Tom Waits

[fox69]

"What's He Building?"

"What's He Building?"


What's he building in there?
What the hell is he building
In there?
He has subscriptions to those
Magazines... He never
Waves when he goes by
He's hiding something from
The rest of us... He's all
To himself... I think I know
Why... He took down the
Tire swing from the Peppertree
He has no children of his
Own you see... He has no dog
And he has no friends and
His lawn is dying... and
What about all those packages
He sends. What's he building in there?
With that hook light
On the stairs. What's he building
In there... I'll tell you one thing
He's not building a playhouse for
The children what's he building
In there?

Now what's that sound from under the door?
He's pounding nails into a
Hardwood floor... and I
Swear to god I heard someone
Moaning low... and I keep
Seeing the blue light of a
T.V. show...
He has a router
And a table saw... and you
Won't believe what Mr. Sticha saw
There's poison underneath the sink
Of course... But there's also
Enough formaldehyde to choke
A horse... What's he building
In there. What the hell is he
Building in there? I heard he
Has an ex-wife in some place
Called Mayors Income, Tennessee
And he used to have a
consulting business in Indonesia...
but what is he building in there?
What the hell is building in there?

He has no friends
But he gets a lot of mail
I'll bet he spent a little
Time in jail...
I heard he was up on the
Roof last night
Signaling with a flashlight
And what's that tune he's
Always whistling...
What's he building in there?
What's he building in there?

We have a right to know...

 

[fox69]

"When You Ain't Got Nobody"

"When You Ain't Got Nobody"


Well when you ain't got nobody, anybody looks nice
Don't take much to make you stop and look twice
And it's either feast or famine, I've found out that it's true
And I'm hungry as a bull dog, baby how about you
And when you ain't got no big mama, all the mamas look hot
And when lovin' is you weakness, your just bound to get caught
And the story never changes, history tells it so plain
And I'll be your Dick, honey, if you'll just be my Jane
And when you ain't got nobody, anybody looks nice
It don't take much to make you stop and look twice
And it's either feast or famine, I've found out that it's true
And I'm hungry as a bull dog, baby how about you, baby how about you

 

[fox69]

"Whistle Down The Wind"

"Whistle Down The Wind"


I've grown up here now
All of my life
But I dreamed
Someday I'd go
Where blue eyed girls
And red guitars and
Naked rivers flow

I'm not all I thought I'd be
I always stayed around
I've been as far as Mercy and Grand
Frozen to the ground
I can't stay here and I'm scared to leave
(Just kiss me once and then)
I'll go to hell
I might as well
Be whistlin' down the wind

The bus at the corner
The clock's on the wall
Broken windmill
There's no wind at all
I've yelled and I cursed
If i stay here I'll rust
I'm stuck like a shipwreck
Out here in the dust

Sky is red
And there world's on fire
And the corn is taller than me
The dog is tied
To a wagon of rain
And the road is as wet as the sea
And sometimes the music from a dance
Will carry across the plains
And the places that I'm dreaming of
Do they dream only of me?
There are places where they never sleep
And the circus never ends
So I will take the Marley Bone Coach
And whistle down the wind

 

[fox69]

"Whistlin' Past The Graveyard"

"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

 

[fox69]

"Who Are You?"

"Who Are You?"


They're lining up
To mad dog your tilta whirl
3 shots for a dollar
Win a real live doll
All the lies that you tell
I believed them so well. Take them back
Take them back to your red house
For that fearful leap into the dark
I did my time
In the jail of your arms
Now Ophelia wants to know
Where she should turn
Tell me...what did you do
What did you do the last time?
Why don't you do that
Go on ahead and take this the wrong way
Time's not your friend
Do you cry. Do you pray
Do you wish them away
Do you still leave nothing
But bones in the way
Did you bury the carnival
Lions and all
Excuse me while I sharpen my nails
And just who are you this time?
You look rather tired
(Who drinks from your shoe)
Are you pretending to love
Well I hear that it pays well
How do your pistol and your Bible and your
Sleeping pills go?
Are you still jumping out of windows in expensive clothes?

Well I fell in love
With your sailor's mouth and your wounded eyes
You better get down on the floor
Don't you know this is war
Tell me who are you this time?
Tell me who are you this time?

 

[fox69]

"Widow's Grove"

"Widow's Grove"


I met you in the saddle, rode you in the dust
Held your hand to the heavens, pulled your heart to the earth
There was something that blinded me more than the mist
And the breath of the cottonwood buds lighter yet

And you rode the maypole of dance hall legs
And galloped to another's embrace
And I bit the flowers from your wrist corsage
And you waltzed too slowly, too slowly you waltzed
With that girl from Widow's Grove

Oh, I'd follow you to the river, that washes out to the sea
Through the wind, through the rain of a cold dark night
That's where I'll be

Near the breath of a swallow, petals dropped as you fell
And you grabbed then shyly held me, against the stone cold well
In your hand was a glass, you held the ice against the night
And it dripped and it sparkled and I laughed a wish

Before it all slipped down the dark tunneled well
I heard it melt quietly and I looked at you
Bent to the earth with just one pleading wish
Your skirts brushed to the furious pounding

Oh, I'd follow you to the river, that washes out to the sea
Through the wind, through the rain of a cold dark night
That's where I'll be

I hid in the elm and raised the bough, that hung even with your neck
And I chased you and drowned you, there deep in the well
And when your mouth was full and wet, I swallowed all your reckless fate
And with your last breath, you moaned too drunk to wake

Oh, I'd follow you to the river, that washes out to the sea
Through the wind, through the rain of a cold dark night
That's where I'll be
Through the wind, through the rain of a cold dark night
That's where I'll be

 

[fox69]

"Woe"

"Woe"


The ribbon round your neck
Aganist your skin that's pale as bone
If is my favorite thing you've worn
The band is playing our song
And we wan't go home, 'til morn

 

[fox69]

"Wrong Side Of The Road"

"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

 

[fox69]

"Yesterday Is Here"

"Yesterday Is Here"


If you want money in your pocket
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 til 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 til I come back again
well today is grey skies
tomorrow is tears
you'll have to wait til 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 road's 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 til yesterday is here

 

[fox69]

"You Can Never Hold Back Spring"

"You Can Never Hold Back Spring"


You can never hold back spring
You can be sure that I will never
Stop believing
The blushing rose will climb
Spring ahead or fall behind
Winter dreams the same dream
Every time

You can never hold back spring
Even though you've lost your way
The world keeps dreaming of spring

So close your eyes
Open you heart
To one who's dreaming of you
You can never hold back spring
Baby

Remember everything that spring
Can bring
You can never hold back spring