| Everything's Fine
Ballad Of John Parker
Down the rough road where the asphalt is split
Stumbles a man down to his wits
Brother oh brother what's left to regret
Known by the way that he carries his load
Early one morning in the warehouse of souls
Digger was bent to carry the load
Digger oh Digger what's left to reveal
Known by the way that he carries the load
I was a gambler and I was a king
The world of sin was all my domain
Now I am bent, broken and spent
Known by the way that I carried the load
A priest came along and said forty words
Up from the ground rose a great bird
Raven oh Raven why do you fly
Known by the way he carries the load
Known by the way he carries the load
Christmas In Nevada
Flip the switch
And let the gamblers roll
I'm headed up from old Mexico
The border towns
All look the same
Brand new suit
And a bankers roll
Switchblade knife
And no place to go
Except where I might find
The next game
Lights go on across the town
Children's choir sings
Auld lang syne
The black jack dealers
Take their toll
I look up
From this beat park bench
Into an ocean
Of discontent
I can't wait to buy a ticket to anywhere
But home
Washing dishes
Behind the casino grill
Ain't no way
To make a kill
But on the winter nights
The water keeps me warm
I'll take my pay
And buy a gun
Steal a car
And hope it runs
Find a place
To make my name
Closing Time
There's a place in Sand Canyon
Where the sun's always set
Beneath the Sierra Nevadas
In the shadow of a cliff
There's a face in the mirror
I haven't seen yet
This bar looks as good as any
For a little refreshment
Closing time, closing time
I'll sit here awhile
And drink this bottle real slow
And let the jukebox lull me gently
Before it's time to go
Give me refuge from the daytime
Give me solace from the night
Let me tithe in the only church I know
Give me one more drink before the lights go low
Closing time, closing time
Turn the key, lock the door
I'm going home
Drunkards Prayer
Tonight I'll say the drunkard's prayer
Down the hatch and drown myself to sleep
I'll close my eyes and stumble round
And fall down on my knees
I'll raise the glass
As it raises me
I'll say a prayer
A prayer for release
Shame acts like a mirror
And reflects all I see
There's blood in this whiskey
It works its charm on me
I'll hold the glass
As it holds me
I'll say a prayer
Prayer for release
I catalog the nameless sins
And ask for my forgiveness
All I see is my mother's face
And my father's blind contrition
I'll lift the glass
As it lifts me
I'll say a prayer
A prayer for release
All I want is the devil's due
Cast me out among my inventions
I'll tell the tale that's been told
And live with my suspicions
I'll raise the glass
As it raises me
I'll say a prayer
A prayer for release
Kite Flying
Beneath the blue Organ Mountains
Beneath the sky and the stars
Far from the trail I hear
You sigh
I hear you sigh
In the skin, in the skin
Where memory begins
In the skin, in the skin
It stretches thin
In the wind
Freed from the flesh and the bone
Stretched on a cross of wood
Tied to a string and then
Flown away in the wind
In the skin, in the skin
Where memory begins
In the skin, in the skin
It stretches thin
In the wind
Massachusetts
Jesus in a candle on the table
Rabbit's foot in the window
A hallway leads to nowhere
Right outside the door
They say a man can go by the way
If all he does in linger
I say salvation is in the smallest things
That life has to deliver
I'm stuck inside
In the snow
I'm stuck inside
In the snow
In
Massachusetts
We filed a flight plan for the bats
And left all the windows open
It gets so quiet in here I can hear the clock
In my upstairs neighbor's bedroom
They say that time will be your friend
It'll get better in the end
Everything will be alright
It never seems that way this time of night
I'm stuck inside
In the snow
I'm stuck inside
In the snow
In
Massachusetts
Notes From The Waiting Room
Come and sit yourself beside me
This will be my last request
I was born in this high mountains
Leave my ashes here to rest
Cover me with blankets of flowers
A pillow of satin for my head
Lay me out in sheets of linen
Sing a sweet song when I'm dead
Say goodbye to these high valleys
Say goodbye to the steam trains moan
Give me wings to fly over deserts
Let me loose where the wild horses roam
Give my love to all my family
Say a prayer for all my friends
Most of them have gone before me
I hope to see them in the end
Open the window and let me breathe slowly
The smell of roses will take me away
I can't stop my own destruction
Give me strength and help me to pray
Southend Of A Northbound Train
There's a rise
Above the river
Where the hangmans tree
Hugs the rim
A brace of crows
Crowd the bank
Like mourners
On their way
To the Mercy bridge
A whistle blows
A freight rolls by
Pallbearers rest
Their load
It all seems clear
Life's gone from here
As he is lowered
In the hole
Mary seems uncertain now
As she follows
To his rest
She lost her one true love
And he lost his
With a bullet
To the chest
A life of crime
Is a long short road
Every moment filled
With dread
And never leaves much room
For love
In the shadows
Of its dead
Mary climbs the Mercy bridge
Oer the water
Dark and cold
Shell wash away all her tears
In the waters healing flow
Oh Mary
Can't you see
It was not meant to be
He was born to dangle
Beneath the hanging tree
The Beautiful Song
It all looks beautiful to me
It all looks beautiful to me
It all looks beautiful to me
It all looks beautiful to me
The rusted cars
The battle scars
I wonder where you are tonight
The road signs say
There some kind of giveaway
I hope it's not your heart
It all looks beautiful to me
It all looks beautiful to me
It all looks beautiful to me
It all looks beautiful to me
A twisted fence
A swinging gate
An avalanche couldn't keep me down
There's miles of road
And miles to go
I hope you're still around
It all looks beautiful to me
It all looks beautiful to me
It all looks beautiful to me
It all looks beautiful to me
When I'm away I see your face
And I can almost feel you breathing hard
It makes perfect sense
It's what I like the best
To find myself in your arms
It all looks beautiful to me
It all looks beautiful to me
It all looks beautiful to me
It all looks beautiful to me
Wicked
I'm wicked in the eyes of the world
I'm everything nobody wants
As low as low can get
Everything I cannot stop
A glutton for everything misery can buy
A heart that matches the soul
There's all kinds of things money can buy
Redemption is worth more than gold
I once had a habit that ran wild and free
It wrapped its arms around me
I once had a woman or she once had me
Until I drove her away
I'm wicked in the eyes of the world
I'm everything nobody wants
As low as low can get
Everything I cannot stop
Lord won't you let me rest here awhile
I'm tired and I can't recall
The cause of all these bitter tears
I'm left with no faith at all
I'm wicked in the eyes of the world
I'm everything nobody wants
As low as low can get
Everything I cannot stop
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