Roses For Mama

(chip davis, bill fries)

She was old, and beautiful, and wise, and she taught the young boy everything he needed to know. all about the land, and the woods and the rivers, and what had happened there even before he was
. she taught him what was good and what was bad. and most of all, the difference between right and wrong.

And so, every morning he stood beside his desk, with his hand over his heart, and promised to respect her for the rest of his days.

When times were hard, and the grain elevators stood empty against the black midwestern sky, she gave him praise for a hard day's work, and hope for his father. and she promised there would be be
Days to come.

And he sat by the radio and cried angry tears one gray december day, when he hear that she'd been betrayed. she was hurt; she needed help. he was only twelve, but he gave her all he could: scrap
Paper and tin cans and even the rubber tires from his wagon. he followed her across the sea, on the maps and the newspaper, wishing he was older, old enough to fight back.

Then after four long, dark years, he heard the church bells ring and the noon whistle blow long and high. and he was part of one brief moment when all the world paid respect to her.

And then he was grown up; and suddenly, the world had changed. and there were questions about her. some thought she was old-fashioned, useless. some thought she was dead. but then after all, may
Ey hadn't known her as he had.

And now everyone has grown older. the boy, his children, and she too. he saw her again just the other day: it was one of those bright, summer mornings and the church bells were ringing again. th
Ds were playing, and even the noon whistle was blowing, early.

He stood and watched proudly as she passed by. the sunlight catching the flash of crimson and white, stars blazing in the clear blue sky.

And then she was gone.

And he looked down through three generations into his grandson's eyes, and said, "there she goes, son. we used to call her old glory."

more free lyrics

(tom mckeon, ron peterson)

We'd worked ourselves senseless
Been bustin' down fences
Drivin' dry cattle, no water in sight
As we sat 'round the fire
And cursed the barbed wire
A stranger broke into our light

Not knowin' no better
Some fool went for leather
But a whispered "i wouldn't"
Put an end to the fight
Then he said, "i'm for hire.
"you need a rider.
"and i don't mind ridin' at night."

[chorus]
Go light on the night hawk
He don't smile, he don't talk
To strangers, and seldom to friends
And you'll do well to listen
When he asks you to leave him alone
He won't ask you again

Though the man is a myst'ry
The story is hist'ry
How a range fire came
Like a thief in the night
Took his young wife and babies
His would-bes and maybes
And burned out the love in his life

[chorus]
Go light on the night hawk
He don't smile, he don't talk
To strangers, and seldom to friends
And you'll do well to listen
When he asks you to leave him alone
He won't ask you again

more free lyrics

(ron agnew)

Jimmy joe left the mountain 'bout seven months ago,
When the autumn nights turned cool
Chasin' a dream, like they say
Just goin' away to school

An' though he loved amy more'n anything else,
He felt he just had to go, and make his way
An' amy felt pretty close to dyin' when jimmy left
That september day

Y'see, there was somethin' she had to tell him,
But the words were never found
An' as they stood there by the garden gate,
Jimmy picked a wildflower from the ground

As he placed it in amy's hand an' kissed her,
An' her fingers touched the dew,
He wiped her tears away and told her he'd be back
Not knowin' what she knew

[chorus]
Watch the wildwood flowers for me
And i'll watch my dreams for you
And i promise that i'll write you everyday
And when the winter snow is gone
Touch the flowers as they grow
And when the first one blooms then i'll be on my way

Well, jimmy joe never wrote those letters
An' through the winter, amy's hopes grew dim
As she felt the life inside her stir
An' she watched the flowers grow, for him

Last spring jimmy joe came home, too late
He found that amy'd gone away
An' died givin' life to his baby boy
An' he recalled what he had said that september day

[chorus]
Watch the wildwood flowers for me
And i'll watch my dreams for you
And when the first one blooms then i'll be on my way
Watch the wildwood flowers for me
And i'll watch my dreams for you
And when the first one blooms then i'll be on my way
And when the first one blooms then i'll be on my way

more free lyrics

(ron agnew)

Well, i was a poor boy
Just a-kickin' around
Eighteen, with a head full a' dreams
Took some money back then
Did a year in the pen
For not livin' within my means

I worked ev'ry day
I did my time the hard way
I walked out a' that place feelin' clean
I got a job, a guitar
I bought an old beat-up car
Started livin' within my means

Fell in love with a beautiful lady, of sorts
But she was ruthless, restless, and mean
She left me one day
And now i've had to pay
For not lovin' within my means

Then i took to drinkin'
To drive her from my mind
And it helps me forget her, it seems
I just drink now and then
Only now i'm drunk again
For not drinkin' within my means

Now i know that i'm dyin'
But i don't worry none
'cause i know my soul he'll redeem
But what bothers me
Unless they bury me free
Is i won't even die within my means

But when the dyin's all over
An' i come back again
Say "to hell" with self-pride and esteem
I'll get born in my teens
An' i'll stick to my dreams
Try dreamin' within my means

more free lyrics

(chip davis, bill fries)

On a cold november mornin'
Back in nineteen-thirty-seven
With an early snow a-fallin'
On the three-foot tracks at ames
Came a mighty strange contraption
Known to trainmen as a motor
But to folks in colorado
She was known by another name

Up the canyons south of sawpit
Past the red cathedral spires
'cross the yellow mountain switchbacks
And the rapids far below
On the high and lofty trestles
Near the fabled mines of ophir
In the silver san juan mountains
Came a goose a-plowin' snow

[chorus]
With a pierce-arrow engine,
Runnin' hot and on the loose
Came the rio grande southern
The gallopin' goose
With a pierce-arrow engine
Runnin' hot and on the loose
Came number five, the gallopin' goose

'twas a four-door auto-mobile
On a dozen wheels of iron
Sixteen feet of rockin' boxcar
Spot-welded to her tail
Loaded down with mercantile
Ten bags a' high-grade ore
Two mothers nursin' babies
Seven miners an' the mail

Up the side a' sunshine mountain
By internal gas combustion
Eight pierce-arrow pistons pullin'
Fifteen thousand pounds a' lead
At the snowshed on the summit
The conductor said his prayers
He declared a busted driveshaft
On the pass at lizard head

[chorus]
With a pierce-arrow engine
Runnin' hot and on the loose
Came the rio grande southern
The gallopin' goose
With a pierce-arrow engine
Runnin' hot and on the loose
Came number five, the gallopin' goose

[musical interlude here.]

Down the three-percent to rico
In the valley of dolores
They still talk about the southern
An' her flock of flyin' geese
From the roundhouse at ridgway
To the depot at durango
All the tracks are gone for scrap iron
And the ganders rest in peace

Up the canyons south of sawpit
Past the red cathedral spires
'cross the yellow mountain switchbacks
And the rapids far below
On the high and lofty trestles
Near the fabled mines of ophir
In the silver san juan mountains
There's a legend in the snow

[chorus]
With a pierce-arrow engine
Runnin' hot and on the loose
Came the rio grande southern
The gallopin' goose
With a pierce-arrow engine
Runnin' hot and on the loose
Came number five, the gallopin' goose

more free lyrics

Well, in eighteen-fourteen we took a little trip
Along with colonel jackson down the mighty mississip
We took a little bacon and we took a little beans
And we caught the bloody british at the town of new orleans.

[chorus]
We fired our guns and the british kept a-comin'
There wasn't nigh as many as there was a while ago
We fired once more and they all began a-runnin'
Down the mississippi to the gulf of mexico

Well we eye-balled the river and we see the limeys come
Musta been a hunnert of 'em beatin' on a drum
And then they stepped so high and they made the bugles ring
We hid behind our cotton bales and didn't say a thing

[chorus]
We fired our guns and the british kept a-comin'
There wasn't nigh as many as there was a while ago
We fired once more and they all began a-runnin'
Down the mississippi to the gulf of mexico

Now, old hickory says we can take 'em by surprise
If we don't shoot our wads 'til we look 'em in the eyes
So we held off our fire 'til we see them real well
Then we opened up our squirrel guns and really gave 'em hell

[chorus]
We fired our guns and the british kept a-comin'
There wasn't nigh as many as there was a while ago
We fired once more and they all began a-runnin'
Down the mississippi to the gulf of mexico

[the chorus (the singers) sings this verse.]
Well, they ran through the briars and they ran through the brambles
And they ran through the bushes where the rabbits couldn't go
Ran so fast that the hounds couldn't catch 'em
Down the mississippi to the gulf of mexico.

[back to c.w.]
Well, we fired our cannon 'til the barrel melted down
So we grabbed an alligator and we turned his tail around
We stuffed his head with cannon balls and powdered his behind
And when we lit the fuse that old gator blew his mind

[chorus]
We fired our guns and the british kept a-comin'
There wasn't nigh as many as there was a while ago
We fired once more and they all began a-runnin'
Down the mississippi to the gulf of mexico

[the chorus (the singers) sings this verse.]
Well, they ran through the briars and they ran through the brambles
And they ran through the bushes where the rabbits couldn't go
Ran so fast that the hounds couldn't catch 'em
Down the mississippi to the gulf of mexico.

[okay, the singing's over.]
Hup, hip, trip, four.
You know, you old boys gonna be marchin' right smart, onced* you learn to count to four.

more free lyrics

Well, in eighteen-fourteen we took a little trip
Along with colonel jackson down the mighty mississip
We took a little bacon and we took a little beans
And we caught the bloody british at the town of new orleans.

[Chorus]
We fired our guns and the british kept a-comin'
There wasn't nigh as many as there was a while ago
We fired once more and they all began a-runnin'
Down the mississippi to the gulf of mexico

Well we eye-balled the river and we see the limeys come
Musta been a hunnert of 'em beatin' on a drum
And then they stepped so high and they made the bugles ring
We hid behind our cotton bales and didn't say a thing

[Chorus]
We fired our guns and the british kept a-comin'
There wasn't nigh as many as there was a while ago
We fired once more and they all began a-runnin'
Down the mississippi to the gulf of mexico

Now, old hickory says we can take 'em by surprise
If we don't shoot our wads 'til we look 'em in the eyes
So we held off our fire 'til we see them real well
Then we opened up our squirrel guns and really gave 'em hell

[Chorus]
We fired our guns and the british kept a-comin'
There wasn't nigh as many as there was a while ago
We fired once more and they all began a-runnin'
Down the mississippi to the gulf of mexico

Well, they ran through the briars and they ran through the brambles
And they ran through the bushes where the rabbits couldn't go
Ran so fast that the hounds couldn't catch 'em
Down the mississippi to the gulf of mexico.

Well, we fired our cannon 'til the barrel melted down
So we grabbed an alligator and we turned his tail around
We stuffed his head with cannon balls and powdered his behind
And when we lit the fuse that old gator blew his mind

[Chorus]
We fired our guns and the british kept a-comin'
There wasn't nigh as many as there was a while ago
We fired once more and they all began a-runnin'
Down the mississippi to the gulf of mexico

Well, they ran through the briars and they ran through the brambles
And they ran through the bushes where the rabbits couldn't go
Ran so fast that the hounds couldn't catch 'em
Down the mississippi to the gulf of mexico.

Hup, hip, trip, four.
You know, you old boys gonna be marchin' right smart, onced* you learn to count to four.