John Prine

[fox69]

"Come Back To Us Barbara Lewis Hare Krishna Beauregard"

"Come Back To Us Barbara Lewis Hare Krishna Beauregard"


The last time that I saw her
She was standing in the rain
With her overcoat under her arm
Leaning on a horsehead cane
She said "Carl, take all the money"
She called everybody Carl
"My spirit's broke"
"My mind's a joke,"
"And getting up's real hard"

[Chorus:]
Don't you know her
When you see her?
She grew up
In your back yard
Come back to us
Barbara Lewis
Hare Krishna
Beauregard

Selling bibles at the airports
Buying Quaaludes on the phone
Hey, you talk about
A paper route
She's a shut in without a home
God save her, please
She's nailed her knees
To some drugstore parking lot
Hey, Mr. Brown
Turn the volume down
I believe this evening's shot

[Chorus]

Can't you picture her next Thursday?
Can you picture her at all?
In the Hotel Boulderado
At the dark end of the hall
I gotta shake myself and wonder
Why she even bothers me
For if heartaches were commercials
We'd all be on T.V.

[Chorus]

 

[fox69]

"Common Sense"

"Common Sense"



You can't live together
You can't live alone
Considering the weather
Oh my, how you've grown
From the men in the factories
To the wild kangaroo
Like those birds of a feather
They're gathering together
And feeling
Exactly like you

They got mesmerized
By lullabies
And limbo danced
In pairs
Please lock that door
It don't make much sense
That common sense
Don't make no sense
No more

Just between you and me
It's like pulling
When you ought to be shovin,
Like a nun
With her head in the oven
Please don't tell me
That this really wasn't nothing

One of these days
One of these nights
You'll take off your hat
And they'll read you
Your rights
You'll wanna get high
Every time you feel low
Hey, Queen Isabella
Stay away from that fella
He'll just get you
Into trouble, you know?

But they came here by boat
And they came here by plane
They blistered their hands
And they burned out their brain
All dreaming a dream
That'll never come true
Hey, don't give me no trouble
Or I'll call up my double
We'll play piggy-in-the-middle
With you

You'll get mesmerized
By alibis
And limbo dance in pairs
Please lock that door
It don't make much sense
That common sense
Don't make no sense
No more

 

[fox69]

"Crazy As A Loon"

"Crazy As A Loon"



Back before I was a movie star
Straight off of the farm
I had a picture of another man's wife
Tattooed on my arm
With a pack of Camel cigarettes
In the sleeve of my tee shirt
I'm headin' out to Hollywood
Just to have my feelings hurt

That town will make you crazy
Just give it a little time
You'll be walking 'round in circles
Down at Hollywood and Vine
You'll be waitin' on a phone call
At the wrong end of a broom
Yes, that town'll make you crazy
Crazy as a loon

So, I headed down to Nashville
To become a country star
Every night you'd find me hangin'
At every honky-tonk and bar
Pretty soon I met a woman
Pretty soon she done me wrong
Pretty soon my life got sadder
Than any country song

That town will make you crazy
Just give it a little time
You'll be walking 'round in circles
Lookin' for that country rhyme
You'll be waitin' on a phone call
At the wrong end of a broom
Yea, that town'll make you crazy
Crazy as a loon

So, I gathered up my savvy
Bought myself a business suit
I headed up to New York City
Where a man can make some loot
I got hired Monday morning
Downsized that afternoon
Overcome with grief that evening
Now I'm crazy as a loon

So I'm up here in the north woods
Just staring at a lake
Wondering just exactly how much
They think a man can take
I eat fish to pass the time away
'Neath this blue Canadian moon
This old world has made me crazy
Crazy as a loon
Lord, this world will make you crazy
Crazy as a loon

 

[fox69]

"Crooked Piece Of Time"

"Crooked Piece Of Time"



Things got rough
Things got tough
Things got harder than hard
We were just trying to make a livin'
In our back yard

We were born too late died to soon
Anxiety's a terrible crime
If you don't come now don't come at all
'cause it's a crooked piece of time.

It's a crooked piece of time that we live in
A crooked piece of time
All in all and all in all
It's a crooked piece of time.

Yesterday morning an ill wind came
Blew your picture
Right out of the picture frame
Even blew the candle out
From underneath the flame
Yesterday morning an ill wind came.

 

[fox69]

"Daddy's Little Pumpkin"

"Daddy's Little Pumpkin"



You must be daddy's little pumpkin
I can tell by the way you roll
You must be daddy's little pumpkin
I can tell by the way you roll
Why it's quarter past eleven
And you're sleeping on the bedroom floor

I can see the fire burning
Burning right behind your eyes
I can see the fire burning
Burning right behind your eyes
You must of swallowed a candle
Or some other kind of surprise

I'm going down to Memphis
I got three hundred dollars in cash
I'm going down to Memphis
I got three hundred dollars in cash
All the women in Memphis
Want to see how long my money will last

I'm going downtown
I'm gonna to rattle somebody's cage

I'm going downtown
I'm gonna rattle somebody's cage
I'm gonna beat on my guitar
And strut all around the stage

If you see my baby coming
Don't tell her that her daddy's in jail
If you see my baby coming
Don't you tell her that her daddy's in jail
She'd sell her little pumpkin just to raise
Her sweet daddy's bail

You must be daddy's little pumpkin
I can tell by the way you roll
You must be daddy's little pumpkin
I can tell by the way you roll
You never do nothing
To save your doggone soul.

 

[fox69]

"Day Is Done"

"Day Is Done"



Do you like me?
Well I hope you do
Cause if you like me
Then I think I'm gonna to have to like you too

We'll share our things
And have some fun
Then we'll say goodbye
And go back home when the day is done

If you tell me
I'll tell you too
And we'll say the things
And do the things that lovers do

We'll keep it to ourselves
We won't hurt no one
Then we'll say goodbye
And go back home when the day is done

We'll carve our names
On a tree
Then we'll burn it down
So no one in the world will see

And we'll make love
While we watch the flame
Then we'll walk away
As if we never had no shame

Now we must hide
To be alone
And we can't say
Our sweet things on the telephone

If we can't stop
What we've begun
We should say goodbye
And go back home when the day is done

Do you still like me?
Well I hope you do
Cause if you still like me
Then I think I'm gonna have to still like you

We shared our things
And had some fun
Now we'll say goodbye
And go back home when the day is done

Yeah, we'll say goodbye
And go back home while
We still have one
Let's say goodbye and go back home
Now the day is done

 

[fox69]

"Dear Abby"

"Dear Abby"


Dear Abby, Dear Abby...
My feet are too long
My hair's falling out and my rights are all wrong
My friends they all tell me that I've no friends at all
Won't you write me a letter, Won't you give me a call
Signed Bewildered

Bewildered, Bewildered...

[Chorus:]
You have no complaint
You are what your are and you ain't what you ain't
So listen up Buster, and listen up good
Stop wishing for bad luck and knocking on wood

Dear Abby, Dear Abby...
My fountain pen leaks
My wife hollers at me and my kids are all freaks
Every side I get up on is the wrong side of bed
If it weren't so expensive I'd wish I were dead
Signed Unhappy

Unhappy, Unhappy...

[Chorus]

Dear Abby, Dear Abby...
You won't believe this
But my stomach makes noises whenever I kiss
My girlfriend tells me It's all in my head
But my stomach tells me to write you instead
Signed Noise-maker

Noise-maker, Noise-maker

[Chorus]

Dear Abby, Dear Abby...
Well I never thought
That me and my girlfriend would ever get caught
We were sitting in the back seat just shooting the breeze
With her hair up in curlers and her pants to her knees
Signed Just Married

Just Married, Just Married...

[Chorus]

 

[fox69]

"Dear John (I Sent Your Saddle Home)"

"Dear John (I Sent Your Saddle Home)"



When I woke up this morning
There was a note upon my door
Saying " Don't make me no coffee, Babe
Cause I won't be back no more"

And that's all she wrote
"Dear John", I sent your saddle home"

Now Jonah got along in the belly of a whale
Daniel in the lion's den
I know a guy that didn't try to get along
And he won't get a chance again

That's all she wrote
"Dear John", I sent your saddle home"

She didn't forward no address
No she never said goodbye
All she said was "If you get blue
Just hang your little head and cry"

That's all she wrote
"Dear John", I sent your saddle home"

Now my gal's short and stubby
She's mean as she can be
If that little old gal of mine
Ever gets a hold of me

That's all she wrote
"Dear John", I fetched your saddle home"

Went down to the bank this morning
The cashier said with a grin
I'm sorry for you Little John
But your wife has done been in

That's all she wrote
"Dear John", I sent your saddle home"

That's all she wrote
"Dear John", I sent your saddle home"

 

[fox69]

"Death Of Floyd Collins"

"Death Of Floyd Collins"



Oh, come all ye young people and listen while I tell,
The fate of Floyd Collins, the lad we all knew well,
His face was fair and handsome, his heart was true and brave,
His body now lies sleeping in a lonely sandstone cave.
Oh , mother don't you worry, dear father don't' be sad,
I'll tell you all my troubles in an awful dream I had,
I dreamed I was a prisoner, my life I could not save,
I cried "Oh must I perish within this silent cave.

The rescue party labored, they worked both night and day,
To move the mighty barrier that stood within their way,
To rescue Floyd Collins, it was their battle cry,
"We'll never, no we'll never, let Floyd Collins die."

But on that fateful morning, the sun rose in the sky,
The workers still were busy, "we'll save him by and by,"
But oh how sad the ending, his life could not be saved,
His body was then sleeping in the lonely sandstone cave.

Young people, all take warning from Floyd Collin's fate,
And get right with your maker before it is too late.

It may not be a Sand Cave in which we find our tomb,
But on that day of judgment, we too must meet our doom.

 

[fox69]

"Diamonds In The Rough"

"Diamonds In The Rough"



While walking out, one evening,
Not knowing where to go
Just to pass the time away
Before we held our show
I heard a little mission band
Playing with all their might
I gave my soul to Jesus
And left the show that night
The day will soon be over
And evening will be done
No more gems to be gathered
So let us all press on
When Jesus comes to claim us
And says it is enough
The diamonds will be shining
No longer in the rough