Tom Waits

@ALBUM: Closing Time
By Tom Waits
Asylum Records, 1973

@SONG: Ol' 55

Well my time went so quickly, I went lickety-splickly out to my old '55
As I drove away slowly, feeling so holy, God knows, I was feeling alive.

Now the sun's coming up, I'm riding with Lady Luck, freeway cars and trucks,
Stars beginning to fade, and I lead the parade
Just a-wishing I'd stayed a little longer,
Oh, Lord, let me tell you that the feeling's getting stronger.

And it's six in the morning, gave me no warning; I had to be on my way.
Well there's trucks all a-passing me, and the lights are all flashing,
I'm on my way home from your place.

And now the sun's coming up, I'm riding with Lady Luck, freeway cars and trucks,
Stars beginning to fade, and I lead the parade
Just a-wishing I'd stayed a little longer,
Oh, Lord, let me tell you that the feeling's getting stronger.

And my time went so quickly, I went lickety-splickly out to my old '55
As I pulled away slowly, feeling so holy, God knows, I was feeling alive.

Now the sun's coming up, I'm riding with Lady Luck,
Freeway cars and trucks, freeway cars and trucks, freeway cars and trucks...

@SONG: I Hope That I Don't Fall in Love with You

Well I hope that I don't fall in love with you
'Cause falling in love just makes me blue,
Well the music plays and you display your heart for me to see,
I had a beer and now I hear you calling out for me
And I hope that I don't fall in love with you.

Well the room is crowded, people everywhere
And I wonder, should I offer you a chair?
Well if you sit down with this old clown, take that frown and break it,
Before the evening's gone away, I think that we could make it,
And I hope that I don't fall in love with you.

Well the night does funny things inside a man
These old tom-cat feelings you don't understand,
Well I turn around to look at you, you light a cigarette,
I wish I had the guts to bum one, but we've never met,
And I hope that I don't fall in love with you.

I can see that you are lonesome just like me, and it being late,
You'd like some some company,
Well I turn around to look at you, and you look back at me,
The guy you're with has up and split, the chair next to you's free,
And I hope that you don't fall in love with me.

Now it's closing time, the music's fading out
Last call for drinks, I'll have another stout.
Well I turn around to look at you, you're nowhere to be found,
I search the place for your lost face, guess I'll have another round
And I think that I just fell in love with you.

@SONG: Virginia Avenue

Well, I'm walking on down Virginia Avenue
Trying to find somebody to tell my troubles to.
Harold's club is closing, and everybody's going on home:
What's a poor boy to do?

I'll just get on back into my short, make it back to the fort
Sleep off all the crazy lizards inside of my brain.
There's got to be some place that's better than this
This life I'm leading's driving me insane

And let me tell you I'm dreaming...

Let me tell you that  I'm dreaming to the twilight, this town has got me down.
I've seen all the highlights, I've been walking all around
I won't make a fuss, I'll take a Greyhound bus, carry me away from here:
Tell me, what have I got to lose?

'Cause I'm walking on down Columbus Avenue
The bars are all closing, 'cause it's quarter to two
Every town I go to is like a lock without a key
Those I leave behind are catching up on me,
Let me tell you they're catching up on me, they're catching up on me
Catching up on me, catching up on me, catching up on me.

@SONG: Old Shoes (& Picture Postcards)

I'm singing this song, it's time it was sung
I've been putting it off for a while,
But it's harder by now, 'cause the truth is so clear
That I cry when I'm seeing you smile.
So goodbye, so long, the road calls me dear
And your tears cannot bind me anymore,
And farewell to the girl with the sun in her eyes
Can I kiss you, and then I'll be gone.

Every time that I tried to tell that we'd lost the magic we had at the start,
I would weep my heart when I looked in your eyes
And I searched once again for the spark.
So goodbye, so long, the road calls me dear
And your tears cannot bind me anymore,
And farewell to the girl with the sun in her eyes
Can I kiss you, and then I'll be gone.

I can see by your eyes, it's time now to go
So I'll leave you to cry in the rain,
Though I held in my hand, the key to all joy
Honey my heart was not born to be tamed.
So goodbye, so long, the road calls me dear
And your tears cannot bind me anymore,
And farewell to the girl with the sun in her eyes
Can I kiss you, and then I'll be gone.

So goodbye, so long, the road calls me dear
And your tears cannot bind me anymore,
And farewell to the girl with the sun in her eyes
Can I kiss you, and then I'll be gone.
Can I kiss you, and then I'll be gone, can I kiss you, and then I'll be gone.

@SONG: Midnight Lullaby

Sing a song of sixpence, pocket full of rye
Hush-a bye my baby, no need to be crying.
You can burn the midnight oil with me as long as you will
Stare out at the moon upon the windowsill, and dream...

Sing a song of sixpence, pocket full of rye
Hush-a bye my baby, no need to be crying.
There's dew drops on the window sill, gumdrops in your head
Slipping into dream land, you're nodding your head, so dream...

Dream of West Virginia, or of the British Isles
'Cause when you are dreaming, you see for miles and miles.
When you are much older, remember when we sat
At midnight on the windowsill, and had this little chat
And dream, come on and dream, come on and dream, and dream, and dream...

@SONG: Martha

Operator, number, please: it's been so many years
Will she remember my old voice while I fight the tears?
Hello, hello there, is this Martha? this is old Tom Frost,
And I am calling long distance, don't worry 'bout the cost.
'Cause it's been forty years or more, now Martha please recall,
Meet me out for coffee, where we'll talk about it all.

And those were the days of roses, poetry and prose
And Martha all I had was you and all you had was me.
There was no tomorrows, we'd packed away our sorrows
And we saved them for a rainy day.

And I feel so much older now, and you're much older too,
How's your husband? and how's the kids? you know that I got married too?
Luck that you found someone to make you feel secure,
'Cause we were all so young and foolish, now we are mature.

And those were the days of roses, poetry and prose
And Martha all I had was you and all you had was me.
There was no tomorrows, we'd packed away our sorrows
And we saved them for a rainy day.

And I was always so impulsive, I guess that I still am,
And all that really mattered then was that I was a man.
I guess that our being together was never meant to be.
And Martha, Martha, I love you can't you see?

And those were the days of roses, poetry and prose
And Martha all I had was you and all you had was me.
There was no tomorrows, we'd packed away our sorrows
And we saved them for a rainy day.

And I remember quiet evenings trembling close to you...

@SONG: Rosie

Well I'm sitting on a windowsill, blowing my horn
Nobody's up except the moon and me,
And a lazy old tomcat on a midnight spree
All that you left me was a melody.
Rosie, why do you evade? Rosie, how can I persuade? Rosie...

And the moon's all up, full and big, apricot tips in an indigo sky,
And I've been loving you, Rosie, since the day I was born
And I'll love you, Rosie 'til the day I die.
Rosie, why do you evade? Rosie, how can I persuade? Rosie...

Rosie, why do you evade? Rosie, how can I persuade? Rosie...

And I'm sitting on a windowsill, blowing my horn
Nobody's up except the moon and me,
And a lazy old tomcat on a midnight spree
All that you left me was a melody.
Rosie, why do you evade? Rosie, how can I persuade? Rosie...

@SONG: Lonely

Lonely, lonely, lonely, lonely eyes, lonely face, lonely lonely in your place.
Lonely, lonely, lonely eyes, lonely face, lonely lonely in your place.

I thought that I knew all that there was to, lonely, lonely, lonely...

Melanie Jane, won't feel the pain.
Lonely, lonely, lonely eyes, lonely eyes, lonely lonely in your place.

And I thought that I knew all that there was to
Lonely, lonely, lonely eyes, lonely eyes, lonely lonely in your place, and
I still love you, I still love you, lonely, lonely...

@SONG: Ice Cream Man

I'll be clickin' by your house about two forty-five
Sidewalk sundae strawberry surprise,
I got a cherry popsicle right on time
A big stick, mamma, that'll blow your mind

'Cause I'm the ice cream man, I'm a one-man band (yeah)
I'm the ice cream man, honey, I'll be good to you.

Baby, missed me in the alley, baby, don't you fret
Come back around and don't forget,
When you're tired and you're hungry and you want something cool,
Got something better than a swimming pool

'Cause I'm the ice cream man, I'm a one-man band
I'm the ice cream man, honey, I'll be good to you.
'Cause I'm the ice cream man, I'm a one-man band
I'm the ice cream man, honey, I'll be good to you.

See me coming, you ain't got no change
Don't worry baby, it can be arranged:
Show me you can smile, baby just for me
Fix you with a drumstick, I'll do it for free

'Cause I'm the ice cream man, I'm a one-man band
I'm the ice cream man, honey, I'll be good to you.
Be good to you, be good to you,
Good to you yeah, good to you yeah, good to you yeah, good to you yeah,
Good to you yeah, good to you, I'll be good to you, I'll be good to you...

@SONG: Little Trip to Heaven (On the Wings of Your Love)

Lazy trip to heaven on the wings of your love
Banana moon is shining in the sky,
Feel like I'm in heaven when you're with me
Know that I'm in heaven when you smile,
Though we're stuck here on the ground, I got something that I've found
And it's you.

And I don't have to take no trip to outer space
All I have to do is look at your face,
And before I know it, I'm in orbit around you
Thanking my lucky stars that I've found you,
When I see your constellation, honey, you're my inspiration, and it's you.

You're my north star when I'm lost and feeling blue,
The sun is breaking through the clouds don't you, don't you know it's true?
Honey, all the other stars seem dim around you
Thanking my lucky stars that I've found you,
When I see your smiling face, honey,
I know nothing ever going to take your place, and it's you.

And it's you, and it's you, and it's you, and it's you, and it's you
And it's you, and it's you, shoo-be-doo, ba-da-da.

@SONG: Grapefruit Moon

Grapefruit moon, one star shining, shining down on me.
Heard that tune, and now I'm pining, honey, can't you see?
'Cause every time I hear that melody, well, something breaks inside,
And the grapefruit moon, one star shining, can't turn back the tide.

Never had no destination, could not get across.
You became my inspiration, oh but what a cost.
'Cause every time I hear that melody, well, something breaks inside,
And the grapefruit moon, one star shining, is more than I can hide.

Now I'm smoking cigarettes and I strive for purity,
And I slip just like the stars into obscurity.
'Cause every time I hear that melody, well, puts me up a tree,
And the grapefruit moon, one star shining, is all that I can see.

@SONG: Closing Time (instrumental)


Tom Waits "Rain Dogs"  Dedicated to Kathleen.

(P) 1985 Island Records Ltd.

SIDE ONE:

SINGAPORE
We sail tonight for Singapore
We're all as mad as hatters here
I've fallen for tawny moor
Took off to the land of Nod
Drank with all the Chinamen
Walked the sewers of Paris
I danced along a colored wind
Dangled from a rope of sand
You must say goodbye to me

We sail tonight for Singapore
Don't fall asleep while you're ashore
Cross your heart and hope to die
When you hear the children cry.
Let marrow bone and cleaver choose
While making feet for children shoes
Through the alley
Back from Hell
When you hear that steeple bell
You must say goodbye to me.

Wipe him down with gasoline
Till his arms are hard and mean,
From now on boys this iron boat's your home
So heave away boys.

We sail tonight for Singapore
Take your blankets from the floor
Wash your mouth out by the door
The whole town is made of iron ore
Every witness turns to steam
They all become Italian dreams
Fill your pockets up with earth
Get yourself a dollar's worth
Away boys, away, boys, heave away

The captain is a one-armed dwarf
He's throwing dice along the wharf
In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is King
So take this ring

Repeat First Verse

CLAP HANDS
Sane, sane they're all insane
The fireman's blind, the conductors lame
A Cincinatti jacket and a sad luck dame
Hanging out the window with a bottle full of rain
Clap hands, Clap hands
Clap hands, Clap hands

Said roar, roar the thunder and the roar
Son of a bitch is never comin' back here no more
Moon in the window; a bird on the pole
Can always find a millionaire to shovel all the coal

Clap hands, Clap hands
Clap hands, Clap hands

Steam, steam a hundred bad dreams
Goin' up to Harlem with a pistol in his jeans
A fifty dollar bill inside in Palladin's hat
And nobody's sure where Mr. Knickerbocker's at

Repeat Second Verse

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 the little row boat

Clap hands, Clap hands
Clap hands, Clap hands

CEMETERY POLKA
Uncle Vernon
Uncle Vernon
Independent as a
Hog on ice
Hi's a big shot down there
At the slaughterhouse
He plays accordion
For Mr.Weiss

Uncle Biltmore and
Uncle William
Made a
Million during
World War II
But they're tightwads
And they're
Cheap skates
And they'll never
Give a dime to you

Auntie Mame
Has gone
Inside
She lives in
The doorway of an old hotel
And the
Radio's playing opera and
All she ever says
Is go to Hell.

Uncle Violet
Flew as a pilot
He said there
Ain't no pretty
Girls in France
Now he runs a
Tidy little
Bookie joint they say
He never
Keeps it in his pants

Uncle Bill
Will never leave a will
And the tumor is as
Big as an egg
He has a mistress
She's Puerto Rican
And i heard she has
A wooden leg.

Uncle Phil
Can't live without his pills
He has emphysema and
He's almost blind
And we must find out
Where the money is
Get it now
Before he loses his mind

Repeat First Verse

JOCKEY FULL OF BOURBON
Edna Million in a drop dead suit
Dutch pink pink on a downtown train
Two dollar pistol but the gun won't shoot
I'm in the corner in the pouring rain
16 men on a deadman's chest
And I've been drinking from a broken cup
2 pairs of pants and a mother vest
I'm full of bourbon; I can't stand up.

Chorus:
Hey little bird, fly away home
Your house is on fire; your children are alone
Hey little bird, fly away home
Your house is on fire; your children are alone

Schiffer broke a bottle on Morgan's head
And I've been stepping on the devil's tail
Across the stripes of full moon's head
Through the bars of a Cuban jail
Bloody fingers on a purple knife
A flamingo drinking from a cocktail glass
I'm on the lawn with someone else's wife
Come admire the view from up on top of the mast

Chorus

Yellow sheets in Hong Kong bed
Stazybo horn and a Singerland ride
To the carnival is what she said
A hundred dollars makes it dark inside.
Repeat First Verse and Chorus

TANGO TILL THEY'RE SORE
Well ya play that Tarantella
All the hounds they start to roar
And the boys all go to hell
Then the Cubans hit the floor
And they drive along the pipeline
They tango till they're sore
They take apart their nightmares
And they leave them by the door.

Chorus:
Let me fall out the window
With confetti in my hair
Deal out jacks or better
On a blanket by the stairs
I'll tell you all my secrets
But I lie about my past
So send me off to bed forever more.

Make sure they play my theme song
I guess daisies will have to do
Just get me to New Orleans
And paint shadows on the pews
Turn the spit on that pig
Kick the drum and let me down
Put my clarinet beneath your bed
Till I get back in town.

Chorus

Just sure she's all in calico
And the color of a doll
Wave the flag on cadillac day
And a skillet on the wall
Cut me a switch or hold you breath
Till the sun goes down
Write my name on the hood
Send me off to another town.

Chorus

BIG BLACK MARIAH
Cuttin' through the cane break
Ratting the sill
Thunder that the rain makes
When the shadow tops the hill
Big light on the back street
Hill to ever more, Packin' down the ladder
With hammer to the floor
Here comes the Big Black Mariah
Here comes the Big Black Mariah
Here comes the Big Black Mariah
Here comes the Big Black Ford.

Well he's all boxed up
On a red bell dame
Hunted Black Johnny with
A blind man's cane
A yellow bullet with a
Rag out in the wind
An old blind tiger
Get an old bell Jim
Here comes the Big Black
Mariah, Here comes the Big Black
Mariah, Here comes the Big Black
Mariah, Here comes the Big Black Ford.

Sent to the skies on a
Benny Jag Blue
Off to bed without his supper
Like the Linda brides do

Now he's got to do the story
With the old widow Jones...
He's got a wooden coat this boy
Is never coming home
Here comes the Big Black Mariah
Here comes the Big Black Mariah
Here comes the Big Black Mariah
Here comes the Big Black Ford.

Cut through the
Cane break...

Repeat Second Verse

DIAMONDS & GOLD
The broken glass
And the rusty nails
Where the violets grow
Say goodbye to the railroad
And the mad dogs of summer
And everything that I know

Chorus:
What some men will do here for diamonds
What some men will do here for gold
They're wounded but they just keep on climbin'
And they sleep by the side of the road

There's a hole in the ladder
A fence we can climb
Mad as a hatter
You're thin as a dime
Go out to the meadow
The hills are agreen
Sing me a rainbow
Steal me a dream

Small time Napoleons
Shattered his knees
But he stays in the saddle for Rose
And all his disciples
They shave in the gutter
And gather what's left of his clothes

Chorus

There's a hole in the ladder
A fence we can climb
Mad as a hatter
You're thin as a dime
Go out to the meadow
The hills are agreen
Sing me a rainbow
Steal me a dream

HANG DOWN YOUR HEAD
(Instrumental)

TIME
Well, the smart money's on Harlow
And the moon is in the street
The shadow boys are breaking all the laws
And you're east of East St. Louis
And the wind is making speeches
And the rain sounds like a round of applause
Napoleon is weeping in the Carnival saloon
His invisible fianc is in the mirror
The band is going home
It's raining hammers, it's raining nails
Yes, it's true, there's nothing left for him down here

Chorus:
And it's Time Time Time
And it's Time Time Time
And it's Time 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 it pulls 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 steak around
Until the bandages came off
But these mamas boys just don't know when to quit
And Matida asks the sailors are those dreams
Or are those prayers
So just close your eyes, son
And this won't hurt a bit

Chorus

Well, things are pretty lousy for a calendar girl
The boys just dive right off the cars
And splash into the street
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 his lips
Till the dish outside the window fills with rain
Just like a stranger with the weeds in your heart
And play the fiddler off till i come back again

Chorus

SIDE TWO:

RAIN DOGS
Inside a broken clock
Splashing the wine
With all the Rain Dogs
Taxi, we'd rather walk.
Huddle a doorway with the Rain Dogs
For i am a Rain Dog, too.

Chorus:
Oh, how we danced and we swallowed the night
For it was all ripe for dreaming
Oh, how we danced away
All of the lights
We've always been out of our minds.

The Rum pours strong and thin
Beat out the dustman
With the Rain Dogs
Aboard a shipwreck train
Give my umbrella to the Rain Dogs
For I am a Rain Dog, too.

Oh, how we danced with the
Rose of Tralee
Her long hair black as a raven
Oh, how we danced and you
Whispered to me
You'll never be going back home,
You'll never be going back home.

Chorus

MIDTOWN
(Instrumental)

9TH & HENNEPIN
Well it's 9th and Hennepin
And all the donuts have
Names that sound like prostitutes
And the moon's teeth marks are
On the sky like a tarp thrown over all this
And the broken umbrellas like
Dead birds and the steam
Comes out of the grill like
The whole goddamned town is ready to blow.
And the bricks are all scarred with jailhouse tattoos
And everyone is behaving like dogs.
And the horses are coming down Violin Road
And Dutch is dead on his feet
And the rooms all smell like diesel
And you take on the
Dreams of the ones who have slept here.
And I'm lost in the window
I hide on the stairway
I hang in the curtain
I sleep in your hat
And no one brings anything
Small into a bar around here.
They all started out with bad directions
And the girl behind the counter has a tattooed tear,
One for every year he's away she said, such
A crumbling beauty, but there's
Nothing wrong with her that
$100 won't fix, she has that razor sadness
That only gets worse
With the clang and thunder of the
Southern Pacific going by
As the clock ticks out like a dripping faucet
Till you're full of rag water and bitters and blue ruin
And you spill out
Over the side to anyone who'll listen
And I've seen it
All through the yellow windows
Of the evening train.

GUN STREET GIRL
Falling James in the Tahoe mud
Stick around to tell us all the tail
He fell in love with a Gun Street Girl and
Now he's danced in the Birmingham jail.

Took a 100 dollars off a slaughterhouse Joe
Brought a bran' new michigan 20 gauge
Got all liquored up on that road house corn,
Blew a hole in the hood of a yellow corvette
Blew a hole in the hood of a yellow corvette.
Brought a second hand Nova from a Cuban Chinese
Dyed his hair in the bathroom of Texaco
With a pawnshop radio, quarter past 4
Well, he left Waukegan at the slammin' of the door
He left Waukegan at the slammin' of the door

Chorus:
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.

Sitting in a sycamore in St. John's Wood
Soaking' day old bread in kerosene
He was blue as a robin's egg brown as a hog
Stayin' out of circulation till the dogs get tired
Stayin' out of circulation till the dogs get tired

Shadow fixed the toilet with an old trombone
He never got up in the morning on a Saturday
Sittin' by the Erie with a bull whipped dog
Tellin' everyone he saw
They went thatta way
Tellin' everyone he saw
They went thatta way.

Now the rain's like gravel on old tin roof
And the Burlinton Northern's pullin' out of the world
With a head full of bourbon and a dream in the straw.
And a Gun Street Girl was the cause of it all.

Riding in the shadow by the St. Joe Ridge
He heard the click clack tappin' of a blind man's cane
Pullin' into Baker on New Year's Eve
With one eye on the pistol the other on the door,
With one eye on the pistol the other on the door.

Miss Charlotte took her satchel down to King Row
And the smuggled in a bran' 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.

Chorus
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.
Bangin' on a table with an old tin cup

Sing I'll never kiss a Gun Street Girl again,
I'll never kiss a Gun Street Girl again.

Repeat chorus

UNION SQUARE
Well time is always money
For the boys at Union Square
You can bust your ass till doomsday
But don't forget to say your prayers
Someone's got a wad on the backstreet.
Sacco got a bran' new slack
And your baby is handcuffed on the front seat
You just sit right there, boy and relax

Chorus:
I'm goin' down down down
I'm goin' down down down
I'm goin' down down down
I'm goin' down down down

Well they spill out of the Cinema 14
To that drag bar there on the block
Best live show by far in the whole east coast
With a bank rolled up in your sock
She stand right there for your pleasure
Half Puerto Rican Chinese
Your got to find your baby somebody to measure
I'm goin' to get me some of these baby.

Chorus

Four in the mornin' on a Sunday
Sacco drinkin' whiskey in church
Half pint festival brandy
That 'bout to fall right off his perch
The guy in the sweaters off duty
Out in front on the welfare hotel
The guy in the dress is a beauty
Go all the way and I swear you never can tell

Chorus

BLIND LOVE
(Instrumental)

WALKING SPANISH
He's got himself a homemade special
You know his glass is full of sand
And it feels just like a jaybird
The way it fits into his hand
He rolled a blade up in his trick towel
They slap their hands against the wall
You never trip, you never stumble

He's walking spanish down the hall

Slim him a picture of our Jesus
Or give him a spoon to dig a hole
What all he done ain't no one's business
But he'll need blankets for the cold
They dim the lights over on Broadway
Even the king has bowed his head
Every face looks right up at Mason

He's walking spanish down the hall

Latella's screeching for a blind pig
Punk Sander's carved it out of wood
He never sang when he got hoodwinked
They tried it all but he never would
Tomorrow morning there'll be laundry
But he'll be somewhere else to hear the call
Don't say goodbye he's just leaving early

He's walking spanish down the hall

All St. Barthelemew said was whispered
Into the ear of Blind Jack Dawes
All Baker told the machine
Was that he never broke the law
Go on and tip your hat up to the Pilate
Take off your watch, your rings and all
Even Jesus wanted just a little more time

He's walking spanish down the hall

DOWNTOWN TRAIN
Outside another yellow moon
Punched a hole in the nighttime, yes
I climb through the window and down the street
Shining like a new dime
The downtown trains are full
With all those Brooklyn girls
They try so hard to break out of their little worlds

You wave your hand and they scatter like crows
They have nothing that will ever capture your heart
They're just thorns without the rose
Be careful of them in the dark
Oh if I was the one
You chose to be your only one
Oh baby can't you hear me now

Chorus:
Will I see you tonight
On a downtown train
Every night its just the same
You leave me lonely, now

I know your window and I know its late
I know your stairs and your doorway
I walk down your street and past your gate
I stand by the light at the four way
You watch them as they fall
They stay at the carnival
But they'll never win you back

Chorus:
Will I see you tonight
On a downtown train
Where every night its just the same
You leave me lonely
Will I see you tonight
On a downtown train
All of my dreams just fall like rain
All upon a downtown train

BRIDE OF RAIN DOG
(Instrumental)

ANYWHERE I LAY MY HEAD
My head is spinning round
My heart is in my shoes
I went and set the Thames on fire
Now I must come back down
She's laughing in her sleeve at me
I can feel it in my bones
But anywhere, I'm gonna
Lay my head, boys
I will call my home.

Well I see that
The world is upside down
My pockets were filled up with gold.
Now the clouds have covered o'er
And the wind is blowing cold
I don't need anybody
Because I learned to be alone
And anywhere
I lay my head, boys
I will call my home.

Tom Waits - Paisties and a G-String
---------   -----------------------

Smellin' like a brewery, lookin' like a tramp
   ain't got a quarter, got a postage stamp
And a five o'clock shadow boxing all around the town
   talking with the old men sleeping on the ground

Bazanti bootin', al zootin al hoot and Al Cohn
   sharin' this apartment with a telephone pole
And it's a fish net stockings, spike heel shoes
   strip tease, prick tease, car keys blues

And the porno floor show, live nude girls
   dreamy and cream and the brunette curls
Chesty Morgan, and a Watermelon Rose
   raise my rent and take off all your clothes

With the trench coats, magazines, bottle full a' rum
   she's so good, it make a dead man come

With pasties and a g-string, beer and a shot
   Portland threw a shot glass and a Buffalo squeeze
Wrinkles and Cherry and Twinky and Pinky
   and Fe-Fe live from Gay Paree
Fanfares, rim shots backstage, who cares
   all this hot burlesque for me

Cleavage, cleavage, thighs and hips
   from the nape of her neck to the lip stick lips

Chopped and channeled and lowered and louvered
   and a cheater slicks and baby moons
She's hot and ready and creamy and sugared
   and the band is awful and so are the tunes

Crawlin' on her belly, shakin' like jelly
   and I'm gettin' harder than Chinese algebra

Ziers and cheers
   and the compendium here
Hey sweetheart, they're yellin' for more
   Squashin' out your cigarette butts on the floor

And I like Shelly, you like Jane,
   what was the girl with the snake skin's name
It's an early bird matinee'
   come back any day

Getcha little somepin'
   that cha can't get at home
Pasties and a g-string, beer and a shot
   Portland threw a shot glass and a Buffalo squeeze

Popcorn, front row, higher than a kite
   and I'll be back tomorrow night
   and I'll be back tomorrow night

@ALBUM: SMALL CHANGE
By Tom Waits
Asylum Records, 1976

@SONG: Tom Traubert's Blues

Wasted and wounded, it ain't what the moon did, I've got what I paid for now
See you tomorrow, hey Frank, can I borrow a couple of bucks from you
To go waltzing Mathilda, waltzing Mathilda,
You'll go waltzing Mathilda with me

I'm an innocent victim of a blinded alley
And I'm tired of all these soldiers here
No one speaks English, and everything's broken, and my Stacys are soaking wet
To go waltzing Mathilda, waltzing Mathilda,
You'll go waltzing Mathilda with me

Now the dogs are barking and the taxi cab's parking
A lot they can do for me
I begged you to stab me, you tore my shirt open,
And I'm down on my knees tonight
Old Bushmill's I staggered, you'd bury the dagger
In your silhouette window light go
To go waltzing Mathilda, waltzing Mathilda,
You'll go waltzing Mathilda with me

Now I lost my Saint Christopher now that I've kissed her
And the one-armed bandit knows
And the maverick Chinamen, and the cold-blooded signs,
And the girls down by the strip-tease shows, go
Waltzing Mathilda, waltzing Mathilda,
You'll go waltzing Mathilda with me

No, I don't want your sympathy, the fugitives say
That the streets aren't for dreaming now
And manslaughter dragnets and the ghosts that sell memories,
They want a piece of the action anyhow
Go waltzing Mathilda, waltzing Mathilda,
You'll go waltzing Mathilda with me

And you can ask any sailor, and the keys from the jailor,
And the old men in wheelchairs know
And Mathilda's the defendant, she killed about a hundred,
And she follows wherever you may go
Waltzing Mathilda, waltzing Mathilda,
You'll go waltzing Mathilda with me

And it's a battered old suitcase to a hotel someplace,
And a wound that will never heal
No prima donna, the perfume is on an
Old shirt that is stained with blood and whiskey
And goodnight to the street sweepers, the night watchmen flame keepers
And goodnight to Mathilda, too

@SONG: Step Right Up

Step right up, step right up, step right up,
Everyone's a winner, bargains galore
That's right, you too can be the proud owner
Of the quality goes in before the name goes on
One-tenth of a dollar, one-tenth of a dollar, we got service after sales
You need perfume? we got perfume, how 'bout an engagement ring?
Something for the little lady, something for the little lady,
Something for the little lady, hmm
Three for a dollar
We got a year-end clearance, we got a white sale
And a smoke-damaged furniture, you can drive it away today
Act now, act now, and receive as our gift, our gift to you
They come in all colors, one size fits all
No muss, no fuss, no spills, you're tired of kitchen drudgery
Everything must go, going out of business, going out of business
Going out of business sale
Fifty percent off original retail price, skip the middle man
Don't settle for less
How do we do it? how do we do it?  volume, volume, turn up the volume
Now you've heard it advertised, don't hesitate
Don't be caught with your drawers down,
Don't be caught with your drawers down
You can step right up, step right up

That's right, it filets, it chops, it dices, slices,
Never stops, lasts a lifetime, mows your lawn
And it mows your lawn and it picks up the kids from school
It gets rid of unwanted facial hair, it gets rid of embarrassing age spots,
It delivers a pizza, and it lengthens, and it strengthens
And it finds that slipper that's been at large
under the chaise lounge for several weeks
And it plays a mean Rhythm Master,
It makes excuses for unwanted lipstick on your collar
And it's only a dollar, step right up, it's only a dollar, step right up

'Cause it forges your signature
If not completely satisfied, mail back unused portion of product
For complete refund of price of purchase
Step right up
Please allow thirty days for delivery, don't be fooled by cheap imitations
You can live in it, live in it, laugh in it, love in it
Swim in it, sleep in it,
Live in it, swim in it, laugh in it, love in it
Removes embarrassing stains from contour sheets, that's right
And it entertains visiting relatives, it turns a sandwich into a banquet
Tired of being the life of the party?
Change your shorts, change your life, change your life
Change into a nine-year-old Hindu boy, get rid of your wife,
And it walks your dog, and it doubles on sax
Doubles on sax, you can jump back Jack, see you later alligator
See you later alligator
And it steals your car
It gets rid of your gambling debts, it quits smoking
It's a friend, and it's a companion,
And it's the only product you will ever need
Follow these easy assembly instructions it never needs ironing
Well it takes weights off hips, bust, thighs, chin, midriff,
Gives you dandruff, and it finds you a job, it is a job
And it strips the phone company free take ten for five exchange,
And it gives you denture breath
And you know it's a friend, and it's a companion
And it gets rid of your traveler's checks
It's new, it's improved, it's old-fashioned
Well it takes care of business, never needs winding,
Never needs winding, never needs winding
Gets rid of blackheads, the heartbreak of psoriasis,
Christ, you don't know the meaning of heartbreak, buddy,
C'mon, c'mon, c'mon, c'mon
'Cause it's effective, it's defective, it creates household odors,
It disinfects, it sanitizes for your protection
It gives you an erection, it wins the election
Why put up with painful corns any longer?
It's a redeemable coupon, no obligation, no salesman will visit your home
We got a jackpot, jackpot, jackpot, prizes, prizes, prizes, all work guaranteed
How do we do it, how do we do it, how do we do it, how do we do it
We need your business, we're going out of business
We'll give you the business
Get on the business end of our going-out-of-business sale
Receive our free brochure, free brochure
Read the easy-to-follow assembly instructions, batteries not included
Send before midnight tomorrow, terms available,
Step right up, step right up, step right up
You got it buddy: the large print giveth, and the small print taketh away
Step right up, you can step right up, you can step right up
C'mon step right up
(Get away from me kid, you bother me...)
Step right up, step right up, step right up, c'mon, c'mon, c'mon, c'mon, c'mon
Step right up, you can step right up, c'mon and step right up,
C'mon and step right up

@SONG: Jitterbug Boy

Well, I'm a jitterbug boy, by the shoe-shine
Resting on my laurels and my hardys too
Life of Riley on a swing shift, gears follow my drift
Once upon a time I was in show-biz too
I seen the Brooklyn Dodgers playing at Ebbets Field
Seen the Kentucky Derby too
It's fast women, slow horses, unreliable sources,
And I'm holding up the lamp-post if you want to know
I've seen the Wabash Cannonball, buddy, I've done it all
'Cause I slept with the lions and Marilyn Monroe,
Had breakfast in the eye of a hurricane
Fought Rocky Marciano, played Minnesota Fats,
Burned hundred-dollar bills, I've eaten Mulligan stew
Got drunk with Louis Armstrong, what's that old song?
I taught Mickey Mantle everything that he knows
So you ask me what I'm doing here holding up the lamp-post,
Flipping this quarter, trying to make up my mind
And if it's heads I go to Tennessee, and tails I buy a drink,
If it lands on the edge I keep talking to you
(scat)

@SONG: I Wish I was in New Orleans

Well, I wish I was in New Orleans, I can see it in my dreams,
Arm-in-arm down Burgundy, a bottle and my friends and me

Hoist up a few tall cool ones, play some pool and listen
To that tenor saxophone calling me home
And I can hear the band begin "When the Saints Go Marching In",
And by the whiskers on my chin, New Orleans, I'll be there

I'll drink you under the table, be red-nosed, go for walks,
The old haunts what I wants is red beans and rice
And wear the dress I like so well, and meet me at the old saloon,
Make sure that there's a Dixie moon, New Orleans, I'll be there

And deal the cards roll the dice, if it ain't that old Chuck E. Weiss,
And Claiborne Avenue, me and you Sam Jones and all

And I wish I was in New Orleans, 'cause I can see it in my dreams,
Arm-in-arm down Burgundy, a bottle and my friends and me
New Orleans, I'll be there

@SONG: The Piano has been Drinking (Not Me)

The piano has been drinking, my necktie is asleep
And the combo went back to New York, the jukebox has to take a leak
And the carpet needs a haircut, and the spotlight looks like a prison break
And the telephone's out of cigarettes, and the balcony is on the make
And the piano has been drinking, the piano has been drinking...

And the menus are all freezing, and the light man's blind in one eye
And he can't see out of the other
And the piano-tuner's got a hearing aid, and he showed up with his mother
And the piano has been drinking, the piano has been drinking
As the bouncer is a Sumo wrestler cream-puff casper milktoast
And the owner is a mental midget with the I.Q. of a fence post
'Cause the piano has been drinking, the piano has been drinking...

And you can't find your waitress with a Geiger counter
And she hates you and your friends and you just can't get served without her
And the box-office is drooling, and the bar stools are on fire
And the newspapers were fooling, and the ash-trays have retired
'Cause the piano has been drinking, the piano has been drinking
The piano has been drinking, not me, not me, not me, not me, not me

@SONG: Invitation to the Blues

Well she's up against the register with an apron and a spatula,
Yesterday's deliveries, tickets for the bachelors
She's a moving violation from her conk down to her shoes,
Well, it's just an invitation to the blues

And you feel just like Cagney, she looks like Rita Hayworth
At the counter of the Schwab's drugstore
You wonder if she might be single, she's a loner and likes to mingle
Got to be patient, try and pick up a clue

She said "How you gonna like 'em, over medium or scrambled?",
You say "Anyway's the only way", be careful not to gamble
On a guy with a suitcase and a ticket getting out of here
It's a tired bus station and an old pair of shoes
This ain't nothing but an invitation to the blues

But you can't take your eyes off her, get another cup of java,
It's just the way she pours it for you, joking with the customers
Mercy mercy, Mr. Percy, there ain't nothing back in Jersey
But a broken-down jalopy of a man I left behind
And the dream that I was chasing, and a battle with booze
And an open invitation to the blues

But she used to have a sugar daddy and a candy-apple Caddy,
And a bank account and everything, accustomed to the finer things
He probably left her for a socialite, and he didn't 'cept at night,
And then he's drunk and never even told her that her cared
So they took the registration, and the car-keys and her shoes
And left her with an invitation to the blues

'Cause there's a Continental Trailways leaving local bus tonight, good evening
You can have my seat, I'm sticking round here for a while
Get me a room at the Squire, the filling station's hiring,
And I can eat here every night, what the hell have I got to lose?
Got a crazy sensation, go or stay? now I gotta choose,
And I'll accept your invitation to the blues

@SONG: Pasties and a G-string

Smelling like a brewery, looking like a tramp,
I ain't got a quarter, got a postage stamp
Been five o'clock shadow boxing all around the town,
Talking with the old man, sleeping on the ground
Bazanti bootin al zootin al hoot and Al Cohn
Sharing this apartment with a telephone pole
And a fish-net stocking, spike-heel shoes,
Strip tease, prick tease, car keys blues
And the porno floor show, live nude girls,
Dreamy and creamy and brunette curls
Chesty Morgan and Watermelon Rose
Raise my rent and take off all your clothes
With trench coats, magazines, a bottle full of rum,
She's so good, make a dead man come
Pasties and a G-string, beer and a shot
Portland through a shot glass and a Buffalo squeeze
Wrinkles and Cherry and Twinkie and Pinkie and Fifi live from Gay Paree
Fanfares, rim shots, back stage, who cares, all this hot burlesque for me
(scat)

Cleavage, cleavage, thighs and hips
>From the nape of her neck to the lipstick lips
Chopped and channeled and lowered and lewd
And the cheater slicks and baby moons
She's a-hot and ready, creamy and sugared
And the band is awful and so are the tunes
(scat)

Crawling on her belly, and shaking like jelly,
And I'm getting harder than Chinese algebrassieres
And cheers from the (hmm) compendium here
"Hey sweetheart" they're yelling for more
You're squashing out your cigarette butts on the floor
And I like Shelly, and you like Jane
And what was the girl with the snakeskin's name?
And it's an early-bird matinee, come back any day,
Get you a little something that you can't get at home
Get you a little something that you can't get at home
It's pasties and a G-string, beer and a shot
Portland through a shot glass and a Buffalo squeeze
Popcorn, front row, higher than a kite, and I'll be back tomorrow night,
And I'll be back tomorrow night
(scat)

@SONG: Bad Liver and a Broken Heart

Well I got a bad liver and broken heart, yeah,
I drunk me a river since you tore me apart
And I don't have a drinking problem, 'cept when I can't get a drink
And I wish you'd a-known her, we were quite a pair,
She was sharp as a razor and soft as a prayer
So welcome to the continuing saga, she was my better half, and I was just a dog
And so here am I slumped, I've been chipped and I've been chumped on my stool
So buy this fool some spirits and libations, it's these railroad station bars
And all these conductors and porters, and I'm all out of quarters
And this epitaph is the aftermath, yeah I choose my path, hey, come on, Kath,
He's a lawyer, he ain't the one for ya
No, the moon ain't romantic, it's intimidating as hell,
And some guy's trying to sell me a watch
And so I'll meet you at the bottom of a bottle of bargain Scotch
I got me a bottle and a dream, it's so maudlin it seems,
You can name your poison, go on ahead and make some noise
I ain't sentimental, this ain't a purchase, it's a rental, and it's purgatory,
And hey, what's your story, well I don't even care
'Cause I got my own double-cross to bear

And I'll see your Red Label, and I'll raise you one more,
And you can pour me a cab, I just can't drink no more,
'Cause it don't douse the flames that are started by dames,
It ain't like asbestos
It don't do nothing but rest us assured,
And substantiate the rumors that you've heard

@SONG: The One that Got Away

Well this gigolo's jumping salty, ain't no trade out on the streets,
Half past the unlucky, and the hawk's a front-row seat
Dressed in full orchestration, stage-door Johnny's got to pay,
And sent him home talking 'bout the one that got away

Could have been on Easy Street, could have been a wheel,
With irons in the fire and all them business deals
But the last of the big-time losers shouted before he drove away,
"I'll be right back, as soon as I crack the one that got away"

Well, the ambulance drivers, they don't give a shit,
They just want to get off work, and
The short stop and the victim are already gone berserk
And the shroud-tailor measures him for a deep-six holiday,
The stiff is froze, the case is closed on the one that got away

Now Jim Crow's directing traffic with them cemetery blues,
With them peculiar-looking trousers, them old Italian shoes
And a wooden kimono that was all ready to drop in San Francisco Bay
But he's mumbling something all about the one that got away

And Costello was the champion at the St. Moritz Hotel,
And the best this side of Fairfax, reliable sources tell
But his reputation is at large, and he's at Ben Frank's every day,
Waiting for the one that got away

He got a snakeskin sportshirt, and he looks like Vincent Price,
With a little piece of chicken, and he's carving off a slice
Someone tipped her off, and she'll be doing a Houdini now any day
She shook his hustle, and a Greyhound bus'll take the one that got away

Well, Andre's at the piano behind the Ivar in the sewers,
With a buck a shot for pop tunes, and a fin for guided tours
He could-a been in "Casa Blanca", he stood in line out there all day
Now he's spilling whiskey and learning songs about a one that got away

Well I've lost my equilibrium and my car keys and my pride,
The tattoo parlor's warm, and so I hustle there inside
And the grinding off the buzz-saw, "What you want that thing to say?"
I says, "Just don't misspell her name, buddy, she's the one that got away"

@SONG: Small Change (Got Rained on with His Own .38)

Small Change got rained on with his own thirty-eight,
And nobody flinched down by the arcade
And the marquees weren't weeping, they went stark-raving mad,
And the cabbies were the only ones that really had it made
And his cold trousers were twisted, and the sirens high and shrill,
And crumpled in his fist was a five-dollar bill
And the naked mannequins with their Cheshire grins,
And the raconteurs and roustabouts said "Buddy, come on in, 'cause
'Cause the dreams ain't broken down here now, they're walking with a limp
Now that Small Change got rained on with his own thirty-eight"

And nobody flinched down by the arcade
And the burglar alarm's been disconnected,
And the newsmen start to rattle
And the cops are telling jokes about some whorehouse in Seattle
And the fire hydrants plead the Fifth Amendment
And the furniture is bargains galore
But the blood is by the jukebox on an old linoleum floor
And what a hot rain on Forty-Second Street,
And now the umbrellas ain't got a chance
And the newsboy's a lunatic with stains on his pants, 'cause
'Cause Small Change got rained on with his own thirty-eight

And no one's gone over to close his eyes
And there's a racing form in his pocket,
Circled "Blue Boots" in the third
And the cashier at the clothing store didn't say a word
As the siren tears the night in half, and someone lost his wallet
Well, a surveillance of assailance, it that's what you want to call it
And the whores hike up their skirts and fish for drug-store prophylactics
With their mouths cut just like razor blades and their eyes are like stilettos
And her radiator's steaming and her teeth are in a wreck, and nah,
She won't let you kiss her, but what the hell do you expect?
And the Gypsies are tragic and if you want to buy perfume,
Well, they'll bark you down like carneys, sell you Christmas cards in June, but
But Small Change got rained on with his own thirty-eight

And his headstone's a gumball machine,
No more chewing gum or baseball cards or overcoats or dreams
Someone's hosing down the sidewalk, and he's only in his teens, 'cause
'Cause Small Change got rained on with his own thirty-eight

And a fistful of dollars can't change that,
And someone copped his watch fob, and someone got his ring
And the newsboy got his porkpie Stetson hat
And the tuberculosis old men at the Nelson wheeze and cough
And someone will head south until this whole thing cools off, 'cause
'Cause Small Change got rained on with his own thirty-eight, yeah,
Small Change got rained on with his own thirty-eight

@SONG: I Can't Wait to Get Off Work (And See My Baby on Montgomery Avenue)

I don't mind working, 'cause I used to be jerking off most of my time in bars,
I've been a cabbie and a stock clerk and a soda-fountain jock-jerk
And a manic mechanic on cars.
It's nice work if you can get it, now who the hell said it?
I got money to spend on my gal,
But the work never stops, and I'll be busting my chops
Working for Joe and Sal.

And I can't wait to get off work and see my baby,
She said she'd leave the porch light on for me.
I'm disheveled and I'm disdainful and I'm distracted and it's painful,
But this job sweeping up here is gainfully employing me tonight.

Well "Tom, do this" and "Tom, do that", and "Tom, don't do that",
Count the cash, clean the oven, dump the trash,
Oh your loving is a rare and a copacetic gift,
And I'm a moonlight watch manic, it's hard to be romantic
Sweeping up over by the cigarette machine,
Sweeping up over by the cigarette machine...

I can't wait to get off work and see my baby
She'll be waiting up with a magazine for me.
Clean the bathrooms and clean 'em good, oh your loving I wish you would
Come down here and sweep a-me off my feet, this broom'll have to be my baby,
If I hurry, I just might get off before the dawn's early light.

Tom Waits - Way Down In The Hole
---------   --------------------

``Well, I feel we should move right into the religious material.''

When you walk through the garden,
 You've gotta watch your back.
 Well, I beg you're pardon;
 Walk the straight and narrow track.

When you walk with Jesus,
 He's gonna save your soul.
 You've got to keep the Devil;
 Well, you've 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've got to keep the devil,
 keep him on down
 down in the hole.

That red horned, lousy, low life, underneath our boots..
 Praise the Lord.
 I don't know what it is.
 Two dollar - that demonmiester
 Three dollar - that prince devil
 Just see if you can come up with a figure that matches your faith

He said, how much has Jesus done for you?
 And we got to go in,
 with our hydrolic system,
 and blast him out.

People, can I get an amen?
 All the angels, pledge God 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've got to keep the devil,
 keep him on down in the hole.

Down in the hole
Down in the hole
Down in the hole

People, I've got to speak about something...
 Can I get an amen?
 Can I get an halaluja?
 Praise the lord.
 God bless you.

The Lord is a very very busy man.
 I'll do what I can.
 But Jesus is always going for the big picture...
 But 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 hold

You've got to keep the devil down in the hole
You've got to keep the devil down in the hole
Keep him on down in the hole
Down...
down, down, down mighty devil
I send you down below my boots.
down, down, filling my live with anger and strife
Go down mighty devil.
Find a place to live.
Down down down...

"BLUE VALENTINES" 1978


red shoes by the drugstore
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

she wore red shoes by the newstand
as the rain splashed the nickle
spilled like chablis along the midway
theres a little bluejay
in a red dress, on a sad night

one straw in a rootbeer
a compact with a cracked mirror
and a bottle of evening in paris perfume
whats this sad tune

he told her to wait by the magazines
he had to take care of some business it seems
bring a raincoat
and a suitcase
and your dark eyes
and wear those red shoes

theres a dark huddle at the bus stop
unbrellas arranged in a sad bouquet
Li'l cesar got caught
he has going down to second
he has cooled
changing stations on the chamber
to steal a diamond
from a jewelry store for his baby
he loved the way she looked
in those red shoes

she waited by the drugstore
cesaer had never been late before
and the dogs bayed the moon
and rattled their chains
and the cold jingle of taps in a puddle
was the burgler alarm
snitchin on cesaer

note the rain washes memories from the sidewalks
and the hounds splash down the nickle
full of soldiers
and santa claus is drunk in the ski room
and it's christmas eve
in a sad cafe
when the moon gets this way
ther's a little blue my
by the newstand
wearing red shoes

so meet me tonight by the drugstore
w're goin' out tonight
wear your red shoes

(Tom Waits) (C)1978 Fith Floor Music, Inc.(ASCAP)
Tom Waits - Vocal;Da Willie Gonga - Yahama Electric Piano;
   Rick Lawson - Drums; Roland Bautista - Electric Guitar;
   Byron Miller - Bass


christmas card from a hooker in minneapolis
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

hey Charley I'm pregnant
and living on 9-th street
right above a dirty bookstore
off cuclid avenue
and I stopped taking dope
and I quit drinking whiskey
and my old man plays the trombone
and works out at the track.

and he says that he loves me
even though its not his baby
and he says that he'll raise him up
like he would his own son
and he gave me a ring
that was worn by his mother
and he takes me out dancin
every saturday nite.

and hey Charley I think about you
everytime I pass a fillin' station
on account of all the grease
you used to wear in your hair
and I still have that record
of little anthony & the imperials
but someone stole my record player
how do you like that?

hey Charley I almost went crazy
after mario got busted
so I went back to omaha to
live with my folks
but everyone I used to know
was either dead or in prison
so I came back in minneapolis
this time I think I'm gonna stay.

hey Charley I think I'm happy
for the first time since my accident
and I wish I had all the money
that we used to spend on dope
I'd buy me a used car lot
and I wouldn't sell any of em
I'd just drive a different car
every day dependin on how
I feel.

hey Charley
   for chrissakes
do you want to know
the truth of it?
I don't have a husband
he don't play the trombone
and I need to borrow money
to pay this lawyer
and Charley, hey
I'll be eligible for parole
come valentines day.

(Tom Waits) (C)1978  Fifth Floor Music, Inc. (ASCAP)
Tom Waits - Vocal & Acoustic Piano; Da Willie Gonga -
Yamaha Electric Grand Piano
 

romeo is bleeding
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

romeo is bleeding but not so as you'd notice
he's over on 18hh street as usual
lookin' so hard against the hood of his car
and puttin' out a cigarette in his hand
and for all the pachucos at the pumps
at romeros paint and body
they all seein' how far they can spit
well it was just another night
but how they're huddled in the brake lights of a 58 belair
and listenin' to how romeo killed a sherrif his knife

and they all jump when they hear the sirens
but romeo just laughs and says
all the racket in the world ain't never gonna
save that coppers ass
he'll never see another summertime for gunnin' down my brother
and leavin' him like a dog beneath a car without his knife

and romeo says hey man gimme a cigarette
and they all reach for their pack
and frankie lights it for him and pats him on the back
and throws bottle at a milk truck
and as it breaks he grabs his nuts
and they all know they could be just like romeo
if they only had the guts

but romeo is bleeding but nobody can tell
and he sings along with the radio
with a bullet in his chest
and he combs back his fenders
and they all agree its clear
that every thing is cool now that romeos here
but romeo is bleeding
and he winces now and then and he leans against
the car doors and feels the blood in his shoes
and someones crying in the phone booth
at the 5 points by thestore
romeo starts his engine
and wipes the blood off the door
and he brodys through the signal
with the radio full blast
leavin' the boys there hikin' up there chinos
and they all try to stand like romeo
beneath the moon cut like a sickle
and they're talkin' now in spanish about there hero

but romeo is bleeding as he gives the man his ticket
and he climbs to the balcony at the movies
and he'll die without a wimper
like every heros dream
just an angel with a bullet
and cagney on the screen

(Tom Waits) (C) 1978 Fifth Floor Music, Inc. (ASCAP)
Tom Waits - Vocal & Electric Guitar; Frank Vicary - Tenor Sax;
   Ray Crawford - Electric Guitar; Charles Kynard - Organ;
   Jim Hughart - Bass; Chip White - Drums; Bobbye Hall - Congas


$29.00
~~~~~~

little black girl in a red dress
on a hothight with a broken shoe
little black girl you shoulde never left home
theres probly someone thats still waitin' up for you
its cold back in chicago
but in los angles its worse
when all you got is $29.00 and an alligator purse

i see already that vulture in the fleetwood
with the startruse hood
can see you're trying to get you bearrings
and you say hey which ways the main stem
and where ever you say you're from
he'll say he grew up there himself

and he'll comeon and make you feel
like you grew up right next door to him
and you say take a left on a central
and he trows it in reverse
cause you only got $29.00 and an alligator purse

and he'll come on like a gentleman
and you'll be a little shy
you say you ex old man was a sax player
he'll say baby i used to play bass for sly
and you say you like his cadillac, say honey, i got 2 or 3
he'll say sweetheart you're sure fortunate
that you ran into me
when you've done a dime in the joint
you figure nothin' could be worse
and you got $29.00 and an alligator purse

well he got pharoh on the 8 track
you start smokin' a little boo
you thinkin' gettin' outofchicago was the
best thing that ever happend to you
startin' to like it already
this cat seems to be cool
and he says honey i know a good hotel out in west hollywood
that'd be just right for you
but he ain't know good samaritan
he'll make sure he's reimursed
lot more than $29.00 and a alligator purse

now the sirens just an epilog
the cops here always get there too late
they always stop for coffee on the way to the scene of the crime
then they always try so hard to look just like movie stars
they couldnt catch a cold
you ony wasting you dime
and she's lucky to be alive
the doctor whispered to the nurse
she only lost a 1/2 pint of blood
$29.00 and an alligator purse

(Tom Waits) (C) 1978 Fifth Floor Music, Inc. (ASCAP)
Tom Waits - Vocal & Electric Guitar; Da Willie Gonga - Yamaha Electric
   Grand Piano; Roland Bautista - Electric Guitar; Byron Miller - Bass;
   Rick Lawson - Drums


wrong side of the road
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

put a dead cat on the railraod tracks
when the wolf bains blooming by the tressel
and get the eyeball of a rooster
and the stones from a ditch
and wash em down with bilge water
and say you'll never snitch
take the buttons from a yellow jacket
the feather from a buzzard
and the blood from the bounty hunters cold black heart
catch the tears of a window
in a thimble made ofglass
tell your mamaand your papa
theycan kiss your ass
poison all the water in the wishin' well
and hang all them scarecrows from a sycamore tree
burn down all those honeymoons
put em in a pillow case
and wait next to the switch blades at the amusements park for me
strangle all the cristmas carols
scratch out all you prayers
tie em up with barbed wire
and push them down the stairs
and i'll whittle you a pistol
for reepin' nightmares off the blinds
those sunsabitches always seem to sneak up from behind
syphom all the gas from your daddys pickup truck
fill up jonnys t bird
i got a couple bucks
put on little perfume and ribbon in your hair
careful that you don't wake up the hounds
tear a bolt of lightning
off the side of the sky
and throw in the cedar chest
if you want me to tell you why
bring the gear shift knob from a 49 mere
and lay down here beside me
let me hold you in the dirt
and you'll tremble as the flames
tear the throat out of the night
sink your teeth into my shoulder
dig your nails into my back
tell that lettle girl to let go of my sleeve
you'll be awoman when i catch you
as you faqll in love with me

then with my double barrel shotgun
and a whole box of shells
we'll celebrate the 4 of july
we'll do 100 mph
spendin' someone elses dough
and we'll drive all the way to reno
on the wrong side of the road

(Tom Waits) (C) 1978 Fifth Floor Music, Inc. (ASCAP)
Tom Waits - Vocal & Electric Guitar; Charles Kynard - Organ;
   Frank Vicary - Tenor Sax; Ray Crawford - Electric Guitar;
   Jim Hughart - Bass; Chip White - Drums


whistlin' past the graveyard
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

well i come in on a night train
with an arm full of box cars
on the wings of a magpie
cross a hooligan night
and i busted up a chifforobe
way out by the cocomo
cooked up a mess a mulligan
and got into a fight

whistlin' past the graveyard
steppin' on a crack
i'm a mean motherhubbard
papa one eyes jack

you probably seen me sleepin'
out by the railroad tracks
go on and ask the prince of darkness
what about all thet smoke
come from the stack
sometimes i kill myself a jackel
suck out all the blood
steal myself a stationwagon
drivin' through the mud
whistlin' past the graveyard
steppin' on a crack
i'm mean motherhubbard
papa one eyed jack

i know you seen my headlights
and the honkin' of my horn
i'm callin' out my bloodhounds
chase the devil through the corn
last night i chugged the mississippi
now that suckers dry as a bone
born in a taxi cab
i'm never comin' home

whistlin' past the graveyard
steppin' on a crack
i'm mean motherhubbard
papa one eyed jack

myeyes have seen the glory
of the drainin' og the ditch
i only come to baton rouge
to find myself a witch
i'm-ona snatch me up a
couple of em every time itrains
you see a locomotive
probably thinkin' its a train

whistlin' past the graveyard
steppin' on a crack
i'm a mean motherhubbard
papa one eyed jack

what you think is the sunshine
is just a twinkle in my eye
that ring around my fingers
just the 4th of july
when i get a little bit lonesome
and a tear falls from my check
theres gonna be an ocean in
the middle of the week

whistlin' past the graveyard
steppin' on a crack
i'm mean motherhubbard
papa one eyed jack

i rode into town on a night train
with an arm full of box cars
on the wings of a magpie
cross a hooligan night
i'm-ona tear me off a rainbow
and wear it for a tie
i never told the truth
so i can never tell a lie

whistlin' past the graveyard
steppin' on a crack
i'm mean motherhubbard
papa one eyed jack

(Tom Waits) (C) 1978 Fifth Floor Music, Inc. (ASCAP)
Tom Waits - Vocal & Electric Guitar; Harold Battiste
   "Shine" Robinson - Electric Guitar; Herbert -
    Tenor Sax; Scott Edwards - Bass; Earl Palmer
                                               

kentucky avenue
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

eddie graces buick got 4 bullet holes in the side
charley delislesittin' at the top of an avacado tree
mrs storml stab you with a steak knife if you step on her lawn
i got a half pack of lucky strikes man come along with me
lets fill our pockets with macadamia nuts
then go ever to bobby goodmansons
and jump off the roof

hilda plays strip poker
and her mamas across the street
joey  narinsky says she put her tongue in his mouth
dicky faulkners got a switchblade
and some goosenecks risers
that eucalyptus is a hunchback
theres a wind up from the south
let me tie you up with kite string
and i'll show you the scabs on my knee
watch out for the broken glass, put your shoes and socks
  on and come along with me

lets follow that fire truck
i think your house is burning down
then go down to the hobo jungle and kill some rattle
  snakes with a trowel
we'll break all the windows in the ols anderson place
and steal a bunch of boysenberrys
ans swear em on our face
i'll get a dollar from my mamas purse
and buy that scull and crossbones ring
and you can wear it round your neck on an old piece of string

then we'll split on ronniie arnold
and flip him the bird
and slash the tires on the school bus
now don't say a word
i'll take a rusty nail and scratch your initials on my arm
and i'll show you how to sneak up on the roof of the drugstore

take the spokes from your wheellchair
and a magpies wings
and tie em to your shoulders and your feet
i'll steal a hacksaw from my dad
and cut the braces off your legs
and we'll bury them tonight in the cornfield

put a church key in your pocket
we'll hop that freight train in the hall
and we'll slide down the drain all the way
to new orleans in the fall

(Tom Waits) (C) 1978 Fifth Floor Music, Inc. (ASCAP)
Orchestra Arranged & Conducted by Bob Alcivar; Vocal &
    Piano - Tom Waits


a sweet little bullet from a pretty blue gun
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

it's raining it's pouring
and you didn't bring a sweater
nebraska'll never let you come back home
and on hollywood and vine
by the trifty mart sign
and night i'll be willin' to bet
there's a young girl
with sweet little wishes
and pretty blue dreams
standin' there and gettin' all wet

now there's a place off the drag
called the gilbert hotel
there's a couple letters burned out the sign
and it's better then a bus stop
and they do good business
every time it rains
for sweet little girls
with nothing in their jeans
but sweet little wishes
and pretty blue dreams
now it's raining it's pouring
the old man is snoring
now i lay me down to sleep
i hear the sirens in the street
all the dreams are made of chrome
i have no way to get back home
i'd rather die before i wake
like marilyn monroe
and throw my dreams out in
the street and the
rain will make em grow

now the night clerk he got a club foot
and he's heard times or more
he says check out time is 10 am

and that's just what he means
and you go up the stairs
with sweet little wishes
and pretty blue dreams

now it's raining it's pouring
and hollywoods just fine
swindle a little out of her dreams
put a letter in the sign
never trust a scarecrow
wearin' shades after dark
be areful of that old bow tie he wears
it takes asweet little bullet
from a pretty blue gun
to put those scarlet ribbons in your hair
no that ain't no cherry bomb
4th of july's all done
just some fool playin' that a second line
from the barrel of a pretty blue gun

no that ain't no cherry bomb
4th of july's all done
get some fool playin' that second line
from the barrel of a pretty blue gun.

(Tom Waits) (C) 1978 Fifth Floor Music, Inc. (ASCAP)
Tom Waits - Vocal & Electric Guitar; Gerbert Hardesty - Tenor Sax;
   "Shine" Robinson - Electric Guitar; Harold Battiste - Piano;
   Scott Edwards - Bass; Earl Palmer - Drums


blue valentines
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

She sends me blue valentines
all the way from philadelphia
to mark the anniversary
of someone that I used to be
and it feels just like there's
a warrant out for my arrest
got me checkin' in my rearview mirrror
and I'm always on the run
thats why I change my name
and I didn't think you'd ever find me here

to send me blue valentines
like half forgotten dreams
like a pebble in my shoe
as I walk these streets
and the ghost of your memory
is the thistle in the kiss
and the burgler that that can break a roses neck
it's the tattooed broken promise
that I hide beneath my sleeve
and I see you every time I turn my back

she sends me blue valentines
though I try to remain at large
they're insisting that our love
must have a culogy
why do I save all of this madness
in the nightstand drawer
there to haunt upon my shoulders
baby I know
I'd be luckier to walk around everywhere I go
with a blind and broken heart
that sleeps beneath my lapel

she sends me blue valentines
to remind me of my cardinal sin
I can never wash the guilt
or get these bloodstains off my hands
and it takes a lot of whiskey
to make these nightmares go away
and I cut my bleedin' heart out every nite
and I die a little more on each st. valentine day
remember that I promised I would
write you...
these blue valentines
     blue valentines
     blue valentines

(Tom Waits) (C) 1978 Fifth Floor Music, Inc. (ASCAP)
Tom Waits - Vocal & Electric Guitar; Electric Guitar Solo - Ray Crawford
                TOM WAITS

           "SWORDFISHTROMBONES"
         
                (p) 1983

(Taken from the inner sleeve of the LP)


UNDERGROUND
-----------

 Tom Waits: Vocal
 Victor Feldman: Bass marimba
 Larry Taylor: Acoustic bass
 Randy Aldcroft: Baritone horn
 Stephen Taylor Arvizu Hodges: Drums
 Fred Tackett: Electric guitar

Rattle Big Black Bones
in the Danger zone
there's a rumblin' groan
down below
there's a big dark town
it's a place I've found
there's a world going on
 UNDERGROUND
they're alive, 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
all the roots hang down
swing from town to town
they are marching around
down under your boots
all the trucks unload
beyond the gopher holes
there's a world going on
 UNDERGROUND


SHORE LEAVE
-----------

 Tom Waits: Chair, vocal
 Stephen Taylor Arvizu Hodges: Drums
 Randy Aldcroft: Trombone
 Victor Feldman: Marimba, bass marimba & shaker, bass drum with rice
 Larry Taylor: Acoustic bass
 Fred Tackett: Banjo, guitar
 Francis Thumm: Metal aunglongs

Well with buck shot eyes and a purple heart
I rolled down the national stroll
and with a big fat paycheck
strapped to my hip sack
and a shore leave wristwatch underneath
my sleeve
in a Hong Kong drizzle on Cuban heels
I rowed down the gutter to the Blood Bank
and I'd left all my papers on the Ticonderoga
and was in a bad need of a shave
and so I slopped at the corner on cold chow mein
and shot billards with a midget
until the rain stopped
and I bought a long sleeved shirt
with horses on the front
and some gum and a lighter and a knife
and a new deck of cards (with girls on the back)
and I sat down and wrote a letter to my wife

and I said Baby, I'm so far away from home
and I miss my Baby so
I can't make it by myself
I love you so

Well I was pacing myself
trying to make it all last
squeezing all the life
out of a lousy two day pass
and I had a cold one at the Dragon
with some Filipino floor show
and talked baseball with a lieutenant
over a Singapore sling
and I wondered how the same moon outside
over this Chinatown fair
could look down on Illinois
and find you there
and you know I love you Baby

and I'm so far away from home
and I miss my Baby so
I can't make it by myself
I love you so

Shore Leave...
Shore Leave...


DAVE THE BUTCHER (Instrumental)
----------------

 Tom Waits: Hammond B-3 organ
 Victor Feldman: Bass boo bams


JOHNSBURG, ILLINOIS
-------------------

 Tom Waits: Vocal, piano
 Greg Cohen: Bass

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


16 SHELLS FROM A 30.6
---------------------

 Tom Waits: Vocal
 Stephen Taylor Arvizu Hodges: Drums
 Larry Taylor: Acoustic bass
 Fred Tackett: Electric guitar
 Victor Feldman: Brake drum, bell plate, snare
 Joe Romano: Trombone

I plugged 16 shells from a thirty-ought-six
and a Black Crow snuck through
a hole in the sky
so I spent all my buttons on an
old pack mule
and I made me a ladder from
a pawn shop marimba
and I leaned it up against
a dandelion tree

And I filled me a sachel
full of old pig corn
and I beat me a billy
from an old French horn
and I kicked that mule
to the top of the tree
and I blew me a hole
'bout the size of a kickdrum
and I cut me a switch
from a long branch elbow

Chorus
I'm gonna whittle you into kindlin'
Black Crow 16 shells from a thirty-ought-six
whittle you into kindlin'
Black Crow 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
you got to meet me by the knuckles of the skinnybone tree
with the strings of a Washburn
stretched like a clothes line
you know me and that mule scrambled right through the hole

Repeat Chorus

Now I hold him prisoner
in a Washburn jail
that stapped on the back
of my old kick mule
strapped it on the back of my old kick mule
I bang on the strings just
to drive him crazy
I strum it loud just to rattle his cage
strum it loud just to rattle his cage

Repeat Chorus


TOWN WITH NO CHEER
------------------

 Tom Waits: Vocal harmonium, synthesizer, Freedom Bell
 Anthony Clark Stewart: Bag pipes
 Clark Spangler: Synthesizer program

Well it's hotter 'n blazes and all the long faces
there'll be no oasis for a dry local grazier
there'll be no refreshment for a thirsty jackaroo
from Melbourne to Adelaide on the overlander
with newfangled buffet cars and faster locomotives
the train stopped in Serviceton less and less often
There's nothing sadder than a town with no cheer
Voc Rail decided the canteen was no longer necessary there
no spirits, no bilgewater and 80 dry locals
and the high noon sun beats a hundred and four
there's a hummingbird trapped in a closed down shoe store

This tiny Victorian rhubarb
kept the watering hole open for sixty five years
now it's boilin' in a miserable March 21 st
wrapped the hills in a blanket of Patterson's curse
the train smokes down the xylophone
there'll be no stopping here
all ya can be is thirsty in a town with no cheer
no Bourbon, no Branchwater
though the townspeople here
fought her Vic Rail decree tooth and nail
now it's boilin' in a miserable March 21 st
wrapped the hills in a blanket of Patterson's curse
the train smokes down the xylophone
there'll be no stopping here
all ya can be is thirsty in a town with no cheer


IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD
-------------------

 Tom Waits: Vocal
 Victor Feldman: Hammond B-3 organ, snare drum, bells
 Stephen Taylor Arvizu Hodges: Parade drums, cymbals
 Larry Taylor: Acoustic bass
 Richard Reichenbach: Trombone
 Randy Aldcraft: Baritone horn
 Dick (Slyde) Hyde: Trombone

Well the eggs chase the bacon
round the fryin' pan
and the whinin' dog pidgeons
by the steeple bell rope
and the dogs tipped the garbage pails
over last night
and there's always construction work
bothering you
In the neighborhood
In the neighborhood
In the neighborhood

Friday's a funeral
and Saturday's a bride
Sey's got a pistol on the register side
and the goddamn delivery trucks
they make too much noise
and we don't get our butter
delivered no more
In the neighborhood
In the neighborhood
In the neighborhood

Well Big Mambo's kicking
his old grey hound
and the kids can't get ice cream
'cause the market burned down
and the newspaper sleeping bags
blow down the lane
and that goddamn flatbed's
got me pinned in again
In the neighborhood
In the neighborhood
In the neighborhood

There's a couple Filipino girls
gigglin' by the church
and the windoe is busted
and the landlord ain't home
and Butch joined the army
yea that's where he's been
and the jackhammer's diggin'
up the sidewalks again
In the neighborhood
In the neighborhood
In the neighborhood


JUST ANOTHER SUCKER ON THE VINE (Instrumental)
-------------------------------

 Tom Waits: Harmonium
 Joe Romano: Trumpet

FRANK'S WILD YEARS (For Frankie Z.)
------------------

 Tom Waits: Vocal
 Ronnie Barron: Hammond organ
 Larry Taylor: Acoustic bass

Well Frank settled down in the Valley
and hung his wild years
on a nail that he drove through
his wife's forehead
he sold used office furniture
out there on San Fernando Road
and assumed a $30,000 loan
at 15 1/4 % and put down payment
on a little two bedroom place
his wife was a spent piece of used jet trash
made good bloody marys
kept her mouth shut most of the time
had a little Chihuahua named Carlos
that had some kind of skin disease
and was totally blind. They had a
thoroughly modern kitchen
self-cleaning oven (the whole bit)
Frank drove a little sedan
they were so happy

One night Frank was on his way home
from work, stopped at the liquor store,
picked up a couple Mickey's Big Mouths
drank 'em in the car on his way
to the Shell station, he got a gallon of
gas in a can, drove home, doused
everything in the house, torched it,
parked across the street, laughing,
watching it burn, all Halloween
orange and chimney red then
Frank put on a top forty station
got on the Hollywood Freeway
headed north

Never could stand that dog


SWORDFISHTROMBONE
-----------------

 Tom Waits: Vocal
 Victor Feldman: Marimba, conga, bass drum, dabuki drum
 Larry Taylor: Electric bass
 Greg Cohen: Acoustic bass

Well he came home from the war
with a party in his head
and modified Brougham DeVille
and a pair of legs that opened up
like butterfly wings
and a mad dog that wouldn't
sit still
he went and took up with a Salvation Army
Band girl
who played dirty water
on a swordfishtrombone
he went to sleep at the bottom of
Tenkiller lake
and he said "gee, but it's
great to be home."

Well he came home from the war
with a party in his head
and an idea for a fireworks display
and he knew that he'd be ready with
a stainless steel machete
and a half a pint of Ballentine's
each day
and he holed up in room above a hardware store
cryin' nothing there but Hollywood tears
and he put a spell on some
poor little Crutchfield girl
and stayed like that for 27 years

Well he packed up all his
expectations he lit out for California
with a flyswatter banjo on his knee
with a lucky tiger in his angel hair
and benzedrine for getting there
they found him in a eucalyptus tree
lieutenant got him a canary bird
and shaked her head with every word
and Chesterfielded moonbeams in a song
and he got 20 years for lovin' her
from some Oklahoma governor
said everything this Doughboy
does is wrong

Now some say he's doing
the obituary mambo
and some say he's hanging on the wall
perhaps this yarn's the only thing
that holds this man together
some say he was never here at all

Some say they saw him down in
Birmingham, sleeping in a
boxcar going by
and if you think that you can tell a bigger tale
I swear to God you'd have to tell a lie...


DOWN, DOWN, DOWN
----------------

 Tom Waits: Vocal
 Stephen Taylor Arvizu Hodges: Drums
 Eric Bikales: Organ
 Larry Taylor: Acoustic bass
 Victor Feldman: Snare & tamborine
 Carlos Guitarlos: Electric guitar

He went down down down
and the devil called him by name
he went down down down
hangin' onto the back of a train
he went down down down
this boy went solid down
always chewed tobacco
and the bathtub gin
always chewed tobacco
and the bathtub gin
he went down down down
this boy went solid down
he went down

Well he went down down down
and the jumped on his head
he went down down down
stayin' in a broken down shed
he went down down down
sleepin' in the devil's bed
he went down down down
never listened to the words I said
he went down down down down
he went down

Well he went down down down
and the devil said where you been
he went down down down
he screamin' down around the bend
down down down
this boy went solid down

He was always cheatin'
and he always told lies
he was always cheatin'
and he always told lies
he went down down down
down down down
this boy went solid down
he went down


SOLDIER'S THINGS
----------------

 Tom Waits: Vocal
 Greg Cohen: Acoustic bass

Davenports and kettle drums
and swallow tail coats
table cloths and patent leather shoes
bathing suits and bowling balls
and clarinets and rings
and all this radio really
needs is a fuse
a tinker, a tailor
a soldier's things
his rifle, his boots full of rocks
and this one is for bravery
and this one is for me
and everything's a dollar
in this box

Cuff links and hub caps
trophies and paperbacks
it's good transportation
but the brakes aren't so hot
neck tie and boxing gloves
this jackknife is rusted
you can pound that dent out
on the hood
a tinker, a tailor
a soldier's things
his rifle, his boots full of rocks
oh and this one is for bravery
and this one is for me
and everything's a dollar
in this box


GIN SOAKED BOY
--------------

 Tom Waits: Vocal
 Stephen Taylor Arvizu Hodges: Drums
 Fred Tackett: Electric guitar
 Larry Taylor: Acoustic bass

I got a belly full of you
and that Leavenworth stuff
now I'm gonna get out
And I'm gonna get tough
you been lying to me
How could you crawl so low
with some gin-soaked boy
that you don't know

I come home last night
full a filth of Old Crow
you said you goin' to your ma's
but where the hell did you go
you went and slipped out nights
you didn't think that I'd know
with some
gin-soaked boy that you don't know

Well I would bet you as far
as Oklahoma by now
the dogs are barking out back
and you're knittin' your brow
well I'm on your tail I sussed your M.O.
from some gin-soaked boy
boy that you don't know


TROUBLE'S BRAIDS
----------------

 Tom Waits: Vocal
 Victor Feldman: African talking drum
 Stephen Taylor Arvizu Hodges: Parade bass drum
 Larry Taylor: Acoustic bass

Well I pulled on trouble's braids
and I hid in the briars
out by the quick mud
stayin' away from the main roads
passin' out wolf tickets
downwind from the blood hounds
and I pulled on trouble's braids
and I lay by a cypress
as quiet as a stone
'til the bleeding stopped
I blew the weather vane
off some old road house
I build a fire in the
skeleton back seat of an old Tucker
and I pulled on trouble's braids
I spanked cold red mud
where the hornet stung deep
and I tossed in the ditch
in a restless sleep
and I pulled on trouble's braids
I hung my rain-soaked jacket
on some old barbed wire
poured cold rusty water
on a miserable fire
I pulled on trouble's braids
the creek was swollen by daybreak and I could just
barely see
and I floated downstream
on an old dead tree
and I pulled on trouble's braids
I pulled on trouble's braids
I pulled on trouble's braids
I pulled on trouble's braids


RAINBIRDS (Instrumental)
---------

 Tom Waits: Piano
 Greg Cohen: Acoustic bass
 Francis Thumm, Stephen Taylor Arvizu Hodges & Richard Gibbs:
   Glass harmonica



All compositions written by Tom Waits.
All lyrics (C) 1982 Jalma Music
All rights reserved. Used by permission



All songs arranged by Tom Waits except 'Underground', 'Johnsburg, Illinois',
'Rainbirds' and 'In The Neighborhood' arranged by Tom Waits & Francis Thumm

Recorded & mixed by Biff Dawes
All songs recorded at Sunset Sound, August 1982 except 'Dave The Butcher' was
recorded at Leeds Instrument Rental. 'Frank's Wild Years' was recorded by Tim Bo
Production coordinator: Michael Solomon
Assistant engineers: Peggy McCreary, Richard McKernon, Bill Jackson
Mastered by Jeff Sanders at Kendun Recorders
Inner sleeve photo by Michael Russ
Album cover concept & design by Michael Russ & Tom Waits
Art director: Frank Mulvey

Management: Rothberg/Gerber

Dedicated to my wife, Kathleen. Special thanks to Don Passman, Francis Thumm,
Biff Dawes, Victor Feldman, Arlyne Rothberg & Bill Gerber and Peggy McCreary.

                    TOM WAITS

               "FRANKS WILD YEARS"
               
                    (p) 1987


HANG ON ST.CHRISTOPHER
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
written by Tom Waits
horn arrangements Greg Cohen

Hang on St.Christopher through the smoke
And the oil
Buckle down the rumble seat
Let the radiator boil
Got an overhead downshift
And a two dollar grill
Got an 85 cabin
On an 85 hill
Hang on St.Christopher on the passenger side
Open it up tonight the devil can ride
Hang on St.Christopher with a barrel hous dog
Keep me up Mt.Baldy
Throw me out in the fog
Tear a hole in the jack pot
Drive a stake through his heart
Do a 100 on the grapevine
Do a jump on the start
Hang on St.Christopher now don't let me go
Get me to reno and bring it in low, yeah.
Hang on St.Christopher with the hammer to the floor
Put a hi ball in the crank case
Nail a crow to the door
Get a bottle for the jockey
Gimme a 294
There's a 750 norton bustin' down january's door
Hang on St.Christopher on the passenger side
Open it up tonight the devil can ride
Hang on St.Christopher now don't let me go
Get me to reno got to bring it in low
Put my baby on the flat car
Got to burn down the caboose
Get 'em all jacked up on whiskey
Then we'll turn the mad dog loose
Hang on St.Christopher on the passenger side
Open it up tonight the devil can ride on yeah

TOM WAITS vocals
GREG COHEN alto horn
RALPH CARNEY tenor sax
MARK RIBOT guitar
WILLIAM SCHIMMEL leslie bass pedals
MICHAEL BLAIR drums



STRAIGHT TO THE TOP (RHUMBA)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
written by Tom Waits and Greg Cohen

I'm going straight to the top
Oh yea up where the air is
Fresh and clean
I'm going straight up to the top
If you know me, you know what I mean
I can't let sorrow
Try and pull of Frankie down
Live for tomorrow I have found you
I'm going straight to the top
Up where the air is fresh and clean
I know that I will never stop, oh no
Until I know I'm wild and free
Just like a champagne bubble
Pop, pop, pop
I'm like those birdies
High up in the trees
I can't let sorrow
Pull of Frankie down
Live for tomorrow
I have found you.
I'm going straight up to the top oh yeah
Up where the air is fresh and clean.

TOM WAITS vocal,optigon, conga
GREG COHEN leslie bass pedals
RALPH CARNEY saxes
LARRY TAYLOR upright bass
MICHAEL BLAIR conga
WILLIAM SCHIMMEL pumporgan



BLOW WIND BLOW
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
written by Tom Waits

Mary's on the black top
There's a husband in
Yhe dog house
In the middle of a shakedown
I got
Quiet as a church mouse
She found Raleigh's on
The dashboard
Sugar daddy caught a polocar.
Ain't no solitary
Tap dance way down here
I swear I's ridin
On a field mouse
We were dancin in the slaughterhouse
If you swing along the beltway
Then you skid along the all day
Cause I went a little crazy
And I sat upon a high chair
And I'm smoking like a diesel
Way out here
Blow wind blow - blow me away here-
Blow wind blow (repeat)

TOM WAITS vocal,pump organ
GREG COHEN alto horn
FRANCIS THUMM pump organ
MICHAEL BLAIR clockenspiel


TEMPTATION
~~~~~~~~~~
written by Tom Waits
vocal arragements Kathleen Brennan
horn arragements Greg Cohen

Rusted brandy in a diamond glass
Everything is made from dreams
Time made honey slow and sweet
On the fools know what it means
Temptation, temptation, temptation
Oh, temtation, temptation. I can't resist.
I know that she is made of smoke
But I've lost my way
She is know that I am broke
So that I must play
Temptation, temptation, temptation
Oh, temptation, temptation. I can't resist.
Dutch pink and Italian blue
She is there waiting for you
My will has disappeared
Now my confusions oh so clear
Temptation, temptation, temptation
Whoa, whoa, temptation, temptation
I can't resist.


TOM WAITS optigon, vocals, guitar
MICHAEL BLAIR repcussion, conga, marachas
RALTH CARNEY saxophone
MORRIS TEPPER guitar
MARK RIBOT guitar
GREG COHEN bass



INNOCENT WHEN YOU DREAM (BARROOM)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
written by Tom Waits

The bats are in the belfry
The dew is on the moor
Where are the arms that held me
And pledged her love before
And pledged her love before

Chorus:

It's such a sad old feeling
The fields are soft and green
It's memories that I'm stealing
But you innocent when you dream
When you dream
You're innocent when you dream

Running through the graveyard
We laughed my friends and I
We swore we'd be together
Until the day we died
Until the day we died

Repeat chorus

I made a golden promise
That we would never part
I gave my love a locket
And then I broke her heart
And then I broke her heart

Repeat chorus

TOM WAITS pump organ, vocals
GREG COHEN bass
RALPH CARNEY violin
WILLIAM SCHIMMEL piano


I'LL BE GONE
~~~~~~~~~~~~
written by Tom Waits & Kathleen Brennan

Tonight I'll shave the mountain
I'll cut the hearts from pharoahs
I pull the road off the rise
Tear the memories from my eyes
And in the morning I'll be gone
I drink 1000 shipwrecks
Tonight I'll steal your paychecks
I paint the sheets across my bed
The birds will all fly from my head
And in the morning I'll be gone
Take every dream that's breathing
Find every boot that's feaving
Shoot all the lights in the cafe
And in the morning I'll be gone
I bet 1000 dollars
I have a french companion
I tie myself below the deck
I pull the rope around my neck
And in the morning I'll be gone
It takes a life to win here
There is the drum of bourbon
800 pounds of nitro
His boots are thunder as he plays
There is a stone inside it
Tonight his bones will ride it
I'll need a tent to hide it
And in the morning I'll be gone
And in the morning I'll be gone
And in the morning I'll be gone

TOM WAITS vocal & rooster
WILLIAM SCHIMMEL accordion
GREG COHEN bass
MICHAEL BLAIR marimba
MORRIS TEPPER guitar
RALPH CARNEY baritone horn


YESTRERDAY IS HERE
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
written by Tom Waits & Kathleen Brennan

If you want money in your packet
And 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
Well I'm going to New York City
And I'm leaving on a train
And if you want to stay behind and
Wait till I'll come back again
Well today is grey skies
Tomorrow is tears
You'll have to wait till yesterday is here
If you want to go
Where the rainbows end
You'll have to say goodbye
All our dreams come true
Baby up ahead
And it's out where your memories lie
Well the roads out before me
And the moon is shining bright
What I want you to remember
As I disappear tonight
Today is grey skies
Tomorrow's tears
You'll have to wait till yesterday is here

TOM WAITS vocals, guitar & tambourine
LARRY TAYLOR bass


PLEASE WAKE ME UP
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
written by Tom Waits & Kathleen Brennan

I put my chips on her shoulder
Running in carnival time
She bought the things that I told her
They made her eyes sparkle and shine
Together we'll ring in the new year
I know that she'll be my queen
And if I fall asleep in your arms
Please wake me up in my dreams
Her out-fit was all made of vinyl
Like nothing that I've ever seen
When our divorces are final
She'll fit right into my scheme
Next to the pawnshop's a chapel
I'll show you just what I mean
And if I fall asleep in your arms
Please wake me up in my dreams.

TOM WAITS vocal, melotron & optigon
RALPH CARNEY baritone horn
GREG COHEN bass
JAY ANDERSON bass



FRANKS THEME
~~~~~~~~~~~~
written by Tom Waits

Dream away the tears in your eyes
Dream away your sorrows
Dream away all your goodbyes
Dream away tomorrow
I promise when the sun comes up
I promise I'll be true
And just like before the band starts to play
They always play your favorite tune
And dream away when everyone's gone
Dream away your grey skies too
Dream away and nothing is wrong
Dreams have wishes that are waiting for you
And up ahead the road is turning
Turning for you and me
And just like before
The band starts to play
Now there's that twinkle in your eye
And dream away

TOM WAITS vocals, pump organ


MORE THAN RAIN
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
written by Tom Waits

It's more than rain falls on our parade tonight
It's more than thunder it's more than thunder
It's more than a bad dream now that I'm sober
Nothing but sad times nothing but sad times
None of our pockets are lined with gold
Nobody's caught the bouquet
There are no dead presidents we can fold
Nothing is going our way
It's more than trouble I've got myself into
It's more than woe-be-gotten grey skies now
And it's more than a bad dream now that I'm sober
There's no more dancing there's no more dancing
And it's more than trouble I've got myself into
Nothing but sad times nothing sad times
None of our pockets are lined with gold
Nobody caught's the bouquet
There are no dead presidents we can fold
Nothing is going our way
And it's more than goodbye I have to say to you
It's more than woe-be-gotten grey skies now.

TOM WAITS vocal, optigon
GRAG COHEN bass
WILLIAM SCHIMMEL accordion
MORRIS TEPPER guitar
FRANCIS THUMM prepared piano
RALPH CARNEY baritone horn


WAY DOWN IN THE HOLE
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
written by Tom Waits

When you walk through the garden
You gotta watch your back
Well I beg your pardon
Walk the straight and narrow track
If you walk with Jesus
He's gonna save your soul
You gotta keep the devil
Way down in the hole
He's got the fire and the fury
At his command
Well you don't have to worry
If you hold on to Jesus hand
We'll all be safe from Satan
When the thunder rolls
Just gotta help me keep the devil
Way down in the hole
All the angels sing 'bout
Jesus mightly sword
And they'll shield you with your their wings
And keep you close to the lord
Don't pay heed to temptantion
For his hands are so cold
You gotta help me keep the devil
Way down in the hole...

TOM WAITS vocals
RALPH CARNEY saxes
MICHAEL BLAIR percussion
MARC RIBOT guitar
ANGELA BROWN background vocals
LESLIE HOLLAND background vocals
LYNNE JORDAN background vocals
GREG COHEN bass


STRAIGHT TO THE TOP (VEGAS)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
written by Tom Waits and Greg Cohen
arranged by Greg Cohen

TOM WAITS vocal stylings
WILLIAM SCHIMMEL cocktail piano
RALPH CARNEY tenor sax
GREG COHEN bass
MICHAEL BLAIR drums


I'LL TAKE NEW YORK
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
written by Tom Waits

I'll tip the newsboy
I'll get a shine
I'll ride this dream
To the end of the line
I'm goin places
I'll take a ride
Up to the Riverside
I'll make NY
I'll let it happen
I'll pop the cork
Tear off the wrappin'
I'll make a splash on the Hudson
That's how I will arrive
Hey, do you have two tens for a five?
Roll out the carpet
Strike up the band
Break into the best
Champagne when I land
Beat the Parade drum
Hit all the bars
I want the moon and stars
But I'll take NY
I'll make it happen
Blow out the candles
Tear off the wrappin'
And I know someday
They'll have a name a street after me
Right next door to old Franklin D
I'll take NY
I'll take NY

TOM WAITS vocal
WILLLIAM SCHIMMEL pump organ
RALPH CARNEY sax
MICHAEL BLAIR drums
GREG COHEN bass


TELEPHONE CALL FROM ISTANBUL
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
written by Tom Waits

All night long on the broken glass
Livin in a medicine chest
Mediteromanian hotel back
Sprawled across a roll top desk
The monkey rode the blade on an
Overhead fan
They paint the donkey blue if you pay
I got a telephone call from Istanbul
Wy baby's coming home today
Will you sell me one of those if I shave my head
Let me out of town is what fireball said
Never trust a man in a blue tranch coat
Never drive a car when you're dead
Saturday's a festival
Friday's a gem
Die your man yellow and raise your hem
Follow me to beulah's on
Dry creek road
I got to wear the hat that my baby done sewed
Take me down to buy a tux
On red rose bear
Got to cut a hole in the day
I got a telephone call from Istanbul
My baby's coming home today

TOM WAITS vocals, farfisa, drums
GREG COHEN bass
MORRIS TEPPER guitar
MARC RIBOT banjo
MICHAEL BLAIR drums


COLD COLD GROUND
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
written by Tom Waits

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 bout the army
In the cold cold ground.
Cold cold ground
New don't be a cry baby
When there's wood in the shed
There's a bird in the chimney
And a stone in my bed
When the road's washed out
They pass the bottle around
And wait in the arms
Of the cold cold ground
Cold cold ground
There's a ribbon in the willow
And a tire swing rope
And a bear patch of berries
Takin over the slope
The cat'll sleep in the mailbox
And we'll never go to town
Till we bury every dream in
The cold cold ground
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.
I find we'll lay down together in the cold cold ground
Cold cold ground
Cold cold ground
Call the cops on the Breedloves
Bring a bible and a rope
And 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
Cold cold ground
Take a weathervane rooster
Throw rocks at his head
Stop talking to the neighbours
Till we all go dead
Beware of my temper
And the dog that I've found
Break all the windows in the
Cold cold ground
Cold cold ground

TOM WAITS guitars & vocal
DAVID HIDALGO accordion
LARRY TAYLOR bass


TRAIN SONG
~~~~~~~~~~
written by Tom Waits

Well I broke down in E.St.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
And now the night's black as a crow
It was a train that took me away from here
But a train can't bring me home
What made my dreams so hollow
Was standing at the depot
With a steeple full of swallows
That could never ring the bell
And I come ten thousand miles away
With not one thing to show
Well it was a train that took me away from here
But a train can't take me home
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 sorry for what I've done
And I'm out here on my own
Well it was a train that took me away from
Here but a train can't bring me home

TOM WAITS piano, vocal, pump organ
DAVID HIDALGO accordion
LARRY TAYLOR bass
GREG COHEN alto horn


Produced by Tom Waits
Producer's assistant Ellen Smith
Recorded by Danny Leake & Biff Dawes
Mixed by Biff Dawes
Additional engineers Tchad Blake, David Glover, Mike Kloster,
Stephen Shelton, David Knight, Lorita Delacerna, Bill Higley

Recorded at Sunset Sound, Los Angeles
Sunset Sounds Factory, Los Angeles
Universal Recording Corp., Chicago


TOM WAITS
"Night On Earth" (1991)

original soundtrack recording
film by JIM JARMUSCH
music by TOM WAITS
original songs by TOM WAITS & KATHLEEN BRENNAN


BACK IN THE GOOD OLD WORLD (GYPSY)

When I was a boy, the moon was a pearl the sun a yellow gold.
But when I was a man, the wind blew cold the hills were upside down.
But now that I have gone from here there's no place I'd rather be
than to float my chances on the tide Back in the good old world.
On October's last I'll fly back home rolling down winding way.
Scare crows are all dressed in rags out at the edge of the field I lay
and all I've got's a pocket full of flowers on my grave.
Oh but summer is gone I remember it best
Back in the good old world.


GOOD OLD WORLD (waltz)

When I was a boy, the moon was a pearl the sun a yellow gold.
But when I was a man, the wind blew cold the hills were upside down
But now that I have gone from here there's no place I'd rather be
than to float my chances on the tide Back in the good old world.
On October's last, I'll fly back home rolling down winding way
And all I've got's a pocket full of flowers on my grave.
But now summer is gone I remember it best
Back in the good old world I remember when, she held my hand
and we walked home alone in the rain how pretty her mouth, how soft her hair
nothing can be the same and there's a rose upon her breast
where I long to lay my head and her hair was so yellow
and the wine was so red Back in the good old world.


THE OTHER SIDE OF THE WORLD

There's a blue eyed girl with a red bow tie
and a string of pearls with one good eye
in a rainy town the chimney smoke will curl
no one likes clowns on the other side of the world

and the children know she'll never let me go.

there's a one legged priest that tangos with the farmers wife
Beauty and the beast is taking her own life
and a tear on a letter back home turns into a lake of your own
and a crow turns into a girl on the other side of the world

and she tastes like the sea and she's waiting for me

in the spring the weeds will show that he brought back the only rose
and he gave it to his girl on the other side of the world.

And I drink champagne from your thin blue viens

She visits his grave wearing her mother's shawl
should I shave or end it all.
There's an old sailor song that the children know
as their fingers curl around the other side of the world

on a bone white mare lost in Kathleen's hair

in the spring the weeds will show that he brought back the only rose
and he gave it to his girl on the other side of the world.



1. Back In The Good Old World (gypsy) vocal (2:25)
2. Los Angeles Mood (chromium descensions) (3:20)
3. Los Angeles theme (another private dick) (4:28)
4. New York theme (hey, you can have that heartattack outside buddy) (4:04)
5. New York mood (a new haircut and a busted lip) (3:18)
6. Baby I'm not a baby anymore (Beatrice theme) (2:39)
7. Good Old World (waltz) (3:27)
8. Carnival (Brunello Del Montalcino) (3:39)
9. On The Other Side Of The World vocal (5:15)
10. Good Old World (gypsy instrumental) (3:00)
11. Paris Mood (un de fromage) (2:40)
12. Dragging a Dead Priest (4:00)
13. Helsinki Mood (4:50)
14. Carnival Bob's confession (2:10)
15. Good Old World (waltz) vocal (4:00)
16. On The Other Side Of The World (instrumental) (4:05)

produced by TOM WAITS songs arranged by TOM WAITS & FRANCIS THUMM
music by TOM WAITS original songs written by TOM WAITS & KATHLEEN BRENNAN
published by JALMA MUSIC administered by ACKEE MUSIC, INC. (ASCAP)

musitians

RALPH CARNEY - trumpet, alto and tenor sax, bass clarinet, clarinet, baritone horn & pan pipes
CLARK SUPRYNOWITZ - bass MATTHEW BRUBECK - cello
JOE GORE - guitars & banjo FRANCIS THUMM - harmonium & stinson band organ
MULE PATTERSON - drums, percussion & piano JOSEF BRINCKMANN - accordion
TOM WAITS - vocals
Recorded and mixed by BIFF DAWES at PRAIRE SUN STUDIOS
Assistant engineer - JOE MARQUEZ Mastered by GEORGE HORN at FANTASY STUDIOS