Prine, John Filmography

• Blaze Foley: Duct Tape Messiah (2011)
• Shakespeare Was a Big George Jones Fan: 'Cowboy' Jack Clement's Home Movies (2005)
• Daddy and Them (2001)
• Immaculate Funk (2000)
• Troubadours of Folk Music (1996)
• Falling from Grace (1992)
• Farm Aid '87 (1987)
• The Electric Valley (1983)

• In Spite of Ourselves - John Prine
• The Moon Is Down - John Prine
• You Mean So Much To Me - John Prine
• We Could - John Prine
• You Never Can Tell - John Prine
• Yes I Guess They Oughta Name a Drink After You - John Prine
• When Two Worlds Collide - John Prine
• Wedding Bells/Let's Turn Back the Years - John Prine
• We Must Have Been Out Of Our Minds - John Prine
• Wedding Day In Funeralville - John Prine
• Unlonely - John Prine
• We Are the Lonely - John Prine
• Way Down - John Prine
• This Cold War With You - John Prine
• They'll Never Take Her Love from Me - John Prine
• They Oughta Name a Drink After You - John Prine
• The Torch Singer - John Prine
• There She Goes - John Prine
• The Oldest Baby In The World - John Prine
• The Frying Pan - John Prine
• The Hobo Song - John Prine
• Taking A Walk - John Prine
• Sweet Revenge - John Prine
• Storm Windows - John Prine
• Take the Star Out of the Window - John Prine
• That Close To You - John Prine
• That's The Way That The World Goes 'Round - John Prine
• Spanish Pipedream (AKA Blow Up Your TV) - John Prine
• Speed of the Sound of Loneliness - John Prine
• Some Humans Ain't Human - John Prine
• So Sad (to Watch Good Love Go Bad) - John Prine
• Somewhere Someone's Falling In Love - John Prine
• Slow Boat To China - John Prine
• Sins of Memphisto - John Prine
• Same Thing Happened To Me - John Prine
• Silver Bells - John Prine
• Out Of Love - John Prine
• Other Side of Town - John Prine
• Sam Stone - John Prine
• Rocky Mountain Time - John Prine
• Sabu Visits the Twin Cities Alone - John Prine
• Please Don't Bury Me - John Prine
• Quit Hollerin' At Me - John Prine
• Quiet Man - John Prine
• Pretty Good - John Prine
• People Puttin' People Down - John Prine
• Oldest Baby in the World - John Prine
• Often Is A Word I Seldom Use - John Prine
• Nine Pound Hammer - John Prine
• One Red Rose - John Prine
• No Name Girl - John Prine
• Only Love - John Prine
• My Darlin' Hometown - John Prine
• MORNING TRAIN - John Prine
• Milwaukee Here I Come - John Prine
• It's a Cheating Situation - John Prine
• My Own Best Friend - John Prine
• Lulu Walls - John Prine
• Love Love Love - John Prine
• If You Don't Want My Love - John Prine
• Me, Myself And I - John Prine
• Maureen Maureen - John Prine
• Loose Talk - John Prine
• Let's Invite Them Over - John Prine
• Linda Goes To Mars - John Prine
• Lets Talk Dirty in Hawaiian - John Prine
• Late John Garfield Blues - John Prine
• John Prine Christmas - John Prine
• It's Happening To You - John Prine
• Killing the blues - John Prine
• Leave The Lights On - John Prine
• Lake Marie - John Prine
• If You Were the Woman and I was the Man - John Prine
• In A Town This Size - John Prine
• Iron Ore Betty - John Prine
• I Love You So Much It Hurts - John Prine
• I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus - John Prine
• I Know One - John Prine
• I Just Wanna Dance With You - John Prine
• I Hate It When That Happens To Me - John Prine
• How Lucky - John Prine
• Hello in There - John Prine
• He Was In Heaven Before He Died - John Prine
• Great Compromise - John Prine
• Glory Of True Love - John Prine
• He Forgot That It Was Sunday - John Prine
• German Afternoons - John Prine
• Everybody Wants to Feel Like You - John Prine
• Far From Me - John Prine
• Everybody - John Prine
• Forbidden Jimmy - John Prine
• Fish And Whistle - John Prine
• Day Is Done - John Prine
• Dear John (I Sent Your Saddle Home) - John Prine
• Diamonds in the Rough - John Prine
• Crazy As A Loon - John Prine
• Come Back to Us Barbara Lewis Hare Krishna Beauregard - John Prine
• Clay Pigeons - John Prine
• Clocks and Spoons - John Prine
• Common Sense - John Prine
• Bruised Orange - John Prine
• Big Fat Love - John Prine
• Bruised Orange (Chain of Sorrows) - John Prine
• Bear Creek Blues - John Prine
• Baby Let's Play House - John Prine
• Back Street Affair - John Prine
• Bad Boy - John Prine
• Aw Heck - John Prine
• All The Best - John Prine
• All Night Blue - John Prine
• All The Way With You - John Prine
• A Good Time - John Prine
• (We're Not) The Jet Set - John Prine
• 'Til a Tear Becomes a Rose - John Prine
• I Want To Be With You Always - John Prine
• Great Rain - John Prine
• Way Back Then - John Prine
• The Sins of Memphisto - John Prine
• Take a Look at My Heart - John Prine
• Picture Show - John Prine
• Jesus The Missing Years - John Prine
• It's A Big Old Goofy World - John Prine
• Everything Is Cool - John Prine
• The Accident (Things Could Be Worse) - John Prine
• Onomatopoeia - John Prine
• Grandpa was a Carpenter - John Prine
• Dear Abby - John Prine
• Blue Umbrella - John Prine
• Sleepy Eyed Boy - John Prine
• Shop Talk - John Prine
• Living In The Future - John Prine
• Just Wanna Be With You - John Prine
• I Had A Dream - John Prine
• Baby Ruth - John Prine
• Ubangi Stomp - John Prine
• Saigon - John Prine
• Down By The Side Of The Road - John Prine
• Chinatown - John Prine
• Automobile - John Prine
• Sour Grapes - John Prine
• New Train - John Prine
• Ain't Hurtin' Nobody - John Prine
• You Got Gold - John Prine
• Stick a Needle In My Eye - John Prine
• Space Monkey - John Prine
• If I Could - John Prine
• Humidity Built The Snowman - John Prine
• Daddy's Little Pumpkin - John Prine
• Silent Night, All Day Long - John Prine
• Christmas In Prison - John Prine
• Six O'clock News - John Prine
• Illegal Smile - John Prine
• Flashback Blues - John Prine
• Donald and Lydia - John Prine
• If She Were You - John Prine
• The Great Compromise - John Prine
• Souvenirs - John Prine
• Billy the Bum - John Prine
• Middle Man - John Prine
• Come Back to Us Barbara Lewis Hare Krishna Beaureg - John Prine
• Crooked Piece of Time - John Prine
• The Bottomless Lake - John Prine
• Be My Friend Tonight - John Prine
• Aimless Love - John Prine
• The Late John Garfield Blues - John Prine
• Angel From Montgomery - John Prine
• This Love Is Real - John Prine
• Your Flag Decal Won't Get You Into Heaven Anymore - John Prine
• Unwed Fathers - John Prine
• Spanish Pipedream - John Prine
• She Is My Everything - John Prine
• Saddle in the Rain - John Prine
• Paradise - John Prine
• Mexican Home - John Prine
• Long Monday - John Prine
• John Prine - Low

She don't like her eggs all runny
She thinks crossin' her legs is funny
She looks down her nose at money
She gets it on like the Easter Bunny
She's my baby I'm her honey
I'm never gonna let her go
He ain't got laid in a month of Sundays
I caught him once and he was sniffin' my undies
He ain't too sharp but he gets things done
Drinks his beer like it's oxygen
He's my baby and I'm his honey
Never gonna let him go
In spite of ourselves, we'll end up a'sittin' on a rainbow
Against all odds, honey, we're the big door prize
We're gonna spite our noses, right off of our faces
There won't be nothin', but big old hearts, dancin' in our eyes
She thinks all my jokes are corny
Convict movies make her horny
She likes ketchup on her scrambled eggs
Swears like a sailor when shaves her legs
She takes a lickin' and keeps on tickin'
I'm never gonna let her go
He's got more balls than a big brass monkey
He's a wacked out weirdo and a love bug junkie
Sly as a fox and crazy as a loon
Payday comes and he's howlin' at the moon
He's my baby I don't mean maybe
Never gonna let him go
In spite of ourselves, we'll end up a'sittin' on a rainbow
Against all odds, honey, we're the big door prize
We're gonna spite our noses, right off of our faces
There won't be nothin', but big old hearts, dancin' in our eyes
In spite of ourselves, we'll end up a'sittin' on a rainbow
Against all odds, honey, we're the big door prize
We're gonna spite our noses, right off of our faces
There won't be nothin', but big old hearts, dancin' in our eyes
There won't be nothin' but big old hearts, dancin' in our eyes

The moon is down
All over town
The forecast is grey
Now that she's gone away
The stars in the skies
Fell out of her eyes
They shattered when they hit the ground
And now the moon is down
The sun will be fine
It'll still shine all the time
The sky will be blue
And do what it's supposed to do
Ya see gravity pulls
But it can't keep you around
It'll be one long day
And now the moon is down
The moon is down
All over town
The stars in the skies
Fell out of her eyes
The gravity pulls
But it can't hold you down
It'll be one long day
Now the moon is down
It'll be on long day
Now the moon is down

A girl meets a guy
A car passes by
The moon shines down on a tree
A kid in the park
Should have been home by dark
You mean so much to me
The snow on the ground
A merry-go_round
A sight that was somethin' to see
Some cigarette smoke
Some laughter a joke
You mean so much to me
It seems to be
Like heaven to me
With you at the end of the day
Here's looking at you
Here's looking at me
Dancing with history
That old crocodile
Got a satisfied smile
His life is no big mystery
A postcard you wrote
A musical note
You mean so much to me
Here's looking at you
Here's looking at you
Here's looking at me
Dancing with history
It seems to be
Like heaven to me
With you at the end of the day
A girl meets a guy
A car passes by
The moon shines down on a tree
I'm thinking of you
So what else is new
You mean so much to me
You mean so much to me

If anyone could find the joy
That true love brings a girl and boy
We could
We could you and I
If anyone could ever say
Their true love was here to stay
We could
We could you and I
When you're in my arms
I know you're happy to be there
And just as long as I'm with you
I'm happy anywhere
If anyone could pray each night
To thank the Lord that all is right
We could
We could you and I
When you're in my arms
I know you're happy to be there
And just as long as I'm with you
I'm happy anywhere
If anyone could pray each night
To thank the Lord that all is right
We could
We could you and I
We could
We could you and I

It was a teenage wedding
And the old folks wished 'em well
You could see that Pierre
Did truly love the Mademoiselle.
And the young Monsieur and Madame
Have rung the chapel bell,
";C'est la vie,";
-Say the old folks
It goes to show that you never can tell
They furnished off an apartment
With a two room Roebuck sale
The coolerator was filled
With T.V. Dinners and ginger ale
But when Pierre found work,
The little money comin' worked out well
";C'est la vie,";
-Say the old folks
It goes to show that you never can tell
They had a Hi-Fi phono
Boy, did they let it blast
Seven hundred little records
All rock, rhythm and jazz
But when the sun went down
The rapid tempo of the music fell
";C'est la vie,";
-Say the old folks
It goes to show that you never can tell
They bought a souped up jitney
'Twas a cherry in Fifty-three
They drove it down to New Orleans
To celebrate their anniversary.
It was there where Pierre was wedded
To the lovely Mademoiselle,
";C'est la vie,";
-Say the old folks
It goes to show that you never can tell
It was a teenage wedding
And the old folks wished 'em well
You could see that Pierre
Did truly love the Mademoiselle.
And the young Monsieur and Madame
Have rung the chapel bell,
";C'est la vie,";
-Say the old folks
It goes to show that you never can tell

Oh I get drunk most every night
Seems like all we do is fight
The more I drink
The less I feel blue
Sometimes I feel like an awful fool
Spendin' my life on an old bar stool
And yes I guess they oughta name a drink after you
If this date were to be our last
I'd never sit down this glass
It'd take all the booze in the world
To forget you
You've left my heart a vacant lot
I'll fill it with another shot
And yes I guess they oughta name a drink after you
Looks like I had my fill
Guess I better pay my bill
When I started out I only meant to have a few
Someone just said that you left town
I better get a double round
And yes I guess they oughta name a drink after you

Your world was so different from mine, don't you see
And we couldn't be close, though we tried
We both reached for heavens, but ours weren't the same.
That's what happens when two worlds collide
Your world was made up of things sweet and good
My world could never fit in, I wish it could
Two hearts lie in shambles and oh, how they've cried
That's what happens when two worlds collide
Your world was made up of things sweet and good
My world could never fit in, I wish it could
Two hearts lie in shambles and oh, how they've cried
That's what happens when two worlds collide
That's what happens when two worlds collide
I fancy that I see a bunch of roses
A blossom from and orange tree in your hair
While the organ plays ";I Love You Truly,";
Just let me pretend that I am there
Wedding bells are ringing in the chapel
That should be ringing now for you and me
Down the aisle with someone else you're walking
Those wedding bells with never ring for me
Those wedding bells with never ring for me

I got the invitation that you sent me,
You wanted me to see you change your name
I couldn't stand to see you wed another
But dear I hope you're happy just the same
I planned a little cottage in the valley,
I even bought that little band of gold
I thought some day I'd place it on your finger,
But now the future looks so dark and cold
Wedding bells are ringing in the chapel
That should be ringing now for you and me
Down the aisle with someone else you're walking
Those wedding bells with never ring for me
Darling, let's turn back the years
And go back to yesterday
Let's pretend that time has stopped
And I didn't go away
We had our love to make us happy
Love wasn't meant to bring us tears
Love like ours should never die
So, darling, let's turn back the years
I fancy that I see a bunch of roses
A blossom from and orange tree in your hair
While the organ plays ";I Love You Truly,";
Just let me pretend that I am there
Wedding bells are ringing in the chapel
That should be ringing now for you and me
Down the aisle with someone else you're walking
Those wedding bells with never ring for me
Those wedding bells with never ring for me

We said our goodbyes long ago
Never thinking we'd miss each other so
All the memories we can't leave behind
Oh, we must have been out of our minds
I thought I loved another, not you
How foolish I thought the same, too
They both turned out to be the wrong kind
Oh, we must have been out of our minds
Let's forgive and forget the past we've known
And reap together the wild seeds we've sown
Surely they can forgive us and find
That we must have been out of our minds
I thought I loved another, not you
How foolish I thought the same, too
They both turned out to be the wrong kind
Oh, we must have been out of our minds
Yes, we must have been out of our minds

It's Wedding Day in Funeralville
Your soup spoon's on your right
The King and Queen will alternate
With the refrigerator light
They'll be boxing on the T.V. show
The colored kids will sing
Hoo ray for you
And midnight's oil
Lets burn the whole damn thing
Felicia is my dark horse girl
I'll take her if it rains
She throws up punch
Upon the host
And says many stupid things
But she ain't so bad
When we're all alone
She's as different
As can be
She's a part a my heart
Don'tcha pull us apart
She's like one of the family
Chorus
Oh no! Trouble in the attic
Won't somebody turn on a lite
Got so, so many troubles
Can't even tell
Wrong from right
I'm gonna comb my hair
Darn my socks
Tip my hat
And say goodnight
It's Wedding Day in Funeralville
What shall I wear tonight?
It's wedding Day in Funeralville
What shall I wear tonight?
My car is stuck in Washington
And I cannot find out why
Come sit beside me on the swing
And watch the angels cry
It's anybody's ballgame
It's everybody's fight
And the streetlamp said
As he nodded his head
It's lonesome out tonight
Repeat Chorus

You make me unlonely
I feel like the only
person in the world
That ever had a girl like you
You make me feel wealthy
I almost look healthy
With you on my arm
Yeah together we could charm
This whole wide world
Once I was lonely
Nobody but me
My heart in a prison
Love set me free
God woke up
He heard my plea
He sent you to me
He sent you to me
You made me feel stronger
You made me love longer
Than anyone
Anyone in the whole wide world.

Down the hall upstairs from me
There's a girl I swear I never see
I hear the ringing of her phone
She must live up there all alone
She hangs her clothes out on the line
They're hanging there right next to mine
And if the wind should blow just right
She could be in my arms tonight
We are the lonely all together
All together we're all alone
We are the lonely all together
All together we're all alone
The cashier at the pump & pay
Knows everything's gonna be okay
The all night all right rent-a-cop
Is across the street at the donut shop
The waitress waits with whiskey sour
At the single mingle happy hour
The one man band begins to sing
Accompanied by a drum machine
We are the lonely all together
All together we're all alone
We are the lonely all together
All together we're all alone
White divorced swinging male
Seeks company to no avail
Worthless ruthless toothless man
Wants wealthy woman with a plan
SWF with a PhD
Seeks TLC at the A&P;
GWM nice and trim
Seeks s-e-x at the g-y-m
Ugly man treats girls like dirt
Wants buttons sewn upon his shirt
DUI at the b-a-r
Seeks m-a-n with c-a-r
We are the lonely all together
All together we're all alone
We are the lonely all together
All together we're all alone
We are the lonely all together
All together we're all alone
We are the lonely all together
All together we're all alone
Toothy gal with breasts so large
Takes Visa Amex Master Charge
Dial 1-900 girls for fun
You lonely little hot dog bun

Chorus:
Way down
Way down it must be
I can't stop this misery
It must be way down
Spring is just a smile away
Laughing at a summer day
Turn around Look at fall
Winter, hear my lonely call
Way down ...
The air is thin and the sky is fat
I'm gonna buy me a brand new hat
Wear it out and go insane
Christ, I hope it never rains
Way down ...
Thought I saw a neon sign
Flash my name Wiwh the time
Probably didn't see a thing
Crazy dreams and a broken wing
Way down ...
How ya' gonna get sunshine
Peeking thru Venetian blinds
Don't you know all that fear
Begins and ends the same place
Here
Way down ...

The sun goes down and leaves me sad and blue
Even another night of this cold war with you
Though you won't speak and I won't speak it's true
Two stubborn people with a cold war to go through
Oh, why oh why should love ever come
To a couple like you and me
Who's cold cold wars are never done
And hearts can't be free
So, let's do right or let's just say we're through
I just can't stand another cold cold war with you
The sun goes down and leaves me sad and blue
Even another night of this cold war with you
Though you won't speak and I won't speak it's true
Two stubborn people with a cold war to go through
Oh, why oh why should love ever come
To a couple like you and me
Who's cold cold wars are never done
And hearts can't be free
So, let's do right or let's just say we're through
I just can't stand another cold cold war with you

If today the sun should set on all my hopes and cares
There is still one smiling face the Gods would see
But she'll walk along beside me up those golden stairs
Oh, they'll never, ever take her love from me
What a fool I was to go and break the trust she gave
And watch her love turn into sympathy
It's the one regret I'll carry with me to my grave
Oh they'll never, never take her love from me
I'm so thankful for each golden hour of happiness
That we shared together in the use to be
Someone else's arms may hold her now in fond caress
But they'll never, never take her love from me
Well, I though I'd make her happy if I'd step aside
But I knew her love would never set me free
And even on the morning she became another's bride
I said they'll never, never take her love from me
Ending:
No, they'll never, never take her love from me

Oh I get drunk most every night
Seems like all we do is fight
The more I drink
The less I feel blue
Sometimes I feel like an awful fool
Spendin' my life on an old bar stool
And yes I guess they oughta name a drink after you
If this date were to be our last
I'd never sit down this glass
It'd take all the booze in the world
To forget you
You've left my heart a vacant lot
I'll fill it with another shot
And yes I guess they oughta name a drink after you
Looks like I had my fill
Guess I better pay my bill
When I started out I only meant to have a few
Someone just said that you left town
I better get a double round
And yes I guess they oughta name a drink after you

The night club was burning
From the torch singer's song
And the sweat was floodin' her eyes
The catwalk squeaked
'Neath the bartender's feet
And the smoke was too heavy to rise
Chorus:
She sang of the love that I left her
And of the woman that she'll never be
Made me feel like the buck and a quarter
That I paid 'em to listen and see
I paid 'em to listen and see
I was born down in Kansas
'Neath the October sky
Work the day shift from seven to three
And the only relief that I receive
Is nearer my God to Thee
She constantly throws me off timing
Leaves me standing both naked and bare
Makes me feel like the Sunday funnies
After everything's gone off the air
Everything's gone off the air
I picked through the ashes
Of the torch singer's song
And I ordered my money a round
For whiskey and pain
Both taste the same
During the time they go down
(Repeat chorus)

Hey, there she goes
well I though she'd never leave
heaven knows
well it sure gives me the creeps
you know I went and loved that woman
to the power of height
we both got jivin' fever
screwed our heads uptight
then it came to blows
hey hey hey
there she goes.
Hey there she goes
just a walkin' down the street
I suppose
the next fellow that she meets
should have her head examined
by an x-ray machine
so he can see all of those pictures
that I've already seen
just so he knows
hey hey hey
there she goes.
Well, there must be something somewhere
that makes me want to hurt myself inside
yeah, we were regular Dr Jekyll
but together
we were Mr. and Mrs. Hyde
what a rough rough ride.
Hey there she goes
she's walking out on me
with all her clothes
lookin' fine as she could be
well, I seen her on down at the courthouse
I was sober as the judge
we'd tried to talk things over
but the grudge just wouldn't budge
I said adios
hey hey hey
there she goes.

She's got the mind of a child
And a body peaking over the hill
Well, she would if she could
And she should but nobody will
With her nails painted red
And her hair so unnaturally curled
Well I think that she may be
The oldest baby in the world
She's tasted the night life
But it's left her with nothing but hunger
And all the available men
Seem to think that they want something younger
But youth is a costume
And the beauty within lies unfurled
And I think that she may be
The oldest baby in the world
Fast horses win races
And royal flushes beat aces
And everyone's playing to keep
So let's turn out the lights
And rock that old baby to sleep
She loves the sound of the rain
But you know she's still afraid of the thunder
She keeps a head full of hope
And a heart that's so full of wonder
She may look like a woman
But she's still some daddy's little girl
And I think that she may be
The oldest baby in the world
Yes, I think that she may be
The oldest baby in the world

I come home from work this evening
There was a note in the frying pan
It said fix your own supper babe
I run off with the Fuller brush man
Chorus:
And I miss the way she used to yell at me
The way she used to cuss and moan
And if I ever go out and get married again
I'll never leave my wife at home
Sat down at the table
Screamed, and I hollered and cried
And I commenced a carryin' on
Till I almost lost my mind
Repeat Chorus
If I ever see another salesman
Come a knockin' at my door
I'm gonna pick up a rock and hit him on the head
And knock him down on the floor
Repeat Chorus

There was a time
when lonely men would wander
thru this land
rolling aimlessly along
so many times
I've heard of their sad story
written in the words
of dead men's songs.
Down through the years
many men have yearned
for freedom
some found it
only on the open road
so many tears of blood
have fell around us
'cause you can't always do what you are told.
Please tell me where
have all the hobos gone to
I see no fire burning down
by the rusty railroad track
could it be that time
has gone and left them
tied up in life's eternal traveling sack.
Last Sunday night
I wrote a letter
to my loved one
I signed my name
and knew I'd stayed away
too long
there was a time
when my heart was free to wander
and I remember as I sing
this hobo song.

A man came to our house
I believe it was yesterday
I would have invited him in
But I didn't have a lot to say
His anticipation of me opening the door
Outweighed my apprehension as it never had before
And drove my concentration
Right through that hardwood floor
Oo-oo a-ha
I'm taking a walk
I'm going outside
I'm taking a walk
I'm just getting by
There's a girl in the white house
I don't even know her name
Her disheveled appearance
Speaks volumes of shame
It's an embarrassing situation
But a situation just the same
The way she walks on others
And never takes the blame
Upsets my constitution
Beyond its mortal frame
Oo-oo a-ha
I'm taking a walk
I'm going outside
I'm watching the birds
I'm just getting by
Found a card in the pocket
Of my worn out overalls
From a girl in Cedar Rapids
Now residing in Idaho Falls
I wish you could have been there
When she opened up the door
And looked me in the face
Like she never did before
I felt about as welcome
As a Wal-Mart Superstore
0o-oo - a-ha
I'm taking a walk
I'm going outside
I'm taking a walk
I don't need a ride
I'm watching the birds
Flying so high

I got kicked off Noah's Ark
I turn my cheek to unkind remarks
there was two of everything
but one of me
and when the rains came tumbling down
I held my breath and I stood my ground
and I watched that ship go sailing
out to sea.
Chorus:
Take it back
take it back
oh no, you can't say that
all of my friends
are not dead or in jail
through rock and through stone
the black wind still moans
sweet revenge
sweet revenge
without fail.
I caught an aisle seat on a plane
and drove an English teacher half insane
making up jokes about bicycle spokes
and red balloons
so I called up my local deejay
and he didn't have a lot to say
but the radio
has learned all of my favorite tunes.
Chorus:
The white meat is on the run
and the dark meat is far too done
and the milkman left me a note yesterday
get out of this town by noon
you're coming on way too soon
and besides that
we never liked you any way.
Chorus:

I can hear the wheels of the automobiles
So far away - just moving along through the drifting snow
It's times like these when the temperatures freeze
I sit alone just looking at the world through a storm window
And down on the beach - the sandman sleeps
Time don't fly - it bounds and leaps
And a country band that plays for keeps
They play it so slow
Chorus:
Don't let your baby down
Don't let your baby down
Don't let your baby down
Well, the spirits were high 'til the well went dry
For so long the raven at my window was only a crow
I bought the rights to the inside fights
And watched a man just beating his hand against a storm window
While miles away o'er hills and streams
A candle burns - A witch's dreams
And silence is golden till it screams
Right through your bones
Repeat Chorus:
Storm windows - Gee but I'm getting old
Storm window - keep away the cold
Don't let your baby down
Don't let your baby down
Don't let your baby down

Robert was a sailor
For the best years of his life
His captain was his mother
And the ocean was his wife
Only fresh out of the cradle
Life's one and only spring
He was sworn to do his duty
And got blood on his highschool ring
Chorus:
And it's hello California
Hello Dad and Mom
Ship ahoy
Your baby boy
Is home from Vietnam
Don't you ask me any questions
'Bout the medals on my chest
Take the star out of the window
And let my conscience take a rest
Now he sailed across the ocean
To the old far eastern war
And it was foreign to his body
It was foreign to his shore
So he traded in the present
For the better times he'd seen
And made an oriental waitress
His own home comin' queen
(Repeat chorus)

Like a bolt of lightning
Like a bolt of thunder
Like a cloudy day
Down at the Zoo
Like a drowning man
That will never go under
That close to you
Yeah, that close to you
In the middle of the night
You'd ask me to make you smile
You'd come on like a one armed child
With a hole in its shoe
Poor you
Everybody oughtta know
It only hurts ya for a little while
So stop putting yourself on trial
For something you didn't do
Not you
To me
Can't we
Be
Just like
Lovers and mothers and brothers
And sorrow
Can I find a little something
With a nicer view
I'm hating to plead
But I'm begging to borrow
Just to be
That close to you
Yeah, that close to you

I know a guy
that's got a lot to lose
he's a pretty nice fellow
but he's kind of confused
he's got muscles in his head
that ain't never been used
thinks he own half of this town
starts drinking heavy
gets a big red nose
beats his old lady
with a rubber hose
then he takes her out to dinner
and buys her new clothes
that's the way that the world goes 'round.
That's the way that the world goes 'round
you're up one day
and the next you're down
it's half an inch of water
and you think you're gonna drown
that's the way that the world goes 'round.
I was sitting in the bathtub
counting my toes
when the radiator broke
water all froze
I got stuck in the ice
without my clothes
naked as the eyes of a clown
I was crying ice cubes
hoping I'd croak
when the sun come through the window
the ice all broke
I stood up and laughed
thought it was a joke
that's the way that the world goes 'round.

She was a level-headed dancer on the road to alcohol
And I was just a soldier on my way to Montreal
Well she pressed her chest against me
About the time the juke box broke
Yeah, she gave me a peck on the back of the neck
And these are the words she spoke
Chorus:
Blow up your T.V. throw away your paper
Go to the country, build you a home
Plant a little garden, eat a lot of peaches
Try an find Jesus on your own
Well, I sat there at the table and I acted real naive
For I knew that topless lady had something up her sleeve
Well, she danced around the bar room and she did the hoochy-coo
Yeah she sang her song all night long, tellin' me what to do
Repeat chorus:
Well, I was young and hungry and about to leave that place
When just as I was leavin', well she looked me in the face
I said ";You must know the answer.";
";She said, ";No but I'll give it a try.";
And to this very day we've been livin' our way
And here is the reason why
We blew up our T.V. threw away our paper
Went to the country, built us a home
Had a lot of children, fed 'em on peaches
They all found Jesus on their own

You come home late and you come home early
You come on big when you're feeling small
You come home straight and you come home curly
Sometimes you don't come home at all
Chorus:
So what in the world's come over you
And what in heaven's name have you done
You've broken the speed of the sound of loneliness
You're out there running just to be on the run
Well I got a heart that burns with a fever
And I got a worried and a jealous mind
How can a love that'll last forever
Get left so far behind
Repeat Chorus:
It's a mighty mean and a dreadful sorrow
It's crossed the evil line today
Well, how can you ask about tomorrow
We ain't got one word to say
Repeat Chorus:
Ending:
You're out there running just to be on the run
You're out there running just to be on the run
You're out there running just to be on the run

uuum-huuum ummm-huuum
uuum-huuum ummm-huuum
Some humans ain't human, some people ain't kind
You open up their hearts, and here's what you'll find
A few frozen pizzas, some ice cubes with hair
A broken popsicle, you don't wanna go there
Some humans ain't human, though they walk like we do
They live and they breath, just to turn the old screw
They screw you when your sleepin', they try to screw you blind
Some humans ain't human, some people ain't kind
You might go to church, and sit down in a pew
Those humans who ain't human, be sitting right next to you
They talk about your family, they talk about your clothes
When they don't know their own ass, from there own elbows
Jealousy and stupidity, don't equal harmony
Jealousy and stupidity, don't equal harmony
uuum-huuum ummm-huuum
uuum-huuum ummm-huuum
Have you ever noticed, when you're feeling really good
There's always a pidgeon, that'll come shit on your hood
Or you're feeling your freedom, and the world's off your back
Some cowboy from taxas, starts his own war in iraq
Some humans ain't human, some people ain't kind
They lie through their teeth, with their head up their behind
You open up their hearts and here's what you'll find
Some humans ain't human, some people ain't kind
uuum-huuum ummm-huuum
uuum-huuum ummm-huuum
uuum-huuum ummm-huuum
uuum-huuum ummm-huuum

We used to have good times together
But now I feel them slip away
It makes me cry to see love die
So sad to watch good love go bad
Remember how we used to feel dear
You said nothing could change you mind
It breaks my heart to see us part
So sad to watch good love go bad
Is it any wonder that I feel so blue
When I know for certain that I'm losing you
Remember how we used to feel dear
You said nothing could change your mind
It breaks my heart to see us part
So sad to watch good love go bad
So sad to watch good love go bad

Well, I got time on my hands and I got you on my mind
And the moon and the stars up above
There's a warm summer breeze
Blowing down through the trees
And somewhere someone's falling in love
Well, if this world where we live is the only one we have
Then there's only one thing I'm thinking of
Let's go for that ride - keep our eyes open wide
Cause somewhere someone's falling in love
Chorus:
You may be looking for someone
Someone may be looking for you
Someday you'll awaken and open your eyes
And love will be looking at you
So don't get down on yourself.
No and don't lose your faith
Believe these words that I'm singing of
For as sure as the day that you were born
Somewhere someone's falling in love
Repeat Chorus:
So don't get down on yourself.
No, and don't lose your faith
Believe these words that I'm singing of
For as sure as the day that you were born
Somewhere someone's falling in love
Yeah, for as sure as the day that you were born
Somewhere someone's falling
Somewhere someone's falling
Somewhere someone's falling in love

Let's take a slow boat to China. Leave from South Carolina
Let's take our time and go the long way
On a junk boat to Thailand with your hand in mine hand
I sure hope we got something to say
Well, this old boat's go no sail so won't you please hold our mail-
For awhile
Thanks anyway pal but the Suez Canal -
Ain't our style
Let's take a slow boat to China and maybe we'll find a
New way to play those same old games
The stars just might show us and the captain will know us
Shake our hands and call us by our first names
We'll send a postcard to Grandpa of a vase or rickshaw-
He don't care
We'll buy Mom a kimono or maybe we'll just phone her -
When we're there
We'll drink sake at night beneath the soft harbor lights-
On the bay
We'll build house on the hill next to Shangri-Li Bill -
And we'll stay
Let's take that slow boat to China (Let's go)
Slow boat to China (Real Slow)
Slow boat to China (Let's go)
Slow boat to China (Real Slow)
Let's go Real Slow

From the bells of St Mary
To the Count of Monte Cristo
Nothing can stop
Nothing can stop
Nothing can stop
The sins of Memphisto
Sally used to play with her hula hoops
Now she tells her problems to therapy groups
Grampa's on the front lawn staring at a rake
Wondering if his marriage was a terrible mistake
I'm sitting on the front steps drinking orange crush
Wondering if it's possible if I could still blush
Uh huh Oh yeah
A boy on a bike with courduroy slacks
Sleeps in the river by the railroad tracks
He waits for the whistle on the train to scream
So he can close his eyes and begin to dream
Uh huh Oh yeah
The hands on his watch spin slowly around
With his mind on a bus that goes all over town
Looking at the babies and the factories
And listening to the music of Mister Squeeze
As if by magic or remote control
He finds a piece of a puzzle
That he missed in his soul
Uh huh Oh yeah
Adam and Eve and Lucy and Ricky
Bit the big apple and got a little sticky
Esmeralda and the Hunchback of Notre Dame
They humped each other like they had no shame
They paused as they posed for a Polaroid photo
She whispered in his ear "Exactly Odo Quasi Modo"

Moonlight shining on the back of my hand
Cat fight rattlin' the garbage can
Looks like somethin' chased you up a tree
Same thing, same thing happened to me
Wild wind blowing down the neck of my shirt
Old men sitting on a bench in the dirt
Seems that another ship has gone out to sea
Same thing, same thing happened to me
Shoe shine someone's got to tell ya the news
A fine line separates a boy from the blues
Looks like you could use some company
Same thing, same thing happened to me
Runnin', runnin' just as fast as I can
Someone, someone take a hold of my hand
Looks like somethin' chased you up a tree
Same thing, same thing happened to me
Same thing, same thing happened to me.

City Sidewalks, busy sidewalks
Dressed in holiday style
In the air there is a feeling of Christmas
Children laughing, people passing
Greeting smile after smile
And on every street corner you'll hear.
Silver Bells, Silver Bells
It's Christmas time in the city
Ring-a-ling hear them ring
Soon it will be Christmas Day.
Strings of streetlights even Stop Lights
Blink a bright red and green
As the shoppers rush home with their treasures
Here the snow crunch, see the kids bunch
It Santa's big day
And above all the hustle you'll hear
Silver Bells, Silver Bells
It's Christmas time in the city
Ring-a-ling hear them ring
Soon it will be Christmas Day.
Silver Bells, Silver Bells
It's Christmas time in the city
Ring-a-ling hear them ring
Soon it will be Christmas Day.
Soon it will be Christmas Day.
Soon it will be Christmas Day.

Barley malts and does eat oats and little girls are lively
And your liveliness has left me in a brew
So I'm sitting here just drinking beer
Cause there's nothing else to do.
And when I'm out of love, I'm out of you.
We were so happy, honey when we were together
Why we should have won a ribbon colored blue
But those Rocky Mountain waters came between us
And when I'm out of love, I'm out of you.
Chorus:
So I'm living in the land of sky blue waters
And I'm grabbing all the gusto up it's true
Well, you only go around once in life they say
And when I'm out of love, I'm out of you
These teardrops that I'm crying are the champagne of bottled tears,
And I must admit that I've shed one or two,
But when good friends get together well they always tip a few
And when I'm out of love, I'm out of you.
Repeat Chorus:
So put me in a cool place for I'm the King of Beers
Forty to forty-five degrees will do
And if you must play that jukebox let it be low and now
'Cause when I'm out of love, I'm out of you.
Repeat Chorus:
Ending:
So if you go the time, we got the tears
And when I'm out of love, I'm out of you

Why do you always seem to criticize me
Seems like everything I do just turns out wrong
Why don't you come on out and despise me
So I could pack my bag and baby I'd be gone
Remember when you used to call me honey
I'd turn around and call you honey too
You might think it's a joke, but it ain't funny
To hurt someone who's so in love with you
Chorus:
A clown puts his makeup on upside down
So he wears a smile even when he wears a frown
You might think I'm here when you put me down
But actually I'm on the other side of town.
My body's in this room with you just catchin' hell
While my soul is drinking beer down the road a spell
You might think I'm listening to your grocery list
But I'm leaning on the jukebox and I'm about halfway there
I'm sittin' on a chair just behind my ear
Playing dominoes and drinking some ice cold beer
When you get done talking I'll come back downstairs
And assume the body of the person you presume who cares
Chorus
I'm Across the river on the other side of town
In my mind I'm on the other side of town

Sam Stone came home,
To his wife and family
After serving in the conflict overseas.
And the time that he served,
Had shattered all his nerves,
And left a little shrapnel in his knee.
But the morphine eased the pain,
And the grass grew round his brain,
And gave him all the confidence he lacked,
With a Purple Heart and a monkey on his back.
Chorus:
There's a hole in daddy's arm where all the money goes,
Jesus Christ died for nothin' I suppose.
Little pitchers have big ears,
Don't stop to count the years,
Sweet songs never last too long on broken radios.
Mmm....
Sam Stone's welcome home
Didn't last too long.
He went to work when he'd spent his last dime
And Sammy took to stealing
When he got that empty feeling
For a hundred dollar habit without overtime.
And the gold rolled through his veins
Like a thousand railroad trains,
And eased his mind in the hours that he chose,
While the kids ran around wearin' other peoples' clothes...
Repeat Chorus:
Sam Stone was alone
When he popped his last balloon
Climbing walls while sitting in a chair
Well, he played his last request
While the room smelled just like death
With an overdose hovering in the air
But life had lost its fun
And there was nothing to be done
But trade his house that he bought on the G, I. Bill
For a flag draped casket on a local heroes' hill
Repeat Chorus

The station was empty
The trains were all gone
I reached in my pocket
And I wanted for dawn
Chorus:
The clock played drums
And I hummed the sax
And the wind whistled down
The railroad tracks
Hey three for a quarter
One for a dime
I'll bet it's tomorrow
By Rocky Mountain time
I walked in the restaurant
For something to do
The waitress yelled at me
And so did the food
And the water taste funny
When you're far from your home
But it's only the thirsty
That hunger to roam
(Repeat chorus)
We'll build us a castle on Main Street
And pretend that we're down on the farm
Hell, we'll hold out as long as we have to
Then we'll twist off each other's arm
Christ I'm so mixed up and lonely
I can't even make friends with my brain
I'm too young to be where I'm going
But I'm too old to go back again
(Repeat first verse and chorus)

The movie wasn't really doing so hot
said the new producer to the old big shot
its dying on the edge of the great Midwest
Sabu must tour or forever rest.
Hey look ma
here comes the elephant boy
bundled all up in his corduroy
headed down south towards Illinois
from the jungles of East St. Paul.
His manager sat in the office alone
staring at the numbers on the telephone
wondering how a man could send a child actor
to visit in the land of the wind chill factor.
Sabu was sad the whole tour stunk
the airlines lost the elephant's trunk
the roadie got the rabies and the scabies and the flu
they was low on morale but they was high on.

Woke up this morning
Put on my slippers
Walked in the kitchen and died
And oh what a feeling!
When my soul
Went thru the ceiling
And on up into heaven I did ride
When I got there they did say
John, it happened this way
You slipped upon the floor
And hit your head
And all the angels say
Just before you passed away
These were the very last words
That you said:
Chorus:
Please don't bury me
Down in that cold cold ground
No, I'd druther have ";em"; cut me up
And pass me all around
Throw my brain in a hurricane
And the blind can have my eyes
And the deaf can take both of my ears
If they don't mind the size
Give my stomach to Milwaukee
If they run out of beer
Put my socks in a cedar box
Just get ";em"; out of here
Venus de Milo can have my arms
Look out! I've got your nose
Sell my heart to the junkman
And give my love to Rose
Repeat Chorus
Give my feet to the footloose
Careless, fancy free
Give my knees to the needy
Don't pull that stuff on me
Hand me down my walking cane
It's a sin to tell a lie
Send my mouth way down south
And kiss my ass goodbye
Repeat Chorus

I don't want your big French Fry
I don't want your car
I don't want to buy no soap
From no washed-up movie star
You are so much louder
Than the show I wanna hear
With your sugarless gum
Gee, but I'm dumb
Non-alcoholic beer
It's enough to make a grown man
Blow up his own TV
Quit hollerin' at me
Quit hollerin' at me
I heard you the first time
I heard myself say
Seems like the little woman
Is getting bigger every day
You don't have to tell the neighbors
A little silence ain't no sin
They already think my name is
Where in the hell you been?
Louder, louder, louder, louder, louder
Constantly
Quit hollerin' at me
Quit hollerin' at me
Whoa oh whoa oh
Sweet Serenity
Whoa oh whoa oh
Quit hollerin' at me
Quit hollerin' at me
Ain't it great at the end of the day
When there ain't no sound around
Just me and the fence post
Staring each other down
Nothing but a big bunch of nothing
Driving me insane
Cause there ain't no voice that's louder
Than the one inside my brain
Hey you go on
Go on and let me be
Quit hollerin' at me
Quit hollerin' at me
Whoa oh whoa oh
Sweet Serenity
Whoa oh whoa oh
Quit hollerin' at me
Quit hollerin' at me
Quit hollerin' at me
Quit hollerin' at me
Quit hollerin' at me

Strolling down the highway with my shoes in my hand
I don't talk much I'm a quiet man
Beauty and silence both run deep
And running like crazy while you are alseep
Chorus:
You got news for me,I got nothing for you
Don't pin your blues on me
Just go ahead and do whatever you wish to
Last Monday night I saw a fight
Between Wednesday and Thursday over Saturday night
Tuesday asked me what was going on I said,
";Sunday's in the meadow and Friday's in the corn.";
Repeat Chorus:
Hocus-pocus, Maladjusted
Don't you think my tears get rusted
Steady losing means you ain't using
What you really think is right
Repeat Chorus:
Oodles of light what a beautiful sight
Both of God's eyes are shining tonight
Rays and beams of incredible dreams
And I am a quiet man.
Oodles of light what a beautiful sight
Both of God's eyes are shining tonight
Rays and beams of incredible dreams
And I am a quiet man.
Oodles of light what a beautiful sight
Both of God's eyes are shining tonight
Rays and beams of incredible dreams
And I am a quiet man.

I got a friend in Fremont, He sells used cars, ya know.
Well, he calls me up twice a year
Just ask me how'd it go
Pretty good, not bad, I can't complain
Actually everything is just about the same
I met a girl from Venus, and her insides were lined in gold
Well, she did what she did said ";How was it, kid?";
She was politely told
";Pretty good, not bad, I can't complain
But actually everything is just about the same.";
Moonlight makes me dizzy
Sunlight makes me clean
Your light is the sweetest thing
That this boy has ever seen.
Molly went to Arkansas, she got raped by Dobbin's dog
Well, she was doing good till she went in the woods
And got pinned up against a log
Pretty good, not bad, she can't complain
Cause actually all them dogs is just about the same
Moonlight makes me dizzy
Sunlight makes me clean
Your light is the sweetest thing
That this boy has ever seen.
Instrumental:
I heard Allah and Buddha were singing at the Savior's feast
And up the sky and Arabian rabbi
Fed Quaker oats to a priest.
Pretty good, not bad, they can't complain
Cause actually all them gods is just about the same
Pretty good, not bad, I can't complain
Cause actually everything is just about the same

People who are sad - sometimes they wear a frown
And people who are kings - sometimes they wear a crown
But all the people who don't fit
Get the only fun they get
From people puttin' people down
People puttin' people down
People without love - sometimes build a fence around
The garden up above - that makes the whole world go 'round
But all the people who don't fit
Get the only fun they get
From people puttin' people down
People puttin' people down
So cold, sometimes it gets so cold
You may love your wife - you may lose your family
You may lose you mind - just to keep your sanity
But the people who don't fit
Get the only fun they get
From people puttin' people down
People puttin' people down
People that are glad - sometimes they wear a smile
And people without dreams they walk the extra mile
But all the people who don't fit
Get the only fun they get
From people puttin' people down
People puttin' people dwn
From people puttin' people down
People puttin' people down
So cold, sometimes it gets so cold

She's got the mind of a child
And a body peaking over the hill
Well, she would if she could
And she should but nobody will
With her nails painted red
And her hair so unnaturally curled
Well I think that she may be
The oldest baby in the world
She's tasted the night life
But it's left her with nothing but hunger
And all the available men
Seem to think that they want something younger
But youth is a costume
And the beauty within lies unfurled
And I think that she may be
The oldest baby in the world
Fast horses win races
And royal flushes beat aces
And everyone's playing to keep
So let's turn out the lights
And rock that old baby to sleep
She loves the sound of the rain
But you know she's still afraid of the thunder
She keeps a head full of hope
And a heart that's so full of wonder
She may look like a woman
But she's still some daddy's little girl
And I think that she may be
The oldest baby in the world
Yes, I think that she may be
The oldest baby in the world

I know that you're sad
I know that you're lonely
you lie awake 'till way past when
I want you to know
that I'm leaving you only
'cause I might not get the chance again.
Chorus:
I'm cold and I'm tired
and I can't stop coughing
long enough to tell you all of the news
I'd like to tell you
that I'll see you more often
but often is a word I seldom use
often is a word I seldom use.
Tell me, where did the weekend go?
Tell me, where did the weekend go?
Went like thunder, felt like snow.
Went like thunder, felt like snow.
You must think my life's a circus
watching me laughing
and slapping my thighs
how'd ya like to die
in the house of mirrors
with nobody around to close your eyes.
Chorus:
Going down to the Greyhound station
going back home
and get what's mine
got me a date
with the ten o'clock special
gonna be there at a quarter to nine.
Chorus:

This nine pound hammer
Is a little too heavy
Buddy for my size
Buddy for my size
So I'm going on the mountain
Just to see my baby
And I ain't coming back
No I ain't coming back
Chorus:
Roll on buddy
Don't you roll so slow
Well, tell me how can I roll
When the wheels won't go
Roll on buddy
Pull you load of coal
Tell me how can I pull
When the wheels won't roll
It's a long way to Harlan
It's a long way to Hazard
Just to get a little brew
Just to get a little brew
And when I'm long gone
You can make my tombstone
Out of number nine coal
Out of number nine coal
Repeat Chorus:

The rain came down
On the tin roof
Hardly
A sound was left
From the birthday party
The kitchen light
Fell asleep
On the bedroom floor
Me and her were talking softer
Than all the time
Before I lost her
Picture sat on top
Of the chest of drawers
Chorus:
One red rose
In the Bible
Pressed between
The Holy alphabet
Probably wouldn't believe you
If you told me
But what I never knew
I never will forget
Rainy nites
Get dark real early
Her dress was soft
And her hair was curly
We danced around the table
To the old banjo
Rainy nites
Were made for lovers
We lay there still
Beneath the covers
And I ain't never felt
Like that before
Chorus:

I got a girl that ain't got no home
She ain't very fat just skin and bones
She don't cast no shadow because she's so thin
Never knows where she going but she knows were she's been
She Never knows where she going but she knows were she's been
The girl I love ain't got no name
But I love her just the same
She's a little peculiar but it ain't no sin
She never know where she going but know were she's been
She never knows where she going but she knows were she's been
Never know where she going but she knows were she's been
Instrumental:
She's six feet tall and got long black hair
Runs around in her sack dress but I don't care
She got great big feet with size number 10
She never know where she going but know were she's been
She never know where she going but know were she's been
Instrumental:
The girl I love ain't got no name
But I love her just the same
She's a little peculiar but it ain't no sin
She never know where she going but know were she's been
She never knows where she going but she knows were she's been
She never know where she going but know were she's been
She never knows where she going but she knows were she's been
She never know where she going but know were she's been
She never knows where she going but she knows were she's been
She never know where she going
She never knows where she going
She never know where she going
She never knows where she going
She never know where she going now
But she know were she's been Ugh......
She never know where she going
Never know where she going
But I know were she's been.

You may live alone and close your eyes
Some folks do
You may dream a dream that's twice your size
All night through
When the morning comes who's to tell your dreams to
Only you
Chorus:
Only love, love only, only love
Will do
Only love, love only, only love
Comes true
Nothing else, you see, there nothing else
Only love, only love
I have known a love within my heart
One or two
Where one love would end and one would start
I never knew
If love should come your way you'll learn to say
I love you I love you
Repeat Chorus Twice

Far away over the sea
There's a river that's calling to me
That river she runs all around
The place that I call my hometown
There's a valley on the side of the hill
And flowers on an old windowsill
A familiar old picture it seems
And I'll go there tonight in my dreams
Where it's green in the summer
And gold in the fall
Her eyes are as blue
As the sky I recall
Far away over the sea
There's a place at the table for me
Where laughter and music abound
Just waiting there in my hometown
The river she freezes
When there's snow on the ground
And the children can slide
To the far side of town
Far away far away me
Hung up on a sweet memory
I'm lost and I wish I were found
In the arms of my darlin' hometown
With the evening sun sittin'
On the top of the hill
And the mockingbird answering
The old chapel bell
Far away over the sea
My heart is longing to be
And I wish I could lay myself down
In the arms of my darlin' hometown

Morning Train
John Prine
I saw you
All dolled up
Singing a song in your pickup truck
You put me on a morning train
You put me on a morning train
Ain't no need to explain
You put me on a morning train
Hey, Hey, Brother Ray
What'd you mean by "what'd I say"
You put me on a morning train
You put me on a morning train
Ain't no need to explain
You put me on a morning train
If it's gonna rain
And I wish that it would
Just go ahead and rain
Get it over for good
If there's really a hole in that big blue sky
Then move it on over and let me by
Constantinople is a mighty long word
Got three more letters than mockingbird
You put me on a morning train
You put me on a morning train
Ain't no need to explain
You put me on a morning train
I like you with your make-up on
All dolled up
Singing a song
You put me on a morning train
You put me on a morning train
Ain't no need to explain
You put me on a morning train

I'm gonna get on that old turnpike and I'm gonna ride
I'm gonna leave this town 'til you decide
Which one you want the most them Opry stars or me
Milwaukee here I come from Nashville, Tennessee
Milwaukee is where we were before we came here
Working in a brewery making the finest beer
You came to me on a payday night said let's go to Tennessee
So we drove to Nashville to the Grand Ole Opry
I'm gonna get on that old turpike and I'm gonna ride
I'm gonna leave this town 'til you decide
Which one you want the most those Opry stars or me
Milwaukee here I come from Nashville, Tennessee
We were watching TV Ernest Tubb was singing loud
I said that's the man for me I love him, there's no doubt
I'm leaving you and going now to find out where he's at
If I can't get him I'll settle for that bluegrass Lester Flatt.
I'm gonna get on that old turnpike and I'm gonna ride
I'm gonna leave this town 'til you decide
Which one you want the most
Me or Jerry Lee
Milwaukee here I come from Nashville, Tennessee
Milwaukee here I come from Nashville, Tennessee

It's a cheating situation
A stealing invitation
To take what's not really ours
To make it through the midnight hours
It's a cheating situation Just a cheap imitation
Doing what we have to do
When there's no love at home
There's no use in pretending
There'll be a happy ending
Where our love's concerned
Sweetheart, we both know
We'll take love where we find it
Love and try to hide it
It's all we got
For we know they're not
Gonna let us go
It's a cheating situation
A stealing invitation
To take what's not really ours
To make it through the midnight hours
It's a cheating situation
Just a cheap imitation
Doing what we have to do
When there's no love at home
It's a cheating situation
When there's no love at home

I'm beginning to like you
But, you know that ain't right
'Cause you'll just twist and twist and twist
Till I'm all crooked inside
Then you'll take all you gave me
Like it never was there
And I think that I might, No! I know
Yes, I will help you there
'Cause ...
Chorus
I've done it before
And I'd do it again
'Cause it's the only time
That makes me feel like I'm
My own best friend
I'm a victim of friction I just got too close to see
Yeah, we sparked in the dark and God hung a light on me
And the lamp gets real heavy and it hangs from my heart
And it comes, and it goes
Till I can't tell the difference apart
But ...
Repeat Chorus
So many people say
It'll never work out that way
You can't stand the heat
While you're watching your heart
Just melt away in the basement
On a rainy day
La la la
La la la
La lala
Lalala la lalaaaaaaaaaa ...
There's motel in Shreveport
Don't ask me where, please
They check in, they check out
By the light of the color T.V.s
And the maid calls you honey
And she makes your bed slow
And she speaks, of the sheets that don't fit
But you know that she knows
That ...
Repeat Chorus

One evening getting dark
We first met at the park
Just sitting by the fountain all alone
I lifted up my hat
And then began to chat
She said she'd allow me to see her at her home
Chorus:
Such a star I've never seen
She's as pretty as the queen
She's as perfect as an angel from above
If she'd only be my wife
I'd live happy all me life
With that aggravating beauty Lulu Walls.
If she were only mine
I'd build a house so fine
And around it so many fences tall
It would make me jealously
To think that none but me
Could gaze upon that beauty Lulu Walls.
Repeat Chorus:
One evening getting late
Well, I met her at the gate
I asked her if she'd wed me in the fall
But she only turned away
And nothing would she say
That aggravating beauty Lulu Walls.
Repeat Chorus:
With that aggravating beauty Lulu Walls.

He stumbled through the alley with his long coat on
Nothing but a bottle in his hand
She sat in her apartment lonesome to the bone
Wondering what had happened to her man
Chorus:
Love, love, love, love
Nobody ever understands
All the things that go,
Between a woman and a man.
When they'd walk down the sidewalk the street would shine
With the kind of love no human heart can fake
And they vowed to stay together till the end of time
Like the couple that stands on top of the wedding cake
Repeat Chorus:
If I should live to a ripe old age
The only lesson I may ever learn
Is to not stand so close to the flame of love
Unless you are willing to get burned
Repeat Chorus:
All the things that go,
Between a woman and a man.

If you don't want my love
If you don't want my love
If you don't want my love
I know who
I'll give it to
If you don't want my love
If you don't want my love
If you don't want my love
anymore.
If you don't want the thrill
If you don't want the thrill
If you don't want the thrill
I know who
I know who will
If you don't want my love
If you don't want my love
If you don't want my love
anymore.
If that's the way that the world goes round
then that's the way
that it all comes down
and when you want me
I won't be around
If you don't want my love
If you don't want my love
If you don't want my love
I know who
I'll give it to
If you don't want my love
If you don't want my love
If you don't want my love
anymore.

Well, tonight I'll throw a party
And I know who I'll invite
There's a strange and lonely person
With whom I'll spend this night
There'll be no old sad memories
To haunt me till I die
In that room there'll be a bottle
And me, myself and I
In that room there'll be a bottle
And me, myself and I
I've been introduced to many
People I don't understand
I've been in the house of lonely.
I've shook a thousand shaking hands
But tonight I'll be with someone
Who will look me in the eye
And in that room there'll be a bottle
And me, myself and I
In that room there'll be a bottle
And me, myself and I
At that party you'll see me when I was just a child
In a room full of happy with a heart so meek and mild
And that child will meet a ghost that will haunt him oh so bad
From a family of confusion pretending love they never had.
So, tonight I'll throw that party
And I know just what I'll do
Yes, I'll meet myself at midnight
And cry the whole night thru
Yeah, I'll meet that ghost of sadness
And he'll look me in the eye
And in that room there'll be that bottle
And me, myself and I
In that room there'll be a bottle
And me, myself and I

Maureen, Maureen,
I shot a doctor last night on the airplane
Well, they said he wouldn't hurt us
But he got me real nervous and mean
He was fat and he stank
And God knows that he drank more than we do
So I shot him in the first class
Then I bailed out and ran home to you
Chorus:
But you don't believe me
I could tell by your smile
Honey, why don't you leave me
Get lost for awhile, Maureen.
Maureen, Maureen,
There's a hole in between where we come from
And the things that I'm thinking
Ain't necessary the things that I say
I may have lied to myself
But I tried to tell God how I love you
But even He don't answer
His phone anymore when I pray
Maureen, Maureen,
I shot a doctor last night on the airplane
Well, they said he wouldn't hurt us
But he got me real nervous and mean
Real nervous and mean

So long we've been married
Life's burdens we carried
Though faith kept us humble and made our love true
But plans that we make up
Someone seems to break up
Oh, darlin', what else can we do?
We may have to leave here
To find peace of mind, dear
Someplace where we can live a life of our own
I know you love me And happy we could be
If some folks would leave us alone
When I go out walkin'
There's lots of loose talkin'
They say we're unhappy, and we'll drift apart
But darlin' it's not true
Because I still love you
And I do with all of my heart
They say you are leavin'
That you are deceivin'
But you tell me they say the same about me
Oh, but we'll show them they're wrong
That loose talk can do harm
And hope that the truth they will see
We may have to leave here
To find peace of mind, dear
Someplace where we can live a life of our own
I know you love me
And happy we could be
If some folks would leave us alone
If some folks would leave us alone

I know why you're lonely
And I know why you're blue
You're lonesome to see him
And you long to see her too
We're not in love with each other
We're in love with our best friends
So let's invite them over again
We've talked it over and over
And we know it's not right
We should stay away forever
But we're lonesome each night
Yes we stay away for a while
But we know in the end
We'll invite them over again
We've talked it over and over
And we know it's not right
We should stay away forever
But we're lonesome each night
Yes we stay away for a while
But we know in the end
We'll invite them over again
Let's invite them over again

I just found out yesterday that Linda goes to Mars
Every time I sit and look at pictures of used cars
She'll turn on her radio and sit down in her chair
And look at me across the room, as if I wasn't there
Chorus:
Oh My stars! My Linda's gone to Mars
Well I wish she wouldn't leave me here alone
Oh My stars! My Linda's gone to Mars
Well, I wonder if she'd bring me something home.
Something, somewhere, somehow took my Linda by the hand
And secretly decoded our sacred wedding band
For when the moon shines down up on our happy, humble home
Her inner space gets tortured by some outer space unknown.
Repeat Chorus:
Now I ain't seen no saucers 'cept the ones upon the shelf
And if I ever seen one I'd keep it to myself
For if there's life out there somewhere beyond this life on earth
Then Linda must have gone out there and got her money's worth.
Repeat Chorus:
Yeah, I wonder if she'd bring me something home.

Well,I packed my bags and bought myself a ticket
For the land of the tall palm tree
Aloha Old Milwaukee, Hello Waikiki
I just stepped down from the airplane
When I heard her say,
";Waka waka nuka licka, waka waka nuka licka
Would you like a lei? Eh?";
Chorus
Let's talk dirty in Hawaiian
Whisper in my ear
Kicka pooka mok a wa wahini
Are the words I long to hear
Lay your coconut on my tiki
What the hecka mooka mooka dear
Let's talk dirty in Hawaiian
Say the words I long to hear
It's a ukelele Honolulu sunset
Listen to the grass skirts sway
Drinking rum from a pineapple
Out on Honolulu Bay
The steel guitars all playing
While she's talking with her hands
Gimme gimme oka doka make a wish and wanta polka
Words I understand Hey!
Repeat Chorus
Well, I boughta lota junka with my moola
And sent it to the folks back home
I never had the chance to dance the hula
Well,I guess I should have known
When you start talking to the sweet wahini
Walking in the pale moonlight
Ohka noka whatta setta knocka-rocka-sis-boom-boccas
Hope I said it right Oh!
Repeat Chorus
Let's talk dirty in Hawaiian
Say the words I long to hear
spoken: Aloha

Black faces pressed against the glass
Where rain has pressed it's weight
Wind blown scarves in top down cars
All share one western trait
Sadness leaks through tear-stained cheeks
From winos to dime-store Jews
Probably don't know they give me
These late John Garfield blues
Midnight fell on Franklin Street
And the lamppost bulbs were broke
For the life of me, I could not see
But I heard a brand new joke
Two men were standing upon a bridge
One jumped and screamed you lose
And just left the odd man holding
Those late John Garfield blues
An old man sleeps with his conscience at night
Young kids sleep with their dreams
While the mentally ill sit perfectly still
And live through life's in-betweens
I'm going away to the last resort
In week or two real soon
Where the fish don't bite but once a night
By the cold light of the moon
The horses scream- the nightmares dream
And the dead men all wear shoes
'Cause everybody's dancin'
Those late John Garfield blues

Pretty paper
Pretty ribbons of blue.
(spoken) Man oh man,
I just love Christmas
it's just so darn neat.
I kinda wish every day was Christmas,
except Christmas eve and the Fourth of July.
We wouldn't want to miss out on the fireworks, would we?
When I was a kid, we used to get the Christmas catalog from Montgomery Wards in Chicago.
Sometimes we'd get it as early as late August.
It was the big book of wishes, hopes and desires.
My three brothers and I were allotted twenty-five bucks a piece, including tax.
So I'd make up a different Christmas list every night
from the first of September 'til the twenty-forth of December.
Matter of fact, let me present you with my Christmas credentials.
When I was three years old, at least that's what my mother told me,
I ate an entire ornament. I ate a big red one, I thought it was an apple.
They kinda freaked out and was gonna take me to the hospital
but they couldn't stop me from laughing so they just left me alone.
So I guess I still got that Christmas in me all the time, you know?
One year, I got a wooden Roly-Poly for Christmas,
you know the things you knock down and they bounce right back up.
They made 'em out of wood back then, that's how old I am.
Nowadays, they make 'em out of plastic.
My mom says ";they just don't make 'em like that anymore";. And I says, ";no ma they don't";.
Then there was the year I came home only eave from the army,
from Germany to marry my highschool sweetheart on the day after Christmas.
My little brother Billy, who was twelve at the time,
had just gotten his first job so he was able to afford to buy some Christmas presents
for his brothers and his mom and dad out of his own pocket.
Billy had a job selling subscriptions for the Chicago Tribune.
He told me this guy named Rocky would pick him up in a station wagon,
him and some other boys, and he'd take 'em out to some strange neighborhood
and drop 'em off and he gave them this whole spiel to give their potential customers.
Supposedly their little brother had won a free trip to our nation's capital Washington, D.C.,
but he couldn't go on the trip if his older brother wouldn't accompany him
so if you would please buy a subscription to the Chicago Tribune then my little brother will be happy.
Wow, what a shyster! Some people'll do anything to get to the Whitehouse.
Then there was the year that my mom and dad gave me my first guitar.
Ah man it was gorgeous, I still got the thing.
It was a like aqua blue. Kinda dark aqua blue with a cream colored heart. Was a Silvertone from Montgomery Wards. The model was called Kentucky Blue and man when I saw that sitting under the tree I just couldn't wait.
First year so I didn't know how to play it,
I'd just stand in from of the mirror with a string around my neck with that guitar and I'd try to look like Elvis.
Then my brother Dave taught me a couple of chords,
now I'm here in your living room singing and talking to you.
It's funny how things work out.
So-a whyn't you go find a stranger and extend your hand to 'em.
If you see somebody looks like they ain't doin' quite as well as you, slip 'em a buck,
'specially if they don't ask for spare change.
Go buy your honey a cuckoo clock or a musical snow shaking water ball,
that when you wind it up it plays,
";I want you, I need you, I love ya with all my heart.";
'cause after all, hell man, it's Christmas.
Away in a manger no crib for a bed.
The little Lord Jesus lay down his sweet head.
The stars in the sky look down where he lay.
The little Lord Jesus asleep on the (1-2) hay.
(spoken) Merry Christmas Everybody.
(words finally transcribed by fancy nancy)

Well it's the same old song
Boy meets girl
And girl meets boy
They carry on
They close their eyes
And kiss until the world is gone
Oh yes it's true
It's happening to you
You know what they say
They pledge their love forever
Then they add a day
They hold their hands so tight
In the fear
That one might stray
Oh yes it's true
It's happening to you
I loved her
She loved me too
We had a lot of love
Now it's all through
And for a while
Their hearts beat one
As they match each other
Smile for smile
They dance away the night
As they praise
The others style
Oh yes it's true
It's happening to you

Leaves were falling ..Just like embers
In colors red and gold they set us on fire
Burning just like a moonbeam ..in our eyes
Chorus:
Somebody said they saw me
Swinging the world by the tail
Bouncing over a white cloud.
Killing the Blues
I am guilty of something
I hope you never do because there is nothing
Sadder than losing .. yourself in love
Repeat Chorus:
Repeat Chorus:
Now, you ask me Just to leave you
To go out on my own and get what I need to
You want me to find ..what I've already had
Repeat Chorus:
Repeat Chorus:
Repeat Chorus:
Repeat Chorus:

Feeling kind of bony
On the telephoney
Talking to Marconi
Eating Rice-a-Roni
Nominated for a Tony
For acting like a phoney
Watching Twilight Zoney
On my forty-two inch Sony
This is just a long song
It ain't no poem
Leave the lights on till your baby gets home
It's like sitting in the kitchen
When the music's really bitchin'
Your nose it starts to itchin'
As you count your old age pension
Did I forget to mention
The ride that I was hitchin'
To the Aluminum convention
I had such good intention
Keep your cotton pickin' fingers off
My song poem
And leave the lights on till your baby gets home
Leave the lights on till your baby gets home
Leave the lights on till your baby gets home
Don't forget your toothbrush
Your hairbrush and your comb
Leave the lights on till your baby gets home
Got a big ol' dog
A chrome crowbar
I keep that mother humper in the back seat of my car
Me and Billy Shakespeare
Stepped out to get a root beer
We sat together so near
People thought we were queer
Punctuated by the big scare
We joined the Air Force right there
To defend our country first class
Who couldn't give a rat's ass
Don't you tell me that the White House is my home
Leave the lights on till your baby gets home
Leave the lights on till your baby gets home
Leave the lights on till your baby gets home
Don't forget your toothbrush
Your hairbrush and your comb
Leave the lights on till your baby gets home
Got a big ol' dog
A big iron bar
I keep that mother humper in the back seat of my car
It's like kissing Greta Garbo with a mouth full of marbles
Like trying to cash a paycheck in the middle of a train wreck
Leave the lights on
Leave the lights on
Like trying to get aroundo in a carmade of bondo
Like speaking German lingo to a dog named Dingo - Plotz!!
Leave the lights on
Leave the lights on
Like a French fried quesadilla
In a franchised pizzeria
Leave the lights on
Leave the lights on
A big iron bar
I keep that mother humper in the back seat of my car.

Chorus:
We were standing
Standing by peaceful waters
Standing by peaceful waters
Whoa Wah Oh Wha Oh
Whoa Wah Oh Wha Oh
Many years ago along the Illinois-Wisconsin Border
There was this Indian tribe
They found two babies in the woods
White babies
One of them was named Elizabeth
She was the fairer of the two
While the smaller and more fragile one was named Marie
Having never seen white girls before
And living on the two lakes known as the Twin Lakes
They named the larger and more beautiful Lake, Lake Elizabeth
And thus the smaller lake that was hidden from the highway
Became known forever as Lake Marie
Repeat Chorus:
Many years later I found myself talking to this girl
Who was standing there with her back turned to Lake Marie
The wind was blowing especially through her hair
There was four italian sausages cooking on the outdoor grill
And Man, they was ssssssssizzlin'
Many years later we found ourselves in Canada
Trying to save our marriage and perhaps catch a few fish
Whatever seemed easier
That night she fell asleep in my arms
Humming the tune to ";Louie Louie'
Aah baby, We gotta go now.
Repeat Chorus:
The dogs were barking as the cars were parking
The loan sharks were sharking the narcs were narcing
Practically everyone was there
In the parking lot by the forest preserve
The police had found two bodies
Nay, naked bodies
Their faces had been horribly disfigured by some sharp object
Saw it on the news On the TV news in a black and white video
You know what blood looks like in a black and white video?
Shadows, Shadows that's exactly what it looks like
All the love we shared between her and me was slammed
Slammed up against the banks of Old Lake Marie, Marie
We were standing
Standing by peaceful waters
Standing by peaceful waters
Whoa Wah Oh Wha Oh
Whoa Wah Oh Wha Oh
Whoa Wah Oh Wha Oh
Whoa Wah Oh Wha Oh
Standing by peaceful waters
Peaceful waters
Standing by peaceful waters
Peaceful waters
Standing by peaceful waters
Peaceful waters
Standing by peaceful waters
Peaceful waters
Aah baby, we gotta go now

If you were the woman and I was the man
Would I send you yellow roses?
Would I dare to kiss your hand?
In the morning would I caress you
as the wind caresses the sand,
If you were the woman and I was the man?
If I was the heart and you were the head
Would you think me very foolish
if one day I decided to shed
these walls that surround me
just to see where these feelings led,
if I was the heart and you were the head?
If I was the woman and you were the man
Would I laugh if you came to me
with your heart in your hand
and said, ";I offer you this freely
and will give you all that I can
because you are the woman
and I am the man?";

In a town this size, there's no place to hide
Everywhere you go you meet someone you know
You can't steal a kiss in a place like this
How the rumors do fly in a town this size
In a smokey bar in the backseat of your car
In your own little house someone's sure to find you out
What you do and what you think
What you eat and what you drink
If you smoke a cigarette they'll be talkin' about your breath
In a town this size, there's no place to hide
Everywhere you go you meet someone you know
You can't steal a kiss in a place like this
How the rumors do fly in a town this size
Oh, I had a fight with my girlfriend last night
Before the moon went down it was all over town
How he made me cry how I said goodbye
If it's true or not doesn't seem to count alot
In a town this size, there's no place to hide
Everywhere you go you meet someone you know
You can't steal a kiss in a place like this
How the rumors do fly in a town this size
In a town this size In a town this size

I'm going steady with Iron Ore Betty
and she's goin' steady with me
we receive our mail in the same mailbox
and we watch the same TV
I got rug burns on my elbows
she's got 'em on her knees
yeah, I'm goin' steady with Iron Ore Betty
and she's going steady with me.
Hey, I been pickin' my brains out
I been workin' at the hardware store
I been trying to put a chicken in the window
chase away the wolf from the door
Betty's been down in the iron ore mine
bringing home energy
yeah, I'm goin' steady with Iron Ore Betty
and she's goin' steady with me.
I been speaking to her in English
she's been speakin' in the English too
we always speak the same language
'cause we're always gettin' thru
I met her at a dance at the union hall
it was a night with Daddy G.
yeah, I'm goin' steady with Iron Ore Betty
and she's goin' steady with me.

I love you so much it hurts me
Darlin' that's why I'm so blue
I'm so afraid to go to bed at night
Afraid of losing you
I love you so much it hurts me
And there's nothing I can do
I want to hold you my dear
Forever and ever
I love you so much it hurts me so
I love you so much it hurts me
And there's nothing I can do
I want to hold you my dear
Forever and ever
I want to hold you my dear
Forever and ever
I love you so much it hurts me so

Christmas toys all over the place
Little Johnny wears a funny smile on his face
Johnny has a secret, and a secret he must share
He wants to tell somebody, so he tells his Teddy Bear
I saw Mommy kissing Santa Claus
Underneath the mistletoe last night
Well, she didn't see me creep
Down the stairs to have a peek
She though that I was tucked up in my bedroom fast asleep
Then I saw Mommy tickle Santa Claus
Underneath his beard so snowy white
What a laugh it would have been
If Daddy had walked in
And saw Mommy kissing Santa Claus last night
I saw Mommy kissing Santa Claus
Underneath the mistletoe last night
Well, she didn't see me creep
Down the stairs to have a peek
She though that I was tucked up in my bedroom fast asleep
But I know I saw Mommy tickle Santa Claus
Underneath his beard so snowy white
What a laugh it would have been
If Daddy had walked in
And saw Mommy kissing Santa Claus last night
And saw Mommy kissing Santa Claus last night (One more time!)
And saw Mommy kissing Santa Claus last night
On the Lips!
yrics font

When all your loves have ended
When all your friends have flown
Who'll be around to want you
When all your loves have gone
Only a fool would do it
After the way you've done
But how many fools would have you I know one
This fool keeps wonderin' why
He fell in love at all
But you might need this fool
Around in case you fall
After the party's over
And you've had your fill of fun
If you need a fool to forgive you I know one
You never know, you might be lonely
When all your loves have missed
It wouldn't hurt to keep an extra
Fool on your list.
After your heart's been broken
And you need a place to run
If you'll take a fool who loves you
I know one
I know one
I know one

I don't want to be the kind to hesitate
Be too shy, Wait to late
I don't care what they say other lovers do
I just want to dance with you
I got a feeling that you have a heart like mine,
So let it show, Let it shine
Oh, if we have change to make one heart of two
Then I just want to dance with you
Chorus:
I want to dance with you
Twirl you all around the floor
That's what they invented dancing for,
I just want to dance with you
I want to dance with you
Hold you in my arms once more
That's what they invented dancing for,
I just want to dance with you
I caught you lookin' at me when I looked at you
Yes, I did, Ain't that true
You won't get embarrassed by the things I do
I just want to dance with you
Oh, the boys are playing softly and the girls are too
So am I , And so are you
If this was a movie then we're right on cue
I just want to dance with you
Repeat Chorus:
Repeat Chorus:
Ending:
I just want to dance with you
I just want to dance with you
I just want to dance with you

I hate it when that happens to me
John Prine
Well I once knew a man who was going insane
He let love chase him right up a tree
It took the police and a fire truck
Just to bring him back down
Oh, I hate it when that happens to me
It made the front page of the paper
The gossip tongues wagged
Why they even showed it all on TV
Now if he should live forever
He won't live it down
Oh, I hate it when that happens to me
Dogs bites Man
Man loses girl
Oh what did he ever do
Wrong in this world?
Dogs bites Man
Man loses girl
Oh, what have I every done
Wrong in this world?
There once was a big buzz all over town
About a movie where the killer goes free
Now, he's got every one's sympathy
Oh, I hate it when that happens to me
Yes, I hate it when that happens to me

Today I walked down the street I use to wander
Yeah, shook my head and made myself a bet
There was all these things that I don't think I remember
Hey, How lucky can one man get.
I bronzed my shoes and hung from a rearview mirror
Bronzed admiration in the blind spot of regret
There was all these things that I don't think I remember
Hey, How lucky can one man get.
Today I walked down the street I use to wander
Yeah, scratched my head and lit my cigarette
Well, There was all these things that I don't think I remember
Hey, How lucky can one man get.
Today I walked down the street I use to wander
Yeah, shook my head and made myself a bet
There was all these things that I don't think I remember
Hey, How lucky can one man get.
Hey, How lucky can one man get.
Hey, How lucky can
one ..
man..
get.

We had an apartment in the city,
Me and Loretta liked living there.
Well, it'd been years since the kids had grown,
A life of their own left us alone.
John and Linda live in Omaha,
And Joe is somewhere on the road.
We lost Davy in the Korean war,
And I still don't know what for, don't matter anymore.
Chorus:
Ya' know that old trees just grow stronger,
And old rivers grow wilder ev'ry day.
Old people just grow lonesome
Waiting for someone to say, ";Hello in there, hello.";
Me and Loretta, we don't talk much more,
She sits and stares through the back door screen.
And all the news just repeats itself
Like some forgotten dream that we've both seen.
Someday I'll go and call up Rudy,
We worked together at the factory.
But what could I say if asks ";What's new?";
";Nothing, what's with you? Nothing much to do.";
Repeat Chorus:
So if you're walking down the street sometime
And spot some hollow ancient eyes,
Please don't just pass 'em by and stare
As if you didn't care, say, ";Hello in there, hello.";

There's a rainbow of babies
Draped over the graveyard
Where all the dead sailors
Wait for their brides
And the cold bitter snow
Has strangled each grassblade
Where the salt from their tears
Washed out with the tide
Chorus
And I smiled on the Wabash
The last time I passed it
Yes I gave her a wink
From the passenger side
And my foot fell asleep
As I swallowed my candy
Knowing he was in heaven
Before he died
Now the harbor's on fire
With the dreams and desires
Of a thousand young poets
Who failed 'cause they tried
For a rhyme without reason
Floats down to the bottom
Where the scavengers eat 'em
And wash in with the tide
Repeat Chorus:
The sun can play tricks
With your eyes on the highway
The moon can lay sideways
Till the ocean stands still
But a person can't tell
His best friend he loves him
Till time has stopped breathing
You're alone on the hill
Repeat Chorus:

I knew a girl who was almost a lady
She had a way with all the men in her life
Every inch of her blossomed in beauty
And she was born on the fourth of July
Well she lived in an aluminum house trailer
And she worked in a juke box saloon
And she spent all the money I give her
Just to see the old man in the moon
Chorus:
I used to sleep at the foot of Old Glory
And awake in the dawn's early light
But much to my surprise
When I opened my eyes
I was a victim of the great compromise
Well we'd go out on Saturday evenings
To the drive-in on Route 41
And it was there that I first suspected
That she was doin' what she'd already done
She said "Johnny won't you get me some popcorn"
And she knew I had to walk pretty far
And as soon as I passed through the moonlight
She hopped into a foreign sports car
(Repeat chorus)
Well you know I could have beat up that fellow
But it was her that had hopped into his car
Many times I'd fought to protect her
But this time she was goin' too far
Now some folks they call me a coward
'Cause I left her at the drive-in that night
But I'd druther have names thrown at me
Than to fight for a thing that ain't right
(Repeat chorus)
Now she writes all the fellows love letters
Saying "Greetings, come and see me real soon"
And they go and line up in the barroom
And spend the night in that sick woman's room
But sometimes I get awful lonesome
And I wish she was my girl instead
But she won't let me live with her
And she makes me live in my head
(Repeat chorus)

Oh, the glory of true love
Is a wild and precious thing
It don't grow on old magnolias
Or only blossom in the spring
No, the glory of true love
Is it will last your whole life through
Never will go out of fashion
Always will look good on you
You can climb the highest mountain
Touch the moon and stars above
But old faithful's just a fountain
Compared to the glory of true love
Long before I met you, darlin'
Lord, I thought I had it all
I could have my lunch in London
And my dinner in St. Paul
I got some friends in Albuquerque
Where the governor calls me "Gov"
You can give 'em all to goodwill
For the glory of true love
You can climb the highest mountain
Touch the moon and stars above
But old faithful's just a fountain
Compared to the glory of true love
Glory, glory, glory, glory
You can't never get enough
Time alone will tell the story
Of the glory of true love
Glory, glory, glory, glory
You can't never get enough
Time alone will tell the story

The motel lights were blinkin'
On my chartreuse four door Lincoln
On the dock the fish were stinkin'
I simply didn't have a care
And the old men sit 'round the cracker barrels
The children hum their Christmas carols
The train tracks all run parallel
But they'll all meet up one day
On a dusty pew in a vestibule
Sits the Devil playing pocket pool
He's waiting for the next poor fool
Who forgot that it was Sunday
We used to tell each other lies
With our orange plastic button eyes
In a former life on a motel chair
I was Charlie Parker's teddy bear
Yeah, me and Bird we'd stay up late
I used to watch him contemplate
While his horn would sit by the window and
Wait till it was time for him to blow it
On a dusty pew in a vestibule
Sits the Devil playing pocket pool
He's waiting for the next poor fool
Who forgot that it was Sunday
The only song I ever knew
Was ";Moonlight Bay on the Avenue";
These are the tales from the Devil's chin
Charlie I could've been a contender
And the old men sit round the cracker barrels
The children hum their Christmas carols
The train tracks all run parallel
But they'll all meet up one day
On a dusty pew in a vestibule
Sits the Devil playing pocket pool
He's waiting for the next poor fool
Who forgot that it was Sunday
Who forgot that it was Sunday.

Sailin' around, Sailin' around, Sailin' around,
I've been out sailin' around again
I've been sailin' around
But I can't get back to you.
Hangin' around, Hangin' around, Hangin' around
I've been out hangin' around again
I've been hangin' around
But I can't get back to you.
Chorus:
So tell where you been so long (sailin' around)
What have I done so wrong? (sailin' around)
Well, I'm so glad I finally found you
I can't wait to put my arms around you
Sailin' around, but I can't get back to you
Shoppin' around, Shoppin' around, Shoppin' around,
I've been shoppin' around again
I've been shoppin' around
But I can't get back to you.
Repeat Chorus:
Sailin' around, Sailin' around, Sailin' around,
I've been sailin' around again
I've been sailin' around but I can't get back to you.
I've been sailin' around but I can't get back to you.
I've been sailin' around but I can't get back to you.

I wake up to a clock that's ringing
Birds are singing on my telephone line
I work all day and I chase my woman
Why don't she chase me sometime?
Everybody wants to be wanted
I mean I ain't no scarecrow cop
I don't need no transalazation
I don't need no diddiley bop
Next time tell me that you want me
Put your little foot inside of my shoe
Next time tell me that you need me
Everybody wants to feel like you
I used to love you so hard in the morning
I'd make you stutter and roll your eyes
I put your mind on a brief vacation
To the land of the lost surprise
You got a heart that beats like mine love
You got a bell that rings so true
I get this feeling that I got to tiptoe
Round every little thing you do.

As the cafe was closing
on a warm summer night
And Cathy was cleaning the spoons
The radio played the hit parade
And I hummed a long with the tune
She asked me to change the station
Said the song just drove her insane
But it weren't just the music playing
It was me that she was trying to blame.
Chorus:
And the sky is black and still now
On the hill where the angels sing
Ain't it funny how an old broken bottle
Looks just like a diamond ring
But it's far, far from me
Well, I leaned on my left leg
in the parking lot dirt
And Cathy was closing the lights
A June bug flew from the warmth he once knew
And I wished for once I weren't right
Why we used to laugh together
And we'd dance to any old song.
Well, ya know, she still laughs with me
But she waits just a second to long.
Repeat Chorus:
Well, I started the engine
and I gave it some gas
And Cathy was closing her purse
Well, we hadn't gone far in my beat old car
And I was prepared for the worst.
";Will you still see me tomorrow?";
";No, I got too much to do.";
Well, a question ain't really a question
If you know the answer too.
Repeat Chorus:

While out sailing on the ocean
While out sailing on the sea
I bumped into the Saviour
And He said pardon me
I said ";Jesus you look tired";
He said ";Jesus so do you,
Sit down son
'Cause I got some fat to chew";
Chorus:
Everybody needs somebody that they can talk to
Someone to open up their ears
And let that trouble through
Now you don't have to sympathize
Or care what they may do
But everybody needs somebody that they can talk to
Well he spoke to me of morality
Starvation, pain and sin
Matter of fact the whole dang time
I only got a few words in
But I won't squawck
Let 'em talk
Hell it's been a long long time
And any friend that's been turned down
Is bound to be a friend of mine
(Repeat chorus)
Now we sat there for an hour or two
Just eatin' that Gospel pie
When around the bend come a terrible wind
And lightning lit the sky
He said so long son I gotta run
Appreciate you listening to me
And I believe I heard him sing these words
As he skipped out across the sea
(Repeat chorus)

Forbidden Jimmy
Has got a mighty sore tooth
From biting too many dimes
In a telephone booth
He's got half of his bootlace
Tied to the dial
Thank you operator
For getting Jimmy to smile
";Call out the Coast Guard";
Screamed the Police
Forbidden Jimmy
He's got three water skis
He put two on his wavelength
And gave one to his girl
She's a mighty fine person
It's a mighty fine world
Chorus:
I'm gonna make all your sorrows bright
Set your soul free
I'll see you tomorrow night
If I can still see
Ginger Caputo
And Dorian Gray
Oughtta stay out of pictures
If they got nothin' to say
Stack 'em back on the rack Jack
Ya know, you're hurting my eye
Forbidden Jimmy
He's getting ready to fly
Repeat Chorus
I got caught cooking popcorn
And calling it hail
They wanna stick my head
Inside a water pail
Ya know, they're gonna be sorry
They're gonna pay for it too
Forbidden Jimmy
He's coming straight at you

I been thinking lately about the people I meet
The carwash on the corner and the hole in the street
The way my ankles hurt with shoes on my feet
And I'm wondering if I'm gonna see tomorrow.
Father forgive us for what we must do
You forgive us we'll forgive you
We'll forgive each other till we both turn blue
Then we'll whistle and go fishing in heaven.
I was in the army but I never dug a trench
I used to bust my knuckles on a monkey wrench
Then I'd go to town and drink and give the girls a pinch
But I don't think they ever even noticed me.
Fish and whistle, whistle and fish
Eat everything that they put on your dish
And when we get through we'll make a big wish
That we never have to do this again again? again????
On my very first job I said thank you and please
They made me scrub a parking lot down on my knees
Then I got fired for being scared of bees
And they only give me fifty cents an hour.

Do you like me?
Well I hope you do
Cause if you like me
Then I think I'm gonna to have to like you too
We'll share our things
And have some fun
Then we'll say goodbye
And go back home when the day is done
If you tell me
I'll tell you too
And we'll say the things
And do the things that lovers do
We'll keep it to ourselves
We won't hurt no one
Then we'll say goodbye
And go back home when the day is done
We'll carve our names
On a tree
Then we'll burn it down
So no one in the world will see
And we'll make love
While we watch the flame
Then we'll walk away
As if we never had no shame
Now we must hide
To be alone
And we can't say
Our sweet things on the telephone
If we can't stop
What we've begun
We should say goodbye
And go back home when the day is done
Do you still like me?
Well I hope you do
Cause if you still like me
Then I think I'm gonna have to still like you
We shared our things
And had some fun
Now we'll say goodbye
And go back home when the day is done
Yeah, we'll say goodbye
And go back home while
We still have one
Let's say goodbye and go back home
Now the day is done

(vocals by John Prine)
When I woke up this morning
There was a note upon my door
Saying "; Don't make me no coffee, Babe
Cause I won't be back no more";
And that's all she wrote
";Dear John";, I sent your saddle home";
Now Jonah got along in the belly of a whale
Daniel in the lion's den
I know a guy that didn't try to get along
And he won't get a chance again
That's all she wrote
";Dear John";, I sent your saddle home";
She didn't forward no address
No she never said goodbye
All she said was ";If you get blue
Just hang your little head and cry";
That's all she wrote
";Dear John";, I sent your saddle home";
Now my gal's short and stubby
She's mean as she can be
If that little old gal of mine
Ever gets a hold of me
That's all she wrote
";Dear John";, I fetched your saddle home";
Went down to the bank this morning
The cashier said with a grin
I'm sorry for you Little John
But your wife has done been in
That's all she wrote
";Dear John";, I sent your saddle home";
That's all she wrote
";Dear John";, I sent your saddle home";

While walking out, one evening,
Not knowing where to go
Just to pass the time away
Before we held our show
I heard a little mission band
Playing with all their might
I gave my soul to Jesus
And left the show that night
The day will soon be over
And evening will be done
No more gems to be gathered
So let us all press on
When Jesus comes to claim us
And says it is enough
The diamonds will be shining
No longer in the rough

Back before I was a movie star
Straight off of the farm
I had a picture of another man's wife
Tattooed on my arm
With a pack of Camel cigarettes
In the sleeve of my tee shirt
I'm headin' out to Hollywood
Just to have my feelings hurt
That town will make you crazy
Just give it a little time
You'll be walking 'round in circles
Down at Hollywood and Vine
You'll be waitin' on a phone call
At the wrong end of a broom
Yes, that town'll make you crazy
Crazy as a loon
So, I headed down to Nashville
To become a country star
Every night you'd find me hangin'
At every honky-tonk and bar
Pretty soon I met a woman
Pretty soon she done me wrong
Pretty soon my life got sadder
Than any country song
That town will make you crazy
Just give it a little time
You'll be walking 'round in circles
Lookin' for that country rhyme
You'll be waitin' on a phone call
At the wrong end of a broom
Yea, that town'll make you crazy
Crazy as a loon
So, I gathered up my savvy
Bought myself a business suit
I headed up to New York City
Where a man can make some loot
I got hired Monday morning
Downsized that afternoon
Overcome with grief that evening
Now I'm crazy as a loon
So I'm up here in the north woods
Just staring at a lake
Wondering just exactly how much
They think a man can take
I eat fish to pass the time away
'Neath this blue Canadian moon
This old world has made me crazy
Crazy as a loon
Lord, this world will make you crazy
Crazy as a loon

The last time that I saw her
She was standing in the rain
With her overcoat under her arm
Leaning on a horsehead cane
She said "Carl, take all the money"
She called everybody Carl
"My spirit's broke"
"My mind's a joke,"
"And getting up's real hard"
Chorus
Don't you know her
When you see her?
She grew up
In your back yard
Come back to us
Barbara Lewis
Hare Krishna
Beauregard
Selling bibles at the airports
Buying quayludes on the phone
Hey, you talk about
A paper route
She's a shut in without a home
God save her, please
She's nailed her knees
To some drugstore parking lot
Hey, Mr. Brown
Turn the volume down
I believe this evening's shot
Repeat Chorus
Can't you picture her next Thursday?
Can you picture her at all?
In the Hotel Boulderado
At the dark end of the hall
I gotta shake myself and wonder
Why she even bothers me
For if heartaches were commercials
We'd all be on T.V.
Repeat Chorus

I'm goin' down to the Greyhound Station, gonna get a ticket to ride
Gonna find that lady with two or three kids and sit down by her side
Ride 'til the sun comes up and down around me 'bout two or three times
Smokin' cigarettes in the last seat
Tryin' to hide my sorrow from the people I meet
and get along with it all
Go down where the people say "y'all"
Sing a song with a friend
Change the shape that I'm in,
And get back in the game,
And start playin' again
I'd like to stay but I might have to go to start over again
Might go back down to Texas, might go to somewhere that I've never been
And get up in the mornin' and go out at night
and I won't have to go home
Get used to bein' alone
Change the words to this song
Start singin' again
I'm tired of runnin' 'round lookin' for answers to questions that I already know
I could build me a castle of memories just to have somewhere to go
Count the days and the nights that it takes to get back in the saddle again
Feed the pigeons some clay
Turn the night into day
Start talkin' again, when I know what to say
I'm goin' down to the Greyhound Station, gonna get a ticket to ride
Gonna find that lady with two or three kids and sit down by her side
Ride 'til the sun comes up and down around me 'bout two or three times
Smokin' cigarettes in the last seat
Tryin' to hide my sorrow from the people I meet
And get along with it all
Go down where the people say "y'all"
Feed the pigeons some clay
Turn the night into day
Start talkin' again
When I know what to say

Clocks and spoons and empty rooms
It's raining out tonight
What a way to end a day
By turnin' out the light
Shoot the moon right between the eyes
I'm sending most of me to sunny country side
Runnin' through sky of blue rollin' in the sun
Every day has a way of overflowing one
Shoot the moon right between the eyes
I'm keeping most of me in sunny country side
Don't know how I did that now wonder where it's gone
Must have spent the way I went waitin' for the dawn
Shoot the moon right between the eyes
I'm screaming
Take me back to sunny country side

You can't live together
You can't live alone
Considering the weather
Oh my, how you've grown
From the men in the factories
To the wild kangaroo
Like those birds of a feather
They're gathering together
And feeling
Exactly like you
They got mesmerized
By lullabies
And limbo danced
In pairs
Please lock that door
It don't make much sense
That common sense
Don't make no sense
No more
Just between you and me
It's like pulling
When you ought to be shovin,
Like a nun
With her head in the oven
Please don't tell me
That this really wasn't nothing
One of these days
One of these nights
You'll take off your hat
And they'll read you
Your rights
You'll wanna get high
Every time you feel low
Hey, Queen Isabella
Stay away from that fella
He'll just get you
Into trouble, you know?
But they came here by boat
And they came here by plane
They blistered their hands
And they burned out their brain
All dreaming a dream
That'll never come true
Hey, don't give me no trouble
Or I'll call up my double
We'll play piggy-in-the-middle
With you
You'll get mesmerized
By alibis
And limbo dance in pairs
Please lock that door
It don't make much sense
That common sense
Don't make no sense
No more

(Chain of Sorrow)
My heart's in the ice house come hill or come valley
Like a long ago Sunday when I walked through the alley
On a cold winter's morning to a church house
just to shovel some snow.
I heard sirens on the train track howl naked gettin' nuder,
An altar boy's been hit by a local commuter
just from walking with his back turned
to the train that was coming so slow.
You can gaze out the window get mad and get madder,
throw your hands in the air, say "What does it matter?"
but it don't do no good to get angry,
so help me I know
For a heart stained in anger grows weak and grows bitter.
You become your own prisoner as you watch yourself sit there
wrapped up in a trap of your very own
chain of sorrow.
I been brought down to zero, pulled out and put back there.
I sat on a park bench, kissed the girl with the black hair
and my head shouted down to my heart
"You better look out below!"
Hey, it ain't such a long drop don't stammer don't stutter
from the diamonds in the sidewalk to the dirt in the gutter
and you carry those bruises to remind you wherever you go.

It started out when she was small
She was premature
She wasn't nothing at all
Two pounds six ounces
A little pumpkin seed
But she got more love
Than you ever gonna need
She got big fat love
She got big fat love
She don't eat enough
To keep her alive
When she bends over
She's a quarter to five
Skinny little thing
But she ain't afraid
To dance the Watusi
On a razorblade
She got big fat love
She got big fat love
Tiny little hands
Tiny little nose
Tiny little footsteps
Wherever she goes
Little bit don't leave
No bathtub ring
You pull the plug
She's down the drain
She got big fat love
She got big fat love
She got big fat love
Bigger than me
Bigger than you
Bigger than the hippo
Down at the zoo
Thin is in
Stout is out
Big fat love
Is what I'm talking about
She got big fat love
She got big fat love
She got big fat love

My heart's in the ice house come hill or come valley
Like a long ago Sunday when I walked through the alley
On a cold winter's morning to a church house
just to shovel some snow.
I heard sirens on the train track howl naked gettin' nuder,
An altar boy's been hit by a local commuter
just from walking with his back turned
to the train that was coming so slow.
You can gaze out the window get mad and get madder,
throw your hands in the air, say ";What does it matter?";
but it don't do no good to get angry,
so help me I know
For a heart stained in anger grows weak and grows bitter.
You become your own prisoner as you watch yourself sit there
wrapped up in a trap of your very own
chain of sorrow.
I been brought down to zero, pulled out and put back there.
I sat on a park bench, kissed the girl with the black hair
and my head shouted down to my heart
";You better look out below!";
Hey, it ain't such a long drop don't stammer don't stutter
from the diamonds in the sidewalk to the dirt in the gutter
and you carry those bruises to remind you wherever you go.

Way up on Bear Creek, watching the sun go down
Way up on Bear Creek, watching the sun go down
Well, it makes me feel like I'm on my last go 'round
Well, the water up on Bear Creek, tastes like cherry wine
Yeah, the water up on Bear Creek, tastes like cherry wine
One drink of that water, you stay drunk all the time
If you stay up on Bear Creek, you'll get like Jesse James
If you stay up on Bear Creek, you'll get like Jesse James
You'll take two pistols and you'll rob that Bear Creek train
I'm going high, high, up on some lonesome hill
I'm going high, high, up on some lonesome hill
Look down on Bear Creek where my good gal used to live
Way up on Bear Creek, watching the sun go down
Way up on Bear Creek, watching the sun go down

You may go to college.
You may go to school
You might drive a pink Cadillac
But don't you be nobody's fool
Come back, baby. Come back.
Come back, baby. Come back.
Come back, baby. I want to play house with you
Listen to me baby.
What I'm talking about
Come on back me Little girl
So we can play some house.
Come back baby Come back
Come back baby gone.
Come back baby I want to play house with you
Well, there's just one thing baby
That I want you to know
Come on back we can play a little house
And we act like we did before.
Come back, baby. Come back.
Come back, baby. Come back.
Come back, baby. I want to play house with you
Listen to me baby.
Try to understand
I rather see you dead little girl
Than see you with another man
Come back, baby. Come back.
Come back, baby. Come back.
Come back, baby. I want to play house with you

You didn't know I wasn't free
When you fell in love with me
And with all your young heart you learned to care
It brought you shame and disgrace
The world has tumbled in your face
'Cause they call our love a back street affair
They say I wrecked your home,
You're a husband that's gone wrong
They don't know the sorrow that we had to bear
For the one I'm tied to
was the first to prove untrue
Now they call our love a back street affair
We have each other now,
That's all that matters anyhow
For the judgment of gossip's never fair
We'll just be brave and strong
Then someday they'll see they're wrong
Let 'em call our love a back street affair
We'll be free to love someday
When all the talk has died away
and the happiness we hoped for then we'll share
We'll climb a mountain high,
then the world will hear us cry
That our love was not a back street affair
No, our love was not a back street affair

I been a bad boy
I been long gone
I been out there
I never phone home
I never gave you not one little clue where I'd been
I've been a bad boy again.
I got a way of
Fallin' in love
With angels that don't shove
You into thinkin' that you are committing a sin
I've been a bad boy again.
I've been a bad boy again
Now I've been a bad boy again
And all the trouble that I'm in
Makes me a bad boy again
I've been a bad boy again
Now I've been a bad boy again
And all the trouble that I'm in
Makes me a bad boy again
I must have walked 'round
In a real fog
I was your best friend
Now I'm a real dog
I never thought that now
Would ever catch up with then
I've been a bad boy again.
I've been a bad boy
I sung a wrong song
I took a left turn
I stayed too long
As you were thinkin' that I wasn't
Just like all other men
I've been a bad boy again.
I've been a bad boy again
Now I've been a bad boy again
And all the trouble that I'm in
Makes me a bad boy again
I've been a bad boy again
Now I've been a bad boy again
And all the trouble that I'm in
Makes me a bad boy again

I could be as happy as a sardine in a can
Long as I got my woman
I could run stark naked and live in and old oak tree
Just as long as she's with me
My woman.
The cannibals can catch me and fry me in a pan
Long as I got my woman
I could get the electric chair for a phony rap
Long as she's sittin' in my lap
My woman.
I'd run a mile, just to see her smile
And put her lovin arms, around my neck
Aw heck
My spine starts a tingling, and bells start a ringling
When she's with me, can't you see.
They could torture me and stretch me like a rubber band
Long as I got my woman
I could jump off a cliff and never have no fear
Just as long as she is near
My woman.

I wish you love And happiness
I guess I wish you All the best
I wish you don't Do like I do
And ever fall in love with Someone like you
Cause if you fell Just like I did
You'd probably walk around the block like a little kid.
But kids don't know They can only guess
How hard it is To wish you happiness
I guess that love Is like a Christmas card
You decorate a tree You throw it in the yard
It decays and dies And the snowmen melt
Well I once knew love I knew how love felt
Yeah I knew love Love knew me
And when I walked Love walked with me
And I got no hate And I got no pride
Well I got so much love That I cannot hide
Say you drive a Chevy Say you drive a Ford
You say you drive around the town till you just get bored
Then you change your mind For something else to do
And your heart gets bored with your mind and it changes you
Well it's a doggone shame And it's an awful mess
I wish you love I wish you happiness
I wish you love I wish you happiness
I guess I wish you All the best

You've got a life somewhere without me
I've gone on without you
It hasn't been easy getting used to
Being lonely and tonight is an all night blue
And I wonder how you look and who looks at you
In your nightgown
I can almost feel your body
Your warm and loving body when I lay down
Chorus:
It's an all night blue
Remembering you
It's an all night blue
Wondering who's loving you ... all night
Well it hurts me to see that you're
Happy without me cause I still need you
I just drank up my heart
Set it empty on the table 'cause I
Ain't got nothing better to do
Still I wonder how you look and
Who looks at you every morning
I can still feel your warm breath
You kissing me on the chest
I'm just dreaming
Chorus

Love gives
Love takes
It takes a lot of lucky breaks
Lucky strikes
Lucky stars
I don't know how I got this far
Who knows where it's coming from
Or where it's going to
Can I go all the way with you?
You have your way
You have your doubts
The falling in
The falling out
A bridge is built
A bridge is burned
Till you reach the point of no return
Don't know where we're coming from
Or where we're going to
Can I go all the way with you?
Heaven knows that this ain't nothing new
God knows how much I love you
Love comes
Love goes
Can I go all the way with you?
Can I go all the way with you?

Time was once just a clock to me
and life was just a book a biography
Success was something you just had to be
and I would spend myself unknowingly
And you know that I could have me a million more friends
and all I'd have to lose is my point of view
But I had no idea what a good time would cost
till last night when I sat and talked with you.
An apple will spoil if it's been abused
A candle disappears when its been used
A rainbow may follow up a hurricane
And I can't leave forever on a train
And you know that I'd survive if I never spoke again
and all I'd have to lose is my vanity
But I had no idea what a good time would cost
till last night when you sat and talked with me.
You can smile for the lack of something else to do
and no one will laugh and point a finger at you
If your tears didn't always make me feel so bad
would you still cry every time that you felt sad?
I thought I'd heard and seen enough to get along
till you said something neither of us knew
And I had no idea what a good time would cost
till last night when I sat and talked with you.

By a fountain back in Rome I fell in love with you
In a small cafe in Athens You said you loved me too
And it was April in Paris when I first held you close to me
Rome, Georgia, Athens, Texas And Paris, Tennessee
No, we're not the jet set
We're the old Chevro-let set
There's no Riviera
In Festus, Missouri
And you won't find Onassis
In Mullinville, Kansas
No, we're not the jet set
We're the old Chevro-let set
But ain't we got love
No, We're not the jet set
We're the old Chevro-let set
Our steak and martinis
Is draft beer with weenies
Our Bach and Tchaikovsky
Is Haggard and Husky
No, we're not the jet set
We're the old Chevro-let set
But ain't we got love
No, We're not the jet set
We're the old Chevro-let set
The Prine and DeMent set
Ain't the flaming suzette set
Our Bach and Tchaikovsky
Is Haggard and Husky
We're the old Chevro-let set
But ain't we got love

Darling, I can see the clouds around you
And in your heart I know a sorrow grows
But if you weep I'll be right here to hold you
'Til each tear you cry becomes a rose
Dearest love, I know your heart been shattered
And all my words can offer no relief
But my love will heal the pain you've suffered
And I'll be here if you should turn to me
I deepest night when memories tend to gather
Lay with me and put your fears to sleep
'Cause there's no pain no dream can put asunder
All the love that binds us you and me
Darling, I can see the clouds around you
And in your heart I know a sorrow grows
But if you weep I'll be right here to hold you
'Til each tear you cry becomes a rose
'Til each tear you cry becomes a rose

I lose my blues
Only when I'm with you
No one else can do
You're in my heart to stay
But when I'm gone and I'm all alone
I'll be singing this song
I want to be with you always
I'd be happy dear
If you could only be here
And always be near you
Forever and a day
Then we'd travel far to some big shining star
Just you and my guitar
And stay there sweetheart for always
I hope you feel the same
You really want my name
You'll be the one who's to blame
If it works out wrong that day
Cause my love is true, my love's only for you
I'll never be blue
If I can be with you always
I'd be happy dear
If you could only hear
And always be near you
Forever and a day
Then we'd travel far to some big shining star
Just you and my guitar
And stay there sweetheart for always.

Great rain great rain
I thought I heard you call my name
Great rain great rain
I thought I heard you call my name
I was standing in the station
Waving down an unmarked train
There's a fire at the junction
Why do you do the things you do
There's a fire at the junction
Why do you do the things you do
I was praying for mercy
And all he ever sent me was you
Jimmy bought the liquor
I bought the cups and ice
Jimmy bought the liquor
I bought the cups and ice
I tell you funny stories
Why can't you treat me nice
Great rain great rain
I thought I heard you call my name
Great rain great rain
I thought I heard you calling my name
I was standing by the river
Talking to a young Mark Twain.

Night is falling
We're doing the things we do
You are acting just like me
I'm acting just like you
Do you remember
When you were my friend?
That's the way I'd like things
Just like way back then
Baby's sleeping
Brother is on the run
I am out undoing
All the good I've done
If you loved me
Tell you what I would do
Wrap the world in silver foil
Bring it home to you.
Lately I feel
That I can't pretend
I may never ever see
The likes of you again
I take a walk, I come back home
Then I sit a spell
Watch the ponies dance around
The empty wishing well.
Night has fallen
I've said the things I did
The only baby sleeping
Is when I was a kid
Do you remember
When you were my friend?
That's the way I'd like things
Just like way back then.

From the bells of St Mary
To the Count of Monte Cristo
Nothing can stop
Nothing can stop
Nothing can stop
The sins of Memphisto
Sally used to play with her hula hoops
Now she tells her problems to therapy groups
Grampa's on the front lawn staring at a rake
Wondering if his marriage was a terrible mistake
I'm sitting on the front steps drinking orange crush
Wondering if it's possible if I could still blush
Uh huh Oh yeah
A boy on a bike with courduroy slacks
Sleeps in the river by the railroad tracks
He waits for the whistle on the train to scream
So he can close his eyes and begin to dream
Uh huh Oh yeah
The hands on his watch spin slowly around
With his mind on a bus that goes all over town
Looking at the babies and the factories
And listening to the music of Mister Squeeze
As if by magic or remote control
He finds a piece of a puzzle
That he missed in his soul
Uh huh Oh yeah
Adam and Eve and Lucy and Ricky
Bit the big apple and got a little sticky
Esmeralda and the Hunchback of Notre Dame
They humped each other like they had no shame
They paused as they posed for a Polaroid photo
She whispered in his ear ";Exactly Odo Quasi Modo";

I seen my old lady's boyfriend
He don't look nothing like me
'cept for a bit of confusion
Same kind she laid on me
You don't know what you're getting into
She's gonna tear you apart
You're going places I've been to
Take a look at my heart
Take a look at my heart
You're pro'bly sending her flowers
And talking to her on the phone
You're gonna get it together
And find yourself all alone
Do you think you can be her lover
And not become her fool
Do you think that you are the exception to the rule
You're gonna hate all her girlfriends
And everything that they say
You ask me how do I know this
They come around every day.

A young man from a small town
With a very large imagination
Lay alone in his room with his radio on
Looking for another station
When the static from the mouthpiece
Gave way to the sound below
James Dean went out to Hollywood
And put his picture in a Picture Show.
James Dean went out to Hollywood
And put his picture in a Picture Show.
Chorus:
And It's Oh Daddy get off of your knees
Mamma why'd you have to go
Your darling Jim is out a limb
I put my picture in a Picture Show
Whoa Ho! Put my picture in a Picture Show
Hamburgers Cheeseburgers
Wilbur and Orville Wright
John Garfield in the afternoon
Montgomery Clift at night
When the static hit the mouthpiece
Gave way to the sound below
James Dean went out to Hollywood
And put his picture in a Picture Show.
Repeat Chorus:
A Mocca man in a wigwam sitting on a Reservation.
With a big black hole in the belly of his soul
Waiting on an explanation
While the white man sits on his fat can
And takes pictures of the Navajo
Every time he clicks his Kodak pics
He steals a little bit of soul.
Every time he clicks his Kodak pics
He steals a little bit of soul.
Repeat Chorus:
Yie Hi! Put my picture in a Picture Show
Here we go!
A young man from a small town
With a very large imagination...

(spoken)
Jesus.... the missing years
It was raining. It was cold
West Bethlehem was no place for a twelve year old
So he packed his bags and he headed out
To find out what the world's about
He went to France. He went to Spain
He found love. He found pain.
He found stores so he started to shop
But he had no money so he got in trouble with a cop
Kids in trouble with the cops
From Israel didn't have no home
So he cut his hair and moved to Rome
It was there he met his Irish bride
And they rented a flat on the lower east side of Rome...
Italy that is
Music publishers, book binders, Bible belters, Money Changers,
Spoon Benders and lots of pretty Italian chicks.
Chorus:
Charley bought some popcorn
Billy bought a car
Someone almost bought the farm
But they didn't go that far
Things shut down at midnight
At least around here they do
Cause we all reside down the block
Inside at ....23 Skidoo.
Wine was flowing so were beers
So Jesus found his missing years
So He went to a dance and said ";This don't move me";
He hiked up his pants and he went to a movie
On his thirteenth birthday he saw ";Rebel without a Cause";
He went straight on home and invented Santa Claus
Who gave him a gift and he responded in kind
He gave the gift of love and went out of his mind
You see him and the wife wasn't getting along
So he took out his guitar and he wrote a song
Called ";The Dove of Love Fell Off the Perch";
But he couldn't get divorced in the Catholic Church
At least not back then anyhow
Jesus was a good guy he didn't need this shit
So he took a pill with a bag of peanuts and
A Coca-Cola and he swallowed it.
He discovered the Beatles
And he recorded with the Stones
Once He even opened up a three-way package
In Southern California for old George Jones
Repeat Chorus:
The years went by like sweet little days
With babies crying pork chops and beaujolais
When he woke up he was seventeen
The world was angry. The world was mean.
Why the man down the street and the kid on the stoop
All agreed that life stank. All the world smelled like poop
Baby poop that is ..the worst kind
So he grew his hair long and thew away his comb
And headed back to Jerusalem to find Mom, Dad and home
But when he got there the cupboard was bare
Except for an old black man with a fishing rod
He said ";Whatcha gonna be when you grow up?";
Jesus said ";God";
Oh my God, what have I gotten myself into?
I'm a human corkscrew and all my wine is blood
They're gonna kill me Mama. They don't like me Bud.
So Jesus went to Heaven and he went there awful quick
All them people killed him and he wasn't even sick
So come and gather around me my contemporary peers
And I'll tell you all the story of
Jesus...The Missing Years
Repeat Chorus:
We all reside down the block
Inside at ....23 Skidoo.

Up in the morning
Work like a dog
Is better than sitting
Like a bump on a log
Mind all your manners
Be quiet as a mouse
Some day you'll own a home
That's as big as a house
I know a fella
He eats like a horse
Knocks his old balls
Round the old golf course
You oughta see his wife
She's a cute little dish
She smokes like a chimney
And drinks like a fish
There's a big old goofy man
Dancing with a big old goofy girl
Ooh baby
It's a big old goofy world
Now Elvis had a woman
With a head like a rock
I wished I had a woman
That made my knees knock
She'd sing like an angel
And eat like a bird
And if I wrote a song
She'd know ever single word
Kiss a little baby
Give the world a smile
If you take an inch
Give 'em back a mile
Cause if you lie like a rug
And you don't give a damn
You're never gonna be
As happy as a clam
So I'm sitting in a hotel
Trying to write a song
My head is just as empty
As the day is long
Why it's clear as a bell
I should have gone to school
I'd be wise as an owl
Stead of stubborn as a mule.

Everything is cool
Everything's okay
Why just before last Christmas
My baby went away
Across the sea to an island
While the bridges brightly burn
So far away from my land
The valley of the unconcerned
I was walking down the road, man
Just looking at my shoes
When God sent me an angel
Just to chase away my blues
I saw a hundred thousand blackbirds
Just flying thru the sky
And they seemed to form a teardrop
From a black haired angel's eye
That tear fell all around me
And it washed my sins away
Now everything is cool
Everything's okay
Everything is cool
Everything's okay
Why just before last Christmas
My baby went away
And I find it real surprising
For myself to hear me say
That everything is cool
Everything's okay
Everything is cool
Everything's okay
Why just before last Christmas
My baby went away.

Last night I saw an accident
on the corner of Third and Green
two cars collided and I got excited
just being part of that scene
It was Mrs. Tom Walker and her beautiful daughter
Pamela, was driving the car
they got hit by a man in a lite blue sedan
who had obviously been to a bar.
Chorus:
They don't know how lucky they are
they could have run into that tree
got struck by a bolt of lightning
and raped by a minority.
It was a four way stop dilemma
we all arrived the same time
I yielded to the man to the right of me
and he yielded it right back to mine
well, the yield went around and around and around
till Pamela finally tried
just then the man in the light blue sedan
hit Pamela's passenger side.
Chorus:
Pamela hit her head on the mirror
Mrs Walker got a bump on the knee
the man hit himself in the face and said
";Why does this happen to me?";
the neighbors came out
and they gathered about
saying ";Hey! who hit who anyway?";
and the police arrived at a quarter to five
and pronounced all the victims ";Okay";.
Chorus:

Forty-five minutes
Forty-five cents
Sixty-five agents sitting on a fence
Singing, hey brother
Look what we got for you
We're gonna rope off an area
And put on a show
From the Canadian border
Down to Mexico
It might be the most
Potentially gross
Thing that we could possibly do
Yeah, little buddy gonna get your chance
Make them pubescents all wet their pants
We'll record it live
And that's no jive.
Hold it! Stop it! No! No! No! No!
Bang! went the pistol.
Crash! went the window.
Ouch! went the son of a gun.
Onomatopoeia
I don't wanna see ya
Speaking in a foreign tongue.
Knock! Knock! Hello!
Can I come in?
Gee, that was a wonderful show!
Oh, you haven't gone on yet?
Well, how was I supposed to know?
Hey! We got a great date
It's really downtown
We're gonna get the Grand Canyon
To do the sound
It's a boxing ring
But it might be the thing
To really put you in the dough
Listen little brother, don't ya get us wrong
Why we even know the words to your song
Just say I do
And we'll lay it on you
You! You! And me! Me! Me!
Bang! went the pistol
Crash! Went the window
Ouch! Went the son of a gun
Onomatopoeia
I don't want to see ya
Speaking in a foreign tongue.

Grandpa wore his suit to dinner
Nearly every day
No particular reason
He just dressed that way
Brown necktie and a matching vest
And both his wingtip shoes
He built a closet on our back porch
And put a penny in a burned out fuse.
Chorus:
Grandpa was a carpenter
He built houses stores and banks
Chain smoked Camel cigarettes
And hammered nails in planks
He was level on the level
And shaved even every door
And voted for Eisenhower
'Cause Lincoln won the war.
Well, he used to sing me ";Blood on the Saddle";
And rock me on his knee
And let me listen to radio
Before we got T.V.
Well, he'd drive to church on Sunday
And take me with him too!
Stained glass in every window
Hearing aids in every pew.
Repeat Chorus:
Now my grandma was a teacher
Went to school in Bowling Green
Traded in a milking cow
For a Singer sewing machine
She called her husband ";Mister";
And walked real tall and pride
And used to buy me comic books
After grandpa died.
Repeat Chorus:

Dear Abby, Dear Abby ...
My feet are too long
My hair's falling out and my rights are all wrong
My friends they all tell me that I've no friends at all
Won't you write me a letter, Won't you give me a call
Signed Bewildered
Bewildered, Bewildered...
Chorus:
You have no complaint
You are what your are and you ain't what you ain't
So listen up Buster, and listen up good
Stop wishing for bad luck and knocking on wood
Dear Abby, Dear Abby...
My fountain pen leaks
My wife hollers at me and my kids are all freaks
Every side I get up on is the wrong side of bed
If it weren't so expensive I'd wish I were dead
Signed Unhappy
Unhappy, Unhappy...
Repeat Chorus
Dear Abby, Dear Abby...
You won't believe this
But my stomach makes noises whenever I kiss
My girlfriend tells me It's all in my head
But my stomach tells me to write you instead
Signed Noise-maker
Noise-maker, Noise-maker
Repeat Chorus
Dear Abby, Dear Abby...
Well I never thought
That me and my girlfriend would ever get caught
We were sitting in the back seat just shooting the breeze
With her hair up in curlers and her pants to her knees
Signed Just Married
Just Married, Just Married...
Repeat Chorus

Feelings are strange
especially when they come true
and I had a feeling
you'd be leaving soon
so I tried to rearrange
all my emotions
but it seems the same
no matter what I do.
Chorus:
Blue umbrella
rest upon my shoulder
hide the pain
while the rain
makes up my mind
well, my feet are wet
from thinking this thing over
and it's been so long
since I felt the warm sunshine
just give me one good reason
and I promise I won't ask you any more
just give me one extra season
so I can figure out the other four.
Day time
makes me wonder why you left me
night time
makes me wonder what I said
next time
are the words I'd like to plan on
but, last time
was the only thing you said.
Chorus:

Where are the boot straps
To lift myself up?
Where is the well
Where I once filled my cup?
Where does this sorrow
All turn into joy?
And where oh where is the sleepy eyed boy?
Where is my true love
When the wind starts to moan?
Is she out in the wild,
Is she there all alone?
Have I cast her aside
Like an unwanted toy?
Tell me where oh where is the sleepy eyed boy?
He's goin' down the backroads
In a cold pourin' rain
He's a waitin' for a postcard
In the south coast of Spain
Postmarked from a sweetheart
Back in ol' Illinois
Sayin' where oh where is my sleepy eyed boy?

I seen you in your pajamas
Drinking coffee at the House of Pies
You was flipping for the check
And talking like your tongue was paralyzed
You were saying something
That I don't understand
Bout looking other places
While you're holding my hand
Let's stop
Let's not
Talk shop
In front of all these guys
Chorus:
Let's not
Talk shop
Shop talk
Shop talk is talking something
That you don't realize
Loose lips sink ships, shake hips
Bad tips draw spies
I want you when I can get you
But you only want me on the rise
Well I thought I had your number
But your number's too loud
Now you're standing on the table
And we're drawing a crowd
Let's stop
Let's not
Talk shop
In front of all these spies

(Originally named ";Jumpin Jehosaphat";)
Jehosaphat the mongrel cat
Jumped off the roof today
Some would say he fell but I could tell
He did himself away
His eyes weren't bright like they were the night
We played checkers on the train
God Bless his soul he was a tootsie roll
But he's a dead cat just the same
Chorus:
We are living in the future
I'll tell you how I know
I read it in the paper
Fifteen years ago
We're all driving rocket ships
And talking with our minds
And wearing turquoise jewelry
And standing in soup lines
We are standing in soup lines
Jake the barber's lonely daughter
Went down to her daddy's shop
She plugged herself to a barber pole
And took a little off the top
Pressure on the left. Pressure on the right
Pressure in the middle of the hole
I'm goin' to Maine on a forty foot crane
I'm gonna use it for a fishin' pole
Repeat Chorus
Old Sarah Brown sells tickets down
At the all night picture show
Where they grind out sex
And they rate it with an ";X";
Just to make a young man's pants grow
No tops no bottoms just hands and feet
Screaming the posters out on the street
Strangling the curious and the weak
We give 'em what they want to see - O
Repeat Chorus

I got an airplane ticket
And my shirt is stickin' out of my jeans
You got me painted in the corner
Where I'm livin' way beyond my means
Outside my window
A bird once flew
Now I don't even care
What kind of gum I chew
And oh baby
I just wanna be with you
Well I don't wanna wash the dishes
But I'm wishin' I could wash my hair
You been on my mind so long
You must livin' up there
Well it's up to the circus
And down to the zoo
The monkey's lookin' at me
Like I'm lookin' at you
And oh baby
I just wanna be with you
I don't wanna go to London
To visit the Queen
She don't like my english
If you know what I mean
Don't wanna walk around
Like I got nothin' to do
Uh uh baby wanna be with you
Uh uh baby wanna be with you
Well I was cleaning out my wallet
While I'm sittin' on my livin' room rug
I was lookin' at the numbers of the women
That I thought I dug
There was one that begged
One that teased
One God blessed me
Every time I sneezed
But oh baby
I just wanna be with you
Bridge:
I wanna be with you
When there ain't no love
When the banks all close
With the stars above
Lonely won't be lonesome
When we get through
And uh uh baby wanna be with you
Uh uh baby wanna be with you

I had a dream last night
Last night I had a dream
Everything was black and white
And it smelled like gasoline
We stood in the corner
And I held you tight
I kissed your mouth
Till my head got light
Last night when I had a dream
I had a dream last night
Last night I had a dream
Birds were flying left and right
Thru the light of a movie screen
Everyone was looking
For something to do
I even thought
I had a chance with you
Last night when I had a dream

Well it's sure good to see you
But my how you've changed
Since the last time I saw you
Girl you've been rearranged
I always said your people
Were just like my kin
When I was down and out
They would always take me in
Chorus:
Oh I love you my Baby Ruth
Never lie to you
I only tell the truth
Oh I love you since you were a child
Every time I see you girl
You always raise a smile
I was living out on the highway
You didn't turn me out
I lived in your closet
And you fed me by mouth
My boots were my pillow
Wrapped under my head
I kept all my stuff
Stashed out under your bed

Well, I rocked over Italy and I rocked over Spain
I Rocked in Memphis it was all the same
Till I rocked to Africa and rolled off ship.
And seen them natives doing a odd looking skip
I parted the weeds and looked over the swamp
I seen them cats doing the Ubangi Stomp
Ubangi stomp with rock and roll
Beats anything that's ever been told
Ubangi stomp Ubangi style
When the beat just drives a cool cat wild
Well, I looked up the chief and he invited me in
Said a heap big jam session 'bout to begin
He handed me a tom-tom I picked up the beat
That crazy thing sent shivers to my feet
Rocked and rolled and I skipped with a smile
Ubangi Stomp Ubangi Style
Ubangi stomp with rock and roll
Beats anything that's ever been told
Ubangi Stomp Ubangi Style
When the beat just drives a cool cat wild
Well, we rocked all night and part of the day
Had a good rocking time with the chief's daughter Mae
I was making time and gettin' in the know
The Captain said son we gotta go.
I said that's alright. You go on ahead
I'm gonna Ubangi Stomp until I roll over dead
Ubangi stomp with rock and roll
Beats anything that you ever told
Ubangi Stomp Ubangi Style
When the beat just drives a cool cat wild
When the beat just drives a cool cat wild
When the beat just drives a cool cat wild
When the beat just drives a cool cat wild

You got everything that a girl should grow
I'm so afraid to kiss you I might lose control
You can hold me tighter but turn loose of my gun
It's a sentimental present all the way from Saigon
Honey, Honey, Honey, please call me
You don't need no money we can do it for free
I got a friend in Phoenix with a two-way radio
All the static in my attic getting ready to blow
Saigon, Honey, Honey, Honey
Saigon, Honey, Honey, Honey
Saigon, Honey, Honey, Honey
All the static in my attic getting ready to blow
I was talking to the mailman late last week
He had a letter in his sweater from Stuttering Don
He said things are getting better in Sa, Sa, Sa, Sa, Sa
Saigon, Honey, Honey, Honey
Saigon, Honey, Honey, Honey
Saigon, Honey, Honey, Honey
Things are getting better back in Saigon
Saigon, Honey, Honey, Honey
Saigon, Honey, Honey, Honey
Things are getting better back in Saigon
Saigon, Honey, Honey, Honey
Saigon, Honey, Honey, Honey
Saigon, Honey, Honey, Honey
Things are getting better back in Saigon
Saigon, Honey, Honey, Honey
Saigon, Honey, Honey, Honey
Saigon, Honey, Honey, Honey
Things are getting better back in Saigon

Her Father was a failure
Her Mother was a comfort
To a doctor and lawyer and Indian Chief.
The shirt ran out of buttons
He lost all his marbles at a baseball game
And they went on Relief.
The bank took away their diplomas
They locked them up inside of the chest
And she moved away to Oklahoma
And got a tattoo on the side of her breast
";God-Damn, My socks are still hard";
From lying on the sofa on the night she was over in my backyard
Yeah, We was shooting the breeze out amongst the trees
When a shot rang low
And left her standing down by the side of the road
Down by the side of the road
Father have mercy, Whoo Whoo
Get her a nurse please
She's almost alone
I saw her hand reaching out for the telephone
We rather see her locked up inside a home
Than see her standing down by the side of the road
Down by the side of the road
Headlights flashing on her skirt in the wind.
Yonder comes a truck it drove by two men.
Shotgun man leaned out and said do you want to take a ride?
Out in the pale moonlight Light. light Light Lie Lie Lie lie
Too long in the hot sun
She could've be Miss Wisconsin a long time ago
Spent to much time inside of the early show
We'd bought her a ticket but she didn't want to go
She was standing down by the side of the road
Down by the side of the road
Headlights flashing, caught a skirt in the wind.
Yonder comes a truck it drove by two men.
Shotgun man leaned out and said do you want to take a ride?
Out in through the pale moonlight
Her Father was a failure
Her Mother was a comfort
To a doctor and lawyer and Indian Chief.
The shirt made out of buttons
He lost all his marbles at a baseball game
And they went on Relief.
The bank took away their diplomas
They locked them up inside of the chest
And she moved away to Oklahoma
And got a tattoo on the side of her breast
God-Damn, My thoughts are still hard.
From lying on the sofa on the night she was overi n my backyard
Yeah, We was shooting the breeze out amongst the trees
When a shot rang low
And left her standing down by the side of the road
Down by the side of the road
Down by the side of the road
Down by the side of the road

Well, the moon is yellow and the people are too
They roll eggs on a bar-b-que
I was feeling kinda cocky with a head full of sake
Down in Chinatown
There was dragons flyin' kites high above the stores
Dead fish heads laying on the floor
I got a sideways hickey from a slant-eyed chickie
Down in Chinatown
And it was suddenly, was suddenly, whoa whoa
Yeah, suddenly Yeah, Suddenly whoa whoa
They smelled fish
We smelled like a meat
Sucking on a soda pop oh so sweet
Got a sugar rush that'd would make 'em blush
Down in Chinatown
Won ton two ton three ton four
Smoke a cigarette throw it on the floor
I killed the pie-faced mothey with a shoeshine clothy
Down in Chinatown
It was suddenly, was suddenly, whoa whoa
Yeah, suddenly, Yeah, suddenly whoa whoa
The moonie is yellowie and the people are too
They roll eggs on a bar-b-que
I was feeling kinda cocky with head full of Saki
Down in Chinatown
I got a sideways hickey from a slant-eyed chickie
Down in Chinatown
Hey, down in Chinatown
Hey, down in Chinatown

February morning, my car won't start today
I turned the key at 8:03 and the battery passed away
Inside a' my automobile
I want my automobile
I want my automobile
I want to drive it all around this world
Bride's gettin' married in the Springtime
Widow's gettin married in the Fall
I got married in high school
Or I wouldn't of got married at all
I'd be drivin' my automobile
Be drivin' my automobile
Be drivin' my automobile
I wanna drive it all around this world
Everybody said to the new groom
Groom, what ya gonna be
I said I'm gonna be a symphony
Just as soon as I find a key
To my automobile
I want my automobile
I want my automobile
All around this world
Spoken:
Let's take a ride
Columbus sailed the ocean
Moses parted the sea
Dolores left me yesterday
Well, I think she took the key
To my automobile
I want my automobile
I want my automobile
Wanna drive it all around this world
Now I held a little bitty baby
I held a woman all night
Whenever I get the hiccups
I hold my breath 'til my head gets light
Then I drive my automobile
Yeah I drive my automobile
I drive my automobile
I'm want to drive it all around this world
February morning, my car won't start today
Yeah, I turned the key at 8:03
And the battery passed away
Inside a' my automobile
I'm drivin' my automobile
Wanna my automobile
Wanna drive it all around this world
Go on.
Spoken:
It is a beautiful day for a ride
Hey, get your head down I can't see anything
Someone give me a cigarette
I don't want to take my hands off the wheel
We ought to take the air filter off this sucker.
So we can see what it will really do.
Uh oh, it looks to me like a HOS-PITAL Zone
Everybody get quiet. Shhhhhhhh.
Don't wake the dead up.
We're almost out. Hang on. Uh Oh here we go.
Well, you can just hold it until we get to the next town.

I don't care if the sun don't shine
But it better or people will wonder
And I couldn't care less if it never stopped rainin'
'Cept the kids are afraid of the thunder
Chorus:
Say sour grapes
You can laugh and stare
Say sour grapes
But I don't care
I couldn't care less if I didn't have a friend
'Cept people would say I was crazy
And I wouldn't work 'cause I don't need money
But the same folks would say I was lazy
repeat chorus
I couldn't care less if she never come back
I was gonna leave her anyway
And all the good times that we shared
Don't mean a thing to day
repeat chorus

Full blown silence in an empty room
A former bride and a former groom
A folding table and a folding chair
A folded hand of poker there
All new directions must go everywhere
Big round people in a cool little square
You can't cut it with a boat or a plane
Man it's gonna take a new train
You'll be leaving on a new train
Far away from this world of pain
And when you look out your window you'll see
Your home your baby and your family
No melted ice cube in a paper cup
Hell you'll be happy you'll be all shook up
The friends that greet you will be
Simple and plain
When you step down from that new train
Collected volumes of history say
Man makes mistakes most everyday
The half a pound of chopped ground round
Is still a burger when it goes downtown
No faded photographs of yesterdays
Are in the books that I read these days
To fly away from that memory town
You must keep both your feet on the ground
Cause you'll be leaving on a new train
Far away from this world of pain
And when you look out your window you'll see
Your home your baby and your family
No melted ice cube in a paper cup
Hell you'll be happy you'll be all shook up
The friends that greet you will be
Simple and plain
When you step down from that new train
I'll be leaving on a new train
Far away from this world of pain
The friends that greet me will be
Simple and plain
When I step down from that new train
New train, new train.

I'm a walkin' down the street like Lucky Larue
Got my hand in my pocket I'm thinkin' 'bout you
I ain't hurtin' nobody
I ain't hurtin' no one
There's three hundred men in the state of Tennessee
They're waiting to die, they won't never be free
I ain't hurtin' nobody
I ain't hurtin' no one
Six million seven hundred thousand and thirty-three lights on
You think someone could take the time to sit down
And listen to the words of my song
At the beach in Indiana I was nine years old
Heard Little Richard singing ";Tutti Frutti";
From the top of a telephone pole
I wasn't hurtin' nobody
I wasn't hurtin' no one
There's roosters laying chickens and chickens layin' eggs
Farm machinery eating people's arms and legs
I wasn't hurtin' nobody
I wasn't hurtin' no one
Perfectly crafted popular hit songs never use the wrong rhyme
You'd think that waitress could get my order
Right the first time
She's sitting on the back steps just shucking that corn
That gal's been grinning since the day she was born
She ain't hurtin' nobody
She ain't hurtin' no one
I used to live in Chicago where the cold wind blows
I delivered more junk mail than the junkyard would hold
I wasn't hurtin' nobody
I wasn't hurtin' no one
You can fool some of the people part of the time
In a rock and roll song
Fifty million Elvis Presley fans
Can't be all wrong

Is there ever enough space between us
To keep us both honest and true?
Why is it so hard just to sit in the yard
And stare at the sky so blue?
I've got a new way of walking and a new way of talking
Honey when I'm around you,
But it gives me the blues when I've got some good news
And you're not there to bring it to.
Life is a blessing, it's a delicatessen
Of all the little favors you do.
All wrapped up together no matter the weather,
Baby you always come through.
It's a measure of treasure that gives me the pleasure
Of loving you the way I do
And you know I would gladly say I need your love badly
And bring these little things to you.
Cause you got gold
Gold inside of you
You got gold
Gold inside of you
Well I got some
Gold inside me too
Well I'm thinking I'm knowing that I gotta be going
You know I hate to say so long.
It gives me an ocean of mixed up emotion
I'll have to work it out in a song.
Well I'm leaving a lot for the little I got
But you know a lot a little will do
And if you give me your love
I'll let it shine up above
And light my way back home to you.
Cause you got gold
Gold inside of you
Cause you got gold
Gold inside of you
Well I got some
Gold inside me too
You got wheels
Turning inside of you
You got wheels
Turning inside of you
Well I got wheels
Turning inside me too

I'm awfully tired of the same old business
Kiss the babies, make 'em cry
I'm only lookin' for one good woman
Cross my heart and hope to die
Stick a needle in my eye, eye, eye
Got a load of mashed potatoes
Holdin' gravy like a fishin' hole
I know something that might sound funny
I got no money and my buddy's broke
I got no money and my buddy's broke
Counterculture, mother vulture
Post Toasties and a quart of beer
I'm only looking for a place to go to
Somebody ask me what I'm doin' here?
Somebody ask me what I'm doin' here?
A boneless breast and a crispy thigh
Sittin' at the bar n' giving me the eye
Black crows on a garbage can
What kind of fella do you think I am?
Stick a needle in my eye, eye, eye
I'm fallin' in with bad companions
My mind is weak and my throat is dry
Thanksgiving in the Grand Canyon
Can't keep my fingers off that country pie
I'm awfully tired of the same old business
Kiss the babies, make 'em cry
I'm only lookin' for one good woman
Cross my heart and hope to die
Stick a needle in my eye, eye, eye
Stick a needle in my eye, eye, eye

Space Monkey, Space Monkey
What you doing out there?
Why it's dark as a dungeon way up in the air
Come gather round me you little monkeys and a story I'll tell
About a brave young primate, outer space knew him well
He was born at the top of a big old tree
Way back in 1953.
He could swing through the jungle and hang by his toes
Till they took him to Russia cause they could I suppose
They dressed him up in a spacesuit and it started to snow
Shot him off in a rocket where no man would go
Space Monkey Space Monkey
What you doing out there?
Why it's dark as a dungeon way up in the air
There'll be no one to greet you when you get back home
No hammer or sickle you'll be on your own.
He had plenty of Cuban bananas and loads of Spam
But he found great difficulty trying to open the can
One day he slipped on a banana peel and the ship lost control
It spun out of orbit and shot o]ut the black hole
It's been four decades now, that's nine monkey years
That's a long time for a Space Monkey to confront all his fears
Space Monkey Space Monkey
What you doing out there?
Why it's dark as a dungeon way up in the air
There'll be no one to greet you when you get back home
No hammer or sickle you'll be all on your own.
Space Monkey, Space Monkey
It's time to get real
The space race is over, how does it feel
Cold War's had a heatwave, Iron Curtain's torn down
They've rolled up the carpet in Space Monkey town
Now Leningrad is Petersburg and Petersburg's hell
For a card-carrying monkey with a story to tell
The Space Monkey was reportedly last sighted about
A half a block off of Red Square
In a karaoke bar having a few drinks with some of his friends
There was the dog that flew Sputnik
And a blind red-headed, one legged parrot
Who had done some minor research for Dow Chemical
They were drinking American Vodka
Imported all the way from Paducah, Kentucky
And reportedly had their arms around each other's
Shoulders singing.
";Those were the days, my friend, we thought they'd never end";
Space Monkey, Space Monkey
There's nothing to do
But it's better than living in a Communist zoo
There'll be no one to greet you when you get back home
No hammer or sickle you'll be all on you own

If I could make my living going fishing
Then I would make my living with a line and pole
Put food on the table pay the money to the landlord
Buy some working clothes
Cause I ain't making money going fishing Like I'm paid at the factory
If I could pay all these bills with my guitar
Then I would pay these bills with some rock and roll
Put food on the table pay the money to the landlord
Buy some working clothes
Cause I ain't making money playing guitar Like I'm paid at the factory
Chorus:
Now if I could (if I could)
Then I would (then I would)
Make money doing something that I love
I'd thank my lucky stars above
If I could just get by loving you dear
Then I would just get by making love to you
Put food on the table pay the money to the landlord
Buy some working clothes
Cause I ain't making money making love
Like I'm paid at the factory
Repeat Chorus:
If I could make my living going fishing
Then I would make my living with a line and pole
Put food on the table pay the money to the landlord
Buy some working clothes
Cause I ain't making money going fishing
Like I'm paid at the factory
Repeat Chorus:
If I could just get by loving you dear
Then I would just get by making love to you
Put food on the table pay the money to the landlord
Buy some working clothes
Cause I ain't making money making love
Like I'm paid at the factory
Put food on the table pay the money to the landlord
Buy some working clothes
Cause I ain't making money making love
Like I'm paid at the factory
Put food on the table pay the money to the landlord
Buy some working clothes
Cause I ain't making money making love
Like I'm paid at the factory

Does he still think about her
Why there was never really any doubt
Every time he lights a candle
Or blows a candle out
The scientific nature of the ordinary man
Is to go on out and do the best you can
I don't think that you know
That I think you don't know
That old barometer goes crazy baby
Every time it starts to snow
You won't find me walking
Round your part of town
Humidity built the snowman
Sunshine brought him down
This world is full of people
They never seem to fall
Somebody said they seen you
You hadn't changed at all
The fundamental story
Of the contemporary man
Is to walk away and someday understand
I don't think that you know
That I think you don't know
That old barometer goes crazy baby
Every time it starts to snow
You won't find me walking
Round your part of town
Humidity built the snowman
Sunshine brought him down
The scientific nature of the ordinary man
Is to go on out and do the best you can
I don't think that you know
That I think you don't know
That old barometer goes crazy baby
Every time it starts to snow
You won't find me walking
Round your part of town
Humidity built the snowman
Sunshine brought him down
Humidity built the snowman
Sunshine brought him down
Brought him down

You must be daddy's little pumpkin
I can tell by the way you roll
You must be daddy's little pumpkin
I can tell by the way you roll
Why it's quarter past eleven
And you're sleeping on the bedroom floor
I can see the fire burning
Burning right behind your eyes
I can see the fire burning
Burning right behind your eyes
You must of swallowed a candle
Or some other kind of surprise
I'm going down to Memphis
I got three hundred dollars in cash
I'm going down to Memphis
I got three hundred dollars in cash
All the women in Memphis
Want to see how long my money will last
I'm going downtown
I'm gonna to rattle somebody's cage
I'm going downtown
I'm gonna rattle somebody's cage
I'm gonna beat on my guitar
And strut all around the stage
If you see my baby coming
Don't tell her that her daddy's in jail
If you see my baby coming
Don't you tell her that her daddy's in jail
She'd sell her little pumpkin just to raise
Her sweet daddy's bail
You must be daddy's little pumpkin
I can tell by the way you roll
You must be daddy's little pumpkin
I can tell by the way you roll
You never do nothing
To save your doggone soul.

There's a pine tree in a window in a house on a hill
With a tree top angel sitting perfectly still
She's watching the shoppers walk through the snow
With their arms full of treasures and hearts all aglow
Chorus:
We held hands and stared at the lights on the tree
As if Christmas was invented for you and for me
When the angel on the treetop requested a song
We sang Silent Night All Day Long
There's a family thats gathered in some living room
Dinner on the table that's been cooking since noon
Stockings on the mantle are hanging with care
While every body is saying a prayer
repeat chorus
There's a room out there somewhere with a woman in a chair
With memories of childhood still lingering there.
How pretty the paper, the lights and the snow.
How precious those memories of long long ago.
repeat chorus
When the angel on the treetop requested a song.
We sang Silent Night all day long

It was Christmas in prison
and the food was real good
we had turkey and pistols
carved out of wood
and I dream of her always
even when I don't dream
her name's on my tongue
and her blood's in my stream.
Chorus:
Wait awhile eternity
old mother nature's got nothing on me
come to me
run to me
come to me, now
we're rolling
my sweetheart
we're flowing
by God!
She reminds me of a chess game
with someone I admire
or a picnic in the rain
after a prairie fire
her heart is as big
as this whole goddamn jail
and she's sweeter than saccharine
at a drug store sale.
Chorus:
The search light in the big yard
swings round with the gun
and spotlights the snowflakes
like the dust in the sun
it's Christmas in prison
there'll be music tonight
I'll probably get homesick
I love you. Goodnight.
Chorus:

Wanda had a baby in nineteen fifty one.
The father was stranger and a stranger was the son.
Call that child James Lewis, call these rooms a home.
Changing all them diapers polish all that chrome.
C'mon, baby, spend the night with me
All around the schoolyard playing all the games
Running, laughing back and forth the kid with two first names
Stranger in the closet, lock the diary
The past is running faster singing harmony
C'mon, baby, spend the night with me
";God bless this kitchen"; said the knick-knack shelf
";The dinner's almost ready Go and wash yourself";
Jimmy's growing up now and Wanda's growing old
The time is growin' shorter the nights are long and cold
C'mon, baby, spend the night with me
Sneaking in the closet and through the diary
Now, don't you know all he saw was all there was to see
The whole town saw Jimmy on the six o'clock news
His brains were on the sidewalk and blood was on his shoes
C'mon, baby, spend the night with me
C'mon, baby, spend the night with me

When I woke up this morning, things were lookin' bad
Seem like total silence was the only friend I had
Bowl of oatmeal tried to stare me down... and won
And it was twelve o'clock before I realized
That I was havin' .. no fun
Chorus:
But fortunately I have the key to escape reality
And you may see me tonight with an illegal smile
It don't cost very much, but it lasts a long while
Won't you please tell the man I didn't kill anyone
No I'm just tryin' to have me some fun
Last time I checked my bankroll,
It was gettin' thin
Sometimes it seems like the bottom
Is the only place I've been
I Chased a rainbow down a one-way street... dead end
And all my friends turned out to be insurance salesmen
Repeat Chorus:
Well, I sat down in my closet with all my overalls
Tryin' to get away
From all the ears inside my walls
I dreamed the police heard
Everything I thought... what then?
Well I went to court
And the judge's name was Hoffman
Ah but fortunately I have the key to escape reality
And you may see me tonight with an illegal smile
It don't cost very much, but it lasts a long while
Won't you please tell the man I didn't kill anyone
No I'm just tryin' to have me some fun
Well done, hot dog bun, my sister's a nun

While window shopping through the past
I ran across a looking glass
Reflecting moments remaining in a burned out light
Tragic magic prayers of passion
Stay the same through changing fashions
They freeze my mind like water on a winter's night
Spent most of my youth
Out hobo cruising
And all I got for proof
Is rocks in my pockets and dirt in my shoes
So goodbye nonbeliever
Don't you know that I hate to leave here
So long babe, I got the flashback blues.
Photographs show the laughs
Recorded in between the bad times
Happy sailors dancing on a sinking ship
Cloudy skies and dead fruit flies
Waving goodbye with tears in my eyes
Well, sure I made it but ya know it was as hell of a trip.
Spent most of my youth
Out hobo cruising
And all I got for proof
Is rocks in my pockets and dirt in my shoes
And ten times what it grieves you
That's how much more I hate to leave you now
So long babe, I got the flashback blues.
Spent most of my youth
Out hobo cruising
And all I got for proof
Is rocks in my pockets and dirt in my shoes
So goodbye nonbeliever
Don't you know that I hate to leave here
So long babe, I got the flashback blues.

Small town, bright lights, Saturday night,
Pinballs and pool halls flashing their lights.
Making change behind the counter in a penny arcade
Sat the fat girl daughter of Virginia and Ray
(Spoken:)
Lydia
Lydia hid her thoughts like a cat
Behind her small eyes sunk deep in her fat.
She read romance magazines up in her room
And felt just like Sunday on Saturday afternoon.
Chorus:
But dreaming just comes natural
Like the first breath from a baby,
Like sunshine feeding daisies,
Like the love hidden deep in your heart.
Bunk beds, shaved heads, Saturday night,
A warehouse of strangers with sixty watt lights.
Staring through the ceiling, just wanting to be
Lay one of too many, a young PFC:
(Spoken:)
Donald
There were spaces between Donald and whatever he said.
Strangers had forced him to live in his head.
He envisioned the details of romantic scenes
After midnight in the stillness of the barracks latrine.
Repeat Chorus:
Hot love, cold love, no love at all.
A portrait of guilt is hung on the wall.
Nothing is wrong, nothing is right.
Donald and Lydia made love that night.
(Spoken:)
Love
The made love in the mountains, they made love in the streams,
They made love in the valleys, they made love in their dreams.
But when they were finished there was nothing to say,
'Cause mostly they made love from ten miles away.
Repeat Chorus:

Well, everytime I try to love another
I never know exactly what to do
I'd like to tell her just how much I want her
And I could find the way if she were you
Her eyes may shine for me and not another,
Her lonely arms reach out to hold me too,
She wants to take your place and be my lover
And I could make her mine if she were you
I never knew how much I cared about you
Till your memory made me a lovesick fool
When she speaks to me I hear you sweet voice calling
When I close my eyes your face comes into view
I remember how it hurt when I was falling
And I could fall again if she were you
I never knew how much I cared about you
Till your memory made me a lovesick fool
She wants to take your place and be my lover
And I could make her mine if she were you
Yes, I could make her mine if she was you

I knew a girl who was almost a lady
She had a way with all the men in her life
Every inch of her blossomed in beauty
And she was born on the fourth of July
Well she lived in an aluminum house trailer
And she worked in a juke box saloon
And she spent all the money I give her
Just to see the old man in the moon
Chorus:
I used to sleep at the foot of Old Glory
And awake in the dawn's early light
But much to my surprise
When I opened my eyes
I was a victim of the great compromise
Well we'd go out on Saturday evenings
To the drive-in on Route 41
And it was there that I first suspected
That she was doin' what she'd already done
She said ";Johnny won't you get me some popcorn";
And she knew I had to walk pretty far
And as soon as I passed through the moonlight
She hopped into a foreign sports car
(Repeat chorus)
Well you know I could have beat up that fellow
But it was her that had hopped into his car
Many times I'd fought to protect her
But this time she was goin' too far
Now some folks they call me a coward
'Cause I left her at the drive-in that night
But I'd druther have names thrown at me
Than to fight for a thing that ain't right
(Repeat chorus)
Now she writes all the fellows love letters
Saying ";Greetings, come and see me real soon";
And they go and line up in the barroom
And spend the night in that sick woman's room
But sometimes I get awful lonesome
And I wish she was my girl instead
But she won't let me live with her
And she makes me live in my head
(Repeat chorus)

All the snow has turned to water
Christmas days have come and gone
Broken toys and faded colors
Are all that's left to linger on
I hate graveyards and old pawn shops
For they always bring me tears
I can't forgive the way they rob me
Of my childhood souvenirs
Chorus:
Memories they can't be boughten
They can't be won at carnivals for free
Well it took me years
To get those souvenirs
And I don't know how they slipped away from me
Broken hearts and dirty windows
Make life difficult to see
That's why last night and this mornin'
Always look the same to me
I hate reading old love letters
For they always bring me tears
I can't forgive the way they rob me
Of my sweetheart's souvenirs
(Repeat chorus)

Billy the bum lived by the thumb
And sang of the hobo's delight
He'd prove he could run
Twice as fast as the sun
By losing his shadow at night
Now he loved every girl
In this curly headed world
But no one will know it seems
For two twisted legs and a childhood disease
Left Billy just a bum in his dreams
Chorus:
And he was just a gentle boy
A real florescent light
Cried pennies on Sunday morning
Laughs nickels on Saturday night
And your bullets they can't harm him
Nor your knives tear him apart
Humiliation killed him
God bless his little heart
Now he lived all alone
In a run down home
Near the side of the old railroad track
Where the trains used to run
Carrying freight by the ton
And blow the whistle as Billy'd wave back
But the children around Billy's home town
Seemed to have nothin' better to do
Then run around his house
With their tongues from their mouth
And make fun of that cripped old fool
(Repeat chorus)
Now some folks they wait
And some folks they pray
For Jesus to rise up again
But none of these folks
In their holy cloaks
Ever took Billy on as a friend
For pity's a crime
And it ain't worth a dime
To a person who's really in need
Just treat 'em the same
As you would your own name
Next time that your heart starts to bleed
(Repeat chorus)

I was sitting in a diner
With a girl named Flo
She wouldn't say yes
But she couldn't say no
She said ";Darling, Can I get a middle man?";
She was engaged to a fellow
On the lay a way plan
But she carried all her money
In a coffee can
She said ";Darling, Can I get a middle man?";
The cook looked over
With a short order face
Dropped a fork
And he saw Flo's legs
Straightened his apron
And burnt my eggs
I got competition
Everywhere I go
These days
She was leaning on the juke box
And was lookin' real good
Like Natalie Wood
On a Pontiac hood
I said ";Darling, I think I need a little hand";
Ya see, I've seen my downs
I've seen my ups
I seen miniature dogs
In coffee cups
But ";Darling I ain't never seen a middle man";
Flo talked slow
Like real wet paint
She said
";A middle man's there
When the other ones ain't
He's got a left handed manner
That leans to the right
Sleeps all day
And keeps it up all night ...";
... I got an aunt in Ohio
And a boat that won't row
Some veterans insurance
And nowhere to go
";Darling, Can I be your middle man?";
(spoken)
If I could get the money in that coffee can
I could open me up a lemonade stand
Send all the kids off to Pakistan
Make Flo happy
If I can
Jerry Mahoney and Johnny B. Goode
Are gonna buy me a house in Hollywood
";Darling I think I got the perfect plan";
";We're gonna save half a dollars
And sell 'em to France
Buy us a record
And learn how to dance
And Darling I'll always be your middle
Darling Go buy a griddle
Darling I wanna be your middle man

The last time that I saw her
She was standing in the rain
With her overcoat under her arm
Leaning on a horsehead cane
She said ";Carl, take all the money";
She called everybody Carl
";My spirit's broke";
";My mind's a joke,";
";And getting up's real hard";
Chorus
Don't you know her
When you see her?
She grew up
In your back yard
Come back to us
Barbara Lewis
Hare Krishna
Beauregard
Selling bibles at the airports
Buying quayludes on the phone
Hey, you talk about
A paper route
She's a shut in without a home
God save her, please
She's nailed her knees
To some drugstore parking lot
Hey, Mr. Brown
Turn the volume down
I believe this evening's shot
Repeat Chorus
Can't you picture her next Thursday?
Can you picture her at all?
In the Hotel Boulderado
At the dark end of the hall
I gotta shake myself and wonder
Why she even bothers me
For if heartaches were commercials
We'd all be on T.V.
Repeat Chorus

Things got rough
things got tough
things got harder than hard
We were just trying to make a livin'
in our back yard
We were born too late died to soon
anxiety's a terrible crime
if you don't come now don't come at all
'cause it's a crooked piece of time.
It's a crooked piece of time that we live in
a crooked piece of time
all in all and all in all
It's a crooked piece of time.
Yesterday morning an ill wind came
blew your picture
right out of the picture frame
even blew the candle out
from underneath the flame
Yesterday morning an ill wind came.

Here's the story of a man and his family
And a big trip that they took
Well, I heard all about in a restaurant
And I read it in a history book
They rented a car at the Erie Canal
But the car didn't have no brake
Said ma to pa "My God this car
Is gonna fall into the bottomless lake"
Well, mama turned to daddy with a pale face
Said "I've done something horribly wrong
Well, the waters still runnin' in the bathtub
And I think I left the kitchen light on"
Then I heard a crash, the car when splash
The compass rolled around and around
Oh, for Heaven's sake! We fell in a lake
And I think we're all gonna drown
We are falling down
Down to the bottom of a hole in the ground
Smoke 'em if you got 'em
I'm so scared, I can hardly breathe
I may never see my sweetheart again
There was plenty of food in the backseat
And the windows were rolled up tight
So we all nibbled on a chicken leg
Told stories way thru the night
Well, pa told one that he told before
And the baby got a bellyache
Said ma to pa "My God this car's
Falling down a bottomless lake"
We are falling down
Down to the bottom of a hole in the ground
Smoke 'em if you got 'em
I'm so scared, I can hardly breathe
I may never see my sweetheart again
Well papa played the music on the radio
Mama rocked the baby to sleep
He said, he would've taken the other road
But he didn't think the lake was that deep
Well, if the ferry had been there at the end of the pier
We'd be half way to Uncle Jake's
Instead of looking at fish out the window, I wish
We'd hit the bottom of the bottomless lake
'Stead of looking at fish out the window, I wish
We'd hit the bottom of the bottomless lake
We are falling down
Down to the bottom of a hole in the ground
Smoke 'em if you got 'em
I'm so scared, I can hardly breathe
I may never see my sweetheart again
So if you're ever goin' on a big trip
You better be careful out there
Start everything on your good foot
Wear clean underwear
Take along a Bible in the backseat
Read of David and Solomon
For if you make a mistake in the bottomless lake
You may never see your sweetheart again
If you should make a mistake in the bottomless lake
You may never see your sweetheart again
If you should make a mistake in the bottomless lake

I threw a party. Nobody came.
I bought all the tickets. They cancelled the game.
I give you my picture. It didn't fit your frame
Be my friend tonight
Be my friend tonight. Be my friend tonight.
I'll sleep on the couch. You can leave on that light.
Well, I won't do nothing wrong till you say it's right
Come on Honey, be my friend tonight
Now you bring the glasses and I'll bring the wine
I'll rub your shoulders just like they were mine
I won't make no passes till it's passing time
If you're only gonna be my buddy tonight
Be my friend tonight. Be my friend tonight.
I'll sleep on the couch. You can leave on that light.
Well, I won't do nothing wrong till you say it's right
Come on Darling, be my friend tonight
Well, I'll mind my manners. My P's and Q's
I won't give you nothing that you can't use
I'll whip out that old guitar and sing you the blues
Be my friend tonight
Be my friend tonight. Be my friend tonight.
I'll sleep on the couch. You can leave on that light.
Well, I won't do nothing wrong till you say it's right
Come on Honey, be my friend tonight
Be my friend tonight. Be my friend tonight.
I'll sleep on the couch. You can leave on that light.
Well, I won't do nothing wrong till you say it's right
Come on Darling, be my friend tonight
Oh, come on Honey, be my friend tonight
Please, be my friend tonight.

He's just a small fry. A bit too gun shy.
To have his heart touched without a glove
He looks at strangers as potential dangers
Trying to Steal his aimless love.
Love has no mind. It can't spell unkind.
It's never seen a heart shaped like a Valentine
For if love knew him. It'd walk up to him
And introduce him to an aimless love
I been out walking. Kinda pillow talking
To anyone that has the time for me
For there are some folks they think that love chokes.
It ties and keeps them from being free
Love has no mind. It can't spell unkind
It's never seen a heart shaped like a Valentine
For if love knew you. It'd walk up to you
And introduce you to an aimless love
Do you look at strangers as potential dangers
Trying to steal your aimless love.
Love has no mind. It can't spell unkind
It's never seen a heart shaped like a Valentine
For if love knew you. It'd walk up to you
And introduce you to an aimless love
And introduce you to an aimless love

Black faces pressed against the glass
Where rain has pressed it's weight
Wind blown scarves in top down cars
All share one western trait
Sadness leaks through tear-stained cheeks
From winos to dime-store Jews
Probably don't know they give me
These late John Garfield blues
Midnight fell on Franklin Street
And the lamppost bulbs were broke
For the life of me, I could not see
But I heard a brand new joke
Two men were standing upon a bridge
One jumped and screamed you lose
And just left the odd man holding
Those late John Garfield blues
An old man sleeps with his conscience at night
Young kids sleep with their dreams
While the mentally ill sit perfectly still
And live through life's in-betweens
I'm going away to the last resort
In a week or two, real soon
Where the fish don't bite but once a night
By the cold light of the moon
The horses scream the nightmares dream
And the dead men all wear shoes
'Cause everybody's dancin'

I am an old woman named after my mother
My old man is another child that's grown old
If dreams were lightnin' and thunder were desire
This old house would've burned down a long time ago
Make me an Angel that flies from Montgomery
Make me a poster of an old rodeo
Just give me one thing that I can hold onto
To believe in this livin' is just a hard way to go
When I was a young girl, well, I had me a cowboy
Weren't much to look at just a free ramblin' man
But that was a long time and no matter how I try
The years just flow by like a broken down dam
Make me an Angel that flies from Montgomery
Make me a poster of an old rodeo
Just give me one thing that I can hold onto
To believe in this livin' is just a hard way to go
There's flies in the kitchen, I can hear 'em in there buzzin'
And I ain't done nothin' since I woke up today
How the hell can a person go to work in the mornin'
And come home in the evenin' and have nothin' to say?
Make me an Angel that flies from Montgomery
Make me a poster of an old rodeo
Just give me one thing that I can hold onto
To believe in this livin' is just a hard way to go

I can taste your lipstick in the wine
I can feel your heartbeat close to mine
With your love wrapped around me
I'm silent and still
I know that this love is real
I have tasted other lips I thought were true
I have looked into the eyes I thought were you
Now touching just to touch
And feeling just to feel
I know that this love is real
Someone should tell our dreams when love is gone
While still in slumber memories linger one
Sometimes I lie awake in bed till dawn
Thinking of you
Now you're gone
Tender is the heart that sleeps in rest
Tender is the hope of tenderness
Love thy neighbor as thyself
And thou shall not steal
I know that this love is real
Love thy neighbor as thyself
And thou shall not steal
I know that this love is real

While digesting Reader's Digest in the back of a dirty book store
A plastic flag, with gum on the back fell out on the floor
Well, I picked it up and I ran outside, slapped it on my window shield
And if I could see old Betsy Ross I'd tell her how good I feel
But your flag decal won't get you into Heaven anymore
They're already overcrowded from your dirty little war
Now Jesus don't like killin', no matter what the reason's for
And your flag decal won't get you into Heaven anymore
Well, I went to the bank this morning and the cashier he said to me
"If you join the Christmas club we'll give you ten of them flags for free"
Well, I didn't mess around a bit, I took him up on what he said
And I stuck them stickers all over my car and one on my wife's forehead
But your flag decal won't get you into Heaven anymore
They're already overcrowded from your dirty little war
Now Jesus don't like killin', no matter what the reason's for
And your flag decal won't get you into Heaven anymore
Well, I got my window shield so filled with flags I couldn't see
So, I ran the car upside a curb and right into a tree
By the time they got a doctor down I was already dead
And I'll never understand why the man standing in the pearly gates said
"But your flag decal won't get you into Heaven anymore
We're already overcrowded from your dirty little war"
"Now Jesus don't like killin', no matter what the reason's for

In an Appalachian, Greyhound station
She sits there waitin', in a family way
"Goodbye brother, tell mom, I love her
Tell all the others, I'll write someday"
From a teenage lover, to an unwed mother
Kept undercover, like some bad dream
While unwed fathers, they can't be bothered
They run like water, through a mountain stream
In a cold and gray town, a nurse says, "Lay down"
'This ain't no playground, this ain't home'
Someone's children, out havin' children
In a gray stone building, all alone
From a teenage lover, to an unwed mother
Kept undercover, like some bad dream
While unwed fathers, they can't be bothered
They run like water, through a mountain stream
On somewhere else bound, Smokey Mountain Greyhound
She bows her head down, hummin' lullabies
"Your daddy never, meant to hurt you ever
He just don't live here, but you've got his eyes"
From a teenage lover, to an unwed mother
Kept undercover, like some bad dream
While unwed fathers, they can't be bothered
They run like water, through a mountain stream

She was a level-headed dancer on the road to alcohol
And I was just a soldier on my way to Montreal
Well, she pressed her chest against me
About the time the juke box broke
Yeah, she gave me a peck on the back of the neck
And these are the words she spoke
Blow up your TV, throw away your paper
Go to the country, build you a home
Plant a little garden, eat a lot of peaches
Try an' find Jesus on your own
Well, I sat there at the table and I acted real naive
For I knew that topless lady had something up her sleeve
Well, she danced around the bar room
And she did the hoochy-coo
Yeah, she sang her song all night long
Tellin' me what to do
Blow up your TV, throw away your paper
Go to the country, build you a home
Plant a little garden, eat a lot of peaches
Try an' find Jesus on your own
Well, I was young and hungry
And about to leave that place
When just as I was leavin'
Well she looked me in the face
I said, "You must know the answer"
She said, "No but I'll give it a try"
And to this very day we've been livin' our way
Here is the reason why
We blew up our TV, threw away our paper
Went to the country, built us a home
Had a lot of children, fed 'em on peaches

She is my everything
From her sun tanned shoulders
Down to the freckles on her wedding ring
Her feet is so warm
They can melt the snow in the early spring
She is my everything
She goes everywhere
From Copenhagen to makin' eggs and bacon
Down in Jackson Square
I?d like to drive a Cadillac
The color of her long black hair
She goes everywhere
Kisses that come all the way from China
Kinda remind her of memories of Spain
If I get lost, you can always find her
Standing right beside me in the rain
She uses the Eveready
Batteries to keep her electrical
Appliances going steady
She can do 14 things at once
And then her phone?ll ring
She is my everything
She knows everybody
From Muhammad Ali to teaching Bruce Lee
How to do Karate
She could lead a parade
While puttin' on her shades in her Masaratti
She knows everybody
Kisses that come all the way from China
Kinda remind her of memories of Spain
If I get lost, you can always find her
Standing right beside me in the rain
She is my everything
When she wakes up in the morning
That?s when the birdies start to sing
When I hear her voice
I?ll tell you boys, I forget everything
She is my everything
She is my everything

I wish, I hope, I wonder, where you're at sometimes
Is your back against the wall or just across the line?
Have you been standing in the rain reciting nursery rhymes?
Trying to recall some long lost kind of peace of mind
Peace of mind
Try spending the night sometime
All alone in a frozen room
After neath you've lain
Your saddle in the rain
I dreamed they locked god up down in my basement
And he waited there for me to have this accident
So he could drink my wine and eat me like a Sacrament
And I just stood there like I do then I came and went
I came and went
Like a bird in a foreign sky
Couldn't even say goodbye
Or come and share the pain
My saddle's in the rain
I saw a friend who doesn't know if I'm his friend just yet
His eyes and mouth were widely open and his jaw was set
Like he'd fell off a cliff and hadn't hit the bottom yet
I wish he wouldn't pull those things on me without a net
Without a net
I had him up to the house one time
And we was having a real good time
Then he went and lain
His saddle in the rain
In a laundromat not too far from the Alamo
Sits a girl who stole my records very long ago
And she wishes, wants and washes out those dirty clothes
As she shuts her eyes and dreams about her one eyed Joe
One eyed Joe
Car parked on a dirty road
Heaven knows the load she pulled
Couldn't take the strain

When I was a child my family would travel
Down to Western Kentucky where my parents were born
And there's a backwards old town that's often remembered
So many times that my memories are worn
"And daddy won't you take me back to Muhlenberg County
Down by the green river where paradise lay?"
"Well, I'm sorry my son, but you're too late in asking
Mister Peabody's coal train has hauled it away"
Well, sometimes we'd travel right down the Green River
To the abandoned old prison down by Adrie Hill
Where the air smelled like snakes and we'd shoot with our pistols
But empty pop bottles was all we would kill
"And daddy won't you take me back to Muhlenberg County
Down by the green river where paradise lay?"
"Well, I'm sorry my son, but you're too late in asking
Mister Peabody's coal train has hauled it away"
Then the coal company came with the world's largest shovel
And they tortured the timber and stripped all the land
Well, they dug for their coal till the land was forsaken
Then they wrote it all down as the progress of man
"And daddy won't you take me back to Muhlenberg County
Down by the green river where paradise lay?"
"Well, I'm sorry my son, but you're too late in asking
Mister Peabody's coal train has hauled it away"
When I die let my ashes float down the Green River
Let my soul roll on up to the Rochester dam
I'll be halfway to Heaven with paradise waitin'
Just five miles away from wherever I am
"And daddy won't you take me back to Muhlenberg County
Down by the green river where paradise lay?"
"Well, I'm sorry my son, but you're too late in asking

Well it got so hot, last night I swear, you couldn't hardly breathe
Heat a lightning burnt the sky like alcohol
I sat on the porch without my shoes and I watched the cars roll by
As the headlights raced to the corner of the kitchen wall
Well mama dear your boy is here, far across the sea
Waiting for that sacred core that burns inside of me
And I feel a storm all wet and warm not ten miles away
Approaching my Mexican home
Well my God I cried, it's so hot inside, you could die in the living room
Take the fan from the window, prop the door back with a broom
Well the cuckoo clock has died of shock and the windows feel no pane
The air's as still as the throttle on a funeral train
Well mama dear your boy is here, far across the sea
Waiting for that sacred core that burns inside of me
And I feel a storm all wet and warm not ten miles away
Approaching my Mexican home
My father died on the porch outside on an August afternoon
I sipped bourbon and cried with a friend by the light of the moon
So it's hurry, hurry, step right up, it's a matter of a life or death
Well the sun is going down and the moon is just holding its breath
Well mama dear your boy is here, far across the sea
Waiting for that sacred core, that burns inside of me
And I feel a storm all wet and warm not ten miles away
Approaching my Mexican home, all approaching my Mexican home

You and me, sittin' in the back of my memory
Like a honey bee buzzin' 'round a glass of sweet Chablis
Radio's on, windows rolled up and my mind's rolled down
Headlights shining like silver moon's rollin' on the ground
We made love in every way love can be made
And we made time, look like time could never fade
Friday Night, we both made the guitar hum
Saturday made Sunday feel like it would never come
Gonna be a long Monday
Sittin' all alone on a mountain by a river that has no end
Gonna be a long Monday
Stuck like the tick of a clock that's come unwound again
Soul to soul, heart to heart and cheek to cheek
Now, come on, baby, give me a kiss that'll last all week
The thought of you leavin' again brings me down
The promise of your sweet love brings me around
Gonna be a long Monday
Sittin' all alone on a mountain by a river that has no end
It's gonna be a long Monday

I verified the math
And double-checked the syntax
I tried to heal your body
But it just kept coming back
You never had a chance
I thought I was a poet
I had so much to say
But now I want to see the blood
I want to make them pay
Yeah, I can see the day
I made a place for children
They wanted all the answers
I gave them all my lectures
And now they're perfect dancers
'Cause I'm a perfect dancer
Sha la la la la

Famous quotes by John Prine:

"I retired this next song in 1978,"

"It's a different thing when I sit down with [Memphis songwriter and longtime collaborator] Keith Sykes or some of my buddies in Nashville. It's more likely that I'll actually make the appointment and I'll have some fun and maybe at the end of the day we'll get a song out of it. But I've never had any discipline whatsoever. I just wait on a song like I was waiting for lightning to strike. And eventually -- usually sometime around 3 in the morning -- I'll have a good idea. By the time the sun comes up, hopefully, I'll have a decent song."

"I wrote it just to get my father's attention,"

"Sometimes a steering wheel is better than a guitar,"

"The dressing rooms are bigger and cleaner, and the money gets better."

"It was just time,"

"Your Flag Decal Won't Get You Into Heaven Anymore."

"I just tried to come up with some honest songs. What I was writing about was real plain stuff that I wasn't sure was going to be interesting to other people. But I guess it was."

"MAKE ME AN ANGEL THAT FLIES FROM MONTGOMERY, MAKE ME A POSTER OF AN OLD RODEO; JUST GIVE ME ONE THING THAT I CAN HOLD ON TO~ TO BELIEVE IN THIS LIVIN' IS JUST A HARD WAY TO GO....."

"Have you ever noticed / When you're feeling really good / There's always a pigeon / That'll come shit on your hood / Or you're feeling your freedom / And the world's off your back / Some cowboy from Texas / Starts his own war in Iraq."