The Big Heat

Now there's last sunday's paper
Crumpled up and rollin' down the street
Away
And there's a piece of gum
Just waitin' for a ride on someone's feet
Today

Chorus:
And tonight i'll be walkin' home alone



Now, there's a million things i said
And twice as many that i didn't say
Yay-ay
And i remember an afternoon
A broken coffee cup, and some broadway tune
And i shook her hand
And i said okay


And now as i stroll by some skinny dog
Left outside without a bone
Tonight, i'll be walkin' home alone


Chorus repeat


And ain't it funny how one afternoon
Can make two people stop and say
That all the time they spent together
Didn't really mean that much anyway... no, not much.
Just a sinkful of dirty dishes
And a picture in a drawer
And a hairbrush on the table
And a hole punched in a door
And if she were here right now
I'd tell her things i never told her before


So now i hear a clock and i get up fast
Draw the curtain on a brand new day
I can't wait to get this cast off
The telephone's dead

Now, i've been travelin' long and hard
And all over this big land
And i've got somethin' here in my bag
For every woman and man
And nowhere is too far
'cause i cover a pretty wide base
From way down south to way up north
I'll shake hands with any friendly face

Chorus:
Salesman, salesman
Why don't you sell me somethin'
Salesman, salesman
Why don't you sell me somethin'



Now i've got a box in my hand
And i'm gonna travel that land
I'm a salesman for hire
And i never get tired
So just plug it in and it'll work
Don't worry about it breakin'
It's factory made and guaranteed
And we're not fakin'


Chorus repeat


Now, i keep bangin' on my case
And smilin' broad and make the deal
But sometimes my feet begin to shake
Like i'm slippin' on a banana peel
Stan slips about


And i've been everywhere around this world
I fly on the edge of the ball
I keep the numbers all up here
I just read the map and steer, that's all


Chorus repeat


Now i'll never give up this way of life
This life has called me to
I've gotta get to new orleans by noon
If i can only find my shoe
'cause i'm a salesman! pleased to meetcha!


And i've seen the dirt and dust
Of a hundred towns like this
I just work my way on through
Sometimes it's just hit and miss
And i got a little something here in my bag
To help me burn the leaves
But i gotta watch it close this time
I know, because nothin' comes for free
No, nothin' comes for free


I know a little girl in idaho
I guess i'll look her up now in a week or so
She was always good for a drink and a laugh
And what the traffic would allow


Chorus repeat


Everybody wants a real deal, everybody wants a real deal
Everybody wants a real deal, everybody wants a real deal

The room was dark, it looked like someone had to get out fast
A window open by the fire escape
How long have you been following this guy, the bellboy asked
Not long enough, 'cause we got here too late
And everybody wants another piece of the pie today, he said
You gotta watch the ones who always keep their hands clean

Chorus:
It's the big heat, there's someone followin' you
It's the big heat, step aside, we're comin' through



Well, we followed him from tuscon, ended up in baton rouge
We trailed him with information by
A woman he knew in barstow that would like to see him dead
That was four weeks ago

I was a p.f.c. on a search patrol, huntin' charlie down
It was in the jungle wars of '65
My weapon jammed and i got stuck way out and all alone
And i could hear the enemy movin' in close outside
Just then i heard a twig snap and i grabbed my empty gun
And i dug in scared while i counted down my fate
And then a big marine

Sittin' right behind me
I could smell her perfume
It was somethin' i'd smelled before
Went through a red light
While i spilled my drink
I could feel somethin' sticky on the floor

I said "miss, you've gotta tell me
Where you wanna go to
I can't keep drivin' round the same block"
So i crumpled my cup
And pulled the gum off my shoe
And then she told me "just shut up
And keep your eyes on the road"


Chorus:
"and just drive," she said
"just drive," she said
"just drive," she said



Well, i watched her put her hands
On the bag in her lap
While i scratched the bald spot on my head
I knew then that my cab was just
A getaway car
But i shut up and drove, like she said


I took a bite of my doughnut
And i offered her one
And i said "lady, are you in a fix?"
Then she reached in her purse
And she pulled out a gun, and said
"now just shut up, and keep your hands on the wheel"


Chorus repeat (okay, okay!)


Spoken
Then the moon disappeared, and it started to rain,
So i put the wipers on full.
And on the bag in her lap i saw the name of a big bank downtown.
And i said, "you don't have to worry about me, nope!"
When i turned the headlights on

There's a man in a booth with a quarter in there
And a girl out on the runway with peroxide in her hair
Move 'em in quick, they pay out
And then they just sit there and stare

Now drink that drink and smoke that smoke
Old mister johnson turns blue and starts to choke
Somebody slap him on the back


Now the curtains go up
And both lights go on
And betsy's out there in her birthday suit
Spinnin' her baton


Chorus:
And they don't know what we know
Nobody knows what we know
(and) no matter what they try to do
They can't stop the show



Now, girls, i'm proud of every one of you
Cass, spit out your gum, it don't look good when you chew
And i've told you time and time before
You're a showgirl, not a whore
Jack, pick up the phone, is it those jerks again?
You'd think they'd know by now that these girls just dance and grin
Just good clean entertainment
We don't handle no tricky-business in here


The curtains go up
And both lights go on
And betsy's in her birthday suit
Spinnin' her baton
But i think she did it better last year
Before her boyfriend broke her arm


Chorus:
And they don't know what we know
Nobody knows what we know
And no matter what they try to do
They can't stop the show repeat four more times

A signal swings and the lights turn off
And a missing man begins to cough
And no one knows the lost ones from the found
And lady luck, well, she can't explain
To a hardened coin or a bill, the game
It seems everything changes hands when it hits the ground

They said it's dog eat dog, cat eat mouse
And mouse eat cheese and the cheese just smells
The warning systems ring but help won't come.
And all the calling cards and the walking sticks
And the hidden punches and the coward's kicks
Say we got a big mouthful now


Chorus:
Pick it up and put it in your pocket
Or somebody else will
Pick it up and put it in your pocket
Or somebody else just will
Repeat as necessary



Now the world's a road and for miles around
On every inch of unclaimed ground, hide rewards for some but all the rest
Spin a creepy wheel or they trip the stair
While the new school boys just can't play fair
In a place that leaves its money in its mess


Chorus repeat


Now an old man with a paper bag
And a list so long on a dirty rag
Checks each item that he will throw or keep
But he'll never thank the coin that's bent
Or a greenback bill that a stranger sent
But he'll pick 'em just the same
And then he'll thank the street


He turns and says it's dog eat dog
And cat eat mouse
And mouse eat cheese
And the cheese just smells


Now i don't wanna seem to say
That the time ahead won't be okay
But the scale is loaded down
With the weight of sixteen tons
And the ones that have
Tell the ones that don't
To tell the ones that can't
About the ones who won't
And there's no place left here
'round to run


Chorus repeat endlessly