Artist: Tom Waits Album: Big Time {1988}

Good evening


Plugged sixteen 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 on up against a dandelion tree
I leaned it on up against a dandelion tree, look here

Gonna whittle you into kindlin'
Sixteen shells from a thirty-ought-six
Whittle you into kindlin'
Sixteen shells from a thirty-ought-six

Well, I slept in the holler of a dry creek bed
And I tore out the bucket from a red Corvette, tore out the bucket from a red Corvette
Lionel and Dave, the Butcher made three
Meet me by the knuckles of a 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'
Sixteen shells from a thirty-ought-six
Whittle you into kindlin'
Sixteen shells from a thirty-ought-six

I'll whittle you into kindlin'
Sixteen shells from a thirty-ought-six
Whittle you into kindlin'
Sixteen shells from a thirty-ought-six

Look-y here, I'm a 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, good evening

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, wearin' 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
Well, he told her to wait by the magazines
Bring a raincoat, bring a suitcase
Bring your dark eyes, wear those red shoes
Red shoes, red shoes, red shoes, red shoes
Red shoes, red shoes, red shoes, red shoes

Now, there's a dark huddle at the bus stop
Umbrellas arranged in a sad bouquet
Cesaer got caught, oh, little Cesaer got caught, going on down to second
Little Cesaer got caught going on down to second
He was 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 with those 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

And hounds splash the nickle full of soldiers
And Santa Claus is drunk in the ski room
Now, 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, baby
Meet me tonight by the drugstore, baby
Going out tonight, put on the red shoes, put on the red shoes, baby
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

Rattle big black bones in the danger zone
There's a rumbling groan down below
Below the mine shaft road 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 road 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

Well, the 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 we 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 and a tire swing rope
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, Time's 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
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

Be a man


I'm going straight up to the top, oh yeah
Where the air is fresh and clean
I'm going up, 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
Like a champagne bubble - pop, pop
I'm like those birds, I'm goin' high up in the trees
Can't let sorrow pull me on down
Before tomorrow, yeah, I have found you out
I'm going straight up to the top, oh yeah
Where the air is fresh and clean, yeah

Oh yeah
I can't let sorrow pull me down
Before tomorrow, I found you, I found you
I am 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, fresh and clean, yeah
Fresh and clean, fresh and clean, fresh and clean
Fresh and clean, fresh and clean, fresh and clean
Get on up, get on up, now, 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

Thank you, man


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's grey skies tomorrow is tears
You have to wait till yesterday is here

I'm a-goin' to New York City, I'm a-leavin' 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 is here

Now, if you want to go where rainbows end
You will 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 shinin' bright
What I want you to remember as I disappear tonight
That today's grey skies tomorrow is tears
You'll have to wait till yesterday is here
And today's grey skies tomorrow is tears
You'll have to wait till yesterday is here
You will have to wait till yesterday is here
You will have to wait till yesterday is here
You will have to wait till yesterday is here

Thank you
Well, ah, I feel as though we should move right into the religious material
So, ah


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 got to keep the devil, well, we got to keep him down 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 got to 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 dollars
That demon maester, three dollars
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 sword
And they'll shield you with their wings, people, they'll keep you close to the lord
Now, don't pay heed to temptation for his hands are so cold
You got to keep the devil, keep him on down in the hole
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, 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

I come five hundred miles just to see a halo
Come from Saint 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 fallin' down, fallin' down
When you're fallin' down, fallin' down, fallin' 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, fallin' down
You're fallin' down, fallin' down
Fallin' down, fallin' down, fallin' down

When you're fallin' down, fallin' down, fallin' 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
We all look smaller down here on the ground
You're fallin' down, fallin' down, fallin' down
Fallin' down, fallin' down, fallin' down
Someone's fallin' down, fallin' down, fallin' down
Fallin' down, fallin' down, fallin' down

Okay, man, you got it
Um, alright


Will you take me cross the channel, London Bridge is falling down
Stranger woman tries to save all that a man will try to drown
And it's the rain that they predicted, it's 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 it's down
And I never buy umbrellas cos 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 it's beginning and you know that it's the end
Once again we are strangers as the fog goes 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

I'm cutting through the cane break, rattling the sill
Thunder that the rain make when the shadow top 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, baby
Here come the big black Mariah, here come the big black Ford

Well, I'm all boxed up on a red belle dame
Flat Blue Johnny with a blind man's cane
A 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
Here come the big black Mariah, babe, come a big black Ford, yeah

Well, I'm all boxed up on a red belle dame
Flat Blue Johnny with a blind man's cane
A hundred yellow bullets, put a rag out in the wind
That old blind tiger on a
Here come a big black Mariah, come a big black Mariah, baby
Come a big black Mariah, well, here come a big black Ford
Big black Mariah, here come the big black Mariah
Comes the big black Mariah, comes the big black Mariah
Here comes the big black Mariah, here comes the big black Mariah  

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

Oh, how we danced with the Rose of Tralee
Her long hair black as a raven
And, oh, how we danced and she whispered to me 
We will never be going back home

Alright, alright, actually I get asked, uh
Well, look, I think the question I get asked the most, uh, is
Well, I mean, I mean it happens a lot, okay, enough that I would remark on it, uh
A lot of people come up to me and they say
"Tom, uh, 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 pierced 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, she was very happy, guilt free
And, uh, course the soldier's 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, okay
Okay


Well, I broke down in East Saint Louis on the Kansas City line
And I 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've been a train that took me away from here, but a train can't bring me home

What made my dreams so hollow, I standing at the depot
With a steeple full of swallows that could never ring the bell
Oh, I've come ten thousand miles away, I ain't got one thing to show
Must've been a train took me away from here, but a train can't bring me home

I remember when I left without bothering to pack
You know I up and left with nothin' but the clothes I had on my back
Now I'm sorry for what I've done and I'm out here on my own
Must've been a train that took me away from here, but a train can't bring me home
Must've been a train that took me away from here, but a train can't bring me home

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

Thank you


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

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
Hurry past your chest of drawers and your broken wind chimes
As I say goodbye, I'll say goodbye
Say goodbye to Ruby's arms

I steal away down the darkened hall and 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 heart
As I say goodbye, I'll say goodbye
Say goodbye to Ruby's arms

I was all night long on the broken glass, livin' in a medicine chest
Mediteromanian hotel back sprawled across a roll top desk
That old monkey rode a blade on an overhead fan, 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, woo

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 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, 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 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, now, Friday's just a gem, sweetheart
Follow me to Beulah's on Dry Creek Road
I got to wear the hat that my baby

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
Cincinnati jacket and a sad-luck dame
Hang out the window with a bottle full of rain
Clap hands, oh, clap hands, clap hands, clap hands

I said, roar, there's the thunder and the roar
I ain't never comin' back no more
There's a moon in the window, bird on the pole
I can always find a millionaire to shovel all that coal
Clap hands, baby, clap hands, clap hands

I said, steam, there's a hundred bad dreams
Going up to Harlem with a pistol in my jeans
Cincinnati jacket and a sad-luck dame
Hangin' out the window with a bottle full of rain

Nothin' but a roar, it's the thunder and the roar
I ain't comin' back no more
I got a moon in the window, a bird on the pole
I can always find a millionaire to shovel all that coal
Clap hands, clap hands, baby, clap hands, clap hands, clap hands

Shine, shine, a Roosevelt dime
All the way to Baltimore and runnin' out of time
Salvation Army seemed to wind up in the hole
They all went to heaven in a little row boat

It's a roar, it's a thunder and a roar
I ain't never coming back no more
Moon in the window, a 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, hands, clap hands
Clap hands, clap hands, clap hands, well, clap hands
Clap hands, clap hands, clap hands, clap hands
Clap hands, clap hands, clap hands, clap hands, clap hands

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
Bought a brand new Michigan twenty-gauge
He got all liquored up on a roadhouse 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
Well, he's gone to Indiana, he ain't never coming home

Miss Charlotte took her satchel down to King Fish Row
Smuggled in a brand new pair of alligator shoes
With her fireman's raincoat and her long yellow hair
They tied her to a tree with a skinny millionaire
They tied her to a tree with a skinny millionaire

John, John, he's long gone
Well, he's gone to Indiana, he ain't never coming home
John, John, he's long gone
Well, he's gone to Indiana, he 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, John, John

Now, he's bangin' on the 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 will never kiss a Gun Street girl again

John, John, John, John
John, John, John, John
John, John, John, John
John, John

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
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 getting smaller as they pull away
Oh, and the things you can't remember tell the things you can't forget
That history puts a saint in every dream
Oh, 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, 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

Oh, and things are pretty lousy for the calendar girls
The boys just dive right off the cars and splash into the street
Oh, and when she's 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, just like a stranger with the weeds in your heart
Pay the fiddler off till 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