unknown

He was an old-time cowboy, don't you understand his eyes were sharp as razor blades his face was leather tan his toes were pointed inward from a-hangin' on a horse he was an old philosopher, of
E
He was so thin i swear you could have used him for a whip he had to drink a beer to keep his britches on his hips i knew i had to ask him about the mysteries of life he spit between his boots and he replied

"it's faster horses, younger women, older whiskey, and more money"

He smiled and all his teeth were covered with tobacco stains he said, "it don't do men no good to pray for peace and rain. peace and rain is just a way to say prosperity, and buffalo chips is all it means to me."

I told him i was a poet, i was lookin' for the truth i do not care for horses, whiskey, women or the loot i said i was a writer, my soul was all on fire he looked at me an' he said, "you are a liar."

"it's faster horses, younger women, older whiskey, and more money"

Well, i was disillusioned, if i say the least i grabbed him by the collar and i jerked him to his feet there was something cold and shiny layin' by my head so i started to believe the things he said

Well, my poet days are over and i'm back to being me as i enjoy the peace and comfort of reality if my boy ever asks me what it is that i have learned i think that i will readily affirm

"it's faster horses, younger women, older whiskey, and more money" (repeat 2x)

Boys and girls take warning, if you go near the lake
Keep your eyes wide open, and look for sneaky snake
Now maybe you won't see him, maybe you won't hear
But he'll sneak up behind you, and drink all your root beer

And then sneaky snake goes dancin', wigglin' and a-hissin'
Sneaky snake goes dancin', gigglin' and a-kissin'
I don't like old sneaky snake; he laughs too much you see
When he goes wigglin' through the grass, it tickles his underneath

Well, sneaky snake drinks root beer, and he just makes me sick
When he is not dancin', he looks just like a stick
Now, he doesn't have any arms or legs, you cannot see his ears
And while we are not lookin', he's stealin' all of our beer

And then sneaky snake goes dancin', wigglin' and a-hissin'
Sneaky snake goes dancin', gigglin' and a-kissin'
I don't like old sneaky snake; he laughs too much you see
When he goes wigglin' through the grass, it tickles his underneath

(chorus)
She walks through the corn leadin' down to the river
Her hair shone like gold in the hot mornin' sun
She took all the love that a poor boy could give her
And left me to die like a fox on the run
Like a fox, like a fox, like a fox on the run

Now everybody knows the reason for my fall
A woman tempted me down in paradise hall
This woman tempted me and she took me for a ride
Like a lonely fox, boys, i need a place to hide

(chorus)

Oh, we'll drink a glass of wine, boys, to purify our soul
We'll talk about the world and the friends we used to know
I see a string of girls who have put me on before
The game is nearly over and the hounds are at the door

(chorus)

The first strange town i was ever in
The county was hangin' a man
Nobody cared if he lived or died
And i just didn't understand

(chorus)
So i washed my face in the morning dew
Bathed my soul in the sun
Washed my face in the morning dew
And kept on movin' along

The second strange town i was in
They were laughing at a poor crippled man
Begging for nickels and dimes on the street
And i just didn't understand

(chorus)
The third strange town that i was in
Was settled, peaceful and nice
The rich got richer and the poor got poorer
And to me it just didn't seem right

(chorus)

Some day things are bound to change
It can't be very far
And each injustice i have seen
Will come before the bar

Then i'll wash my face in the morning dew
Bathe my soul in the sun
Wash my face in the morning dew
And keep on movin' along

If you love somebody enough
You'll follow wherever they go
That's how i got to memphis
That's how i got to memphis


If you love somebody enough
You'll go where your heart wants to go
That's how i got to memphis
That's how i got to memphis
I know if you'd seen her you'd tell me 'cause you are my friend
I've got to find her and find out the trouble she's in


If you tell me that she's not here
I'll follow the trail of her tears
That's how i got to memphis
That's how i got to memphis


She would get mad and she used to say
That she'd come back to memphis someday
That's how i got to memphis
That's how i got to memphis


I haven't eaten a bite
Or slept for three days and nights
That's how i got to memphis
That's how i got to memphis


I've got to find her and tell her that i love her so
I'll never rest 'til i find out why she had to go


Thank you for your precious time
Forgive me if i start to cryin'
That's how i got to memphis (x8)

My little girl and i lost mama just three years ago
And now that she is older there are things she wants to know
She said, "please daddy tell me 'bout my mother 'cause i miss her."
I said, "get pen and paper and i'll help your draw her picture."

I said, "first draw a heart so big there's room for little else
Then write a million for the things that she denied herself
Draw a rose the kind of which there'll never be another
And when you finish you will have a picture of your mother

"if you want to make the picture even more complete
You could draw a little cottage, draw it nice and neat
Draw a bright and shining sun up in the sky above
But then again i guess its pretty hard to draw my love

"so draw a heart so big that there is room for little else
Write a million for the things that she denied herself
Draw a rose the kind of which there'll never be another
And when you finish you will have a picture of your mother."

Ravishing ruby, she'd been around for awhile
Ravishing ruby, she was a truckstop child
Born in the back of a rig somewhere near l.a.
Ravishing ruby, you poured a lot of hot coffee in your day

Ravishing ruby, believe anything you say
Just like her daddy said, said he'd be back someday
She was just fourteen, she grew up wild and free
And all the time she'd be waitin' on him, she'd been waiting on you and me

Ravishing ruby, she sleeps in a bunk out back
Her days and nights are filled with dreams of a man named smilin' jack
That was her daddy's name and that's all she ever knew
Ravishing ruby ain't got time for guys like me and you

Ravishing ruby, a beautiful young girl now
Ravishing ruby, she made a solemn vow
Waitin' on smilin' jack, he'll come rollin' by
And she wants to see him, she wants to touch him either way, dead or alive

Ravishing ruby, she sleeps in a bunk out back
Her days and nights are filled with dreams of a man named smilin' jack
That was her daddy's name and that's all she ever knew
Ravishing ruby ain't got time for guys like me and you

On fourth street in louisville in 1978
Stranded in a honky-tonk, somewhere 'tween dates
There was a little band playin' as i sipped my beer
But i never thought that i'd hear what i'd hear

There was a young man a pickin' 'lectric guitar
Smokin' and a snippin', a learnin' how to be a star
He had a big blue bandanna tied around his head
A laid-back bass and a drummer named red

Well, his hair was cut long in the fashion of the time
Sandpaper vocal but he milked every line
His fingers like lightnin' on the guitar that he played
He did "lay down sally" and"hank didn't do it this way"

Well, i sat there and listened for over an hour
And the closest thing to country was a rockin' "wildwood flower"
And i got that feelin' that i had been there before
But i knew i had never been through that door

Well, the jukebox was turned on and the band took a break
I made my way up front to howdy and shake
I said, "son, i like your music and i kinda like your style."
But it seemed to me that i had seen that smile

Well, he stood there for a moment, then he laughed and he slapped his knee
He said, "you are one man i've wanted to see."
He said, "i know you, you story-tellin' son of a gun
And you know me i'm clayton delaney's son."

That old kentucky moon was shinin' bright as day
The stars were twinklin' in the milky way
The pilot said if you look close there's frankfort on the right
I flew over our house last night

Thirty thousand feet below me you were fast asleep
Thirty thousand feet above i almost stopped to weep
So close and yet so far away, so wrong and yet so right
I flew over our house last night

For just one second i thought i was back in town
The man your friends all say has only brought you down
The airline hostess asked me, "sir, are you sure that you're alright?"
I flew over our house last night

Thirty thousand feet below me you were fast asleep
And thirty thousand feet above i almost stopped to weep
I wonder did you toss and turn as i roared out of sight
I flew over our house last night

If i were you, i wouldn't waste my time
You can't answer all the questions in your mind
Love is love and you can't make it right
It's one of the mysteries of life

(chorus)
How can you know love when no one ever knew
It's the mother of all happiness and father of the blues
Love puts sunshine in your days, then steals your sleep at night
It's one of the mysteries of life

Maybe you should take it day by day
If you hold love too loosely, it will fly away
If you hold love too tightly, it will die
It's one of the mysteries of life

(chorus)

"how old do you think i am?" he said.
I said, well, i didn't know.
He said, "i turned 65 about 11 months ago."

I was sittin' in miami pourin' blended whiskey down
When this old gray black gentleman was cleanin' up the lounge

There wasn't anyone around 'cept this old man and me
The guy who ran the bar was watchin' "ironsides" on tv
Uninvited, he sat down and opened up his mind
On old dogs and children and watermelon wine

"ever had a drink of watermelon wine?" he asked
He told me all about it, though i didn't answer back
"ain't but three things in this world that's worth a solitary dime,
But old dogs and children and watermelon wine."

He said, "women think about they-selves, when menfolk ain't around.
And friends are hard to find when they discover that you're down."
He said, "i tried it all when i was young and in my natural prime;
Now it's old dogs and children and watermelon wine."

"old dogs care about you even when you make mistakes;
God bless little children while they're still too young to hate."
When he moved away i found my pen and copied down that line
'bout old dogs and children and watermelon wine.

I had to catch a plane up to atlanta that next day
As i left for my room i saw him pickin' up my change
That night i dreamed in peaceful sleep of shady summertime
Of old dogs and children and watermelon wine.