- Casey's Last Ride
Casey joins the hollow sound of silent people walking down
the stairway to the subway in the shadows down below
following their footsteps thru the neon darkened corridors
of silent desperation, never speaking to a soul
the poison air he's breathing has the dirty smell of dying
Cause it's never seen the sunshine and it's never felt the rain
But Casey minds the arrows and ignores the fatal echoes
- Come Sundown
"Come Sundown"
I heard the front door closing softly,
as I wakened from my sleep;
With the soft touch of her lips, Lord,
like a whisper on my cheek;
And I cursed the sun for risin',
- Feeling Mortal
Wide awake and feeling mortal
At this moment in the dream
That old man there in the mirror
And my shaky self-esteem
Here today and gone tomorrow
That’s the way it’s got to be
With an empty blue horizon
- For the Good Times
Don't look so sad, I know it's over.
But life goes on, and this old world will keep on turning.
Let's just be glad we had some time to spend together.
There's no need to watch the bridges that we're burning.
Lay your head upon my pillow.
Hold your warm and tender body close to mine.
Hear the whisper of the raindrops,
- Help Me Make it Through the Night
Take the ribbon from your hair shake it loose and let it fall
Laying soft against your skin like the shadows on the wall
Come and lay down by my side till the early morning light
All I'm taking is your time help me make it through the night
Well I don't care who's right or wrong and I don't try to understand
Let the devil take tomorrow cause tonight I need a friend
Yesterday is dead and gone and tomorrow's out of sight
- If You Don't Like Hank Williams
I dig Bobby Dylan and I dig Johnny Cash
And I think Waylon Jennings is a table thumpin' smash
Hearin' Joni Mitchell feels as good as smokin' grass
And if you don't like Hank Williams, honey, you can kiss my ass
'Cause I think what they've done is well worth doin'
And they're doin' it the best way that they can
You're the only one that you are screwin'
- In The News
Read about the sorry way he done somebody's daughter
Chained her to a heavy thing and threw her in the water
And she sank into the darkness with their baby son inside her
A little piece of truth and beauty died
Burning up the atmosphere and cutting down the trees
The billion dollar bombing of a nation on it's knees
Anyone not marching to their tune they call it treason
- Jesse Younger
Little Jesse Younger was a well respected lad
Doing all he could to please his mommy and his dad
But he never planned to be the man
They said that he'd become
And somehow or another Jesse's little baby brother
Is his father's and his mother's only son
Every day the neighbors say that it's a dirty shame
The way he spat upon his family and scandalized their name
- Jesus Was a Capricorn
Jesus was a Capricorn
He ate organic food
He believed in love and peace
And never wore no shoes
Long hair, beard and sandles
And a funky bunch of friends
Reckon we'd just nail him up
If he came down again
- Just Suppose
You’re going back now and I guess you think she’s waiting
‘Cause she’s waited there so many times before
And I suppose that you suppose that she’s still crying
Like the way she was when you walked out that door
- Me And Bobby McGee
Busted flat in Baton Rouge, waiting for a train
And I's feelin' nearly as faded as my jeans.
Bobby thumbed a diesel down just before it rained,
It rode us all the way in to New Orleans.
I pulled my harpoon out of my dirty red bandanna,
An' I's playin' soft while Bobby sang the blues, yeah.
Windshield wipers slapping time, I was holding Bobby's hand in mine,
- Nobody Wins
"Nobody Wins"
Any more it doesn't matter
Who's right or wrong
We've been injuring each other
For much too long
And it's too late to try to save
What might have been
- Shipwrecked In The Eighties
Well you fight like the devil to just keep your head above water
Chained to whatever you got that you can't throw away
And you're shootin' through space on this river of life that you're ridin'
And it's whirling and sucking you deeper on down every day
So you turn to your trusty old partner to share some old feelings
And you find to your shock that your faithful companion is gone
And the truth slowly dawns that you're lost and alone in deep water
And you don't even know how much longer there is to go on
- Silver Tongued Devil
I took myself down to the Tally Ho Tavern,
To buy me a bottle of beer.
And I sat me down by a tender young maiden,
Who's eyes were as dark as her hair.
And as I was searching from bottle to bottle,
For something un-foolish to say.
That silver tongued devil just slipped from the shadows,
And smilingly stole her away.
- This Old Road
Look at that old photograph
Is it really you
Smiling like a baby full of dreams
Smiling ain't so easy now
Some are coming true
Nothing's simple as it seems
But I guess you count your blessings with the problems
- To Beat The Devil
A couple of years back, I come across a great and wasted friend of mine in the hallway of a recording studio; and while he was reciting some poetry to me that he'd written, I saw that he was about a step away from dyin' and I couldn't help but wonder why. And the lines of this song occurred to me. I'm happy to say he's no longer wasted and he's got him a good woman. And I'd like to dedicate this to John and June, who helped show me how to beat the devil.
It was winter time in Nashville, down on music city row.
And I was lookin' for a place to get myself out of the cold.
To warm the frozen feelin' that was eatin' at my soul.
Keep the chilly wind off my guitar.
My thirsty wanted whisky; my hungry needed beans,
- Under The Gun
Break a man, break a promise
Break a heart, break a home
Take a long hard look at a heaven
Gone to hell under the gun
- Whiskey Whiskey
She's a little bit of the sunshine
Just before the rain
A little like this quiet night
Before the cold winds came
She's a little bit like the weather
I never know when she's gonna change
She's a part of my heart
And a whole lot of my pain