Mother superior jumped the gun

But all in all it was a little fun

That ripped the buttons clean off of your coat

She warned you not to let me in

And that to do so was embodied sin

I tell you, she warned you not to gloat
When I come there’s gonna be no water

You should have locked the doors, and told your daughters

But well- they all know by now

That the Good Book told of my coming
You should hit the ground and start running

Before I face the curtain with a bow

Babe alight the hen house

We’re gonna burn the bastard down

And sit and wait and watch ‘till the ashes hit the ground

We’ll howl like Havilah 

For there will be no words
The sound of the burning mansion will form a waltzing dirge 

 

We sat together at the dining table 

And I told you every single fable
And tried to prove that the world is utterly flat

But honey baby the table is round

And your mother thinks you’re Dixie bound

And I’ve got a room here- can you imagine that?

Listen heavenly Havilah

You know I’ve got somethin’ for ya

I’d hand it over but you’ve gotta close your eyes

The records in the jukebox turn 

And the pretty little lines they burn

Long after the melody is gone

 

Babe alight the hen house

We’re gonna burn the bastard down

And sit and wait and watch ‘till the ashes hit the ground

We’ll howl like Havilah 

For there will be no words
The sound of the burning mansion will form a waltzing dirge 

 

Well I promise not to meddle 

But please light up a kettle 

And I’ll have a cup before I leave this place

Insanity is never learning 

The seasons change and the wheels keep turning

You can see it in the lines of your face

If there’s anything you love

It’ll be the first thing I shove

Deep into the flames and rising ash

But Hank is gone and The King is dead

And the radio is hanging on by a thread 

So if you feel something burning, don’t you be rash

 

Babe alight the hen house

We’ll burn the bastard down

The melody will rise and fall but never make a sound

Rebuild, trouble, toil
You’ll never find an end

Because as soon as you rise on up I’ll come right back again 

My baby likes to gamble, and my baby likes to dance

My baby likes to gamble, and my baby likes to dance

But she’d drown me in the bathtub if she ever got the chance

 

Feel like a fighting rooster, I feel better than I ever felt

Feel like a fighting rooster, I feel better than I ever felt

But when I hear that siren, baby doll, my mind it starts to melt

 

Yonder come my baby, she’s got a face just like a man

Yonder come my baby, she’s got a face just like a man

She’d hold me under until the bubbles stop, just to prove that she can

 

Richard Cory went down town and the people on the pavement they all looked at him

Richard Cory went down town and the people on the pavement they all looked at him

He was a gentleman from sole to crown, imperially slim

 

I’ve gone without meat mama, I’ve gone for months living on bread

I’ve gone without meat mama, I’ve gone for months living on bread

On one calm summer night, Mister Cory put a bullet through his head

 

My baby likes to gamble, and my baby likes to drink

My baby likes to gamble, and my baby likes to drink

I know she’s bound to kill me, I sing “love me tender” while I sink

The party after you left was long and boring

The conversations they were dull and weak

Politics and sports left me snoring

And dreaming of the little ways you speak

 

And I would kill for one more dance with you

And I would kill for one last dance with you

 

The party after you left dragged on forever

I confess there were times I thought it would never end

The host, they always think they are so clever 

Shuffling you into talking with their friends

 

And I would have sat outside with you

And I would have sat outside with you

 

The party after you left wasn’t a party

A room is just four walls and a place to be

There were people, there was music, the meals were hearty

But I might as well have been stranded out at sea

 

And why did you leave the party without me?

And why did you leave the party without me?

I see your pain, Sir Gawain 

But you know more than I

You saw your doom in her bedroom

Where she fixed you with her eyes

And cried “the fall of Troy 

Was but some great toy

With its flesh-like strings unwound”

To the move of your hips

When the honey drips

That leaves my body bound 

 

There’s somethin’ in the water

That’s doing me no good

It ain’t fixing my body

Like you said it would 

Can’t you feel my own heart’s blood

Beating just for you

Because I want you

 

You’re no good, Sir Robin Hood

With your suitcase full of tacks

And your bow and your quiver 

And your daylight shiver 

And the woman you keep on the rack

When my love is curt

My body she hurts 

Like a bird without the sky

Below that door

There’s a hurt before

I guess I’m just a sad kind of guy 

 

There’s somethin’ in the water

That’s doing me no good

It ain’t fixing my body

Like you said it would 

Can’t you see my own heart’s blood

Running just for you

Because I want you

You are forgettable

Your name is interchangeable

The syllables respectable 

But mean nothing to me

 

You are erasable 

Every part of you replaceable

But your features are still traceable

But mean nothing to me

 

It’s hard to remember 

All these little things 

With time moving by so very fast

We’ve got so few memories 

But this one will last

 

You were so beautiful  

The tide was all push and pull

And we kissed when the moon was full

It meant so much to me

Julia and John, the heartache lingers on

Are your thoughts a-twitter, all waving with the wind?

Can you tell me where you are?

Are you out there collecting stars?

Reaching out into the night as they rescind 

 

So we weathered through infection 

Moaning “a star is but a star’s reflection”

And we caught nothing, all wavering and wet

‘Till I was carried straight away

To a coiled rope for my neck to sway

Each stitch a small moment of regret 

 

Do you remember the fever in your face?

And on your sheets you left your trace 

“Too much blood, too much, no

Papa he’s not for this world long

His sad eyes trail off like a song

Please don’t die, please don’t go”

So you held down the blood with your breath

And we willed away all the death

And said “listen closely, this is the part where I die

I was never trying to fool ya

A girl is a girl is Julia

And dying is far easier than saying goodbye”

 

Julia and John, the prophet is dead and gone

The poet too lies buried in the earth

And I too am not long for this world 

We are but briefly boy and girl

It’s writ on water, it’s writ in our rebirth 

I dreamt you were a tightrope walker

Some city skyline stalker

But then you fell into the sea

You crashed into me

 

Then I dreamt that I was a vagabond 

And when even my echo would not respond

It was you that set me free

You gave a dollar to me

 

She dreams in dreams like Mondrian 

It’s like she knows the hill I’ll die upon

She’s lost inside a Mondrian 

Where she’s walking

‘Till she’s gone

 

I dreamt we were attached at the hip

We were The Siamese Twins for a little bit

But then someone ripped us in two

And I lived without you

 

Then I dreamt we were in Alcatraz 

And you broke out with such pizzazz

Through the bars, you melted through 

You yelled “I’ll come back for you”

 

She dreams in dreams like Mondrian 

It’s like she knows the hill I’ll die upon

She’s lost inside a Mondrian 

Where she’s walking

‘Till she’s gone

 

I dreamt everything was in its proper place

Like little boxes out in space

But time is a relentless wheel

And it makes you kneel

 

And sometimes I pretend that we’re still in love

And that there is a God above

But you, you showed me what’s real

And a deal is a deal

How are you enjoying the end of the world?

Is it everything you were expecting?

No rapture, no horsemen, no pits to be hurled

It’s just a slow burn, isn’t it vexing?

 

And I keep humming along

Hoping we’ll be lost in a song

 

How are you enjoying the end of our time?

Between one and ten, would you give it a seven?

Just to be with you, sharing a rhyme

You know it’s quite nice, to me this is heaven

 

And we keep humming along

Hoping we’ll be lost in a song

 

How are you enjoying the end of the world?

Is it everything you were expecting?

Play me the song of the wind my love

And rock me back and forth from above

Like the tassels on the reigns of the mare 

In Jordan every game is the same

From your watchmen, your tired, your sick and your lame

Crossing out the crossroads that I dare

Our breath is a-mesh on the wings and the flesh

And our bodies are strewn in awkward distress 

While our eyes slowly roam 

I loved you then and I love you now

Like an idle glance on the sacred cow 

Jocasta, sing me back home

 

There are bailiffs in the bedclothes bailing hay

And if you listen closely you can hear them say

It’s just a rose on the nose of the face that shows

But sometimes that’s just how it goes

And it’s that or it’s just decay

 

I kissed you like a monsoon 

Your parted lips blocking the moon

Our body like the chorus spiraled free

I don’t care about your mother’s pearls

Or how you’re from a different world

It’s my dark eyes, they’re all you can see

The satyr sings of licks and things

Much too terrible beneath our bed springs

Still bloody and tasting like bone

I loved you then and I love you now

Like you can’t even imagine how

Jocasta, sing me back home

 

There are bailiffs in the bedclothes bailing hay

And if you listen closely you can hear them say

It’s deal or no deal creeping up to your heel 

And that pain in your chest you’re too numb to feel 

But that’s all that keeps my dreams at bay

 

You’ll feed me lies and I’ll pull out my eyes

You don’t need another disguise 

Your body to me you’ve already shown

I loved you here and I’ll love you there

‘Till white as marrow is my hair

Jocasta, sing me back home

With blood on my collar I holler “you have won”

And your eyes are pealed like a smoking gun

But your lips are parted farther than I can run

But down the highway, what’s done is done

So if you see your baby sister, have her say a prayer for me

And tell her I’m sorry I couldn’t be what she wanted me to be

And sometimes when she’s temporarily lost at sea

Maybe she’ll set her sails and think of me

 

But girl, I won’t come when you call

Because girl I’m not sentimental at all

 

Dreams of the gutter they shutter both deaf and dumb

It’s like lying in the shadows cast by kingdom come

And bird of a feather are tethered tightly to your thumb

Feasting like flies on the sins you crumb

So if you see your baby sister, tell her thanks a lot

For my tongue’s tied twice in a lover’s knot

And even when the blood in my body clots

I’d still cry your name like my dying pistol shot

 

But girl, I won’t come when you call

Because girl I’m not sentimental at all

 

Through the waves in my head I see dead boys in the clay

And I took her up to my room on the second day

Where together we watched our tears slip into the hay

As the lights loomed low on the midnight cabaret 

So, if you see your baby sister, and you catch her sighing

I want you to tell her out plainly that I hope that she’s dying

No, no but don’t say that really now, you know I’m not that kind of guy

It’s just I get the blues for her when I look up at the sky

 

But girl, I won’t come when you call

Because girl I’m not sentimental at all

Everybody knows that the house is haunted

Everybody knows that the ghosts are real

You can tell that your heartbeat is unwanted

You can’t see ‘em, but you know by the feel

 

The hallways twist and turn, and they spiral everywhere

And somehow they remind me of the way you wore your hair

Voices are talking backwards, and I’m not really me

And every room I enter just isn’t where I want to be

 

A ghost can be so many things

Like a smile or the melody you would sing

But there’s one thing that I want, you see

It’s that you keep haunting me

 

Everybody knows that the ground is salted

Nothing pretty is ever gonna grow

And just when you think all your tears are halted 

There’s just a little more misery and woe 

Macfinlay is turning white, it’s as if he’s seen a ghost

The wind it wilts and whispers, asking who you love the most

The spirits of the dead on Choctaw Ridge look so surreal 

But the thing that scares me most is how you make me feel

 

A ghost can be so many things

Like a memory or the tan line of a ring

But there’s one thing that I want, you see

It’s that you keep haunting me

Don’t you know pretty mama they call me the roving blade

Writing silly carols, sitting down in the shade

Keeping up with spirits, keeping time with some other drum

They all talk about me when I come

 

So if you want pretty mama I’ll stay with you a little while

And I can get lost behind your smile

But eventually there’s gonna come a time I’ve gotta hit that old asphalt 

And if you say you love me that’s your own damn fault

 

So if I’m coming, and you see me standing there

Wave your handkerchief pretty mama, in the air

I’m a roving blade, that’s just how I was made

And it’s so hard to love a roving blade

 

Your mother said a roving blade is bound to break your little heart

He’ll get so deep inside you and pick you clean apart

But it’s not that the roving blade is bound to make you blue

It’s just that’s all the roving blade knows how to do

 

Dream twisters and misters weaving pretty little things in their songs

All of them trying to undress you and tell you where you belong

I’m no better than them, it’s just I’m not gonna sugarcoat no lies

If you’re gonna take a shot at someone you better see the whites of their eyes

 

So if I’m coming, and you see me standing there

Wave your handkerchief pretty mama, in the air

I’m a roving blade, that’s just how I was made

And it’s so hard to love a roving blade

Wake up, Billy, your mother is dead and gone

Wake up, Billy, your mother is dead and gone

She tried to treat you right, held your head all night

Wake up, Billy, your mother is dead and gone

 

Get out Billy, Brooklyn is no place for you

Get out Billy, Brooklyn is no place for you

That city is on the rise, it’s where they closed your mama’s eyes

Wake up Billy now, Brooklyn’s no place for you

 

Put down that bottle Billy, it’ll be the death of you

Put down that bottle Billy, it’ll be the death of you

Those troubles that you keep, they make love to you in your sleep

Put down that bottle Billy, it’ll be the death of you

 

So wake up Billy now, your mother is dead and gone

So wake up Billy now, your mother is dead and gone

’Twas the merry month of May, they laid her in the clay

So wake up Billy now, your mother is dead and gone

Can’t you hear them feet coming down the hall

You better come when your baby calls

Four foot five or seven feet tall

If you’ve met one you’ve met them all

Eyes like fire, body like a snake

She’s got the stuff that can make your belly ache

She’ll make you shiver, rattle and quake

You better duck for cover for heaven’s sake

Here she comes, she walks right in

She’s got a penny knife, will take your life, you can’t win

But she sure looks pretty when she spins 

Makes you so dizzy you feel you’ve sinned

Darkness on the face of the deep

You know there’s nothing here I think I’d keep

You better check the bodies before you sleep

And after you sow you better reap 

 

And wherever you go, I too must go

So honey please, jump out your window

 

Froggy went a courting and he did ride

Singing “blessed be those who misguide”

And “damn be those too proud to hide”

And “aren’t things better with God on your side?”

“Say Miss Mousey will you be my bride

You’re the reason I ride and ride and ride

For you I’d even try to turn the tide 

Be quick I don’t have time to bide”

She says “no kind Sir, you can’t come in

I’ve got my apron wrapped up around my chin

You men are full of pricks and pins

I have no clue where you’ve been”

So our hero rode away

Planning to come back someday

He drove his horse right into the grey

And he’s singing this song on his way:

 

Wherever you go, I too must go

So honey please, jump out your window

 

All rise for Miss Valentine

She’s got skin that shines and shines and shines 

Like diamonds down in the mine 

She was born under some crooked sign 

You buy her gold but she wants the sky

Or something that will never die

And whispers wicked withered lies 

About the colors of your eyes

While meanwhile Theseus walks through the maze

In some deep dank and dusty haze

He smokes a joint in the shade

And wonders what the Gods have made

He says baby I’m going to come back to you

I’ve got this string to help me through

It’ll bring me right on back to you

And I’ll sing this song the whole way through:

 

Wherever you go, I too must go

So honey please, jump out your window

So you’ve purchased the textbooks on nonsense and power

And maybe you’ll finish another page by the hour

But there’s always a second just to make you feel sour

It’ll hurt you baby but maybe you’ll learn

 

I tried to read it myself but I pulled out my teeth

Right there on the carpet like the commander and chief 

And then I whispered to you and snuck out like a thief 

“I’ll come back when God returns”

 

And in the hours of morning I roam through the fog

And I search for new meaning like some hungry dog 

Asking “why are we here?” in a monologue 

But I tell you I don’t really care

 

And when I get drunk I’ll lie in the ditch 

And no college credit could have made any switch 

The answer to the question was “burn it, it’s a witch”

And “It’ll all help you later, I swear”

 

I imagine men at the table, those makers of kings

And when they talk about money they practically sing

And one said come tomorrow, whatever it brings
We will rule the day

 

We’ve all been lost in the valley and read all the Psalms

With spit in our eyes and with blood on our palms 

Believing the lord gave us fingers for the making of bombs

To blow our enemies away

 

And I sit by the TV and watch as it rolls

A message through static, commercials and polls

And I can write meaning to the death count toll

And ask later who’s to blame 

 

And then when I’m done I’ll go walk to the park

And I’ll lie in the bushes like I’m Joan of Arc

She says “you seem to think that you’ve hit your mark

But all that’s left is flame”  

Mama don’t you hear the old kettle roar

Its smoke sneaking out from behind the door

On those nights it was always too hot to sleep

Eyes wide shut like water over stone

Holding its heat deep beneath your bones

I hope gave you something you want to keep

But the song plays on and with every beat

It held my tongue like electric heat

While a woman cried in the room above

I grabbed your face and felt every curve 

Like Cajun rain running down my nerves 

But I was never the one to shove

 

It’s just how I love, I’m not saying it’s right

But it’s just how I loved with you that night

 

I’m not saying I can make amends for everything I take

But all I know is that we must replace the things we break

I lost my mind, somewhere down the line

 

So I pinned your picture to my chest

And asked “is this how you think glory manifests?

And you know your answer to me has gotta be true”

But she said “I never loved you for your soul

I was in it for the fame and the rhythmic roll 

And you could never separate yourself from the evil you do”

So you lectured me on divine right

And you shook your thumbs with all your might

But I thought you were beautiful all the same

And you said there was glory in being king

And only a real man can make serfdom sing 

For a slight of hand can leave a lesser lame

 

And it’s a shame, the things we do

And I’m ashamed, I followed you

 

I’m not saying I can make amends for everything I take

But all I know is that we failed to replace the things we break

I lost my mind, somewhere down the line

I was just a boy of ten when they took my ma away

And sealed her in the cold hard ground, or so boys they say

And I’d look out upon the sea where my father since has sailed

To the icy knoll where the albatross and salt songs wail

 

So if I pass this way again, you can rest assured

That I’ll come find you in your bed, on that I give my word

But out there on the sea, it’s where I’m meant to be

And if I die out there, take me back to Cape Marie

 

Well I live a pirate’s life, and a pirate’s life is for me

And I will steer my pirate ship like it’s dancing on the sea

But when I think of you my girl oh the tears start falling down

The purest drop in all the land and all the waters ‘round

 

So if I pass this way again, you can rest assured

That I’ll come find you in our bed, on that I give my word

But out there on the sea, it’s where I’m meant to be

And if I die out there, take me back to Cape Marie

 

Well yo-ho-ho it’s time we go, and I’ll never let my fears show

Even when those British ships come around

And I will fight and make my mark, and keep you darling in my heart

Even if I fall into the sea and drown 

 

So if I pass this way again, you can rest assured

That I’ll come kiss you in your dreams, on that I give my word

But down there in the sea, it’s where I’m gonna to be

So if I die out there, take my body to Cape Marie

It’s sundown on tinsel town

There’s no more saviors coming around

No more hiding from the church bell’s chime

Beneath the garland and mistletoe 

Grandpa’s sleeping down below

He’s waiting on the judgment time

I wished I was the buttons on your coat

But now I feel like a sinking boat

And the calendar, she gives up too

But now all that I want for Christmas

All that I want this Christmas

Is to find my way back to God, and you

 

The Ghost of Present and Christmas Past

They’ve finally made it to the ball at last

They twist beneath those starlight chandeliers 

Come on baby, step on my feet

And we’ll watch all the pretty little lovers meet

It’s so sweet when the storyline is clear

But me I feel a length of chain

Like a carol inside my brain

I think that’s why you make me blue

But now all that I want for Christmas

All that I want this Christmas

Is to find my way back to God

And you, and you, and you, my love

I can’t help but cry

When that evening train goes by

And all the driver’s heads start rolling off

And from your kitchen chair

You can stroke and cut my hair

And make my summer rain sound like a cough

I’ll keep the secrets of your soul

All wrapped up and roll

Rolling towards that endless dawn

 

But I can still here them

Crying all the way to Jerusalem 

Where has my baby gone?

Where has my baby gone?

 

Well I’ll hate you

And you can hate me too

If that’s what keeps your satisfied 

And you can tie me to the rails

Leave me hailing on the trails 

And my blood half subsidized 

You say religion is your business 

Then God I’ll be your witness 

To your life as the pawn 

 

But I can hear you shout

From your dream-dried drought

Where has my baby gone?

Where has my baby gone?

 

My love from above

You’re looking just like a dove

Heading straight towards that ceiling fan

So I won’t put up no fight

I just want to know where you slept last night

So tell me honey baby if you can

You’ve been acting kind of crazy

Your mind is sick and hazy

Like the dog you left out on the lawn

 

I see you standing there

So I think I think it’s only fair

You tell me: where has my baby gone?

Where has my baby gone?

Hey pretty baby there’s a spot by the lake

And we can make the whole house shake 

By dancing like never before

So, call up your friends and tell them drive, drive, drive

Through the eye of the storm and come out alive

Tell them there’s always room for more

I’m not wasted, I just love to dance

 

Well just about midnight they burn their beds

And they’re playing cards with horns on their heads

Plenty of points but no one’s keeping score

She says “can’t you tell my pain is so complex?

By the way that I move and the way that I dress?

Honey you’ve never met someone like me before”

 

But pretty babe someone got murdered in the study

His body is gone and the carpet is bloody

It’s clear he’s a victim of sweet romance

When I think about it babe you know it hits me so hard

There’s a row of dogs crowding in the yard

You know it don’t look like they want to dance

I’m not wasted, I just love to dance

 

Well hey pretty babe The Gardener is gone 

And half the party is blacked out there on the lawn

And they’re stealing everything up there on the shelf 

So pretty mama you know I’ll pour you a drink

And you can tell me your troubles, and I’ll say what I think

“You’ve never thought about nobody but yourself.”

Because you’re not wasted, you just love to dance

Mary Anne, sit down before you fall down

I’m not gonna carry you back home

You’re too drunk to think straight 

With all the troubles on your plate

And you’re slowly leaving me here alone

 

Mary Anne, talk to me if you want to

But all your words are starting to sound the same

Your clothes are on the floor

You’re not you anymore 

And you’re confusing yourself with your pain

And Mary Anne, if it’s worth a dime

I’m sorry I’m me, most of the time

 

Mary Anne, I’ll hold you if you ask me nicely

But we both know we’re lying through our teeth

I don’t mean to generalize

But we’re both just our disguise 

And I don’t really want to see what’s underneath 

Well I’m blasted by thunder and my armor has dents
And I’ll sleep ‘neath the trees with heaven’s consent 

I’d whittle you down but I can’t save face

I just need those women off of my case

So I’ll go on down to the sacred fields 

With that baby moonshine cupping my heels

I asked you for water, I was not obscene

But before the words left my tongue you gave me gasoline 

 

I made my bed, now I’ll sleep in it

I don’t like to see you cry, no not one bid

It’s not you darling, it’s just because 

I just can’t be the man that I was

 

I came upon the house of pride 

And I saw your name etched on all four sides

And you were standing there on the altar stairs

With burning flowers wrapped in your hair

And you said “Hey McTell, before you go

Look up yonder into the seventh window 

They say there’s a woman with a tender touch 

But she’s far too modest to be seen too much”

 

You were wracked by stormy seas

You made a martyr out of me

But your ship don’t leave the harbor no it never does

Because I just can’t be the man I was

 

Those bottomless women, they sit on the coast

But you were just too much of a man to give up the ghost 

So you learned to blame your discontent 

On a rib that was stolen without your consent 

 

I feel your body and I feel the bone 

But all I want is to be alone

And it’s not you darling, it’s just because

I’m just not the man you thought I was

Listen little lady, let me explain you this

The new world was carved out with bibles and fists 

And guns and sharp swords in the hands of children 

They scorched the land and they burned the crop

And they lowered the mountain just to see the top

And they found the things that time kept hidden 

And all those truths in the world add up to one big lie

Phrases like “living is free” and “do or die”

And “ours is the kind of love that’s forbidden”

 

Mr. Mime says the Five and Dime is getting ready for a fall

They’ve already ripped all the copper wire out of the wall

 

Your past little lady ain’t so far behind

And like a steam engine I’m keeping good time

And they say a good man is hard to find

 

They say the worst kind of crime is ghost on ghost

And Desdemona dotes on the Cyprus Coast

Where your debt will bleed you dryer than a dream

Othello he weeps and Iago he struts

Down in the valley of a thousand cuts

Where everything is exactly as it seams 

You know I feel that way every time we kiss

Like I know deep down that somethings amiss

But I don’t know how to tell you what I think it means

 

Bonnie turns to Clyde and says “hey will you marry me?

When I look in your eyes, I tell you I’m all I see”

 

Your past little lady ain’t so far behind

And like a steam engine I’m keeping good time

And they say a good man is hard to find

The bartender has been drinking 

And the piano man is stoned

The streets are making speeches

And you could swear the lamp post groaned

And the lovers are trading partners 

Like a drunkard shuffles cards

And your conscience wishes it was here

But she just sends her best regards

 

The bartender has been drinking

And the night is losing breath

Someone asks if you are single 

And you quickly think of death

That death is somehow better

Than hanging around here

But you never pull the trigger

Out of courtesy and fear

 

The bartender has been drinking 

And your thoughts are know-it-alls

The wolves are in the distance

And the waitress sings of walls

And God grew bored and wandered off

And now the end is nothing but bone

And you’re in a crowd of people

But you could not be more alone

Starry starry sky, don’t you say goodbye 

Don’t you go away, don’t you make me cry

You’ve been good to me, as good as any gal could ever be

Rock me to sleep with an old time lullaby 

 

Amber fields of grain, twisting in the rain

Outlasting the war, outlasting the pain

You’re unmoved by me, some ragged detainee

Singing back in the old refrain 

 

Rosie Rosie dear, don’t you shed no tears

Walking the rooms full of covered up mirrors

You know the past is gone, and it’s best we keep moving on

Life is too short for all your fears

 

I had the wildest dream last night

I was swimming with you

All the waves broke like bright fire

And I woke up so blue

 

Little secrets that you keep, oh they make you weep

They cut you in your dreams, they keep you from your sleep

You know you hurt her so, it was you that made her go

You’re somewhere down in her so deep

 

So starry starry sky, don’t you say goodbye 

Don’t you go away, don’t you make me cry

You’ve been good to me, as good as any gal could ever be

Rock me to sleep with an old time lullaby

I am the man who’s always late

Got some other kinda date

I am the man who’s always late
I am the man from far away

You never quite know what he’ll say

I am the man who’s always late

I am the man that you can never trust

Nothing but smoke and battle dust

The man that’s walking that bootleg mile

The man twisted up by your smile 

 

I am the man who’s always late 

Lost in the trouble that I create 

I am the man that’s always late

My walk is weary, my walk is sad

If you’re not good, they’ll say you’re bad

I am the man that’s always late

And just when the storyline is clear

You’ll find I’m the man that was never near

Like a mirror turned against the wall

I’m the man that’s nothing at all

 

I am the man who’s always late

I’m your beggar, I’m your gate

I am the man who’s always late
I was just like you, a soundless sea

I’m the man that you made me

I am the man who’s always late

 

I am the man who’s always late