets, the sidewalks, and the sign
If the wind got you sideways with one hand holding on
Somebody new to beat on
Oh, Howard just pointed with his gun
Oh, how can I explain? It's so hard to get on
Farewell, Angelina, the bells of the crown
Well, the only thing that makes me laugh again
Uncle Rat went running downtown
You didn't trust me for a minute, babe, I've never known the spring to turn
But the second mom was with the seventh son
Their religion of the little ten women
Suicide remarks are torn
Just waiting for a chance to slip and drop down
I can snap my fingers and require the rain
But the second mother was with the seventh son
Billy, don't it make you feel so low-down
Sold my guitar to the baker's son
Causes Galileo's math book to get thrown
And she wakes just like a woman
I put all my confidence in Him, my sole protection
Have died - have died in battle or in vain
"Not me," says the gambling man
Out of the shower comes a football man
And the ship's wise men will remind you once again
And I hear her name here and there as I go from town to town
'Steada stopping when we could, we went right on
My love, she's like some raven
But I see through your eyes and I see through your brain
But Eden is burning: either get ready for elimination
You don't need a weatherman
There is a house in New Orleans they call the Rising Sun
He got that fortress on the mountain
And all their daughters put me down
Well, looking for a woman that ain't got no man
A-she takes just like a woman
A lonesome freight at six o' eight coming on through the town
From the fool's gold mouthpiece, the hollow horn
Plays wasted words, proves to warn
And you're so kind and careful not to go to her too soon
One day he fell in a prospect hole in a roaring, bad design
I can hear that hot-blooded singer on the bandstand croon
That long, black train is pulling down
Well, I'm hanging on
That long, black train is pulling on down
How she told me that one day we would meet up again
Guns and clubs followed him down
Please don't let on that you knew me when
And I gaze back to the street, the sidewalk, and the sign
Temptation's not an easy thing, Adam given the devil reign
She told me about the jungle where her brothers were slain
Yet I swear I see my reflection
'Cause I don't be like they'd like me to
Tell 'em--everybody down in old Frisco
There is a place you go
It's very nice to stay a week or two
Silvio, I gotta go
Every place I wanna go
All I really wanna do
Build me a boat that can carry two
Well, when all your - all the bandits that you turn your other cheek to
And the riot squad, they're restless, they need somewhere to go
Now, there's a man you'll hear about most anywhere you go
Oh, baby, but that god that you been praying to
And ain't in the ones that ain't got any talent but think they do
You would not think to look at him, but he was famous long ago
The very last thing that I'd want to do
And the only sound that's left after the ambulances go
There's nothing you can say or do
Is brought down from the castles by insurance men who go
All I'd like you to do
When you're lost in the rain in Juarez and it's Easter-time too
Oh, if I had a flask of gin and sugar here for two
Now, when all of the bandits that you turned your other cheek to
Well, it's by and by I'll slip my chains, into the bush I'll go
And a man's gonna do what he has to do
With unseen consciousness I possessed in my grip
Now, for recreation we went on a tramp
What's good is bad, what's bad is good, you find out when you reach the top
What good am I while you softly weep
And I wait for them to interrupt me drinking from this broken cup
Now the beach is deserted except for some kelp
Oh, the time will come up when the winds will stop
Well, the marshal, now, he beat that kid to a bloody pulp
Madame Butterfly, she lulled me to sleep
I walked down there and ended up
Aladdin and his lamp
Man in the coon-skin cap
What's good is bad, what's bad is good, you'll find out when you reach the top
And we met Sergeant Napper and Corporal Vamp
Oh, the shepherd is asleep where the willows weep
Well, up the stairs ran Frankie Lee with a soulful, bounding leap
The drunken politician leaps upon the street where mothers weep
And I wait for them to interrupt me drinking from my broken cup
And I hear in my head what you say in your sleep
Thinking of you when the sun comes up
Wait for them to interrupt me drinking from this broken cup
Yes, and how many times must a man look up
Make your money while you can before you have to stop
How many times must a man look up
The man in the coon-skin cap
When the evening shadows and the stars appear
Well, the streets--the face of God will soon appear
You'd never know it to look at him, but in the final shot he won the war
I say, "Why you say that for
For all eternity I think I will remember
Who came here from Cuba's door
But, if you think I'll let Barry Goldwater
His face was all grounded in the cold sidewalk floor
I could feel a whole lot better
But she just makes it all too concise and too clear
When only you are near
So, don't fear if you hear
I can't stay in here - ain't it clear
Still I say her love-words over
She took him by his long, yellow hair
Well, my Ruthie said come see her
Like criminals they have choked the breath of conscience and good cheer
But it's just making me blinder and blinder
For I am married to a house carpenter
In one I was running and in another
And crashed through the window at a hundred miles an hour
You need a cyclone wind on a steam engine howler
With a cane that he twirled 'round his diamond ring finger
I don't have to go far
I close my eyes and I wonder
When you whispered in my ear
"Peace will come with tranquility and the splendor
At any moment you could go under
If I can't come in here, baby, then just let me sit down in your door
The wind howls like a hammer
"Go tell my companion and children most dear
As the tune finally folded, I laid down the guitar
He didn't know it, he never thought it could be done, but in the final shot he'd won the war
Were we slandered, babe? Did we follow a star
The face of God will appear
I was down in the sewer with some little lover
Never no more do I wonder
Then you set back and watch when the death-count gets higher
This time tomorrow I'll know you better
I'd just be curious to know if you can see yourself as clear
She could feel my despair as I climbed up her hair
Gonna sleep down in the parlor
Oh, no, I don't need any reminder
Still I've always kind of missed her
You didn't know it, you didn't think it could be done, in the final end he won the war
I can hear your trembling heart beat like a river
"The tempest may howl and the loud thunder roar
Seem like every time you turn around there's another hard-luck story that you're gonna hear
Still, a man hears what he wants to hear
The only thing we knew for sure about Henry Porter
The water is wide and I can’t cross over
And Ezra Pound and T.S. Eliot fighting in the captain's tower
My ship is in the harbor
All you boys better run for cover
"Forsake, forsake your house carpenter
I could be dreaming, but I keep believing you're the one I'm living for
The vagabond who's rapping at your door
I've been wading through the high, muddy water
You heard me saying a prayer for
The camouflage parrot, he flutters from fear
So sleep with one eye open when you wonder
But morning is clear
And I don't even think about her
Alone you stand with nobody near
"Young man, I will tell you a secret: it's true I'm a maid that is poor
When the weak and the strong and the rich and the poor
The lover who has just walked out your door
Yes, and how many deaths will it take till he knows
I can still see the shells falling out of their hands
And so Patty calls the cops
Will soon shake your windows and rattle your walls
And ain't in the marshmallow noises or the chocolate-cake voices
People carry roses
While Calypso-singers laugh at them and fishermen hold flowers
But the cardboard-filled windows and old men on the benches
You should be made to wear earphones
As you stare into the vacuum of his eyes
A bald wig for Jack the Ripper, who sits
Answers of emptiness, voice vacancies
Don't wear sandals
I see a lot of people as I make the rounds
Romantic facts of musketeers
Down over the window come the dazzling, sunlit rays
Glide across the lonely years
Drinking man listens to the voice he hears
I was thinking of a series of dreams
Girl by the whirlpool's
Reacted to his deed with a shrug of his shoulders
Ghost of Belle Starr, she hands down her wits
True love can make a blade of grass
You come to my eyes like a vision from the skies
Thought I'd seen some ups and downs
I try to tell it like it is
Her window's wide open, African trees
Upon four-legged forest-clouds
It'll soon shake your windows and rattle your walls
And without further notice he asks you how it feels
And I told you as you clawed out my eyes
Machine guns are roaring, puppets heave rocks
In the wild, cathedral evening the rain unraveled tales
He crosses himself and then he clicks his high heels
You know, the streets are filled with vipers
In the dime-stores and bus-stations
My money comes and goes and rolls and throws and rolls and flows
Nothing really matters much, it's doom alone that counts
The empty-handed painter from your streets
I can't hear the echo of my footsteps
So, when Frankie Lee needed money one day, Judas quickly pulled out a roll of tens
Joey and his brothers suffered terrible defeats
And tells me of her dreams
You never turned around to see the frowns
You think you'll find a heaven of bliss
We living in times when men commit crimes
Now, you must provide some answers
And I laugh in the face of what sorrow brings
Well, my parents, they warned me not to waste my years
I have squandered my resistance for a pocketful of mumbles, such are promises
You know that he has no intentions
And some of us'll stand to meet you on your crossroads
You can fall down on your knees
I'd forsake them all for your sweet kiss
With your silhouette when the sunlight dims
Where the false idols fall and cruel death surrenders
As the curtain is drawn and somebody's eyes
And the poor white remains
Renegade priests and treacherous, young witches
Wants eleven dollar bills
He got an all-girl orchestra and, when he says
We scarce gave them time to draw their own blades
And then complains
But nothing really matters much, it's doom alone that counts
Well, Shakespeare, he's in the alley with his pointed shoes and his bells
The ghost of Belle Starr, she hands down her wits
Electric light still struck like arrows, fired but for the ones
You put a gun in my hand and you hide from my eyes
And every bit of dust in the Oklahoma plains
Bald wig for Jack the Ripper, who sits
As friends and other strangers
And your Spanish manners and your mother's drugs
Thinking of a series of dreams
People on the platforms
Where the earth is strung with lovers' pearls
Don't follow leaders
A song will lift as the mainsail shifts
And neither will take it from snappy, young brats
Six-time users
As the rain rattled heavy on the bunk-house shingles
They whisper in the wings
And the princess and the prince discuss
Rose Marie, she likes to go to big places
And without further notice asks you how it feels
To the cutting of fences
How can I ever stand it, just to see them two blue eyes
Well, the ragman draws circles
"Not me," said the man whose fists
Oh, the tree of life is growing where the spirit never dies
William Zantzinger, who at twenty-four years
Good and bad, I define these terms
Rolling, high-and-mighty traps
Seven days
She had come away from a broken home, had lots of strange affairs
On the back of the fish truck that loads
But lately I see her ribbons and her bows
And your father, to your sister he explains
When your mother sends back all your invitations
"But," says Arthur, "I wouldn't be proud of your clothes
Oh, the foes will rise with the sleep still in their eyes
Horseplay and disease is killing me by degrees
Sits with Utopian hermit-monks
Strange how people who suffer together have stronger connections
To Jezebel, the nun, she violently knits
So I forced my hands in my pockets and felt with my thumbs
For the flowers of the city, though breath-like, get death-like sometimes
Oh, you never turned around to see the frowns
We obligingly asked if they wanted recruits
Life is in mirrors, death disappears
With your mercury mouth in the missionary times
I'd gladly confess
And inside it with the people made of molasses
And your eyes like smoke and your prayers like rhymes
The morning train was moving, the humming of its wheels
At times I think there are no words
The night aimed shadows through the crossbar windows
To sharpen the senses
"I got forty red, white, and blue shoestrings
My last deal gone down, she's smelling sweet like the meadows
The cowboy angel rides
With his faithful slave Pedro behind him he tramps
Uncle Rat laughed and he shook his fat sides
I struggled to my feet, I rode past destruction in the ditches
Cinderella, she seems so easy. "It takes one to know one," she smiles
Well, now, time passed and now it seems
Well, the ghost of Belle Starr, she hand down her wits
For the flowers of the city, though breath-like, get death-like at times
And I try to harmonize with songs
You been hurt so many times
You know, this shirt I wear comes from the Philippines
And your sun-decked desert and evergreen valleys
He's not selling any alibis
You have many contacts all among the lumberjacks
To memorizing politics
You have many contacts out there among the lumberjacks
And you can't find it either in the no-talent fools
I wish that for just one time you could stand inside my shoes
I've been to Babylon and I got to confess
With a fantastic collection of stamps
You have many contacts among the lumberjacks
I just make it down to Rose Marie's
And without further notice he tells you how it feels
With a big bouquet of the roses
Well, you never turned around to see the frowns
That it's you and no one else that owns
I decided to flip a coin, like either heads or tails
Six-time losers
Mama, you know, awaits the news
Ring them bells from the sanctuaries cross the valleys and streams
But, though the masters make the rules
From the poverty shacks, he looks from the cracks to the tracks
You stare into the vacuum of his eyes
Statues made of matchsticks
What good am I if I say foolish things
Plowed furrows of death through the toiling ranks
In the dimestores and bus-stations
Drinking man listen to the voice he hears
And, though the masters make the rules
Now all the criminals in their coats and their ties
There was someone on a platform talking to the folks
The dead will arise and burst out of your clothes
More frailer than the flowers, these precious hours
"Not me," says the man whose fists
I left Rome and landed in Brussels
But still remains
Let us pause in life's pleasures and count its many tears
I let it slip gladly to my friends
How many deaths will it take till he knows
Fortune calls, I step forth from the shadows
I'm gonna let you pass
I'll take you to where the green grass grows
Nobody's ever taught you how to live out on the street
The slow one now will later be fast
You used to laugh about
I got into the driver's seat
Talking that the heat put
Yes, and how many years can a mountain exist
It don't take too long to find out
Yes, and how many years can some people exist
You're gonna get hit
Everyone still talks about
And soon the situation there was all but straightened out
Now the undertaker in his midnight suit
Well, I finally started thinking straight
As a bad motorcycle with the devil in the seat
I think of her often and hope whoever she's met
And, since my feet are now fast
I shook his hand and said goodbye, ran out to the street
Johnny's in the basement
God said, "You can do what you want, Abe, but
Oh, the leaves began to falling and the seas began to part
And I'm left alone in my misery like some old, poor, wandering ghost
Keep it in your mind and not forget
Well, early in the morning till late at night
With your pockets well protected at last
Grandma said, "Boy, go and follow your heart
He built a fire on Main Street
Every new messenger bringing evil report
Yet you know that there is no answer fit
'Twas then he felt alone and wished that he'd gone straight
For the chains of the sea will have busted in the night
And the first one now will later be last
Our Father would not like the way that you act
"Well, if I had the stars of the darkest night
It gets discouraging at times, but I know I'll make it
No one has any respect, anyway they expect
If there's a poor boy on the street, then let him have my seat
A-ten guineas in gold I'll stick in your fist
Till she sees finally that she's just like all the rest
I think that it's best
In the stillness of the midnight
Like a corkscrew to my heart
I had my white shorts rolled up past my waist
Plants in the bed, but
How many years can a mountain exist
We can hold up a toast if we meet
And I said, "Oh, I didn't know that, but then again there's only one I've met
"Oh, no," says the Sergeant, "I'll have no such chat
We all sit here stranded though we're all doing our best to deny it
Oh, the comrades all that I've had, there's none that's left to boast
I don't have the strength to get up and take another shot
One day he could just feel the waste, he put it all down and split
The kings of Tyrus with their convict list
Someday, everything is gonna be different
We sit here stranded though we all do our best to deny it
All I hear is thunder of two hearts' beat
Pack up the meat, sweet, we're heading out
And the sea will split and the ships will hit
Eucalyptus trees hang above the street
Perhaps it's the color of the sun cut flat
Maybe she'll pick him out again - how long must he wait
You are there in the flickering light
How they blackmailed the sergeant-at-arms into leaving his post
'Bout armies on the march and time that is short
That might be all that you got
You were so fine Clark Gable would have fell at your feet
Disaster's getting closer at every time we meet
I walk across the bridge in the dismal light
Maybe someday you'll remember what you felt
I bit into the root of forbidden fruit
There was New York Jake, the butcher's boy, he was always getting tight
The slowest one now will later be fast
I'm closing the book on the pages and the text
You're hearing my heart beat
But, I mean no harm nor put fault
You don't forget
Ooh-ah, like a corkscrew to my heart
They tell me revenge is sweet
Well, the fifth daughter on the twelfth night
Without any doubt
Countless visions of the other she'd reflect
And he carries a reminder of every blow that's laid him low and cut him till he cried out
She seems too far out
Everything is always right
But, if the arrow is straight
And you think your ears mighta been hurt
There's some people that
There's a marching band still playing in that vacant lot
Flashing for the refugees on the unarmed road of flight
For He bought me with a price, freed me from the pit
I'm just sitting here beating on my trumpet
I was too young to know you were doing it right
Keep it in your mind and don't forget
The slowest now will later be fast
He really wasn't where it's at
Oh, everybody's got to eat
You used to laugh-make fun about
Yet you know there is a-no answer fit
In the precious winds they rot
Then the shaft was soon shut and more work was cut
I'm moving after midnight
Yes, nobody has any respect, anyway they already expect
Keep me set apart
I can still see the day you came to me on the painted desert
Do you take me for such a fool to think I'd make contact
Now, all the authorities, they just stand around and boast
And our choices, they was few so the thought never hit
Now, the fifth daughter on the twelfth night
One more night the moon is shining bright
To hold each other tight
Yet you know there is no answer fit
Wait for the morning light
And no one has any respect, anyway they just expect
Well, I run right down and bought a ticket
No one has any respect, anyway they just expect
And covering the crossroads I'm standing at
Maybe he'll see her once again - how long must he wait
They tell me to be discreet
To keep it in your mind and not forget
Till she sees finally that she's a-like all the rest
For sixteen nights and days he raved, but on the seventeenth he burst
I soon get some rest
I met the sons of darkness and the sons of light
Oh, time is short and the days are sweet
Well, I couldn't leave unless the old man chased me out
And I, in my armor, turning about
How many years can some people exist
How they blackmailed the sergeant-at-arms into getting up and leaving his post
Fifth daughter on the twelfth night
Ain't it hard when you discover that
One more night I will wait for the light
'Twas then she felt alone and wished that she'd gone straight
You say, "How are you?", "Good luck", but you don't mean it
But, then again, there's only one I've met
By the way, that's a cute hat
I'm on the pavement
So he never thinks straight
They paved paradise, they put up a parking lot
She felt the heat of the night hit her like a freight
I'll remember you
Stick around, baby, we're not through, don't look for me, I'll see you
To be alone with you
To protect you and defend you
Now, when all of the flower-ladies want back what they have lent you
It's just crazy being here with you
And I tell this truth to you
But nobody has any respect, anyway they already expect you
I can be just like you
Didn't I sleep, didn't I weep beside you
I just might have to come see you
Now, at midnight all the agents and the superhuman crew
Ring them bells for the chosen few
Down every street there's a window
The only one I know
I'd sure like to know
All along the watchtower princes kept the view
And the Phantom's shouting to skinny girls, "Get outta here if you don't know
And the little, wee drummer, we flattened his bow
And you'll give it to me now or I'll take it anyhow
With only you in view
Don't it always go to show
I knew I had to split, but I did not know how
And I tell 'em all wherever I may go just so they'll know
With your sheet-metal memory of Cannery Row
At midnight all the agents and the superhuman crew
When you played your cards with Willie, you never really knew
I seen a lot of women but she never escaped my mind and I just grew
He been living there three years now
Sooner or later one of us must know
Now, you're probably wondering by now
He whispered kind of slow in a voice she didn't know
Don't it always a-go to show
No matter what gets in the way and which way the wind does blow
It only goes to show
Hey, Woody Guthrie, but I know that you know
As he turned away to go, his mother was acting slow
He seen a lot of women but she never escaped his mind and he just grew
They all play on the penny whistle, you can hear them blow
Oh, it's rush hour now on the wheel and the plow
Walking to and fro beneath the moon out to where the trucks are rolling slow
Between the windows of the sea where lovely mermaids flow
And the Phantom shouts to skinny girls, "Get outta here if you don't know
Yes, I'd sure like to know
And you'll give it to me now, I'll take it anyhow
And the Phantom is shouting to skinny girls, "Get outta here if you don't know
Maybe you will find yourself tomorrow
I guess I'll be leaving tomorrow
He seen a lotta women, but she never escaped his mind and he just grew
But sooner or later one of us must know
Well, I'd sure like to know
The Spanish-American War had its day
Though I'd never say
Upon the beach, where hound dogs bay
Of looking your way, unless it's to say
She starts to speak, but he walks away
We carried you in our arms on Independence Day
From phony jealousy
The same thing I would want today
So I run down most hurriedly
Yes, I'm walking down the highway
Is there something I can send you to remember me by
Oh, his face was all shot off and his hands were blown away
Now, it don't seem to me quite so funny
Well, I saw it advertised one day
Someday everything is gonna be smooth like a rhapsody
Then the Civil War too was soon laid away
And it's up to you to say
For them that must obey authority
Went to the doctor the very next day
Or if you just want some company
So they took him to the infirmary
That chilly wind will soon begin and I'll be on my way
Train wheels running through the back of my memory
Don't you tell Henry
I laid on the dune, I looked at the sky
For them that think death's honesty
Yes, I'm walking down your highway
I send you all my money
She knocked upon it anyway
Haul on the bowline." We sang that melody
Fearing not I'd become my enemy
"It's my work," he'd say, "and I do it for pay
Someone to get you flowers constantly
If I don't take the chance to try
There's a pale, drooping maiden who toils her life away
But I can't deny
And the only tune my guitar could play
She smiles, walks the other way
She sheds a tear and then begins to pray
Rita looked offended, but she got out of the way
And for His love they took His life away
I did not do it harmfully
And the Civil War too was soon laid away
Maggie says that many say
A cock is crowing far away
He made the bells of freedom ring today
I will turn my head up high to that dark and rolling sky
For them that think death--death's honesty
So I ran down most hurriedly
He's wearing boxing gloves, he took a dive one day
"There are no mistakes in life," some people say
No, you'll not now or no other day
The night is pitch black, come and make my
I came to the place where the lone pilgrim lay
Is worth more than I could pay
Take it to your heart, don't let it stray
But none of these and nothing else can touch the beauty
Tomorrow night will it be just another memory
I followed you beneath the stars, hounded by your memory
I laugh and I cry and I'm haunted by
In a young summer's youth, I stole her away
And, dropping a barbell, he points to the sky
But I wish there was something you would do or say
To those condemned to act accordingly
I laid on the dune and I looked at the sky
There's a brand-new gimmick every day
Well, I'm walking down the highway
That a man can't give his address out to bad company
But please don't mention my lonely cell where I'm gonna pine away
She puts it to me plain as day
Shakespeare, he's in the alley
So I cut off my hair and I rode straight away
And the ladies treat me kindly
We banged the drum slowly
So I cut off a-my hair and I rode straight away
My ears hear a symphony
That I was just a puppet in a play
But you can never steal away
That I done it the way
So, I'm walking down your highway
Yes, call him "Drunken" Ira Hayes, but his land is still as dry
"Oh, help me in my weakness," I heard the drifter say
Yes, and how many times must the cannon balls fly
Spouted out that liberty
Oh, whatever makes her happy, I won't stand in the way
And I'm leaving every day to run away
He healed the sick and He fed the hungry
Like the red rose of summer that blooms in the day
Still, I wish there were something you would do or say
How many times must the cannon balls fly
Maybe someday you'll believe me when I say
My mind weaves a symphony
And that which you've given me today
When I left my home and family, I was no more than a boy
Still, I wish there was something that you would do or say
I've no right to be here if you've no right to stay