John Cougar Mellencamp

[fox69]

"Empty Hands"

"Empty Hands"



In the shadows of the smokestacks
Through the black snow that lay on the land
Walked home one winter morning
With my life's savings in my hand
Maryanne, she's fixin' up some breakfast
Got the lights on, on the Christmas tree
Sittin' there lookin' up at an angel
With something dyin' inside of me

Grew up with great expectations
Heard the promise and I knew the plan
They say people get what they deserve
But Lord, sometimes it's much worse than that
Maryanne she's takin' in some laundry
I got a part-time job at a drive-in stand
Oh Lord, what did I do
To deserve these empty hands

Across the cities, across this land
Through the valleys, and across the sand
To many people standin' in line
Too many people with nothin' planned
There's too many people with empty hands

Now Maryanne's been cryin'
Lord knows I love her the best I can
When my pride is bruised and broken
She slips her hand into my empty hands
Without hope, without love, you've got nothing but pain
Just makes a man not give a damn
That's no way for us to live
We've got to fill these empty hands

 

[fox69]

"Factory"

"Factory"


Be yourself, boys
Let's get this show on the road

Well I'm up every morning by 6:08
Take the Voltswagon bus up the interstate
Feel Charlie Manson just like ...
I'm diggin' real hard for some money to spend
Well it ain't that bad if the summer's free
I got my evenings ... to cruise the scene oh yeah

I got a pretty old lady
Who rolls back in the morning
She don't pressure me about my over time
Got a kickin' black chick
Who meets me in the alley
Sayin' unsnap your jeans, baby
I'll take what I find
I got non-stop shootem up, on a layaway plan
I've got a workman's compensation, I'm a union man

[Chorus:]
Working at the factoy
Gonna get me some of them luxuries
Well now me and the boys
Machines are making noise
Working at the factory (moola)

It works like this

I got one eye on the time clock
I got my other eye on, the girl in the hall
I got this ... rocket, hum, stuck right here in my pocket
Waitin' for the five o'clock whistle to call
I'm the whistle dancer of the production line
I got an encour tomarrow at the very same time

[Chorus 2x]

 

[fox69]

"Farewell Angelina"

"Farewell Angelina"



Farewell Angelina, the bells of the crown
Are being stolen by bandits, I must follow the sound
The triangle tingles, the music plays slow
But farewell Angelina, the night is on fire, and I must go

There is no use in talking and there's no need for blame
There is nothing to prove, everything still is the same
The table stands empty by the edge of the stream
But farewell Angelina, the sky's changing colors, and I must leave

The jacks and the queens they have forsake the courtyard
Fifty-two gypsies now file past the guard
In the space where the deuce and the ace once ran wild
Farewell Angelina, the sky is folding, I'll see you after a while

See the cross-eyed pirate sit perched in the sun
Shooting tin cans with a sawed-off shotgun
And the corporals and the neighbors clap and cheer with each blast
But farewell Angelina, the sky is trembling, and I must leave fast

King Kong little elves in the rooftops they dance
Valentino-type tangos while the hero's clean hands
Shut the eyes of the dead not to embarrass anyone
Farewell Angelina, the sky is flooding over, and I must be gone

The camouflaged parrot, he flutters from fear
When something he doesn't know about suddenly appears
What can not be imitated perfect must die
Farewell Angelina, the sky's flooding over, and I must go where it is dry

Machine guns are roaring, puppets heave rocks
At misunderstood visions and at the faces of clocks
Call me any name you like, I will never deny it
But farewell Angelina, the sky is erupting, and I must go where it's quiet

 

[fox69]

"For The Children"

"For The Children"



I wish I could give you an answer
As to when life really begins
I wish I could tell you where we went
When our days here come to an end
Wish I could see the future
The same way I see the past
Wish I could draw a conclusion
Why nothing here seems to last

I can't even make a guess
Or an uneducated thought
All I can do here is my best
And be thankful for what we've got

Why do so many suffer
Oppressed to the end of time
Why does freedom move so slowly
Unable to speak its mind
Some say it's a circle
Others think we live on the wing
Why are promises broken
And some think life don't mean a thing

I can't even make a guess
Or an uneducated thought
All I can do here is my best
And be thankful for what we've got

I hope you can be a child of life
With big dreams for everyone
And know that dying's as natural as birth
And our troubles here they don't last long
I have worried about many things
Most of which did not come to pass
Hope you find someone to give you love
And that your love will last

I can't even make a guess
Or an uneducated thought
All I can do here is my best
And be thankful for what we've got
We've got...

 

[fox69]

"Forgiveness"

"Forgiveness"



When I think of all the wrong I've done
I can't believe it's me that I'm talking about
I bet the same goes for you

There is plenty of goodness in this world
I hope some day to find it all
I hope the same goes for you
I hope the same goes for you

Thank God for forgiveness
I don't know how else we could get along
Without forgiveness
Without forgiveness

I'd like to say I'm sorry now
I hope this message is not too late
I bet the same goes for you
I hope the same goes for you

Thank God for forgiveness
I don't know how else we could get along
Without forgiveness
Without forgiveness

If there is peace of mind at all
I'd like to know it someday
I bet the same goes for you
I hope the same goes for you
I hope the same goes for you

Thank God for forgiveness
I don't know how else we could get along
Without forgiveness
Without forgiveness

 

[fox69]

"Freedom Of Speech"

"Freedom Of Speech"



Freedom of speech
Freedom to say
Freedom to think
Freedom of Speech
This is my lucky day
Freedom of thought
Freedom of dreams
Freedom to believe
That we all can be kings

Freedom is yours
Freedom is mine
Freedom of speech
So I can write down these lines
If you and I agree
Hold out your hand to me
We will share our freedoms
With our friends and family

Freedom of speech
Freedom to say
Freedom to think
This is my lucky day
Freedom of thought
Freedom of dreams
Freedom to believe
That we all can be kings

We can take our thoughts
So many ways
If your thoughts are different
Well, I think that’s okay
We should all try
To keep the Golden Rule
And cherish our freedom
At home and in our schools

Freedom of speech
Freedom to say
Freedom to think
This is my lucky day
Freedom of thought

Freedom of dreams
Freedom to believe
That we all can be kings
All can be kings

 

[fox69]

"Freedom's Road"

"Freedom's Road"



I'm navigating my way down Freedom's Road
Trying to make my way back home
I got my foot to the floor
But she must need bleeding
This car just don't want to roll
Freedom's Road must be under construction
Sometimes you wonder what kind of freedom they're talking
If you're here looking for the devil
You'll find him on Freedom's Road

Freedom's Road, Freedom's Road
If you want to take a ride
Well you've got to pay the toll
Freedom's Road, Freedom's Road
If you're looking for the devil
He's out there on Freedom's Road

Sometimes there's rape sometimes there'll be murder
Sometimes just darkness everywhere
No passing signs and barbed wire fences
Misinformation but no one cares
Freedom's Road can get narrow
No one wants to know you
If there's no pork in your barrel
If you're here looking for the devil
He's out there on Freedom's Road

Freedom's Road, Freedom's Road
If you want to take a ride
Well you've got to pay the toll
Freedom's Road, Freedom's Road
If you're looking for the devil
He's out there on Freedom's Road

You can drop your bombs
You can beat the people senseless
But that won't get you anywhere
Hide your agendas behind public consensus
And say that this world just ain't fair
Freedom's Road is a promise to the people
You'll never fool us now
With all your lying and cheating
If you're here wanting a crown in heaven
It's out there on Freedom's Road

Freedom's Road, Freedom's Road
If you want to take a ride
Well you've got to pay the toll
Freedom's Road, Freedom's Road
If you're looking for the devil
He's out there on Freedom's Road

 

[fox69]

"French Shoes"

"French Shoes"



He was a good lookin' guy.
Stood about six foot three,
Long brown hair
As nice as he could be.
Everybody liked him
But he didn't have a clue,
He looked silly as hell
In those funny French shoes.

You know the type
Without any heels,
Leather soles,
Kind of a slip on deal.
He was cavalier
Whether he'd win or lose
But he looked silly as hell
In those funny French shoes.

I know it's not right
To judge a man by his clothes,
By the way that he looks
Or the people he may know.
I'm embarrassed to say
If I had to choose
I could never really trust
Any man wearing those funny French shoes.

Funny French shoes,
Funny French shoes,
No man should be wearin'
Those funny French shoes.
They look good on a woman's foot.
I must say that they do
But no guy should be wearin'
Those funny French shoes.

Get some socks on, man!

 

[fox69]

"Fruit Trader"

"Fruit Trader"



Cain told Abel, "Brother, you'd better get busy
We got watermelon burnin' up out there in the sun"
Abel said, "Cain, brother, you're drivin' me silly
Raisin' up this fruit trader bull, you know it ain't no fun"

We're just yellin' in the dark
We're just pissin' in the wind
From underneath the sheets that we pray from
Better let a little bit of this goodness get in

So Cain rose up and he slay his brother
The human soul and violence sometimes can be the next of kin
And feelings are real in moments of desperation
When the lowest dimension of the animal is let in

We're just yellin' in the dark
We're just pissin' in the wind
From underneath the sheets that we pray from
Better let a little bit of this goodness get in

Ain't got no purpose, ain't got no direction, I ain't got no morals
Ain't got no politics, ain't got no particular point of view
What I've got is plenty of time on my hands, Ol' Skinny's playground
Hey, Lord, tell me again, what you want me to do?

We're just yellin' in the dark
We're just pissin' in the wind
From underneath the sheets that we pray from
Better let a little bit of this beauty
Better let a little bit of this goodness get in

 

[fox69]

"Gearhead"

"Gearhead"


As the sound bounds in the street
And you settle down to your back seat
And the movement seems to be
[?]
And all the jokes that you use to poke
At all the dopes you were once seen with

And every word that you had [?]
Was looking up to you for a reason
And you joke at all the words that you spoke
And you say hey man I was only teasing
And the rhyme is no longer in time
And all the words are not the words you been needin'

Well your not alone, you can feel right at home
You've been fully wronged, into position
Its the nature of the race, in an old type of place [?]
Cause they'll spit in your face in their conditioned

And now you think to yourself, what is left for tomorrow
And it seems kinda strange, there's nothing left to gain
And nothing left to borrow
And the mistake your about to make
Will be the final take of your sorrow

[Chorus]