| 16 Shells From Thirty Ought Six (Tom Waits 1982) | |
|---|---|
|
Good evening Plugged 16 shells from a thirty-ought-six And a black crow snuck through a hole in the sky And I spent all my buttons on an old pack mule And I made me a ladder from a pawn shop marimba I leaned it all up against a dandelion tree I leaned it up against a dandelion tree Leaned it up against a dandelion tree, oh yeah I'm gonna whittle you into kindlin' 16 shells from a thirty-ought-six whittle you into kindlin' 16 shells from a thirty-ought-six Well I slept in the holler of a dry creek bed And I tore out the buckets from a red Corvette Tore out the buckets from a red Corvette Lionel and Dave and the Butcher made three Meet me by the knuckles of the skinnybone tree With the strings of a Washburn, like a clothes line Now me and that mule, right through the hole Me and that mule, right through the hole Whittle you into kindlin' 16 shells from a thirty-ought-six Whittle you into kindlin' 16 shells from a thirty-ought-six I'll whittle you into kindlin' 16 shells from a thirty-ought-six Whittle you into kindlin' 16 shells from a thirty-ought-six I'm long gone train I'm just long gone train Just long gone train I'm just long, I'm just long I'm just long, long Thank you, good evening |
|
| Top | |
| Red Shoes (Tom Waits 1978) | |
|---|---|
|
She wore red shoes by the newstand As the rain splashed the nickle And spilled like chablis all along the midway There's a little bluejay wearing red shoes on a sad night One straw in a rootbeer A compact with a cracked mirror A bottle of evening in paris perfume What is that sad tune? He told her to wait by the magazines He told her to wait by the magazines Bring a raincoat Bring a suitcase Bring your dark eyes And wear those red shoes, red shoes Red shoes, red shoes, red shoes, red shoes Red shoes, red shoes, red shoes Now theres a dark huddle at the bus stop Unbrellas arranged in a sad bouquet Ceasar got caught Oh little Ceasar got caught going down to second Little Ceasar got caught going down to second He has cooled changing stations on the chamber To steal a diamond ring From a jewelry store for his baby He loved the way she looked in those red shoes He loved the way she looked in those red shoes He loved the way she looked in those red shoes Red Shoes, red shoes You gotta meet me tonight by the drugstore, baby Meet me tonight by the drugstore, baby Going out tonight hey going out tonight put on the red shoes Going out tonight put on the red shoes I'm going out tonight put on the red shoes Red shoes, red shoes, red shoes Red shoes, red shoes The rain washes memories from the sidewalks Now the hounds splash the nickle Full of soldiers Got Santa claus is drunk in the ski room And it's christmas eve in a sad cafe When the moon gets this way There's a little bluejay by the newstand And red shoes, she's wearing red shoes Got to meet me tonight by the drugstore Meet me tonight by the drugstore Going out tonight Put on the red shoes, put on the red shoes Put on the red shoes, put on the red shoes Red shoes, red shoes, red shoes, red shoes Red shoes, red shoes, red shoes, put on the red shoes, baby Red shoes, red shoes, red shoes, red shoes Red shoes, red shoes, red shoes, red shoes Red shoes, red shoes, red shoes, red shoes Red shoes, red shoes |
|
| Top | |
| Underground (Tom Waits 1982) | |
|---|---|
|
Rattle Big Black Bones in the Danger zone There's a rumbling groan down below Below the mine shaft roads it will all unfold There's a world going on underground Underground They're alive and they're awake While the rest of the world is asleep Below the mine shaft roads it will all unfold There's a world going on underground Underground, underground All the roots hang down swing from town to town They are marching around down under your boots Below the gopher holes where they all unfold There's a world going on underground Underground, underground |
|
| Top | |
| Cold Cold Ground (Tom Waits 1987) | |
|---|---|
|
Well a crest fallen sidekick in an old cafe Never slept with a dream before he had to go away There's a bell in the tower Uncle Ray bought a round Don't worry about the army in the cold cold ground In the cold cold ground, in the cold cold ground, in the cold cold ground Now don't be a cry baby when there's wood in the shed A bird in the chimmney and a stone in my bed When the road's washed out they pass the bottle around Wait in the arms of the cold cold ground In the cold cold ground, in the cold cold ground, in the cold cold ground There's a ribbon in the willow there's a tire swing rope A briar patch of berries takin over the slope The cat'll sleep in the mailbox and we'll never go to town Bury every dream in the cold cold ground In the cold cold ground, in the cold cold ground In the cold cold ground, in the cold cold ground Gimme a Winchester rifle and a whole box of shells Blow the roof off the goat barn let it roll down the hill The piano is firewood, times square is a dream Lay down together in the cold cold ground In the cold cold ground, in the cold cold ground, in the cold cold ground Call the cops on the Breedloves, bring a bible and a rope A whole box of rebel and a bar of soap Make a pile of trunk tires and burn 'em all down Bring a dollar with you baby in the cold cold ground In the cold cold ground, in the cold cold ground, in the cold cold ground In the cold cold ground, in the cold cold ground, in the cold cold ground In the cold cold ground, in the cold cold ground |
|
| Top | |
| Straight To The Top (Tom Waits/Greg Cohen 1987) | |
|---|---|
|
Be a man I'm going straight up to the top, oh yeah Where the air is fresh and clean I'm gonna, up to the top, oh yeah If you know me, you know what I mean I can't let sorrow pull on down Before tomorrow, oh baby I have found you out Going straight up to the top, oh yeah Where the air is fresh and clean I know I just can't stop, oh no Until I know I'm wild and free I'm like a champagne bubble pop pop pop I'm like those birdies high up in the trees I can't let sorrow pull on down Before tomorrow I have found you out I'm going straight up to the top oh yeah Where the air is fresh and clean, yeah I can't let sorrow pull on down Before tomorrow I found you, I found you I'm going straight up to the top, oh yeah Where the air is, where the air is Where the air is, where the air is Where the air is fresh and clean Fresh and clean, fresh and clean, fresh and clean Fresh and clean, fresh and clean, fresh and clean Get on up, get on up, get on up, get on up, get on up Get on up, get on up, get on up, get on up, get on up Get on up, get on up, get on up, get on up ,get on up Get on up, get on up, get on up, get on up, get on up Get on up, get on up |
|
| Top | |
| Yesterday Is Here (Tom Waits/Kathleen Brennan 1987) | |
|---|---|
|
Thank you maam If you want money in your pocket You want a top hat on your head A hot meal on your table And a blanket on your bed Well today is grey skies Tomorrow is tears You'll have to wait till yesterday is here I'm a going to New York City I'll be leaving on a train And if you want to stay behind Till I come back again Well today's grey skies Tomorrow is tears You'll have to wait till yesterday's here Now if you want to go Where rainbows end You'll have to say goodbye All our dreams come true Baby up ahead And it's out where your memories lie And the road is out before me And the moon is shining bright What I want you to remember As I disappear tonight That today's grey skies Tomorrow's tears You'll have to wait till yesterday is here And today's grey skies Tomorrow's tears You'll have to wait til yesterday's here You'll have to wait til yesterday's here You will have to wait til yesterday's here |
|
| Top | |
| Way Down In The Hole (Tom Waits 1987) | |
|---|---|
|
I feel as though we should move right on into the religious material When you walk through the garden You gotta watch your back Well I beg your pardon Walk the straight and narrow track When you walk with Jesus He's gonna save your soul You gotta keep the devil Well we gotta keep himdown in the hole He's got the fire, people he's got the fury At his command Oh you don't have to worry Hold on to, hold on to Jesus hand We'll all be safe from Satan When the thunder, when the thunder starts to roll We gotta keep the devil Keep him on down, down in the hole That red horned lousy low life underneath our boots Praise all, I don't know what it is, two dollar? That demon maester, three dollar? That prince devil Just see if you can come up with a figure that matches your faith He says, 'How much has Jesus done for you?' And we got to go in with our hydraulic system and blast him out People, can I get an Amen? All the angels they start to sing all about Jesus' mighty soul And they'll shield you with their wings People, there'll keep you close to the lord Now don't pay heed to temptation For his hands are so cold You gotta keep the devil Keep him on down Down in the hole, down in the hole Down in the hole Well people, I got to speak about something Can I get an Amen? Can I get a Hallelujah? Praise the Lord, have mercy The Lord is a very very busy man I do what I can But Jesus is always going for the big picture Well he's always there to help us out of the little jams too Down in the hole, down in the hole, down in the hole Keep him down in the hole You gotta keep the devil Down in the hole You gotta keep the devil Keep him on down in the hole Down, down, down, mighty devil I send you down below my boots Down, down filling my life with anger and strife Go down mighty devil, find a place to live Down, down, down |
|
| Top | |
| Falling Down (Tom Waits 1988) | |
|---|---|
|
I come 500 miles just to see a halo Come from St. Petersburg, Scarlett and me Well I open my eyes, I was blind as can be When you give a man luck, he must fall in the sea And she wants you to steal and get caught For she loves you for all that you are not When you're falling down, falling down When you're falling down, falling down, falling down You forget all the roses, don't come around on Sunday She's not gonna choose you for standing so tall Go on take a swig of that poison and like it And don't ask for silverware, don't ask for nothing Go on and put your ear to the ground You know you will be hearing that sound, falling down. Falling down, falling down Falling down, falling down, falling down When you're falling down, falling down, falling down Go on down see that wrecking ball come swinging on along Everyone knew that hotel was a goner They broke all the windows, they took all the door knobs And they hauled it away in a couple of days Now someone yell 'timber' and take off your hat It's a lot smaller down here on the ground You're falling down, falling down, falling down Falling down, falling down, falling down Someone's falling down, falling down, falling down Falling down, falling down, falling down |
|
| Top | |
| Strange Weather (Tom Waits/Kathleen Brennan 1988) | |
|---|---|
|
Will you take me across the Channel London Bridge is falling down Strange a woman tries to save What a man will try to drown And it's the rain that they predicted Its the forecast every time The rose has died because you picked it I believe that brandy's mine And all over the world strangers Talk only about the weather All over the world It's the same, it's the same And the world is getting flatter And the sky is falling all around Oh and nothing is the matter For I never cry in town And a love like ours, my dear Is best measured when its down And I never buy umbrellas Cause there's always one around And all over the world strangers Talk only about the weather All over the world It's the same, it's the same And you know that its beginning And you know that its the end Once again we are strangers As the fog comes rolling in And all over the world strangers Talk only about the weather All over the world It's the same, it's the same It's the same |
|
| Top | |
| Big Black Mariah (Tom Waits 1985) | |
|---|---|
|
I'm cutting through the cane break, rattling the sill Thunder that the rain makes when the shadow tops the hill Big light on the back street, hill to ever more Packing down the ladder with the hammer to the floor Here come the big black Mariah, here come the big black Mariah babe Here come the big yeah black Mariah, here come the big black Ford Well I'm all boxed up on a red belle dame Is that you Johnny with a blind man's cane? A hundred yellow bullets with a rag out in the wind An old blind tiger, on a bell Here come the big black Mariah, here come the big black Mariah Here come the big Black Mariah babe, here come the big black Ford, yeah Well I'm all boxed up on a red belle dame Is that you Johnny with a blind man's cane? A hundred yellow bullets with a rag out in the wind That old blind tiger, on a bell Here come the big black Mariah, here come the big black Mariah, baby Here come the big Black Mariah babe, oh, here come the big black Ford Here come the big black Mariah, here come the big black Mariah Here come the big black Mariah, here come the big black Mariah Here come the big black Mariah, here come the big black Mariah |
|
| Top | |
| Rain Dogs (Tom Waits 1985) | |
|---|---|
|
Inside a broken clock Splash the wine with all the rain dogs Taxi, taxi, taxi we'd rather walk Huddle a doorway with the rain dogs For I am a rain dog too And oh how we danced and we swallowed the night Her long hair black as a raven And oh how we danced and she whispered to me We'll never be going back home And oh how we danced and we swallowed the night Her long hair black as a raven And oh how we danced and she whispered to me We'll never be going back home And oh how we danced with the Rose of Tralee Her long hair black as a raven And oh how we danced and you whispered to me We will never be going back home |
|
| Top | |
| Train Song (Tom Waits 1987) | |
|---|---|
|
Alright, alright, actually I get asked ah...
well look I think the question I get asked the most uh is...well I mean it happens alot,
enough that I would remark on it. Alot of people come up to me and they say,
'Tom um, is it possible for a woman to get pregnant without intercourse?'
And uh, my answer's always the same. I say, well listen we're going to have to go all
the way back to the civil war. Uh, apparently a stray bullet actually pieced the testicle
of a Union soldier and then lodged itself in the ovaries of an eighteen year old girl
who was actually a hundred feet from him at the time. Uh, well the baby was fine and she
was very happy, guilt free. And uh, of course the soldiers a little pissed off.
Uh, when you think about it, it's actually a form of intercourse. But uh, not for everyone.
Uh those who love action maybe. Ok
Well I broke down in East St. Louis on the Kansas City line And drunk up all my money that I borrowed every time And I fell down at the derby, now the night's as black as a crow Must have been a train that took me away from here But a train can't bring me home What made my dreams so hollow I was standing at the depot With a steeple full of swallows that could never ring the bell Woa I've come ten thousand miles away, I ain't got one thing to show Must have been a train that took me away from here But a train can't bring me home Well I remember when I left without bothering to pack You know I up and left with just the clothes I had on my back Now I'm so sorry for what I've done and I'm out here on my own It must have been a train that took me away from here But a train can't bring me home It must have been a train that took me away from here But a train can't bring me, can't bring me home |
|
| Top | |
| Johnsburg, Illinois (Tom Waits 1982) | |
|---|---|
|
She's my only true love She's all that I think of Look here in my wallet That's her She grew up on a farm there There's a place on my arm Where I've written her name next to mine You see I just can't live without her And I'm her only boy And she grew up outside McHenry In Johnsburg, Illinois |
|
| Top | |
| Ruby's Arms (Tom Waits 1980) | |
|---|---|
|
I will leave behind all of my clothes I wore when I was with you All I need's my railroad boots and my leather jacket As I say goodbye to Ruby's arms although my heart is breaking I will steal away out through your blinds for soon you will be waking The morning light has washed your face and everything is turning blue now Hold on to your pillow case there's nothing that I can do now As I say goodbye to Ruby's arms you'll find another soldier And I swear to God by christmas time there'll be someone else to hold you The only thing I'm taking is the scarf off of your clothesline I'll hurry past your chest of drawers and your broken window chimes As I say goodbye, I'll say goodbye, say goodbye to Ruby's arms I steal away down the darken hall out into the morning The hobos at the freightyards have kept their fires burning So Jesus Christ this goddamn rain will someone put me on a train I'll never kiss your lips again or break your As I say goodbye I'll say goodbye, say goodbye to Ruby's arms |
|
| Top | |
| Telephone Call From Istanbul (Tom Waits 1987) | |
|---|---|
|
I was all night long on the broken glass Living in a medicine chest Mediteromanian hotel back Sprawled across a roll top desk That old monkey rode a blade on an overhead fan They paint the donkey blue if you pay I got a telephone call from Istanbul My baby's coming home today Will you sell me one of those if I shave my head Get me out of town is what fireball said Never trust a man in a blue trench coat Never drive a car when you're dead Saturday's a festival, oh now Saturday's a gem follow me to beulah's on dry creek road I got to wear the hat that my baby done sewed Will you sell me one of those, shave my head Get me out of town is what fireball said Never trust a man in a blue trench coat Never drive a car when you're dead Saturday's a festival, Friday's a gem Dye your hair yellow baby Follow me to beulah's I just got to wear the hat that my baby done Will you sell me one of those, shave my head Get me out of town is what fireball said Never trust a man in a blue trench coat Never drive a car when you're dead Saturday's a festival, Friday's a gem Dye your hair yellow baby Follow me to beulah's I just got to wear the hat that my baby done sewed Will you sell me one of those, shave my head Get me out of town is what fireball said Never trust a man in a blue trench coat Never drive a car when you're dead Saturday's a festival, now Friday's just a gem sweetheart Follow me to beulah's on dry creek road I just got to wear the hat that my baby done |
|
| Top | |
| Clap Hands (Tom Waits 1985) | |
|---|---|
|
Wine, wine, why the goose drank wine And the monkey chewed tobacco on the street corner Now the line broke and the monkey got choked And they all went to heaven in a little row boat Clap hands Sane, sane, they're all insane Fireman's blind, the conductor is lame A Cincinnati jacket and a sad-luck dame Hang out the window with a bottle full of rain Clap hands, oh clap hands, oh clap hands, oh clap hands Said roar, the thunder and the roar I ain't never coming back no more The moon in the window and a bird on the pole I can always find a millionaire to shovel all that coal Clap hands baby, clap hands, clap hands Said steam, a hundred bad dreams Going up to Harlem with a pistol in my jeans A Cincinnati jacket and a sad-luck dame Hanging out the window with a bottle full of rain Nothing but roar, it's the thunder and the roar I ain't coming back no more I got a moon in the window, bird on the pole I can always find a millionaire to shovel all that coal Clap hands, well clap hands baby, well clap hands, clap, come on clap Shine, shine, a Roosevelt dime All the way to Baltimore, running out of time Salvation Army seemed to wind up in the hole All went to heaven in a little row boat It's a roar, it's a thunder and the roar I ain't never coming back no more Moon in the window, bird on a pole I can always find a millionaire to shovel all that coal Clap hands, well clap hands, well clap hands, well clap hands Clap hands, clap hands, clap hands, clap hands Clap hands, clap hands, clap hands, clap hands Clap hands, clap hands, clap hands, clap hands Clap hands, clap hands, clap hands, clap hands Clap hands |
|
| Top | |
| Gun Street Girl (Tom Waits 1985) | |
|---|---|
|
Falling James in the Tahoe mud Stick around to tell us all the tale Well he fell in love with a Gun Street girl Blew a hole in the hood of a yellow Corvette Blew a hole in the hood of a yellow Corvette John, John, he's long gone Well he's gone to Indiana, he ain't never coming home John, John, long gone Well he's gone to Indiana, he ain't never coming home Well he took a hundred dollars off a slaughterhouse Joe Brought a brand new Michigan twenty-gauge He got all liquored up on that road house corn Blew a hole in the hood of a yellow Corvette A hole in the hood of a yellow Corvette John, John, he's long gone Well he's gone to Indiana, he ain't never coming home John, John, he's long gone Why, he's gone to Indiana, he ain't never coming home He bought a second-hand Nova from a Cuban Chinese And dyed his hair in the bathroom of a Texaco With a pawnshop radio, quarter past four He left for Waukegan at the slamming of the door Left for Waukegan at the slamming of the door I said John, John, he's long gone Gone to Indiana, ain't never coming home I said John, John, he's long gone Gone to Indiana, ain't never coming home Miss Charlotte took her satchel down to King Fish Rows Smuggled in a brand new pair of alligator shoes With her fireman's raincoat and her long yellow hair Well they tied her to a tree with a skinny millionaire They tied her to a tree with a skinny millionaire John, John, long gone I've gone to Indiana, ain't never coming home John, John, long gone Why, he's gone to Indiana, ain't never coming home John, John, John, John My Papa was a rolling stone My Papa was a rolling stone Wherever he walked he said was his home But he died all alone John, John, John, John, John, John Now he's banging on a table with an old tin cup Sing I'll never kiss a Gun Street girl again I will never kiss a Gun Street girl again I'll will never kiss a Gun Street girl again John, John, John, John, John, John Well John, John, John, John, John, John John, John |
|
| Top | |
| Time (Tom Waits 1985) | |
|---|---|
|
The smart money's on Harlow and the moon is in the street And the shadow boys are breaking all the laws Oh and it's east of East Saint Louis and the wind is making speeches And the rain sounds like a round of applause And Napoleon is weeping in a carnival saloon His invisible fiancee's in the mirror And the band is going home, it's raining hammers, it's raining nails And it's true there's nothing left for him down here And it's time time time, and it is time and it's time And it's time time that you love And it's time time time And they all pretend they're orphans and their memory's like a train You can see it them getting smaller as they pull away And the things you can't remember tell the things you can't forget That history puts a saint in every dream Well she said she'd stick around until the bandages came off But these mama's boys just don't know when to quit And Matilda asks the sailors "Are those dreams or are those prayers?" close your eyes, son, and this won't hurt a bit And it's time time time, and it is time time time And it's time time that you love And it's time time time Well things are pretty lousy for the calendar girls The boys just dive right off the cars and splash into the street And when they're on a roll she pulls a razor from her boot And a thousand pigeons fall around her feet So put a candle in the window and a kiss upon my lips As the dish outside the window fills with rain Oh and Just like a stranger with the weeds in your heart Pay the fiddler off 'til I come back again And it's time time time, and it is time time time And it's time time time that you love And it's time time time And it's time time time, and it is time time time And it's time time time that you love And it's time time time Thank you, goodnight Thank you, goodnight |
|
| Top | |