The Basement Tapes

(by j.r. robertson and r. manuel)

Wrote a letter this mornin',
Put it in your hat,
'cause no one to read it
And i know you knew that.
I bought a joke, a trick or two,
Just to bring and show you,
Caught ya with the trickster too.
Sometimes i wonder how ya knew
A hypnotist, fancytalker,
Ruben remus ain't no doctor

I knew the man and tried to remember
Just where it was that i'd seen his face.
Long ago, in a movie show,
He was like that man singin' bass.
Knew him by his nurs'ry rhyme:
The story of the rabbit man.
Fell right in and said to him:
"i'd like to help you if i can."
I know the film would only shock ya,
Ruben remus ain't no doctor!

He only needed what you had,
Asked for nothing more,
Said he'd like to take you on,
But it's been done before.
You couldn't see he's a travelin' man
And he cannot take your hand.
It's very hard to understand
Why his songs were never banned.
Guess the man would never knock ya,
Ruben remus ain't no doctor!

No one seen ya since he's been gone,
It's been a day, maybe more.
I took a walk in your yard
And knocked on your back door.
Why don't you let me in?
I'm not the man who did ya in.
Is mr. remus still your friend?
You say you don't remember him.
Turn me down, would ya?
Well, i've got news for you.
Turn me down would ya,
Can't ya tell
I'm gonna change your mind before i'm... trough...

(r. danko and j.r. robertson)


Bessie was more than just a friend of mine
We shared the good times with the bad
Now many a year has passed me by
I still recall the best thing i ever had

I'm just goin' down the road t' see bessie
Oh, see her soon
Goin' down the road t' see bessie smith
When i get there i wonder what she'll do

Now all the crazy things i had to try
Well i tried them all and then some
But if you're lucky one day you find out
Where it is you're really comin' from

I'm just goin' down the road t' see bessie
Oh, see her soon
Goin' down the road t' see bessie smith
When i get there i wonder what she'll do

Now in my day i've made some foolish moves
But back then, i didn't worry 'bout a thing
And now again i still wonder to myself
Was it her sweet love or the way that she could sing

I'm just goin' down the road t' see bessie
Oh, see her soon
Goin' down the road t' see bessie smith
When i get there i wonder what she'll do

There's so much time has gone right on by
I didn't think one could be so wrong
And then one night i was drinkin' and a-thinkin'
In the bottom of the glass i could see bessie's face so strong

I'm just goin' down the road t' see bessie
Oh, see her soon
Goin' down the road t' see bessie smith
When i get there i wonder what she'll do

When she sees me will she know what i've been through?
Will old times start to feelin' like new?
When i get there will our love still feel so true?
Yet all i have, i'll be a-bringin' it to you
Oh bessie, sing them old-time blues

Clouds so swift
Rain won't lift
Gate won't close
Railings froze
Get your mind off wintertime
You ain't goin' nowhere
Whoo-ee! ride me high
Tomorrow's the day
My bride's gonna come
Oh, oh, are we gonna fly
Down in the easy chair!

I don't care
How many letters they sent
Morning came and morning went
Pick up your money
And pack up your tent
You ain't goin' nowhere
Whoo-ee! ride me high
Tomorrow's the day
My bride's gonna come
Oh, oh, are we gonna fly
Down in the easy chair!

Buy me a flute
And a gun that shoots
Tailgates and substitutes
Strap yourself
To the tree with roots
You ain't goin' nowhere
Whoo-ee! ride me high
Tomorrow's the day
My bride's gonna come
Oh, oh, are we gonna fly
Down in the easy chair!


Genghis khan
He could not keep
All his kings
Supplied with sleep
We'll climb that hill no matter how steep
When we get up to it
Whoo-ee! ride me high
Tomorrow's the day
My bride's gonna come
Oh, oh, are we gonna fly
Down in the easy chair!

Don't ya tell henry,
Apple's got your fly.

I went down to the river on a saturday morn,
A-lookin' around just to see who's born.
I found a little chicken down on his knees,
I went up and yelled to him,
"please, please, please!"
He said, "don't ya tell henry,
Don't ya tell henry,
Don't ya tell henry,
Apple's got your fly."

I went down to the corner at a-half past ten,
I's lookin' around, i wouldn't say when.
I looked down low, i looked above,
And who did i see but the one i love.
She said, "don't ya tell henry,
Don't ya tell henry,
Don't ya tell henry,
Apple's got your fly."

Now, i went down to the beanery at half past twelve,
A-lookin' around just to see myself.
I spotted a horse and a donkey, too,
I looked for a cow and i saw me a few.
They said, "don't ya tell henry,
Don't ya tell henry,
Don't ya tell henry,
Apple's got your fly."

Now, i went down to the pumphouse the other night,
A-lookin' around, it was outa sight.
I looked high and low for that big ol' tree,
I did go upstairs but i didn't see nobody but me.
I said, "don't ya tell henry,
Don't ya tell henry,
Don't ya tell henry,
Apple's got your fly."

Now, too much of nothing
Can make a man feel ill at ease.
One man's temper might rise
While another man's temper might freeze.
In the day of confession
We cannot mock a soul.
Oh, when there's too much of nothing,
No one has control.

Say hello to valerie
Say hello to vivian
Send them all my salary
On the waters of oblivion

Too much of nothing
Can make a man abuse a king.
He can walk the streets and boast like most
But he wouldn't know a thing.
Now, it's all been done before,
It's all been written in the book,
But when there's too much of nothing,
Nobody should look.

Say hello to valerie
Say hello to vivian
Send them all my salary
On the waters of oblivion

Too much of nothing
Can turn a man into a liar,
It can cause one man to sleep on nails
And another man to eat fire.
Ev'rybody's doin' somethin',
I heard it in a dream,
But when there's too much of nothing,
It just makes a fella mean.

Say hello to valerie
Say hello to vivian
Send them all my salary
On the waters of oblivion

Well, i've already had two beers
I'm ready for the broom
Please, missus henry, won't you
Take me to my room?
I'm a good ol' boy
But i've been sniffin' too many eggs
Talkin' to too many people
Drinkin' too many kegs
Please, missus henry, missus henry, please!
Please, missus henry, missus henry, please!
I'm down on my knees
An' i ain't got a dime

Well, i'm groanin' in a hallway
Pretty soon i'll be mad
Please, missus henry, won't you
Take me to your dad?
I can drink like a fish
I can crawl like a snake
I can bite like a turkey
I can slam like a drake
Please, missus henry, missus henry, please!
Please, missus henry, missus henry, please!
I'm down on my knees
An' i ain't got a dime

Now, don't crowd me, lady
Or i'll fill up your shoe
I'm a sweet bourbon daddy
An' tonight i am blue
I'm a thousand years old
And i'm a generous bomb
I'm t-boned and punctured
But i'm known to be calm
Please, missus henry, missus henry, please!
Please, missus henry, missus henry, please!
I'm down on my knees
An' i ain't got a dime

Now, i'm startin' to drain
My stool's gonna squeak
If i walk too much farther
My crane's gonna leak
Look, missus henry
There's only so much i can do
Why don't you look my way
An' pump me a few?
Please, missus henry, missus henry, please!
Please, missus henry, missus henry, please!
I'm down on my knees
An' i ain't got a dime

(by richard manuel.)

I had a hard time waking this morning
I got a lotta things on my mind
Like those friends of yours
They keep bringing me down
Just hangin' round all the time

I've had a hard time waking most mornings
And it's been that way for a month or more
You've had things your way
But now i've got to say
I'm on my way out the door

Chorus:
Why don't you get right, try to get right, baby
You haven't been right with me, why don't you get right?
Try and get right, baby, don't you remember how it used to be?

You had a hard time waking this morning
And i can see it in your empty eyes
But there's no need for talking
Or walking round the block
Just to figure out the reason why

I have a hard time handing out warnings
I'll just slide on out the door
Cuz i'm tired of everything
Being beautiful, beautiful
And i ain't coming back no more

I plan it all and i take my place
You break your promise all over the place
You promised to love me, but what do i see
Just you comin' and spillin' juice over me
Odds and ends, odds and ends
Lost time is not found again

Now, you take your file and you bend my head
I never can remember anything that you said
You promised to love me, but what do i know
You're always spillin' juice on me like you got someplace to go
Odds and ends, odds and ends
Lost time is not found again

Now, i've had enough, my box is clean
You know what i'm sayin' and you know what i mean
From now on you'd best get on someone else
While you're doin' it, keep that juice to yourself
Odds and ends, odds and ends
Lost time is not found again

If your mem'ry serves you well,
We were goin' to meet again and wait,
So i'm goin' to unpack all my things
And sit before it gets too late.
No man alive will come to you
With another tale to tell,
But you know that we shall meet again
If your mem'ry serves you well.
This wheel's on fire,
Rolling down the road,
Best notify my next of kin,
This wheel shall explode!

If your mem'ry serves you well,
I was goin' to confiscate your lace,
And wrap it up in a sailor's knot
And hide it in your case.
If i knew for sure that it was yours . . .
But it was oh so hard to tell.
But you knew that we would meet again,
If your mem'ry serves you well.
This wheel's on fire,
Rolling down the road,
Best notify my next of kin,
This wheel shall explode!

If your mem'ry serves you well,
You'll remember you're the one
That called on me to call on them
To get you your favors done.
And after ev'ry plan had failed
And there was nothing more to tell,
You knew that we would meet again,
If your mem'ry served you well.
This wheel's on fire,
Rolling down the road,
Best notify my next of kin,
This wheel shall explode

Nothing was delivered
And i tell this truth to you,
Not out of spite or anger
But simply because it's true.
Now, i hope you won't object to this,
Giving back all of what you owe,
The fewer words you have to waste on this,
The sooner you can go.

Nothing is better, nothing is best,
Take heed of this and get plenty of rest.

Nothing was delivered
But i can't say i sympathize
With what your fate is going to be,
Yes, for telling all those lies.
Now you must provide some answers
For what you sell has not been received,
And the sooner you come up with them,
The sooner you can leave.

Nothing is better, nothing is best,
Take heed of this and get plenty rest.

(now you know)
Nothing was delivered
And it's up to you to say
Just what you had in mind
When you made ev'rybody pay.
No, nothing was delivered,
Yes, 'n' someone must explain
That as long as it takes to do this
Then that's how long that you'll remain.

Nothing is better, nothing is best,
Take heed of this and get plenty rest.

After a while we took in the clothes,
Nobody said very much.
Just some old wild shirts and a couple pairs of pants
Which nobody really wanted to touch.
Mama come in and picked up a book
An' papa asked her what it was.
Someone else asked, "what do you care?"
Papa said, "well, just because."
Then they started to take back their clothes,
Hang 'em on the line.
It was january the thirtieth
And everybody was feelin' fine.

The next day everybody got up
Seein' if the clothes were dry.
The dogs were barking, a neighbor passed,
Mama, of course, she said, "hi!"
"have you heard the news?" he said, with a grin,
"the vice-president's gone mad!"
"where?" "downtown." "when?" "last night."
"hmm, say, that's too bad!"
"well, there's nothin' we can do about it," said the neighbor,
"it's just somethin' we're gonna have to forget."
"yes, i guess so," said ma,
Then she asked me if the clothes was still wet.

I reached up, touched my shirt,
And the neighbor said, "are those clothes yours?"
I said, "some of 'em, not all of 'em."
He said, "ya always help out around here with the chores?"
I said, "sometime, not all the time."
Then my neighbor, he blew his nose
Just as papa yelled outside,
"mama wants you t' come back in the house and bring them clothes."
Well, i just do what i'm told,
So, i did it, of course.
I went back in the house and mama met me
And then i shut all the doors.

Now, there's a certain thing
That i learned from jim
That he'd always make sure i'd understand
And that is that there's a certain way
That a man must swim
If he expects to live off
Of the fat of the land.
Open the door, homer,
I've heard it said before.
Open the door, homer,
I've heard it said before
But i ain't gonna hear it said no more.

Now, there's a certain thing
That i learned from my friend, mouse
A fella who always blushes
And that is that ev'ryone
Must always flush out his house
If he don't expect to be
Goin' 'round housing flushes.
Open the door, homer,
I've heard it said before.
Open the door, homer,
I've heard it said before
But i ain't gonna hear it said no more.

"take care of all your memories"
Said my friend, mick
"for you cannot relive them
And remember when you're out there
Tryin' to heal the sick
That you must always
First forgive them."
Open the door, homer,
I've heard it said before.
Open the door, homer,
I've heard it said before
But i ain't gonna hear it said no more.