MEET ME IN THE CITY
Hey girl I'm calling all stations, blowing down the wire tonight
I'm singing through these power lines, I'm running on time and feeling alright
Skipping over the currents in the air, reaching to see if you're out there
Coming across your radio station, calling out nation to nation
If you can hear me then say alright
And if you can, meet me in the city tonight
I was busted for feeling no pain
Charged with doing things I can't explain
Picked up for parole violation
Locked with the boys in the subway station
Handcuffed on the killing floor
Transmitting from behind these jailhouse doors
If you're sick, if you're tired, if you're bored
Then check the line, check the time, check the action, check the score
Come and get me if I ain't right
But if I am, meet me in the city tonight
Everybody's lost in romance
Do you feel the way I feel, oh-oh
I'm just searching, girl
For the blood, for the bone, for the muscle, for what's real
I was busted for feeling no pain
Charged with doing things I can't explain
Picked up for parole violation
Locked with the boys in the subway station
I pushed my way through the heart of the crowd
I shoved my way through the heart of the crowd
Past the sign saying this is not allowed
To where someone's standing straight and shouting out loud
Handcuffed to the jailhouse door
Transmitting from the gallows floor
And if you're sick, if you're tired, if you're bored
Check the line, check the time, check the action, check the score
If you can holler, then say alright
Meet me in the city tonight
Meet me in the city tonight
In the city, meet me in the city tonight
THE MAN WHO GOT AWAY
Last night I went to the Coronado
I bought my ticket and I found my seat
It was a new adventure straight from Hollywood
Life's went down as I felt the heat
They went here from the final scene
Burning rubber, spilling gasoline
As the credits rolled away
They were still chasing the man that got away
Well, every nightfall, weeks and weeks now
I beat the traffic, I beat the heat now
For two hours I couldn't believe now
The man who got away was me
I went here from the final scene
Burning rubber, spilling gasoline
As the credits rolled away
They were still chasing the man that got away
Drove into Stockton, my radio went dead
That's when I heard what the newsman said
He said, "armed robbery on the ten-hundred block
There was two men involved and one man shot
And one was accomplice made the payday
With a 45 he blew the cashier away way
Last seen headed on the state highway
Driving a late model Chevrolet
I went screaming from the final scene
In a hail of bullets and flaming gasoline
As the credits rolled away
They were still chasing the man that got away
Man that got away
LITTLE WHITE LIES
We met on open streets where we both had no place to go
I remember how my heart beat when you said "Oh Billy I love you so"
Now, standing in the doorway, did you ever think that we could look this old
Victims of the little white lies that we told
We did not count tomorrows, we took what we could and ran
There was no time for sorrow, every place you went I held your hand
And when the night closed in I was sure your kisses told me all I had to know
But they never whispered the little white lies that we told
It was so good at the start, nothing could ever pull it apart
Running hand in hand through the rain, but soon the heart break, soon the pain, girl
There were no cold denials, nobody really lied
It wasn't in the things we said, girl, just time spent, promises implied
And when it began to fall apart eaten quietly away from the inside
Bit by bit by those little white lies
Hey!
Now standing in the doorway, did you ever think, ever think that we could look this old
Victims of the little white lies that we told
Now lying here in the dark, did you ever think, ever think that we could be this cold
Just as cold as the little white lies that we told
Little white lies
THE TIME THAT NEVER WAS
Sometimes I wake up in the morning and it cuts me like a knife
I come face-to-face with my longing for another world, another life
And a time that never was
Oh a time that never was
We drove on, fueled not by the future but by a past we could never touch
Forced to run head-on collisions till we vanished in the dust
Of a time that never was
Whoa whoa whoa, the time that never was
Whoa whoa whoa whoa
So kiss me once more baby, one more kiss baby you must
Don't ever let me forget, girl, a time that never was
A time that never was
NIGHT FIRE
Now you're running with the right crowd
Well you better watch the friends you're choosing
Girl I know you're a walking winner now
But you better keep your eye on who's doing the loosing
All the faces staring down your throat
All the eyes, darling, that never closed
In your sadness, girl, maybe there's something that you ought to know
Night fire, the night fire is out in the dark burning
Night fire, the night fire is down in the street yearning
You're running with the right crowd
Money and the wine are flowing
You found a place with the right crowd
But you forgot about that storm, that storm that's blowing
(Dance on) Let the music play
(Dance on) Let the night roll to day
(Dance on) Don't listen to what they say
Just keep moving to the beat, to the beat, to the big beat
Night fire, the night fire is out in the dark burning
Night fire, the night fire is down in the street yearning
Well they punch your ticket as you grow old
Do you really get used to being bought and sold
Does a brand new dress keep out the cold
Do your brand new friends help you to keep
Your pretty eyes from seeing what they shouldn't see
The sound of breaking glass and running feet
The sound of breaking glass and running feet
Won't you tell me, baby, I got to know
Night fire, the night fire is out in the dark burning
Night fire, the night fire is down in the street yearning
Night fire, the night fire is out in the dark burning
Night fire, the night fire is down in the street yearning
WHITETOWN
Mary Ann on the avenue
Girl all dressed up in Kensington blue
Down where the hammer falls
She's born and bred within Whitetown walls
Each and every thing slowly passes away
She moves alone along the narrow street
From a passing car she hears the music play
Beneath the "El" she starts to sway
Down in Whitetown, oh yeah
Down in Whitetown, oh yeah
Down in Whitetown
Johnny's just trying to make his way
He's got a job but mister it don't pay
He sits and counts the scars
On a stool down the end of a Whitetown bar
And the old men here piss their lives away
Drinking and joking about their cop-fighting days
Ain't no answers here, just the past and fear
Of spending the rest of your days
Down in Whitetown, oh yeah
Down in Whitetown, oh yeah
Down in Whitetown
In a dream salvation comes with a beat
Or the sound of breaking glass and running feet
The beat that echoes down through the streets
Mary Ann dances on
Down in Whitetown, oh yeah
Down in Whitetown
CHAIN LIGHTNING
Well there's a rumble in the park, there's a thunder in the dark
The night's so quiet, it's chain lightning
Beneath a street light two boys bopping in the night
They have something in 'em called chain lightning
Though you never hear a sound, there's a fire underground
Rambling through the town, you can't keep it from coming down
Lovers walking through the mist, Romeo he steal a kiss
Caught up in the moment of chain lightning
Now I don't know about romance, but baby it's the latest thing
Everybody's getting up, doing it, chain lightning
All along the strand baby down in jungleland
Everybody's caught up in chain lightning
Ever hear the sound of a fire underground
Rumbling through the town, the big cold is coming down
Sitting at the light, I'm a rider in the night
Streaking light to light for chain lightning
I ain't into style, baby, ain't into fashion
I just got a passion for chain lightning
Sitting at the light, I'm a rider in the night
Streaking light to light for chain lightning
PARTY LIGHTS
I know the girls well they grow up fast where you come from
You left behind what was asked and you were married baby oh so young
Now that little girl of yours looks like she's growing up overnight
But do you miss the party lights
Do you miss the party lights
Do you miss the party lights when you're lying in bed at night
He was gonna be your Romeo, you were gonna be his Juliet
These days you don't wait on Romeos, you just wait on that welfare check
While other girls your age are out with lovers taking in the night
Do you miss the party lights
Do you miss the party lights
Do you miss the party lights when you're lying in bed at night
Sometimes I see you on the street and you look so tired
I know that job you've got leaves you so uninspired
When I stop by to take you out to eat
I find you lying, all dressed up on the bed, baby, fast asleep
Then as I lean across the bed, darling, to switch out the light
I wonder if you miss the party lights
Do you miss the party lights
Do you miss the party lights when you're lying in bed at night
Grab your coat and grab your hat, go in the bathroom, put that make up on
We're gonna take that little brat, we're gonna drop her off at your mom's
Yeah just give me a sign, I'm waiting on the line tonight
If you miss the party lights
If you miss the party lights when you're lying in bed at night
PARADISE BY THE C
Instrumental
STRAY BULLET
In the tall grass we held hands
Down by the river we made plans
Of what would and would not be
It was impossible to see
Their black boots shone in the sun
They were waiting on the Annandale train when my baby come
Little girl with the long black hair
Do you know what lies 'neath the long coats that they wear
Once I swore you'd ride with me (to some far and distant shore)
Down where this river meets the sea (I'll make you mine forevermore)
Over these dark hills I'd walk along (just to hold you in my arms)
To lie with you on a bed of stone
River blood red with the years
You can flood this valley with a thousand tears
Wash away all that's been found
But you'll never wash away the sound
Of the stray bullet that shot my baby down, (stray bullet shot my baby down)
Of the stray bullet that shot my baby down
MR. OUTSIDE
They call him Mr. Outside 'cause he don't care
Mr. Outside, he's just having his fun
Mr. Outside, he's just looking out for number one
Alright now
Well Mr. Outside, oh your money and your power
Won't help you come the dark hour
Kingdoms crumble to your feet
You're left another thief out on the street
Oh yeah
Mr. Outside, yeah he don't care
Mr. Outside, he's just having his fun
Mr. Outside, oh looking out for number one
Yeah
Oh, dark glasses and money for hire
All the riches and high-tension wire
He got long dark dark Cadillac
He got pretty little little girl in back
Mr. Outside, oh Lord he don't care
Mr. Outside, oh just having his fun
Mr. Outside, he's just looking out for number one
Mr. Outside, oh yeah he don't care
Mr. Outside, he's just having his fun
Mr. Outside, he's just looking out for number one
ROULETTE
We left the toys out in the yard
I took my wife and kids and left my home unguarded
We packed what we could into the car
No one here knows how it started
Suddenly everything was just so out of control
Now I want some answers, mister, I need to know
I hear all the talk but I don't know what you're sayin'
But I think I got a good idea of the game that you're playin'
Roulette, that's the name
Roulette, that's the game now
Roulette, I don't know what they're sayin'
Roulette, everybody's playin'
I grew up here on this street
Where nothin' moves, just a strange breeze
In a town full of worthless memories
There's a shadow in my backyard
I've got a house full of things that I can't touch
Well all those things won't do me much good now
I was a fireman out at Riker's, I did my job
Mister, I've been cheated, I feel like I've been robbed
I'm the big expendable, my life's just canceled null and void
Well what you gonna do about your new boy
Roulette, you're playin' with my life
Roulette, with my kids and my wife
Roulette, every day the stakes get bigger
Roulette, a different finger on the trigger
Down by the river that talks
The night speaks in searchlights
And shortwave radios squawk
The police patrol the streets
But I've left behind the man I used to be
Everything he believed and all that belonged to me
I tried to find my way out to somewhere where I thought it'd be safe
They stopped me at the roadblock they put up on the interstate
They put me in detention but I broke loose and then I ran
They said they want to ask me a few questions but I think they had other plans
Now I don't know who to trust and I don't know what I can believe
They say they want to help me but with the stuff they keep on sayin'
I think those guys just wanna keep on playin'
Roulette, with my life
Roulette, with my kids and my wife
Roulette, the bullet's in the chamber
Roulette, who's the unlucky stranger
Roulette, surprise, you're dead
Roulette, the gun's to your head
Roulette, the bullet's spinning in the chamber
Roulette, pull the trigger, feel the click
No further danger
RESTLESS NIGHTS
Once we ran and lived as one
In another world, my little one
Where whispering trees and dark rivers run
I told a dream to you
Now outside the streets are gray
And the childhood games we played
Have faded away
My baby, she has restless nights
My baby, she has restless nights
On late-night movie screens
Young lovers look so sure
Lost in wide-wake dreams
That they can't afford
Once I held you in my arms
On a bed of stone
Now we have grown
My baby, she has restless nights
My baby, she has restless nights
Once we ran and lived as one
In different world, my little one
Where whispering trees and dark rivers run
I told a dream to you
Now I pray, darling, for the night
We'll dance down these darkened halls
Once again to fall
Into a dream
WHERE THE BANDS ARE
I hear the guitars ringin' out
Ringin' out down Union Street
I hear the lead singer shoutin' out, girl
Now I wanna be a slave to the beat
Yeah, tonight I wanna break my chains
Somebody break my heart
Somebody shake my brains
Downtown there's something that I wanna hear
There's a sound, little girl, keeps ringing in my ear
I wanna be where the bands are
I wanna be where the bands are
(Where the bands are)
Where the bands are
I wanna be where the bands are
(Where the bands are)
I get off from work and I grab something to eat
I turn the corner and I drive down your street
Little gray houses darling looks like nowhere
But hey I know you're hiding in there
Come on out for just a little while
You know that heart of stone, girl, it just ain't your style
Tonight I wanna feel the beat of the crowd
And when I tell you that I love you
I wanna have to shout it out loud
Shout it out loud
I wanna be where the bands are
I wanna be where the bands are
Where the bands are
I wanna be where the bands are
I wanna be where the bands are
I hear the guitars ringin' out again
Ringin' on down Union Street
I hear the lead singer shoutin' out girl
I wanna be a slave to the beat
And I want something that'll break my chains
Something to break my heart
Something to shake my brains
There's a rocker's special on tonight
So meet me on down
'Neath the neon lights
I wanna be where the bands are
I wanna be where the bands are
DOLLHOUSE
Ever since you were a little girl
You set the rules in your little world
But girls grow up and throw their toys away
You're a big girl now but you still wanna play
(Girl we're living)
You dress them up the way you want to
(Girl we're living)
You make them do just what you want them to do
(Girl we're living)
Once I thought we had a love that was true
(Girl we're living, living, living, living)
But I'm just another doll in your dollhouse to you
We're living in a dollhouse
Oh we're living in a dollhouse
Girl, we're living in a dollhouse
You may feel safe and sound
But your dollhouse, girl, is falling down
It's all been neatly arranged in your mind
Every detail fits your own design
Every room is perfectly in place
But I can see the sadness, baby, on your face
(Girl we're living)
You had a plan and darling like a child
(Girl we're living)
You thought it's down to fashion, down to style
(Girl we're living)
But your little dreamhouse is runnin' wild
(Girl we're living, living, living, living)
Before your very eyes we're shrinking down to size
We're living in a dollhouse
Oh we're living in a dollhouse
Girl, we're living in a dollhouse
We may feel safe and sound
But our dollhouse, girl, is falling down
Everything's as you dreamed it would be
But there's something wrong that you can't see
Room by room you're looking for some little flaw
A crack somewhere in your dollhouse wall
(Girl we're living)
Something, girl, that will explain away
(Girl we're living)
The hurt you feel, darling, when we play
(Girl we're living)
Your little dolls they got a grip on you
(Girl we're living)
Your little dolls they got a grip on you
(Girl we're living)
Your little dolls they got a grip on you
(Girl we're living, living, living, living)
Until you're just another doll in your dollhouse too
We're living in a dollhouse
Oh we're living in a dollhouse
Girl, we're living in a dollhouse
We may feel safe and sound
But our dollhouse, girl, is falling down
(We're living in a dollhouse)
LIVING ON THE EDGE OF THE WORLD
Early North Jersey industrial skyline
I'm an all-set cobra jet creepin' through the night time
Gotta find a gas station, gotta find a pay phone
This turnpike sure is spooky at night when you're all alone
I'm living on the edge of the world
Tryin' to get my girl on the line
Livin' on the edge of the world
But I think it's just a waste of my time
Some jerk keeps breaking my connection, girl
'Cause I'm living on the edge of the world
Living on the edge of the world
Radio, radio, hear my tale of heartbreak
New Jersey in the morning like a lunar landscape
Got a counter girl at the Exit 24 HoJo
Down past the refinery towers where the great black river flows
I'm living on the edge of the world
Tryin' to get back to you, girl
Living on the edge of the world
Tryin' to get a message through
I gotta make a connection, girl
Because I'm living on the edge of the world
Living on the edge of the world
Radio's jammed with gospel stations
Lost souls callin' long distance salvation
Hey mister deejay gotta hear my last prayer*
It's a hey ho rock and roll, deliver me from nowhere*
I'm living on the edge of the world
Tryin' to get back to you, girl
Living on the edge of the world
Tryin' to get a message through
I gotta make some connection, girl
Because I'm living on the edge of the world
Living on the edge of the world
Now my boss don't dig me 'cause he put me on the night shift
It takes me two hours to get back to where my baby lives
In the wee wee hours my mind gets hazy
Relay towers, won't you lead me to my baby
'Neath the overpass the trooper hits his party lights switch
Good night, good luck, one, two powershift
TAKE 'EM AS THEY COME
Last night I dreamed we was running through the outlands
Tears streaming, your pretty face all a wreck
(I held your daddy's gun in my tremblin' hands)
And down the highway another stranger comes
You gotta take 'em baby when they come
Little girl put on your best dress
'Cause we're goin' out on the town tonight
(Better bring along your switchblade)
'Cause for sure some fool's gonna wanna fight*
You've got to take 'em baby as they come
You gotta take 'em, take 'em as they come, girl
Take 'em as they come, girl
Take 'em as they come, girl
Take 'em baby as they come
God save the rider in the black night
Save the man who taught that it was right
To do what they have done
To become what we have become
You gotta take 'em baby when they come
Little girl, gone are the days
Faded away into a clear blue night
And all the vows that we made
Lie shattered and broken in the morning light
You gotta take 'em baby when they come
You gotta take 'em, take 'em as they come, girl
Take 'em as they come, girl
Take 'em as they come, girl
Take 'em baby as they come
I know your heart is breaking
I can feel it too, girl
Though my finger on the trigger's shakin'
Here I swear to you, girl
If I could take all your sorrow so that you'd never cry, girl, or be blue
(Come tomorrow, girl)
That's what I'd do for you, pretty one
I swear I'll take 'em baby when they come
You gotta take 'em, take 'em as they come, girl
Take 'em as they come, girl
Take 'em as they come, girl
Take 'em baby as they come
You gotta take 'em, take 'em as they come, girl
Take 'em as they come, girl
Take 'em as they come, girl
Take 'em baby as they come
RICKY WANTS A MAN OF HER OWN
Well look out mama, your little girl she has changed
She cut her baby curls and she's got her act rearranged
Well look out daddy, what she needs now she can't find at home
Oh Ricky wants a man of her
She wants a man of her
Ricky wants a man of her own
Mama says her little girl won't talk to her anymore
She just goes in her room, turns on the radio, and shuts the door
She's got her own bathroom, TV, stereo, extension phone
Oh but mama, Ricky wants a man of her
She wants a man of her
Ricky wants a man of her own
Well daddy says when he drops her off Friday night at the gym
She slides way down in the front seat so the kids won't see her with him
She don't do no work, she won't tell nobody when she's coming home
She makes poor daddy wait down on the corner at midnight all alone
She used to like me to take her to a ball game or a movie show
She used to make daddy take his little girl where she wanna go
Now we're left peeking through the curtains every time that we hear a horn blow
Well I guess Ricky wants a man of her own
Well my folks say, "Son, talk to her, she'll listen to you"
Yeah she listens real nice and she does what she wants to do
Daddy says she wears her jeans so tight, "Well you change 'em or you're stayin' home"
Oh but daddy, Ricky wants a man of her
She wants a man of her
Ricky wants a man of her own
She's almost grown
Ricky wants a man of her
She wants a man of her
Ricky wants a man of her own
I WANNA MARRY YOU
I see you walking, baby, down the street
Pushing that baby carriage at your feet
I see that lonely ribbon in your hair
Tell me I am the man for whom you put it there
You never smile girl, you never speak
You just walk on by, darlin' week after week
Raising two kids alone in this mixed up world
Must be a lonely life for a working girl
Little girl, I wanna marry you
Oh yeah, little girl, I wanna marry you
Yes I do
Little girl, I wanna marry you
Now honey, I don't wanna clip your wings
But a time comes when two people should think of these things
Having a home and a family
Facing up to their responsibilities
They say in the end true love prevails
But in the end true love can't be no fairytale
To say I'll make your dreams come true would be wrong
But maybe, darlin', I could help them along
Little girl, I wanna marry you
Oh yeah, little girl, I wanna marry you
Yes I do
Little girl, I wanna marry you
My daddy said right before he died
That true, true love was just a lie
He went to his grave a broken heart
An unfulfilled life, makes a man hard
Oh, darlin'
There's something happy and there's something sad
'Bout wanting somebody, oh so bad,
I wear my love darlin', without shame
I'd be proud if you would wear my name
MARY LOU
You're scrapbook's filled with pictures of all your leading men
Well baby don't put my picture in there with them
Don't make us some little girl's dream that can never come true
Oh baby don't do it to me, I won't do it to you
Mary Lou, I'm not like all those other guys
Mary Lou, I won't fill your pretty head with their pretty lies
Mary Lou, and dreams that never, never, never, ever will come true
Mary Lou, that'd only serve to hurt and make you cry like you do
You've seen all the romantic movies, you dream and take the boys home
But when the action fades you're left all alone
You deserve more than this, a real love that can grow
And I ain't playin' outtakes, girl, from some late late show, no
Mary Lou, you're not like all those others girls
Mary Lou, so afraid to shake up that real world
Every night you go out looking for true love's satisfaction
But you always end up setting for just lights, camera, action
And another cameo role with some bit player you're befriending
You're gonna go broken-hearted looking for that happy ending
HELD UP WITHOUT A GUN
Hungry boy comes in off the street
Hungry boy comes in off the street
Ain't got nothing, nothing to eat
A man says "better sign her son"
Look out!
Held up without a gun
Held up without a gun
I was out driving, I was taking it slow
Looked at my tank it looked low
Pulled into an Texaco out on One oh One
Look out!
Held up without a gun
Held up without a gun
Held up without a gun
It's a sin, it's a crime
Man it happens all the time
Better keep looking out for number one
Held up without a gun
Held up without a gun
Held up without a gun
FROM SMALL THINGS (BIG THINGS ONE DAY COME)
At sixteen she quit high school to make a fortune in the Promised Land
She got a job behind the counter in an all night hamburger stand
She wrote faithfully home to mama, "now mama don't you worry none"
From small things, mama, big things one day come
It was late one Friday, he pulled in out of the dark
He was tall and handsome, first she took his order then she took his heart
They bought a house on the hillside, where little feet soon would run
From small things, mama, big things one day come
Oh but love is fleeting, it's sad but true
When your heart is beating, you don't wanna hear the news
She packed her bags and with a Wyomie County real estate man
She ran down to Tampa in an "El Dorado Grande"
She wrote back, "dear mama, life is just heaven in the sun
From small things, mama, big things one day come"
Well she shot him dead on a sunny Florida road
And when they caught her all she said was she couldn't stand the way he drove
Back home dear Johnny prays for his baby's parole
He waits on the hillside where the Wyomie waters roll
At his feet and almost grown now, a blue-eyed daughter and a handsome son
Well from small things, mama, big things one day come
Yeah from small things, mama, big things one day come
|
