Lyrics & Chords

Click on a title to zip down to its lyrics.

These are not official versions of Freakwater lyrics, just fan transcriptions. Correct any mistakes. Songs with chord info are listed in italics.

All Life Long/\, Annabelle Lee*, A Mile Away, Are You Ready+^, A Song You Could Cry For, Binding Twine#, Blood and Fire, Blue Eyes, Buckets of Oil::, Cathy Ann%, Cheap Watch, Cloak of Frogs/\, Crazy Man)(, Cricket versus Ant<>%, Dark as a Dungeon*, Dirty Little Snowman, Dog Gone Wrong/\)(, Double Clutch/\<>::, Dream Girl, Family Tradition, Fill My Thermos, Flat Hand+^, Forgettable Song^, Gone to Stay$, Glass of a Stranger, Good for Nothing~, Gravity$, Great Potential, Heaven+, Hellbound/\, Hero/Heroine, Hex, Hi Ho Silver, Jack the Knife<>, Jesus Year+, Jewel][%, Just Like You, Kentucky House, Little Black Train^^, Little Girl and the Dreadful Snake*, Lonesome Sound, Lorraine+^, Loserville<>, Louisville Lip, Lullaby*^, Miner Song, My History, My Old Drunk Friend^, One Big Union+, One Shot, Paint the River Red%, Pale Horse, Picture in My Mind, Put My Little Shoes Away+, Queen Bee, Raised Skin+, Rank Strangers*, Right Brothers%, Sap, Scamp, Selfishness in Man*, Scratches on the Door, Sick Sick Sick^^, Sleeping on Hold*, Slow Ride#)(, Smoking Daddy, So Strange::, Twisted Wire+, Ugly Man, Upside Down<>, Waitress Song, Washed in the Blood )(, When the Leaves Begin to Fall/\, White Rose, Wild and Blue*, Written in Gold/\, You Make Me+^, You're Still on my Mind*, Your Goddamn Mouth, You've Never Been This Far Before+.

* Transcription by Tom K.
+ Transcription by kentuckiannna.
# Transcription and chords by Neil D.
$ Chords by Neil D.
~ Chords by John L.
^ Chords by John K.
^^Transcription and chords by John K.
)( Chords or transcription by Jason H.
/\ Transcription by Paul.
)( Transcription by Dave L.
][ Transcription by Jack K.
% Chords by Happy, Sluggo, and Brookes.
<> Transcription by Selrach.
:: Transcription by Kathy Jo.

All Life Long

It started with the truest affection
Then within an inch of my life I took the Fifth/fifth and hid for protection
There was a spark I craved in your eyes
And it lit me up like a lightning bug dancing
Through the summer's night sky
And we danced like

All night long

Now you say it's gonna take some time
But you're gonna set yourself straight
You're gonna walk that narrow line
But I see that spark in your eyes
And it's burning so bright, it's lit up all of your lies
And they sound like

All night long

Two fingers at a time
Seem to have a certain way of turning into two fists flying blind
And you say "maybe, I'm no good"
Well, damned if I'm not twice as twisted
Because to me those are the sweetest words
And they sound like

All night long and it felt like
All night long and forever
All life long

TOP

Annabelle Lee (Neuwirth)

The sound of a Dixieland band reminds him of a garden
Where the old ladies sit in the shade and flutter their fans
All gathered together to gossip like a bunch of old colonels
And charm the swans from their palms with their lily-white hands

And is that the singing of Annabelle Lee that I hear
And is that the ghost of the lady I’m dying to see
And is that the ether that makes these echoes that I hear
But a lady is still a lady to me

Growing up reckless someplace on the edge of the city
Learning to take danger as a matter of course, not concern
What’s the difference if there’s no light in the alley
When you’re so down and alone you’ve got no place to turn

And is that the singing of Annabelle Lee that I hear
And is that the ghost of the lady I’m dying to see
And is that the ether that makes these footsteps that I hear
But an alley is still an alley to me

And the lady is still a part of my memory

And is that the singing of Annabelle Lee that I hear
And is that the ghost of the lady I’m dying to see
And is that the ether that makes these echoes in my ear
But a lady is still a lady to me

But this lady is just a part of my memory.

TOP

A Mile Away

Bob, do you have a wife
Do you have a happy life
Doesn't it seem empty without me
Seem like things just aren't the way they oughta be
But you never call me, you never called me
I was just about a mile away

Bob, do you think of me
Sometimes it seems like it just can't be
I drank coffee all day in some stupid café
In front of that hotel where you were supposed to stay
I look so smart that my brain got sore
I'm the lonesome hippie hobo you've been searching for
But you never found me, you never found me
I was just about a mile away

Every time I see you you're so far away
A speck on the horizon as I watch you play
You never heard what I was ready to say
You never asked me, you never asked me
I was just about a mile away

But you never found me, you never found me
I was just about a mile away

TOP

Are You Ready

Are you [D] ready for your [G] new home in the [D] sky
[D] Think your luck will finally turn around the [A] minute that you die
And all your [D] prophets who profit only from your [G] fears
Will they[D] stand by and hold your hand when the[A] end is finally [D] near

Are you [D] ready to [G] claim your great [D] reward
[D] To climb those shining stairs and [A] shake hands with your Lord
When you look [D] down on those poor sinners such as [G] I
who missed our [D] chance to be redeemed will your [A] laughter drown our [D] cries

Are you [D] ready to [G] leave this sinful [D] world
[D] Would like to read your name when that [A] great scroll is unfurled
And if [D] Jesus calls you home when that [G] angel trumpet sounds
Won't you [D] just leave me alone if I'm [A] six feet under [D] ground

Are you [D] ready for your [G] new home in the [D] sky
[D] Think your luck will finally turn around the [A] minute that you die
And all your [D] prophets who profit only from your [G] fears
will they [D] stand by and hold your hand when the [A] end is finally [D] near

[D] Are you ready
Are you ready

TOP

A Song You Could Cry For

Desperately seeking more and more confusion
You sink your nails into the back of an illusion
The sun in the morning comes as such an intrusion
Banging at your door, glaring down at that whore
You thought you drowned the night before

There's something you were trying to forget
As you light the wrong end of your cigarette
And you're laughing at a joke you didn't get
Clinging to some man that you just met

Desperately hoping for a love you would die for
You play one more quarter to hear a song you could cry for
'Till the end of the world is all you've got time for
To find someone who'll do all right and keep your demons out of sight
As you fumble through the night

He holds you so tight when you dance
And the air is filled with smoke and romance
When he stumbles you still give him a chance
It's your beauty that has put him in this trance

Desperately seeking more and more confusion
You sink your nails into the back of an illusion
The sun in the morning comes as such an intrusion
Banging at your door, glaring down at that whore
You thought you drowned the night before
Banging at your door, glaring down at that whore
You thought you drowned the night before

TOP

[A] Truth [Dm] is a [A] tug of war
[A] Be [Dm]tween you and [A] me
[A] And in the [Dm] middle lies our[A] big dark holes
[A]That can suck the [Dm] dreams from a sleeping [A] baby

[A] Some say [Dm] timing is [A] everything
[A] Burnt metal [Dm] spread across a [A] service road
[A] I'm driving [Dm] towards it and I [A] look away
[A] An instant [Dm] in time plays two [A] distinctly different ways

[E] Would you bind my [A]memories in twine?
[E] Would you drive with [A] me over the state line?
[E] Would be will[A]ing to do the time?
[A] Their simple [Dm]messages [A]we will use
[A] Either way [Dm]there is something [A] that you are bound to confuse

[E] Would you bind my [A] memories in twine?
[E] Would you drive with [A] me over the state line?
[E] Would be wil[A]ling to do the time?
[A] Their simple[Dm] sentences we will choose
[A] Either way [Dm] there is something [A] that you are bound to lose

Each day I figure's like the day before
Some days I'm content, for some I devise a cure
To dim the bell I refuse to hear
Its constant tolling as it rings inside of my ear

Year after year
And day after day
And year after year
And day after year

(Neil notes: "The intro/outro bit is a bit hard to describe: Start with an open A7
chord, but played on the 5th fret so that it's a C7 and with the D string
slurring up from an F# to a G. Then proceed to the same thing on the third
fret (so a Bb7), then finally to a plain A major.)

TOP

Blood and Fire

Silver hands, chemical hearts
Too much blood they've slipped apart
The martyr hears his family cry
Too much glory's burned their eyes
Emeralds are green and blood is red
So many years, so many deaths
Rubber bullets flying fast
Another slave is freed at last
Handsome flowers mark the place
Where the soldier lost his pretty face
Rain that makes the fuchsias grow
Blood rain makes the headstones grow
Burning tires, smoking glow
Down where the river of bodies flow
North to south through every town
South to north blood soaked the ground
Have a beer for the kid who died
Says his mother welling up with pride
Ditch the car and feel the blast
Burning higher than the last
Hair as red as blood and fire
Go tell your god that he's a liar

TOP

Blue Eyes

You have blue eyes
They're the only ones that I know
Other eyes don't mean a thing to me
Your eyes are the ones I see when I close my eyes
You have blue eyes

I've got one that's brown and one that's kinda green
Your eyes are the prettiest I've ever seen
Eyes I see sometimes in my dreams your eyes
You have blue eyes

You have blue eyes
They're the only ones that I know
Other eyes don't mean a thing to me
Your eyes are the ones I see when I close my eyes
You have blue eyes

I sometimes lying in my bed
I see blue eyes floating above my head
I always laughed at what people said about eyes
You have blue eyes

You have blue eyes
They're the only ones that I know
Other eyes don't mean a thing to me
Your eyes are the ones I see when I close my eyes
You have blue eyes

You have blue eyes
They're the only ones that I know

TOP

Buckets of Oil

The sand we threw on the fire
Cooked up the rose-colored glasses that we’ve all admired
A spoonful of sugar to cook over the flame
And mix with the blood of the wounded and the lame

Buckets of oil, buckets of wine
To grease up these gears and shut down my mind
Buckets of nails, truckloads of blood
To float this ship of fools up out of the mud

The amber grain, and all the beautiful spaceships, radio waves
Above the purple mountains that might just be
So many little hearts shining on that sad hill of graves

The yellow rose will rise before the father and before the son
And the yellow rose will shine down for all the world to see
When the beautiful victory’s won

The crowd we had was good in my neighborhood
Down where I shed my grace God never showed his face to me
Where the winners and the losers from sea to shining sea
Have been bought and sold and most often had for free

Buckets of oil, buckets of wine
To grease up these gears and shut down my mind
Buckets of nails, truckloads of blood
To float this ship of fools up out of the mud

TOP

Cathy Ann lyrics and chords

Cathy Ann, hold/fold your little hand
If your daddy didn’t love you, there’s just no good in man
Cathy Ann, Cathy Ann, still playing in the sand
Where the moon tells the water to come sleep with the land

On Mermaid Avenue everybody knew you
The sky was always blue when your daddy drew you
Born by the ocean, born for the fire
That was born by a spark, blown by a wire

Cathy Ann, hold/fold your little hand
If your daddy didn’t love you, there’s just no good in man
Cathy Ann, Cathy Ann, still playing in the sand
Where the moon tells the water to come sleep with the land

You’re mama she’s dancing, flying down the stairwell
And your daddy he’s fading, as his mama did foretell
Shaking like a leaf, shaking like a flame
That was fed by the wind that stirred up from the plain

Ashes are scattered, last smoke comes rising
Dark clouds are cinders across the horizon

Cathy Ann, fold/hold your little hand
If your daddy didn’t love you, there’s just no good in man
If your daddy didn’t love you, there’s just no good in man

TOP

Cheap Watch

Wound[A] up tighter than a cheap watch
Wind it [D] up and watch how the time [A] flies
Little white teeth wound around what sounds like [F] more cheap [A] lies
Little black [E] clouds suck us up into the sky

[D] Wound up where the Christmas lights stay [A] up all year
And it takes the barman half an hour just to get me another [E] beer
Was it [D] just for kicks or was it [A] in and out of [D] fear
One step [E] closer, two stepping posers get a [D] little kings [A] lear

[D] One foot on the gas, two [A] feet from Tennessee
[E] L ittle hand on the twelve-gauge and the [D] big hand swinging [A] free
Well, I [D] made you look but I [A]could not make you [D] see
Look [E] down at your shoes 'cause the tie that binds was un[D]tied by [A]me

[D] Rebel rouser and the e-string is my [A]last nerve
Ringing [D] out like a stabbing [A] pain
It's the [D] last call, and I'm calling on
Something that they don't [A] serve
Like a [E] double shot of that ball and [A] chain

[D] Spoonful of absence makes my [A] heart grow fonder
[E] Spoonful of absinthe makes my [D] mind to [A] wander
[D] Spoonful of sugar down [A] at the candy [D] store
I got a [E] string around your sweet tooth, baby
And I'm [D] getting up to slam the [A] door

Wound up tighter than a cheap watch
Wind it up and watch how the time flies
Little white teeth wound around what sounds like more cheap lies
Little black clouds suck us up into the skies
Little black [E]clouds suck us [D] up into the [A] skies

TOP

Cloak of Frogs

I'm sitting at this table I painted a shiny red
With a bowl full of oranges, a candle and a half a cigarette
I turn on the radio watch the tubes begin to glow
And the light flickers with the voice of one who knows

Take me to the river
Wash me in the water
He sings to me, to the fallen (water)
And I hear him singing out

I'm nervous in my skin I feel it has been read (rent)
And the mess that's seeping out
Only the devil could have sent
Wash me in the water
Get rid of the evidence
She is standing on the bank
Prayin' for water to take my breath

Take me to the river
Wash me in the water
He sings to me, to the fallen
And I hear him singing out (say do it now)

My muscles have grown weary dragging this cloak of frogs
(Now mosses have grown where he dragged in his cloak of frogs)
And I cried when the deal was struck
Oh please no gun
For I am a murderer hidden in a gasoline shroud
You were my healer you were my match
I was gonna burn this damn thing down

TOP

Crazy Man

[G] I heard that your [C] daddy was a [D] crazy man
[G] He left your mama [C] standing with a [D] dishtowel in her hand
[G] Snuck out through the [C] back way and let the [D] screen door slam
[G] It's hard to find the [C] words to say you don't [D] give a damn

You said that you never saw your mama cry
Maybe she was sneakin' around with another man on the sly
I have met your mama and she's crazy too
You got more from her than just your eyes of blue

[C] All the words have been [G] spoken
[G] All the bridges have been burned and the promises [D] broken
[C] It's not hard just to have a little [G] baby
[G] And I won't have far [D] to go when I go crazy [G]

All the words have been spoken
All the bridges have been burned and the promises broken
It's not hard just to have a little baby
And I won't have far to go when I go crazy

I look into your eyes and I think I see
Picture of my smiling with a baby on my knee
There in that old photograph you never change
Like the last time that I saw you when you looked so strange

All the words have been spoken
All the bridges have been burned and the promises broken
It's not hard just to have a little baby
And I won't have far to go when I go crazy

TOP

Cricket versus Ant lyrics and chords

The moon shone down with a silvery light
And a little voice told me I was bound to be all right
He said don't you worry my little golden child
Let the other ones work why don't you just run wild

Some work hard while others work harder
To put up the jam and fill up the larder
Let the other ones work these lovely days away
You are the one who would rather sport and play

I rubbed my knees together and just played along
when I heard the crickets singing their bowlegged song
If it all goes terribly wrong, maybe it won't take long

We came to our destruction through fire and through water
Through the cruel machinations of the vengeful daughter
The earth that trembled destroyed all we had made
Many were lost still many more were saved

Some plant in the springtime to reap in the fall
Watch the trees in their orchard grow heavy and tall
While the lillies of the field swaying half drunk with pride
Stand gaping at the sky, their pretty mouths open wide

I rubbed my knees together and just played along
When I heard the crickets singing their bowlegged song
If it all goes terribly wrong, maybe it won't take long
If it all goes terribly wrong, maybe it won't take long

TOP

Come listen you fellows, so young and so fine
Seek not your fortune in the dark, dreary mine
It’ll form as a habit and seep in your soul
'Til the stream of your blood is as black as the coal

It's as dark as a dungeon and damp as the dew
Where the dangers are double and the pleasures are few
Where the rain never falls and the sun never shines
It's dark as a dungeon way down in the mine

There's many a man I've seen in my day
Who lived just to labor his whole life away
Like a fiend for his dope and a drunkard his wine
A man will have lust for the lure of the mine

It's as dark as a dungeon and damp as the dew
Where the dangers are double and the pleasures are few
Where the rain never falls and the sun never shines
It's dark as a dungeon way down in the mine

Well, I hope when I'm gone and the ages shall roll
My body will blacken, and turn into coal
I'll look from that door of that Heavenly home
And pity the miner diggin' my bones

It's as dark as a dungeon and damp as the dew
Where the dangers are double and the pleasures are few
Where the rain never falls and the sun never shines
It's dark as a dungeon way down in the mine

TOP

Dirty Little Snowman


Raised up in Kentucky on a sunny winter's day
Just below the Mason-Dixon this final scene was played
Dirty little snowman, a sight for sore eyes to see
But no one was ever watching but my brother and me

And though we used to dance all around the Christmas tree
Singing of the baby Jesus, he looks a lot like me
And three worlds collided on the day of his creation
His head and his heart set on the arc of his foundation

Lightning struck the tower and your dirty mouth smiled
We gazed down with pride at our hideous child
I'll give you my hat, I'll give you my gloves
I'll give you my eyes that have been blinded by love

And here is a rock for you to roll back up the hill
Every single morning until the world stands still
Roll his body through the mud and the snow
Where the dead leaves and the green grass
Will make a dirty snowman grow

The snow would not cover the ground
The snow would not cover the hill
The snow would not cover the tracks we had made
Or the coal from his mouth where he fell

The snow would not cover the ground
The snow would not cover the hill
The snow would not cover the mud from our tears
As we knelt for the final farewell

And though we used to dance all around the Christmas tree
Singing of the baby Jesus, he looks a lot like me
And three worlds collided on the day of his creation
His head and his heart set on the arc of his foundation

TOP

Dog Gone Wrong

Little sheep-killing dog, fell in with a bad crowd
Three miles away, hear 'em howling when they howl so loud
Down at the end of the road, a bloody mouth and she was so proud
Her first taste of blood and it's a dog gone wrong
And it's a doggone shame

Black fur clinging to the lowest wire
Mud on your feet, scratches down your back say that you're a liar
Once she crossed that line, once she crossed the fence
Little sheep should know they oughta pack up and go but they got no sense

Slack up on the rope and she's bound to roam
Pulling up/out stakes/steaks and spitting out the bone
Give her an inch, she's looking for a mile
Give her a cake and she's looking for a file
Give her a kiss, she's gonna suck the gold right out of your mouth
Give her a car and she'll be headed South

Little dog came sneaking without a sound
Sneaking up so low-down, steering clear of the higher ground
Once you cross that line you can't help but see
Little lambs should fall easy as the apples fall from a tree

Slack up on the rope and she's bound to roam
Pulling up/out stakes/steaks and spitting out the bone
Give her an inch, she's looking for a mile
Give her a cake and she's looking for a file
Give her a kiss, she's gonna suck the gold right out of your mouth
Give her a car and she'll be headed South

Little sheep-killing dog fell in with a bad crowd
Three miles away, hear 'em howling when they howl so loud
Down at the end of the road, a bloody mouth and she was so proud
Her first taste of blood and it's a dog gone wrong
And It's a doggone shame

First taste of blood and it's a dog gone wrong and
And it's a doggone shame

TOP

Double Clutch

See the liar nurse the lie
And watch it flower where truces die
With such assurance, like a mother's arms
So far from honesty and safe from harm

And how you test your nerve
Against the windfall that could blow your bones away

To sulking sultans, cow-eyed kings
You are your downfall, your tattered wings
For there's glory in the furrowed brow
And love of ruin will show you how

And how you test your nerve
Against the windfall that could blow your bones away
And it takes a toll and leaves a stain
But it's wandring out/one thing that ?
When you’re lost you will never stray

The Devil never strikes as familiar
Affection like a snakebite on a winter’s day
There's night time skills ? in every song you play
For your own

Melting bliss from a Dixie cup
A yearling’s lust turns a vaguely / angry crutch ?
Songs and woe on a bride's deaf ear
She'll wear your ring while she cokes the mirror

And how you test your nerve
Against the windfall that could blow your bones away
And it takes a toll and leaves a stain
But it's wandering out/one thing that
When you’re lost you will never stray

And how you test your nerve
Against the windfall that could blow your bones away
And it takes a toll and leaves a stain
But it's wandering out/one thing that
When you’re lost you will never stray

TOP

Dream Girl

I may not be the girl of your dreams
Dreams aren't always pretty anyway
Just like me they'll be gone in the morning
They just don't make sense in the light of day

You are not the first love I've known
We both know that is right
Darlin' you might be the last love for me
If I die tonight

A smile is not always what it seems
It's hard to believe what people say
Like a river the current changes without warning
And it's easy to be swept away

You are not the first love I've known
We both know that is right
Darlin' you might be the last love for me
If I die tonight

The lies that were not meant to be believed
Like lines memorized for a play
And the truth is just an unspoken longing
To hear the words we now hear ourselves say

You are not the first love I've known
We both know that is right
Darlin' you might be the last love for me
If I die tonight

TOP

Family Tradition

I don't drink very often, I almost never get stoned
Once I get started you'll have to drive me home
My father is an alcoholic, my grandfather was too
And that's why I'd better stay away from you

You make me want to drink until I can't even see
You make me want to get messed up when you're not here with me
Once I start drinking I wanna get out of my mind
And I'll be bad off in the morning if I don't leave you behind

Things got started slowly but they changed and lost control
I'd wake up in the evening, tip the bottle and party some more
Jose became my best friend, Jack sang my lullabies
So it's time I picked up, kissed you sweetly and said goodbye

You make me stop and think it's all just killing me
Takin' the road to the age I've gotta finally see
Things aren't lookin' better yet there just not getting worse
Not as bad as yesterday, think I dodged that ol' black Hearse

You make me want to drink until I can't even see
You make me want to get messed up when you're not here with me
Once I start drinking I wanna get out of my mind
And I'll be bad off in the morning if I don't leave you behind
And I'll be bad off in the morning if I don't leave you behind

TOP

Fill My Thermos

I'll be gone before tomorrow in my dreams
If I see you the next day it's not 'cause I didn't want to leave
It was always on my mind I was trying to get away
It no money as much as you that makes me want to stay

I'll be flying down the highway in my dreams
Driving through Ohio in the falling orange leaves
Fill my thermos in a truckstop watch the night turn into day
It's the highway as much as you that make me run away

Draw a map in the steam on the windshield of my car
At a rest stop in the Midwest in the middle of my dreams
Soemthing crazy inside makes me want to drive all night
Everything's gone wrong but maybe that's all right

TOP

Flat Hand

[C] Flat hand, open palm
Your mouth was [F] scream- [Fmaj7]ing,
Your eyes were [D] calm [D7]

[G] Flat land, [G7] 23rd Psalm
Little [F] Bo Peep,
Your sheep done [C] gone

Flat hand to leave no trace
Mark where the nail went
And left a scratch across your face

Flat land, glittering strand
Lover’s angels
Banished from the sand

No eyes shine [F] brighter
To the flailing failing [C] fighter
Who once held above her [G] head
A [F] glowing trembling [C] lighter

No heart pounds [F] harder
To the sinking, drinking [C] martyr
Who trembled on the [G] bank
As her last dream boat sank
Beneath the [F] deep and sleepless [C] water

[C] Holy Mary, hold the phone
I want a little [F]ba- [Fmaj7]by that’s all my [D] own [D7]
[G] Hold the line, [G7] hold me tight
I got a [F] hole in my arm and I can’t get it [C] right

[C] Holy flesh, howlin’ bones
Run off and [F] left [Fmaj7] me all a- [D]lone[[D7]
[G] Hopped up boy, [G7] hothouse frail
I got a [F] hole in my arm and I know I’m bound to [F] fail

[C] Blood of my [F] blood is what you [C] are
No wise man’s [G] gift sent from a- [C]far
[C] Blood of my [F] blood [Fmaj7] flows through your [D] veins
And bound our [G] hearts in [F] crimson [C] chains

TOP

Forgettable Song

[A] I tried to remember things I told you I would never [D] forget
And I [E] try not to think on things you told me I might live to [A] regret
Some days when I wake up I can't remember where I put the [D] blame
And in the [E] morning when it's time to go home I can't remember your [A] name

[D] I had a new dress and I think it must have been [A] white
I [D] remember a church and we slept in a motel that [A] night
I [D] remember the clothes lay scattered all across the [A] floor
[E] That's where it all gets so dark I can't remember any[A]more

I tried to remember things I told you I would never forget
And I try not to think on things you told me I might live to regret
The past is often faded and the future is always unsure
True love and true regret will always endure

This little scar will always remind me of you
A souvenir that always remains just like a tattoo
And a green band still lingers around my finger where that ring used to be
And I wonder if you have a scar to remind you of me

I try to remember things I told you I would never forget
I try not to think of things you told me I might live to regret
Some days when I wake up I can't remember where I put the blame
And in the morning when it's time to go home I can't remember your name

TOP

Glass of a Stranger

Once the sun, it said
Goodbye to the dawn
For my light it will begin to wane
And the night it holds so much charm
With all of the tricks of the trade
That beg you to fall gently in
All of the tricks of the trade
Plied with a dance where you spin
And spin

Once this pimp, he said
That bitch was coming, leaving
And once his whore, she said,
You can only bleed when you're breathing
And you've got to find your way
To figure how you're gonna play
And you've got to find your way
To keep the blood flowing 'round
And 'round

Let joy take the hand of all those who will take her on
And hear a song from a blade of grass
And drink up what's been offered from a stranger's glass

Once a father, he drew
Two simple clocks in the sand
His desire was to make
His middle daughter try to understand
How a man's plan can change
The arbitrary hands of time
How a man's plan can change
When given over to the divine

Let joy take the hand of all those who will take her on
And hear a song from a blade of grass
And drink up what's been offered from a stranger's glass

Let joy take the hand of all those who will take her on
And hear a song from a blade of grass
And drink up what's been offered from a stranger's glass

And drink of what's been offered from a stranger's glass
And drink up what has been offered from a stranger's glass

TOP

Gone to Stay

[G] How many heartaches do you [C] think you can [G] stand
I used to count 'em all on the fingers [D] of just one [D7] hand
[G] Way back in the distance before these [C] sad times began
Now I'm [G] down by the ocean coun[D]ting grains [G] of sand

[G7] There's nothing so [C] pure as the kindness of an [G]atheist
A simple act [D]of unselfish[D7]ness that never has to be [G] repaid
[G7]And there's nothing so [C]sure as a razor [G] blade above your wrist
When you think you just [C] can't stand it
You're gonna leave [D7] empty handed
Do you still dream of [G] being saved

Friends and relations they all stand around
As the casket is lowered down into the ground
The shovel dirt and gravel - all his mother hears is the sound
Of a little baby crying somewhere in the crowd

[C] Jesus wouldn't save you [G] and you cried
I knew I couldn't save [D]you [D7] so I lied
The [C] doctors couldn't save you but [G] I do believe they [C] tried
After [G] dying together we die al[D]one side by [G]side

There's nothing so pure as the kindness of an atheist
A simple act of unselfishness that never has to be repaid
And there's nothing so sure as a razor blade above your wrist
When you think you just can't stand it
You're gonna leave you empty handed
Do you still dream of being saved

TOP

Good for Nothing

[G] I've been good, and I've been [C] good for nothing
I had it [G] bad for something seems [D]like a long time ago
[G] And the dirt beneath my nails is not from [C] some field of flowers
[G] Sown by the April showers and what they may or [C] may not bring
[G] I always get lucky [C] in the [G] spring
I [D] have been [G] good for nothing

[C] Loose lips are bound to sink ships
And many times I've watched [G] my own self drown
[C] Clinging fast to my lucidity
Like a life raft that's al[D]ways sinking down

[C] One big drink and then another
Pull my head down far [G] beneath the waves
[D] Where I'm living like a mermaid decked in stolen jewels
From the drowning men [G] I've saved

I've been good, and I've been good for nothing
I had it bad for something seems like a long time ago
And the dirt beneath my nails is not from some field of flowers
Sown by the April showers and what they may or may not bring
I always get lucky in the spring
I have been good for nothing

[Solo over chords from chorus]
Black crows break and scatter wide
The buckshot blast soaring out of sight
Clouds of heat and dust that rise up from the ground
On a slow and gasping flight

I'm bound to think about my brother
When August sucks the colors from the air
And Kudzu vines make tangled monsters
Of the trees where we first learned to play fair

[Same chords as chorus]
Forgive and forget are words that never slid across my tongue
Revenge like a fleeting Christmas morning I knew when I was young
Put the toys back in their boxes
Let me tear the ribbons off them just once more
Inside my little box of bones a ray of light shines
Where I'm slowly keeping score

I've been good, and I've been good for nothing
I had it bad for something seems like a long time ago
And the dirt beneath my nails is not
From some field of flowers
Sung by the April showers and what they may or may not bring
I always get lucky in the spring
I have been good for nothing
I have been good for nothing

TOP

Gravity

I wasn't drinking to forget, I was drinking to remember
How I once might have looked through the eyes of a stranger
When all hope should be gone still the dream somehow lingers
Like the ghost of a snowstorm in frostbitten fingers

Ten thousand backwards glances won't bring second chances
I never knew I was wasted, I was way too far gone
The face I think is mine is not the face that I see
The worried face in the mirror whose worried eyes are fixed on me

All your beauty will be stolen by young girls in the night
A thief as quiet as a dark cloud that's stole away the moonlight

TOP

Great Potential

Your breath's not exactly like a breath of spring
And your eyes aren't shining brighter than any diamond ring
Your hair's not flowing down like a great black waterfall
And things that used to turn me on don't move me at all

Every word you speak is not the smartest thing I've ever heard
And when you talk about yourself I'm not hanging onto every word
I know every line on your face could tell a story
But I've heard them all before and now they bore me

Even your great potential now just leaves me cold
When I look at you I'm thinking, God, do I look that old
I've been told a city of gold waits at the bottom of a long dark hole
But I can't wait around for that story to unfold
It leaves me cold

TOP

Heaven is for the weak at heart
And those who never are as smart as me
But I would trade all that I believe
And keep no trick card up my sleeve
Just to know the angels hold you in their arms tonight

I was a good baby, I slept all through night
My mother remembers my eyes were like hers
When no one remembers do the dying embers
Say goodnight, say goodnight

A screen door bangin’ in the wind
Through the quiet night you come crashin’ again
Just like new, it’s never faded
It’s a game we play, my jaded little brain and I

In a dream where I could fly
I look down on you [fallen down?] [outside?]
My heart's desire could not be sated
Til your own child you have traded
An eye for an eye

Heaven is for the weak at heart
And those who never are as smart as me
But I would trade all that I believe
And keep no trick card up my sleeve
Just to know the angels hold you in their arms tonight
Just to know the angels hold you in their arms tonight

TOP

Why a mans [a-skep-a-depple???]
Secrets stop at my doorstep
Never to see the light of day
But the light of night shines so sweetly on your face

I don't need a ring
Don't want any of those usual things
I just want that look inside your eyes
You run rings around me, I'm out of my mind

Well, Sweetie, you are there
Can I fix you a drink stay out there tonight (?)
Looking for the door
Shut it tight and slip the bolt into its notch
Baby that ship is comin' round

Whooooooo!

Slipstream will slip on our dreams and ride them down

Well, don't think twice before you roll
Just toss the dice and see what floats
And you will find what comes to the top
Unless those devil eyes have got you marked

When the party's over
When our secret's blown its cover
When this boat is gone from its anchored ground
The deeper you dive the steeper you fall

Well, Sweetie, you are right there
Can I fix you a drink?
Stay up here tonight, lookin' for the door (?)
Shut it tight and slip the bolt into its notch

Let's get a drink and let it go
I threw my anchor right smack down into the undertow
Now hold my hand as far as I'm goin' down
[Goin' where the whole world can dive, hellbound/
Don't wear the holy robe, I am hellbound]

(Hey, it's the best we could come up with. . .)

 TOP

Hero/Heroine

You are my hero, you are my heroine
I followed your dusty trail to where it all began
Back to the time before I knew I was a fool
To the night I saw my star like some flashing jewel
And the way I chose was not my own invention
But it was ignorance more than pretension

You are my hero, you are my heroine
I followed you way downtown to steal your fountain pen
But there were myths and there were facts that I mistook
And everyone who gets drunk will not write a good book
But the words I spoke, the stories I was making
Were for the love of you not for the love of faking

You are my hero, you are my heroine
Would you dig a grave I might be buried in
I lean my back against the stove and drink a beer
The song you're singing in my head just like you were here
And your hat's pulled down so far it hides you eyes
Just like a dust storm hit the Oklahoma skies

You are my hero, you are my heroine

 TOP

When you hear me calling your name in the night
Do you run to your window thinking the coyote might
Be howling

When you hear me knocking at your door again
Do you tell yourself it’s only the wind
That’s blowing

When you watch the sun sink down in the west
Do you tell yourself that the heart in your chest
Is still beating

Will you know or must I tell you
This is my lover’s spell you have fallen into
My dear
My voice is all you’ll hear

Only the sound of my heart pounding, darling

You took my heart
Cast it aside
Laughed when I cried
Like it was just no big deal
And here all alone in the dark
I know just how you feel

When you feel my fingers touch your skin again
Do you tell yourself there’s just no use
In crying

When the stars in the sky begin to fade
Do you tell yourself, don’t be afraid
It’s just the night
That’s dying

Will you know or must I tell you
This is my lover’s spell you have fallen into, my dear
My voice is all you’ll hear
Only the sound of my heart pounding, darling

TOP

Hi Ho Silver 

Two wrongs don't make it right
Like two drunken losers can make a make a knock-down drag-out fight
Flying saucers in the air last night
Boo- boomeranging golden lights

I've got a friend he's trying to give me the good news
Like solace can be found in pills and booze
That kind of leaves me here with nowhere to go
Sounds like crazy talk but what do I know

Hi Ho Silver, high on pills
Use your hands and tell me how I feel
Higher power, hired hand of mine
Tell me why your god is so divine

And the door says he adores me now
And the window says he feels my pain
And the floor tells me you're lying like a rug
And the blood tells me it's all in vain

Hi Ho Silver, high on pills
Use your hands and tell me how I feel
Higher power, hired hand of mine
Tell me why your god is so divine

Jack the Knife 

There was a knife I left behind
I will always search for and never find
A knife I believe was right here in my pocket
And its blade still flashes through my mind
And my fingers will forever be entwined
Around the knife I left behind

There was a knife that would not be found
Though I've searched the whole world round
Spiraling downward, long red ribbons to the ground
Turning smooth as a razor where the skin came all unwound
There was a knife, would not be found

My hand holds a memory its handle just like ebony
Its blade was beaming, gleaming like a fast blue flame
When it stabs me to the heart I feel the pain
And no other knife could ever be the same

With a heavy heart I drew and snapped the chalk line
That ran between what was yours and mine
In dreams I return to the scene of the crime
For the knife I left behind

There was a knife I left behind
I will always search for and never find
A knife I believe was right here in my pocket
Its blade still flashes through my mind
And my fingers will forever be intwined
Around the knife I left behind

And my fingers will forever be intwined
Around the knife I left behind

TOP

Jesus Year is upon me now
But for no one but my child would I die
Jesus’ no more make me lay with a man
Than the devil made us both writhe

Jesus keeps his brother well
With pensions paid by us all
When ridding ourselves of our guilt
On the guilty. . .we call

Have you written of what we’ve lost
Have you written of what I’ve told
Have you written of what we’ve lost

Have you written of what I’ve told
Have you written of what we’ve gained
In the misery we now dearly know

When I’m lowered down alone or with a crowd
Tomorrow or a long time from now
There will have been choices I’ve made
With fear, greed and shame
No one but myself is to blame

But I tried my best, sometimes I tried a little less
I’m not the person you want me to be
Please take your anger and your disappointment
And bury it along with me

Please take your anger and your disappointment
And bury it along with me

TOP

Jewel lyrics and chords

Nineteen words of sorrow, side by side were strung
Way out, across the alley where a long, broken strand of pearls was flung

Between her teeth she held a note from a choked and broken chord
As the last sad song was finally sung
And she stole away with the breath that flowed across her velvet tongue

A shining strand of pearls washed up on the shore
Far out on the ocean, waves pound against her kitchen door

A deal has been struck, the tables have been turned
A chair is kicked aside across the floor

The future and the past, long-lost lovers when they met
Are never to be parted anymore

Jewels of the midnight sky, ten thousand diamond tears she cried
A grain of sand carried on the tide, lay buried deep within her sigh

Jewels of the ocean wide, now in darkness to abide
Everything has slipped through her hands
A shining pearl from a grain of sand

We close our eyes and see how the angels fly
Just below ill-fated knots their trembling hands have tied

What you are taking, what you are leaving
A world of sorrow, a world of grieving

A careful thief to leave no trace,
the crashing waves beneath your feet could not erase

Jewels of the midnight sky, ten thousand diamond tears she cried
A grain of sand carried on the tide lay buried deep within her sigh

Jewels of the ocean wide, now in darkness to abide
Everything has slipped through her hands
A shining pearl from a grain of sand

Everything has slipped through her hands
A shining pearl from a grain of sand

TOP

Little Girl and the Dreadful Snake (Monroe)

Our darling wandered far away while she was out at play
Lost in the woods, she couldn't hear a sound
She was our darling girl, the sweetest thing in all the world
We searched for her but she couldn't be found

I heard the screams of our little girl far away
Hurry Daddy, there's an awful dreadful snake
I ran as fast as I could through the dark and dreary wood
But I reached our darling girl too late

I began to cry, I knew that soon she'd have to die
And the snake was warning me close by
I held her close to my face she said, Daddy, kill that snake
It's getting dark, tell mommy goodbye

To all parents I must say, don't let your children stray away
They need your love to guide them along
And God, I pray, we'll see our darling girl some day
It seems we still can hear her voice around our home

I heard the screams of our little girl far away
Hurry Daddy, there's an awful dreadful snake
I ran as fast as I could through the dark and dreary wood
But I reached our darling girl too late

TOP

Lonesome Sound (O'Bannon)

Hear that lonesome sound, a baby got put in the ground
She was only three, a baby got put in the ground
Your god up in heaven is crying down rain, but the gravestone reads the same

They called her names and run, for what her parents had done
She was only three, for what her parents had done
Your god up in heaven is crying down rain, but the gravestone reads the same

In the train yard she played, with the dolls her daddy had made
She was only three, with the dolls her daddy had made
Your god up in heaven is crying down rain, but the gravestone reads the same

Hear that lonesome sound, a baby got put in the ground

TOP

Lorraine

[G] Red as the blood from a body that was torn
[C] White as the white sheets that white men had [G] worn
[G] Bluer than the river that flowed to the sea
[D] As thin as a rope left [C] tied to a [G] tree

[G] Red as the dirt where a shallow grave was made
[C] White as the church where the killers all [G] prayed
[G] Bluer than the sky when the evening sun fell
[D] As empty as the case of an [C] old shotgun [G] shell

[G] I was [C] dreaming of Lorraine when I [G] turned my head in [D] shame
I could not [G] love you, my only true love is for my lovely [C] pain
my tears dry [G] faster than good luck in a [D] gambling [G] game

Red as the eyes of a woman who was crying
White as the shirt of a man who lay dying
Bluer than the steel of the bullet that flew
Hollow as the words I came crying to you

And I was dreaming of Lorraine when I turned my head in shame
I could not love you, my only true love is for my lovely pain
My tears dry [G] faster than good luck in a [D] gambling [G] game
My tears dry [C] faster than [D] good luck in a [C] gambling [G] game

TOP

Louisville Lip

Down at the bottom of the Second Street Bridge
In a story I've often been told
Beneath the water at the Second Street Bridge
There's a little piece of gold

Has the gild edge worn away
And the ribbon long ago rotted and frayed
Has the rust eaten through like a cheap ring would do
Or was it really solid gold

Whip the world, whip this town
Whip it into the river and watch it go down
Whip the world, your lashing tongue
Big man crying like babies from where the bee stung

Fair fight on a Friday night
Ropeadope swingin' in the spotlight
Fight your own fight, fight to win
Fight the wrong fight, it's gonna be a sin

Hatred and love fit together like a hand in a glove
Bound with tape and tied at the wrist
A hand becomes a fist

Whip the world, whip this town
Whip it into the river and watch it go down
Whip the world your lashing tongue
Big man crying like babies from where the bee stung

Whip the world whip this town
Whip it into the river and watch 'em all drown
When the king threw off his golden crown
Floating down like butterfly wings
It sank without a sound

TOP

Just Like You

Just look at what you've done
Don't try and think of takin' it away
Play it through your head
Until you think you're taught
It'll still be there
This sleepless heart [??? incorrect]
To answer to like I do
Just like I do

I won't let you escape
By takin' you out
And letting someone take your place
You'll have to face it every day
False glory won't keep it away
Now you know what it takes
To be fueled by hate

And I was told a rule of gold
But it was undone by you
But I know better now
The rule that is true
To forgive is to be a fool

From the second fate was sealed
Like a deadbolt lock on a life on a wheel
The simple things that you would do
Would drive it home on a spinning wheel
That rolls you back 'til you feel
Just like I do

Just like a light down in a storm
The light goes out for some but for others
A fire is born

And I was told a rule of gold
But it was undone by you
But I know better now
The rule that is true
To forgive is to be a fool

I pray someone will find me first
Deliver me from this fatal curse
Now any of you so that I can breathe [wrong]
At the hardness swallowing me
All I can seem to do
Is be just like you

TOP

Kentucky House

Come on back to Kentucky
Come on back where you belong
Come on home my little darlin'
You know you never should have gone

You went up to the city
And you came home all dressed in black
With that big wide-eyed monkey
Tattooed all across your back

You were burning with a vision
Burning like a shooting star
The only time when I get driven
Is when I'm driving in my car

Come on back to Kentucky
Come on back where you belong
Come on home my little darlin'
You know you never should have gone

Come on home little darling
Everything's gonna be just fine
We got ice, we got a front porch
And all the girls have big ol' dreams like mine

TOP

[G] (w/ fills)

[C] There's a little black train that's coming, coming down the track
[F] You gotta ride that little black train
And it [C] ain't gonna [G] bring you [C] back

[C] You may be a barroom gambler, cheat your way through life
[F] You can't cheat that little black train
Or [C] beat this [G] final [C] ride

[C] You silken barroom ladies, dressed in your worldly pride
[F] You gotta ride that little black train
And it's [C] coming [G] in [C] tonight

[C] Your million dollar fortune, mansion glittering wife
[F] You can't take it with you
When the [C] train rolls [G] in to- [C]night

[C] Get ready for your savior, fix your business right
[F] You gotta ride that little black train
That's [C] coming [G] in to- [C]night

[C] There's a little black train that's coming, coming down the track
[F] You gotta ride that little black train
And it [C] ain't gonna [G] bring you [C] back

[C] [G]

TOP

Loserville

Here down in Loserville, we say if looks could kill
We'd all been dead long ago
And you say maybe you are
And maybe you just don't know

And here down in Loserville
The bourbon flows like a river so deep and still
We fill up a bucket every day
And you say, baby, if that's so
Why don't you fall down on your knees and pray

Run and your feet will be bound
Crawl and broken glass will cover the ground
Speak and only lies will be spoken
Ask, all the doors will be broken

Here down in Loserville, we've got some big shoes to fill
But we don't walk fast we walk slow
And you say maybe you do
But it looks like you've got no place to go

Cry and it's music to my ears
Weep and I will fall down drunk on your tears
Pillars of salt line the side of the road
Take off running, don’t look back
For the debt that you were owed

Here down in Loserville, we say if looks could kill
W e'd of all been dead long ago
And you say maybe you are
And maybe you just don't know

TOP

Lullaby

[G] Don't cry, little [C] baby [G] girl
[G] You have no worries [C] in this [C] world
[C] Your [G] momma, she's a [C] worryin' [G] kind
[G] She's always got some troubles [D] on her [G] mind

[G] The landlord's comin' [C] down the [G] hall
[G] He wants the rent, but I [D] spent it [G] all
[G] The heat goes off on Monday, 'twas a [C] letter [G] sent
[G] I took that money to [D] pay the [G] rent

[G]The food is all gone now, there's [C] nothin' to [G] eat
[G] I took that money to [D] pay the [G] heat
[G] Don't cry little [C] ba- [G] by, [G] go to sleep now, [D] close your eyes
[G] Go to sleep little [C]ba- [G]by, it's so sad to [D] see your momma [G] cry

[G] Don't cry little [C] baby [G] girl
[G] You have no worries [C] in this [G] world
[C] Your [G] momma she's a [C] worryin' [G] kind
[G] She's always got some troubles [D] on her [G] mind

TOP

Miner Song

Diamonds are rough when they're buried in the clay
Men dig down to find them for five dollars a day
Too tired from working down in the mine
To make a better life they haven't got time
To make a better life they haven't got time

Slaves underground while others up above
Give gold and diamonds as symbols of true love
Miner goes home at the end of the night
To a labor camp a thousand miles from his wife
To a labor camp a thousand miles from his wife

Who thinks the diamonds that's there on her hand
Is worth more than the life of some African man
The life of these miners is too much to pay
So under the earth these diamonds should stay
Under the earth these diamonds should stay

Diamonds are rough when they're buried in the clay
Men dig down to find them for five dollars a day
Too tired from working down in the mine
To make a better life they haven't got time
To make a better life they haven't got time

TOP

My History

My history surrounds me
And it's closing in around my bed
And all I have known
Has turned to sticks and to stones
But these words are wandering/a dream/would ring in my head

I've got you paper for ten
Not the kind tradition meant
But the kind that says
I'm walking out that door
And my heart breaks in two
A little for me and a little for you
Still this thing
Is just the thing I've got to do

For so long I was on my own
Seeking shelter from what I've known
Like the last leaves of the fall's last embrace
Waiting for it all to drop
Like a big new year's ball
With just a past and a song for the lost

I've got you paper for ten
Not the kind tradition meant
But the kind that says
I'm walking out that door
And my heart breaks in two
A little for me and a little for you
Still this thing
Is just the thing I've got to do

Now the glass has filled with sand
I look down and don't know my own hands
I thought that surely the answers would be revealed
We'd know it'd all been for the better
The hurt's past like a forgotten winter
But I'm haunted by these words instead
When I say it

I've got you paper for ten
Not the kind tradition meant
But the kind that says
I'm walking out that door
And my heart breaks in two
A little for me and a little for you
Still this thing
Is just the thing I've got to do

Still this thing is just the thing that I've
It's just the thing that I've gotta do

TOP

My Old Drunk Friend

[G] My old drunk friend, it's good to [C] see you [D] again
[C] Every time you walk [D] in I should [D] run the other [G] way
My old drunk [G] friend, you're [C] lookin' kinda [D] thin
I won't [C] ask where you've been, you [D] never want to [G] say

I'll [C] buy you a drink when [G] I get into town
And [C] we'll go out walking 'till our [G] boots are run down
We'll [C] walk through this town where all the [G] alleys are haunted
Though the [C] streets are deserted these ghosts [G] remain undaunted
And you're [C] laughing [A] louder in my [D] ear with every bottle of [G] beer

My old drunk friend, it's good to see you again
Every time you walk in I should run the other way
My old drunk friend, you're lookin' kinda thin
I won't ask where you've been, you never want to say

I should have moved to New York City, but I never was that cool
I just languished in the Midwest like some old romantic fool
And the streetlights shine down on the bottles we have broken
'Till the road is paved with diamonds from a thousand lost love tokens
And my logic just seems more clear with every bottle of beer

My old drunk friend, it's good to see you again
Every time you walk in I should run the other way
My old drunk friend, you're lookin' kinda thin
I won't ask where you've been, you never want to say

My old drunk friend, we watch the moonlight grow dim
As the long night gives in to the dim light of day

TOP

Even one big union can’t help us now

Even one big union can’t help us now
The lines of blame are tangled far below the ground
The mines/minds of fame have flown their shiny gold dust all around
And even one big union can’t help us now

Don’t it just tear me up to see your children cry
When they got ice cream waitin’ up in the sky
Don’t the truth look bad up next to a pretty lie
If it gets too high to live you know you're free to die

Even one big union can’t help us now
The hand that holds us down we reach out to hold on
And which side are you on has got more angles than a pentagon
And even one big union can’t help us now

Don’t it just tear me up to see your children cry
When they got ice cream waitin’ up in the sky
Don’t the truth look bad up next to a pretty lie
If it gets too high to live you know you're free to die

Even one big union can’t help us now
The boss says he might let me milk his golden cow
And false hope is the seed in the field of greed that we must plow
Even one big union can’t help us now

TOP

One Shot

I gave it more than one shot, I gave it more than one pill
I gave it more than one drink, but it would never be still
I tried to make it calm, and I tried to make it weak
I tried to it stop its ceaseless heartbeat

I threw it more than one bone, and I threw the fight just like it asked
I threw the switch that lit the room to put the light across its carnival mask
I never asked it why, I never asked it what it meant
I never let them in the room to witness its slow decent

How I love to watch it fight, how I love to see it bleed
How I love to watch it bite, how I love to see it plead
Because it always keeps from me the single thing that I need

I trained it like a trainer should, and I maimed it with a single word
I drained it clean of all its mettle, and I stained it with a whisper it overheard
I wished it never come, I wished connections never sparked
I wished the chambers powder-free because the bead is drawn and I'm the mark

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Paint the River Red lyrics and chords

Pale Horse (Bailes, Staggs)

[G] Listen poor sinner you're driftin' away
From the Dear Saviour who's pleading to[D]day
[G] What will you do when the Saviour ain't [C] nigh
When the Pale [G] Horse and his [D] rider goes [G] by

The time now ain't long when the Saviour will come
Then you'll be judged by the deeds you have done
On that judgement day you'll weep and you'll cry
When the Pale Horse and his rider goes by

When that trumpet sounds on the sinners below
Not even the angels in heaven will know
That's when you'll wish that you had Jesus nigh
When the Pale Horse and his rider goes by

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Picture in my Mind link to chords

Whiskey is not evil when it's sitting on the shelf
Whiskey is not evil when it's sitting on the shelf
I'm as sweet as I can be when I'm all by myself

A shotgun never shot no one when it's hanging on the wall
A shotgun never shot no one when it's hanging on the wall
I got itchy fingers and you got knees to crawl

I've got a picture in my mind
Fighting like a mad fish on the wrong end of a line
Just beneath the surface silver lightning flashes shine

I've got a picture in my mind

Salt water is no danger with your feet on solid ground
Salt water is no danger with your feet on solid ground
Cry yourself a river but it don't take much to drown

I've got a picture in my mind
Fighting like a mad fish on the wrong end of a line
Just beneath the surface I can see it clear somehow

Don't talk to me darlin can't you see I'm gone right now

I've got a picture in my mind

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Mother dear, come bathe my forehead, for I'm growing very weak
Let one drop of waterfall upon my burning cheek

Tell my darlin’ little playmates that I never more shall play
Give them all my toys but, Mother, put my little shoes away

You will do this won’t you Mother, put my little shoes away
Give them all my toys but, Mother, put my little shoes away

Santa Claus, he brought them to me, with a lot of other things
Then I think he brought an angel with a pair of golden wings

You will do this won’t you Mother, put my little shoes away
Give them all my toys but, Mother, put my little shoes away

Soon the baby will be larger and they’ll fit his little feet
Won’t he look so cute and pretty as he walks along the street

You will do this won’t you Mother, put my little shoes away
Give them all my toys but, Mother, put my little shoes away

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Queen Bee

Did you see the Queen Bee, my my

She kinds wide and she's awful mean
She gonna get her way 'cause she's the Queen
She's got a million fellas all waitin' in line
Bringing the sweetest nectar from the honeysuckle vine

Theyre mixin' her drinks and stirrin' up the stinger
With a diamond ring on every finger
They work so hard to make this hive a home
And the whistle while they work and they sing while they drone

I'm gonna be the Queen Bee
And in the beautiful world I see
Way up in a hollow tree, perfect idolatry
Little bees on their knees
Sayin' "Baby, you're the Queen Bee"
I won't be grubbin' around down here like I was
I'll be buzzin' like the honeybees buzz because
I'm gonna do like the Queen Bee does

She's pretty and lucky but it's dark in there
She got a honeycomb but she's got no heir/hair
The boys are waxin' her legs and doin' her nails
Knittin' her sweaters with their pointy little tails

One little bee, the only square in the hive
Tried to get smart back when he was alive
She aimed her hexagon right between his eyes
And said, "The Queen of the Bees beats the Lord of the Flies"

I'm gonna be the Queen Bee
And in the beautiful world I see
Way up in a hollow tree, perfect idolatry
Little bees on their knees
Saying "Baby, you're the Queen Bee"
I won't be grubbin' around down here like I was
I'll be buzzin' like the honeybees buzz because
I'm gonna do like the Queen Bee does

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Raised Skin

There was a teardrop on the inside of her arm
She couldn’t tell if it was warm, she couldn’t tell if it was cold
It just felt like every other tear from every other storm

Raised skin leaves a scar within and a shame that keeps her ever-feeling
Like she did on that date tacked to the back of her door
The date she gave her word it wouldn’t happen anymore

Dream your sweet dreams, little bird, before your demons
Take your wings and you fall to earth
Or is it too late have they found you or were you never alone
Now she knows there’s no keeping the poison buried so deep in the ground
For it will always seek the well where the water is drawn

Raised skin leaves a scar within and a shame that keeps her ever-feeling
Like she did on that date tacked to the back of her door
The date she gave her word it wouldn’t happen anymore
The date she gave her word it wouldn’t happen anymore

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Rank Strangers (Brumley)

I wandered again to my home in the mountains
Where in youth's early dawn, I was happy and free
I looked for my friends, but I never could find them
I found they were all rank strangers to me

And everybody I met seemed to be a rank stranger
No mother or dad, not a friend could I see
They knew not my name, and I knew not their faces
I found they were all rank strangers to me

They've all moved away, said the voice of a stranger
To the beautiful home on a bright crystal sea
Some beautiful day, I'll meet them in Heaven
Where no one will be a rank stranger to me

And everybody I met seemed to be a rank stranger
No mother or dad, not a friend could I see
They knew not my name, and I knew not their faces
I found they were all rank strangers to me
And I found they were all rank strangers to me

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Right Brothers lyrics and chords

I thought that I could make it
I thought that I could get by
With the right brothers at the wrong time
And that they never, just plain never, was gonna fly

You thought that you were gonna shake it
You thought that you were so sly
With a couple of rich friends behind your vaseline lens
And your hand on the shunt, leave the bastard dry

When I forget, when I can't remember I
Call on someone who knows me

Someone who knows me, someone who knows how I feel
Someone who knows me, someone who can show me
How I come out on top of this deal
Up to the highest star, down to the hotel bar
To find someone that knows me

We thought that we were gonna fake it
We thought we'd go on living a lie
But it turns out oftentimes the fire burns out
Long before the ghosts have said goodbye

When I forget, when I can't remember I
Call on someone who knows me

Someone who knows me, someone who knows how I feel
Someone who knows me, someone who can show me
How I come out on top of this deal
Up to the highest star, down to the hotel bar
To find someone that knows me

Up to the highest star, down to the hotel bar
To find someone that knows me

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Sap

I know that I can make you laugh
I believe I know enough to make you cry
But I just can’t make you fall for me
No matter how hard I try

On the day you first told me that you would be mine
I fell like a stone from a very great height
On the night I first held you so tight in my arms
Like a stretch up to hell I fell hard for your charms

I fell like a thing that falls
And I crashed like a thing that crashes
I burned up like the kind of thing that burns down to the ground
And leaves nothing but an empty ol’ box of matches

I have been lonely, and I have been alone
And I have been strung out waiting by the telephone
One shoe off, one shoe on, I was ready to leave
Going out with a big bang and my heart on my sleeve

I know that I can make you laugh
I believe I know enough to make you cry
But I just can’t make you fall for me
No matter how hard I try

I cried like you hear a little baby cry
I was livin’ life, cross your heart and hope to die
I broke like a the kind of thing that just can’t bend
And it went on and on and on and on
Like a thing that just won’t end

I know that I can make you

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First one out the door is the one who left
And the other one is just the one left alone all by theirselves
There's ups and downs to every side
Like bad shocks on a low-down ride

My baby is a swinger, and he's hard to dodge
Kickin' up gravel by the motor lodge
My baby is a demon, like to break my heart
Shot through the arm with a poison dart

I caught a ride with the first car out of town
He's got legs like a goat and he's keeping the lights turned down
Well things just never did go the way I planned
But the fall don't hurt, honey, it's when you land

Eight tracks running up and down
On out the window, all over town
My baby is a scamp, four on the floor
On his hands and knees, crawling toward the door

Wide, wide dixie highway
He's got one lane that's always headed my way
Wide, wide dixie highway
There's a little piece of heaven by the gates of hell
Straight up to the end of that skyway

My baby is a swinger and he's hard to dodge
Kickin' up gravel by the motor lodge
My baby is a demon, like to break my heart
Shot through the arm with a poison dart
Shot through the arm. . .with a poison dart

Scratches on the Door (O'Bannon)

'Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house
The smoke and cinders, the screaming and shouts
The children were huddled asleep on the floor
No stocking or presents or toys anymore
The firemen beat down the blackened door
Six children spread out across the floor
They never saw the screatches on the door

Then came a man from the LG&E
He showed the crowdd the tears on his cheek
He brought some gifts in case one had survived
He came to see just what could be denied
But he never saw the children on the flor
He never saw the scratches on the door

TV news team cried a million tears
Said the oldest one was just eleven years
They showed the fire burning up in the sky
They showed the father policemen at this side
But not the handcuffs that the father wore
And not the scratches left upon the door

'Twas the night before Christmas and all throought eh house
Not a creature was sturring not even a mouse
They children were lying asleep in the ground
The children were silent asleep in the ground
The children were silent asleep in the ground

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I saw jewel beams of sunlight steal across a purple sky
I knelt down to kiss a rosebud, oh it made me want to cry
To think that I had been permitted to be a part of nature’s plan
Oh, there’s nothing that stands out more than the selfishness in man

Little children painting pictures of all the birds and apple trees
Oh, why can’t the grownup people have the faith of one of these
And to think these tiny fingers might become a killer’s hand
Oh, there’s nothing that stands out more than the selfishness in man

Why can’t we see the folly, and the uselessness of hate
Love could lead to all understanding, maybe it’s not too late

Then perhaps with His great wisdom, we might learn to understand
Then there’d be no shame or sorrow, or the selfishness in man
Then there’d be no shame or sorrow, or the selfishness in man

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Sick, Sick, Sick

John K says: Use an open D tuning - DADF#AD - and bottleneck slide for best results
A - 7th fret
E - 14th fret
C# - 11th Fret
D - 12th fret

[A] [A] Iridescent
[E] Opalescent
[C#] Now descending
[D] A silver cresecent
[A] There's a silver lining
Shining [E] above me
[A] Black top black
The [E] water's slick slick
How [C#] high the moon
How [D] sick the sick
It's a [A] dark night [E] for me and my [A] baby [E]

[A] [E] [C#] [D] [A] [E] [A] [E]

[D] I saw you again and I [A] came all undone
Where the [D] ice is all melted
And I [A] ain't got [E] none
[D] Half full from the bottom
Is still half [A] empty from the top
[E] Spin the bottle one more time
And [D] make it [A] stop

[A] [E] [C#] [D] [A] [E] [A] [E]

[D] I shiver and [A] shake
[D] Deliver the poison that I [A] take
[D] A fever that just won't [A] break
[C#] Drawn crooked from its quiver
Cupid's arrow has made a big mis[D]take