Steve Earle
Miscellaneous Lyrics

Last updated:  25 June 2003

from the back of the Pink & Black picture cover
Are You Sure Hank Done It This Way?
(Waylon Jennings)

It's the same old tune,fiddle and guitar
Where do we take it from here
Rhinestone suits and new shiney cars
We've been the same way for years
We need to change

Somebody told me when I got to Nashville
Son you finally got it made
Old Hank made it here, we're sure that you will
But i don't think Hank done it this way
I don't think Hank done it this way

Ten years down the road, making one night stands
Speeding my young life away
Tell me one more time just so i understand
Are you sure Hank done it this way
Did Ol' Hank really do it this way?

I've seen the world with a five piece band
Looking at the back side of me
Singing my songs and one of his now and then
But I don't think Hank done it this way
No I don't think Hank done it this way.

Baby's In Black
(John Lennon, Paul McCartney)

Oh dear, what can I do?
Baby's in black and I'm feeling blue,
Tell me, oh what can I do?
She thinks of him and so she dresses in black,
And though he'll never come back, she's dressed in black.
Oh dear, what can I do?
Baby's in black and I'm feeling blue,
Tell me, oh what can I do?
I think of her, but she only thinks of him,
And though it's only a whim, she thinks of him.
Oh how long will it take,
Till she sees the mistake she has made?
Dear what can I do?
Baby's in black and I'm feeling blue,
Tell me, oh what can I do?
Oh how long it will take,
Till she sees the mistake she has made?
Dear what can I do?
Baby's in black and I'm feeling blue,
Tell me, oh what can I do?
She thinks of him and so she dresses in black,
And though he'll never come back, she's dressed in black.
Oh dear, what can I do?
Baby's in black and I'm feeling blue,
Tell me, oh what can I do?

Baby Let Me Follow You Down
(Eric Von Schmidt)

Baby, let me follow you down

Baby let me follow you down
Baby let me follow you down
Well I'll do anything in this God Almighty world
if you'll just let me follow you down

Can I come home with you?
I said can I come home with you?
Well I'll do anything in this God Almighty world
if you'll just let me follow you down.

I'll buy you a diamond ring.
I'll buy you a wedding gown
And I'll do anything in this God Almighty world
if you'll just let me follow you down.

Before They Make Me Run
(Keith Richards, Michael Philip Jagger)

Worked the bars and sideshows along the twilight zone
Only a crowd can make you feel so alone
And it really hit home
Booze and pills and powders, you can choose your medicine
Well here's another goodbye to another good friend

After all is said and done
Gotta move while it's still fun
Let me walk before they make me run
After all is said and done
I Gotta move, it's still fun
I'm gonna walk before they make me run

Watched the taillights fading, there ain't a dry eye in the house
They're laughing and singing
Started dancing and drinking as I left town
Gonna find my way to heaven, 'cause I did my time in hell
I wasn't looking too good but I was feeling real well

After all is said and done
I gotta move I had my fun
Let us walk before they make me run

After all is said and done
I did alright, I had my fun
I will walk before they make me run

A Bible And A Gun
(Steve Earle, Jason Ringenberg)

There's a full moon out tonight
And it's shining down on me
And in that purest light
Any fool could see

That this highway is paved with sorrow
And every mile is lined with pain
And when the sun comes up tomorrow
You'll be just as far away

Now I hear her whisper soft and low
Through every mile I run
As I travel through this world of woe
With a Bible and a gun

If a man was made to suffer
I'm a mighty man I know
From one heartache to another
I've been burnin' down this road

I've got one eye on the mirror
And one eye on the line
The end keeps growin' nearer
The past slips behind

I don't mean to hurt nobody
I don't mean to do no wrong
But somethin' out there's got me
And it's pulling me along

Darkness is my shelter
Emptiness my light
And stranger, heaven help you
If our paths cross tonight

The Crush
(John Hiatt)
(Steve Earle's version)

The first time I laid eyes on you
I checked myself right out of this world
One thing will bring me back from this heart attack
And that's your sweet lovin', girl

Ooh, your huggin' and kissin'
Mmm, made my lights come on
You put the crush on me
Little girl, can't you see I'm gone

And now I ain't gonna listen to reason
There's no excuse for the way that I feel
Before one word was spoke
I knew it was no joke
Baby, this love is real

They say you gotta take time to know her
But I can't wait that long
You put the crush on me
Little girl, can't you see I'm gone

You put the crush, crush
My mouth turns to mush
I can't begin to speak of all of your charms
You put the crush, crush
Ooh, what a rush
Now, I can't be satisfied until I'm wrapped up in your arms

Ain't that some kind of love, babe
You know I'm not puttin' you on
You put the crush on me
Little girl, can't you see I'm gone

You put the crush, crush
My mouth turns to mush
I can't begin to speak of all of your charms
You put the crush, crush
Ooh, what a rush
Now, I can't be satisfied until I'm wrapped up in your arms

Ain't that some kind of love, babe
You know I'm not puttin' you on
You put the crush on me
Little girl, can't you see I'm gone

Cry Myself To Sleep
(Paul Hardy Kennerley)

I cried so hard
You know I can't do more
It's a turn of the card
It's a close of the door
The lies you told
You know they hurt so deep
So I go home and cry myself to sleep

Day after day
You been treatin' me bad
My friends'll come up and say
Why do you take all of that?
And it's makin' me moan
And it's makin' me weep
So I go home and cry myself to sleep

You play at love like a child plays games
One day I'm in and then I'm out again
You change the rules
I can't win
You've broken me, now, so I'll give in

You play at love like a child plays games
One day I'm in and then I'm out again
You change the rules
I can't win
You've broken me, now, so I'll give in

Well, I've been through worse
But I don't know what
Joy is just the reverse
Of what I've got
So take this heart
Or what's left to keep
And I go home and cry myself to sleep
I just go home and cry myself to sleep
I go home and cry myself to sleep

Crying, Waiting, Hoping
(Buddy Holly)

Crying, waiting, hoping
You'll come back
I just can't seem to get you off my mind

Crying, waiting, hoping
You'll come back
You're the one I love and I think about you all the time

Crying
My tears keep falling all night long
Waiting
It feels so useless I know it's wrong
To keep crying, waiting, hoping
You'll come back
Maybe some day soon things will change and you'll be mine

Crying
My tears keep falling all night long
Waiting
It feels so useless I know it's wrong
To keep crying, waiting, hoping
You'll come back
Maybe some day soon things will change and you'll be mine

Crying, waiting, hoping
You'll come back
Maybe some day soon things will change and you'll be mine
Crying, waiting, hoping

Dead Flowers
(Mick Jagger, Keith Richards)
(Rolling Stones version - from Sticky Fingers)

Well, when you're sitting there
In your silk upholstered chair
Talking to some rich folk that you know
Well, I hope you won't see me
In my ragged company
You know I could never be alone

Take me down, little Susie, take me down
I know you think you're the queen of the underground
And you can send me dead flowers every morning
Send me dead flowers by the mail
Send me dead flowers to my wedding
And I won't forget to put roses on your grave

Well, when you're sitting back
In your rose pink Cadillac
Making bets on Kentucky Derby Day
I'll be in my basement room
With a needle and a spoon
And another girl to take my pain away

Take me down, little Susie, take me down
I know you think you're the queen of the underground
And you can send me dead flowers every morning
Send me dead flowers by the mail
Send me dead flowers to my wedding
And I won't forget to put roses on your grave

Take me down, little Susie, take me down
I know you think you're the queen of the underground
And you can send me dead flowers every morning
Send me dead flowers by the US mail
Say it with dead flowers at my wedding
And I won't forget to put roses on your grave
No, I won't forget to put roses on your grave

Dirty Old Town
(E. MacColl)

I met my love by the gas works wall
Dreamed a dream by the old canal
Kissed a girl by the factory wall
Dirty old town
Dirty old town

Clouds a drifting across the moon
Cats a prowling on their beat
Spring's a girl in the street at night
Dirty old town
Dirty old town

Heard a siren from the docks
Saw a train set the night on fire
Smelled the spring on the smokey wind
Dirty old town
Dirty old town

I'm going to make a good sharp axe
Shining steel tempered in the fire
Will chop you down like an old dead tree
Dirty old town
Dirty old town

Don't Take Your Guns To Town
(Johnny Cash)

A young cowboy named Billy Joe grew restless on the farm
A boy filled with wanderlust, who really meant no harm.
He changed his clothes and shined his boots,
And combed his dark hair down.
And his mother cried as he walked out
"Don't take your guns to town.
Son, leave your guns at home.
Bill, don't take your guns to town."

He laughed and kissed his mom and said "Your Billy Joe's a man.
I can shoot as quick and straight as anybody can.
But I wouldn't shoot without a cause, I'd gun nobody down."
But she cried again as he rode away,
"Don't take your guns to town.
Son, leave your guns at home.
Bill, don't take your guns to town."

He sang a song as on he rode, his guns hung at his hips.
He rode into a cattle town, a smile upon his lips.
He stopped and walked into a bar, and laid his money down.
But his mother's words echoed again,
"Don't take your guns to town.
Son, leave your guns at home.
Bill, don't take your guns to town."

He drank his first strong liquor then, to calm his shaking hand.
And tried to tell himself at last he had become a man.
A dusty cowpoke at his side began to laugh him down.
And he heard again his mother's words:
"Don't take your guns to town.
Son, leave your guns at home.
Bill, don't take your guns to town."

Filled with rage then, Billy Joe reached for his gun to draw.
But the stranger drew his gun and fired, before he even saw.
As Billy Joe fell to the floor, the crowd all gathered round.
And wondered at his final words,
"Don't take your guns to town.
Son, leave your guns at home.
Bill, Don't take your guns to town."

Hangmen
(Bill Lyerly, Jordan Koronet)

Walking up the platform, steppin very slow,
Standin' there in judgement, one last place to go.
Blindfold tied behind your head, no one sees your eyes.

CHORUS:
Hangman's there to do his duty,
And hangmen never cry.

The judge he's a fair man with a job to do.
He don't decide whose guilty, that's up to me and you.
But if you take another's life the sentence he'll decide.

REPEAT CHORUS

Take one more long deep breath, it will be your last.
Think about your next life, not about your past.
What's done is done and now you know there is no reprise.

REPEAT CHORUS

Goodnight Irene
(traditional - credited to Huddie Ledbetter [Leadbelly], John A. Lomax)

Irene goodnight, Irene goodnight
Goodnight Irene, goodnight Irene
I'll see you in my dreams

Sometimes I live in the country
Sometimes I live in town
Sometimes I have a great notion
To jump into the river and drown

Irene goodnight, Irene goodnight
Goodnight Irene, goodnight Irene
I'll see you in my dreams

Quit ramblin' and quit gamblin'
Quit stayin' out late at night
Stay home with your wife and family
Sit down by the fireside bright

Irene goodnight, Irene goodnight
Goodnight Irene, goodnight Irene
I'll see you in my dreams

I asked your mother for you
She told me you was too young
I wished to God I'd never seen your face
I's sorry you ever was born

Irene goodnight, Irene goodnight
Goodnight Irene, goodnight Irene
I'll see you in my dreams

I love Irene, God knows I do
I'll love her till the seas run dry
And if Irene turns her back on me
I'd take morphine and die

Irene goodnight, Irene goodnight
Goodnight Irene, goodnight Irene
I'll see you in my dreams

You cause me to weep, you cause me to mourn
You cause me to leave my home
But the very last words I heard her say
Was "Please sing me one more song"

Irene goodnight, Irene goodnight
Goodnight Irene, goodnight Irene
I'll see you in my dreams

I Thought I Was Dreaming
(Greg Trooper, Steve Earle)
(Greg Trooper version - from Everywhere)

CHORUS:
I thought I was dreaming
The moon was hangin' in a clear blue sky
You were standin' there screaming
And I didn't have a clue as to why
I thought I was dreaming
Cause all I heard you say was goodbye
I thought I was dreaming

I would make up reasons
You were not at home
Your history of demons
Callin' on the phone
I check the locks each night
I check 'em once again
To keep the cold, cruel world outside
And keep you safe within'

REPEAT CHORUS

No one has to know
No one has to see
All your childhood secrets
Are safe right here with me
Let me soothe your fever
Let me bring you peace
Let me take you away from all these
Masters of Deceit

BRIDGE:
So far, so far away we'll go
So far, so far away and where we'll stop nobody knows

REPEAT CHORUS

I thought I was dreamin'
I thought I was dreamin'
I thought I was dreamin'
All I heard you say was good-bye

If I Should Fall From Grace With God
(Shane McGowan)
(Pogues version)

CHORUS:
If I should fall from grace with god
Where no doctor can relieve me
If I'm Buried 'neath the sod
But the angels won't receive me

Let me go boys
Let me go boys
Let me go down in the mud
Where the rivers all run dry

This land was always ours
Was the proud land of our fathers
It belongs to us and them
Not to any of the others

Let me go boys
Let me go boys
Let me go down in the mud
Where the rivers all run dry

Bury me at sea
Where no murdered ghost can haunt me
If I rock upon the waves
Then no corpse can lie upon me

It's coming up three boys
Keeps coming up three boys
Let them go down in the mud
Where the rivers all run dry

If I should fall from grace with god
Where no doctor can relieve me
If I'm buried 'neath the sod
And still the angels won't receive me

Let me go boys
Let me go boys
Let me go down in the mud
Where the rivers all run dry

It Takes A Lot To Laugh, It Takes A Train To Cry
(Bob Dylan)

Well, I ride on a mailtrain, baby, can't buy a thrill
Well, I've been up all night, baby, leanin' on the window sill
Well, if I die on top of the hill
And if I don't make it, you know my baby will

Don't the moon look good, mama, shinin' through the trees?
Don't the brakeman look good, mama, flagging down the "Double E"?
Don't the sun look good goin' down over the sea?
Don't my gal look fine when she's comin' after me?

Now the wintertime is coming, the windows are filled with frost
I want to tell everybody, but I could not get across
Well, I wanna be your lover, baby, I don't wanna be your boss
Don't say I never warned you when your train gets lost

A Little Bit In Love
(Steve Earle)

I don't fall in love as a rule
Because it always makes me look like a fool
Well, it keeps me up late
I can't concentrate
And I pride myself on keepin' my cool
But I got to admit
I'm just a little bit in love with you

Now, I don't want you gettin' me wrong
Because I don't sit up at night by the phone
Well, if you come around
I let my guard down
And I just can't seem to leave you alone
But I'll get over it
I'm just a little bit in love with you

Well, I tell myself that a little bit of love
Can't hurt a big man like me
But I never have heard of a little heart ache
And baby, that's what's scarin' me

So don't you get your hopes up if I call
Because I always catch myself when I fall
But I got to admit
That I'm a little bit in love with you

So don't you get your hopes up if I call
Because I always catch myself when I fall
But I got to admit
That I'm a little bit in love with you

Oh, honey, that's all you get
I'm just a little bit in love with you

© 2003-2007 Clint Harris  (clint@steveearle.net) – All Rights Reserved
© 1995-2003 Lisa Kemper  – All Rights Reserved

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