Nanci Griffith - The Mca Years: A Retrospective (2004) by Nanci Griffith (보컬) on maniadb.com

Baby I know that we've got trouble in the fields
When the bankers swarm like locust out there turning away our yield
The trains roll by our silos, silver in the rain
They leave our pockets full of nothing
But our dreams and the golden grain

Have you seen the folks in line downtown at the station
They're all buying their ticket out and talking the great depression
Our parents had their hard times fifty years ago
When they stood out in these empty fields in dust as deep as snow

[Chorus:]
And all this trouble in our fields
If this rain can fall, these wounds can heal
They'll never take our native soil
But if we sell that new John Deere
And then we'll work these crops with sweat and tears
You'll be the mule I'll be the plow
Come harvest time we'll work it out
There's still a lot of love, here in these troubled fields

There's a book up on the shelf about the dust bowl days
And there's a little bit of you and a little bit of me
In the photos on every page
Now our children live in the city and they rest upon our shoulders
They never want the rain to fall or the weather to get colder

[Chorus]

You'll be the mule I'll be the plow
Come harvest time we'll work it out
There's still a lot of love, here in these troubled fields

From a distance the world looks blue and green
And the snow-capped mountains white
From a distance the ocean meets the stream
And the eagle takes to flight
From a distance there is harmony
And it echoes through the land

It's the voice of hope, it's the voice of peace
It's the voice of every man
From a distance we all have enough
And no one is in need
There are no guns, no bombs, no diseases
No hungry mouths to feed
From a distance we are instruments
Marching in a common band

Playing songs of home, playing songs of peace
They're the songs of every man
God is watching us, God is watching us
God is watching us from a distance
From a distance you look like my friend
Even though we are at war
From a distance I can't comprehend
What all this war is for

From a distance there is harmony
And it echoes through the land
It's the hope of hopes, it's the love of loves
It's the heart of every man
It's the hope of hopes, It's the love of loves
It's the song of every man

Well, the good times scratched a laugh
from the lungs of the young men
In a Deadwood saloon, South Dakota afternoon
And the old ones by the door
with their heads on their chests,
they told lies about whiskey on a womans breath

Yes, and some tell the story of young Mickey Free
Who lost an eye to a buck deer in the Tongue River Valley
Oh and some tell the story of California Joe
Who sent word through the Black Hills
there was a mountain of gold

And the gold she lay cold in their pockets
And the sun she sets down on the trees
And they thank the Lord
for the land that they live in
Where the white man does as he pleases

Some flat-shoed fool from the East comes a-runnin'
With some news that he'd read in some St. Joseph paper
And it was "Drinks all around" cause the news he was tellin'
was the one they called Crazy
has been caught and been dealt with

And the Easterner he read the news from the paper
And the old ones moved closer so's they could hear better
"Well it says here that Crazy Horse
was killed while trying to escape,
and that was some time last September,
it don't give the exact date"

And the gold she lay cold in their pockets
And the sun she sets down on the trees
And they thank the Lord
for the land that they live in
Where the white man does as he pleases

Where the white man does as he pleases

Then the talk turned back to whiskey and women
And cold nights on the plains, Lord
and fightin' them indians
And the Easterner he says he'll have one more
'fore he goes
He gives the paper to the Crow boy
who sweeps up the floor

And the gold she lay cold in their pockets
And the sun she sets down on the trees
And they thank the Lord
for the land that they live in
Where the white man does as he pleases

Where the white man does as he pleases
Where the white man does as he pleases
As he wants to, as he pleases

Love at the Five and Dime

Rita was sixteen years
Hazel eyes and chestnut hair
She made the Woolworth counter shine

And Eddie was a sweet romancer
And a darn good dancer
And they waltzed the aisles of the five and dime



And they'd sing
Dance a little closer to me
Hey, dance a little closer now
Dance a little closer tonight

Dance a little closer to me
Hey, it's closing time
And love's on sale
Tonight at this five and dime

verse:

Eddie played the steel guitar
And his mama cried 'cause he played in the bars
And he kept young Rita out late at night

Soon they married up in Abelene
Lost a child in Tennessee
But still that love survived




One of the boys in Eddie's band
Took a shine to Rita's hand
So , Eddie ran off with the bass man's wife

Oh, but he was back by June
Singin' a different tune
Sporting Miss Rita back by his side




Eddie played in the barroom band
'Til arthritis took his hands
Now he sells insurance on the side

And Rita's got her house to keep
She sells dime store novels with a love so sweet
And they dance to the radio late at night and still sing

I am leaving Mississippi in the evening rain
These Delta towns wear satin gowns
In a high beamed frame
Loretta Lynn guides my hands through the radio
Where would I be in times like these
Without the songs Loretta wrote?

[Chorus:]
When you can't find a friend
You've still got the radio
When you can't find a friend
You've still got the radio
Radio, listen to the radio
Radio, listen to the radio

I left a handsome two stepped good ole boy in Tennessee
Now, he's sittin' on the sofa, lookin' for his supper,
Wonderin' what's become of me
I've got a double-o-eighteen Martin guitar in the
Back seat of the car
Hey, I'm leaving Mississippi,
With the radio on

[Chorus]

There's a moon across the border in the Louisiana sky
I smell the Pontchartrain, I hear Silver Wings
Then, away Merle Haggard flies
That good ole boy will find a Band of Gold
On the stereo
Hey, then my Mama's gonna call and say,
"Where's she gone?"
He'll say, "Down the road with the radio on."

(James Hooker - Nanci Griffith - Danny Flowers)

Gulf Coast Highway
He worked the rails
He worked the rice fields
With their cool dark wells
He worked the oil rigs in the Gulf of Mexico
The only thing we've ever owned
Is this old house here by the road
And when he dies he says he'll catch some blackbird's wing
Then he will fly away to Heaven come some sweet blue bonnet spring

She walked through springtime
When I was home
The days were sweet
The nights were warm
The seasons change the jobs would come the flowers fade
This old house felt so alone
When the work took me away
And when she dies she says; she'll catch some blackbird's wing
Then she will fly away to Heaven come some sweet blue bonnet spring

Highway 90
The jobs are gone
We tend our garden
We set the sun
This is the only place on earth blue bonnets grow
Once a year they come and go
At this old house here by the road
And when we die we say we'll catch some blackbird's wing
Then we will fly away to heaven come some sweet blue bonnet spring

And when we die we'll catch some blackbird's wing
We will fly away together come some sweet blue bonnet spring

Oh I wish it would rain and wash my face clean
I want to find some dark cloud to hide in here
Oh love and a memory sparkle like diamonds
When the diamonds fall they burn like tears
When the diamonds fall they burn like tears

Once I had a love from the Georgia Pans who only cared for me
I want to find that love of 22 here at 33
I've got a heart on my right and one on my left
And neither suits my needs

No the one I love is way out west and he never will need me
I'm gonna pack up my two-step shoes and head for the Gulf Coast plains
I want to walk the streets of my own home town where everybody knows my name
I want to ride a ways down to Galveston when the hurricanes blow in
Cause that Gulf Coast water tastes as sweet as wine

When your heart's rolling home in the wind

She drove west from Salt Lake City to the California coastline.
She hit the San Diego Freeway doing sixty miles an hour.
She had a husband on her bumper, she had five restless children.
And she was singing as sweet as a mockingbird in that Ford Econoline.

And she's the salt of the earth,
Straight from the bosom of the Mormon church,
With a voice like wine,
Cruising along in that Ford Econoline.

Her husband was a gambler, he was a Salt Lake City rambler,
And he built a golden cage around his silver-throated wife.
So many nights he left her crying with his cheating and his lying,
But his big mistake was in buying her that Ford Econoline.

She's the salt of the earth,
Straight from the bosom of the Mormon church,
With a voice like wine,
Cruising along in that Ford Econoline.

She's the salt of the earth,
Straight from the bosom of the Mormon church,
With a voice like wine,
Cruising along in that Ford Econoline.

Now she sings her songs around this country from Seattle to Montgomery,
Those kids are grown and that rounder knows you cannot cage your wife.
Along the back roads of our nation, she's become a living legend,
She drives a Coupe De Ville but her heart rides still in that Ford Econoline.

She drives a Coupe De Ville but her heart rides still in that Ford Econoline

My daddy sent me on to Baton Rouge in 1969
He said our love was like a forest fire and he'd end it with a mind
So you rode with us to Temple, Texas where I did catch the train
And I remember waving back at you from a silted window pane

[Chorus:]
And I said fare thee well true love of mine
And I said fare thee well sweet lips of wine
And you said fare thee well my Texas rose
And then you blew a kiss of innocence as the trains began to roll
So long ago

You'd gone off to fight the war when I returned from school
And I traded in my innocence when the springtime came in bloom
And I married for my family; one night I dreamed of you
And you were running from me in the rain down on Congress Avenue
Now I saw you once in a crowded bar and it was Christmas time
I was frightened by the thunder of our hearts in '69
Because I live my life in whispers now and I choose to live alone
So I slipped back to the avenue and flipped my collar to the cold

I wish that you loved me
The way that I love you
I wish I had Angels
Who sang in my dreams

If wishes were changes
We'd all live in roses
And there wouldn't be children
Who cried in their sleep

He wishes I loved him
The way that I love you
If wishes were changes
I'd dry all his tears

If wishes were changes
I'd make him my anchor
He'd be my Angel
Who sang through the years

[Chorus]
So long to the blue days of wishing
If wishes were changes
There'd be no goodbyes
So long to the heart I have given

'Cause wishing won't bring back
The love in your eyes
I wish that I had your
Wings of desire

I wish I had seen you
As I see you now
I wouldn't feel sorrow
You've left here inside me

But, wishing won't change
Right from wrong for you now

[Chorus]

I wish that you loved me
The way that I love you
I wish I had Angels
Who sang in my dreams

I'm working on a morning flight to anywhere but here
I'm watching this evening fire burn away my tears
All my life I've left my troubles by the door
'Cos leaving is all I've ever known before

It's not the way you hold me when the sun goes down
It's not the way you call my name that left me stranded on the ground
It's not the way you'll say you'll hear my heart when the music ends
No... I am just learning how to fly away again

It's not the way you say you'll hear my heart when the music ends
I am just learning how to fly away again

And maybe you were thinking that you thought you knew me well
But no-one ever knows the heart of anyone else
I feel like Garbo in this Late Night Grande Hotel
'Cos living alone is all I've ever done well

It's not the way you hold me when the sun goes down
It's not the way you call my name that left me stranded on the ground
It's not the way you'll say you'll hear my heart when the music ends
No... I am just learning how to fly away again

It's not the way you hold me when the sun goes down
It's not the way you call my name that left me stranded on the ground
It's not the way you'll say you'll hear my heart when the music ends
No... I am just learning how to fly away again

It's not the way you'll say you'll hear my heart when the music ends
No... I am just learning how to fly away again

The telephone is ringin' in the middle of the night
And I pull the bed clothes higher
Will it stop calling out if I turn on the light?
I'm afraid of these shadows here
Cause my past is truly frightening
And I'm afraid of the warmth in the down
Of a feathered heart in flight

[Chorus:]
It's just another morning here (it's morning)
It's just another morning here
It's just another morning here (it's morning)
And it's a miracle that it comes around
Every day of the year

The neighbors scream and their baby cries
I'm hiding in the corner
I won't be them, pray I won't be them one day
Maybe it's just the breath of August
So hot upon my shoulder
Or an open window for a winged heart
To fly away

[Chorus]

The telephone is ringin' in the middle of the night
I pull the bed clothes higher
Will it stop calling out if I turn on the light?
I'm afraid of these shadows here
Cause my past is truly frightening
And I'm afraid of the warmth in the down
Of a feathered heart in flight

[Chorus: x2]

Sister had a crystal voice
She played a Silverstone from Montgomery Ward
Baez songs and Monroe hair
She sure could turn the boys heads to stare
Swimwear saunter, tan and haunt them
Was all she learned in school
Books were for the other girls
And the other girls were fools
Texas back in '69 was drive in movies and dashboard lights

Father waltzed her down the aisle
Cause college didn't suit her style
The sad truth was she could barely read
But if you told dear father, well he wouldn't believe you
The telephone rang and drove mother insane
From all the hearts left on the shelf
Sisters gone and she won't be home
Cause she didn't take care of herself
Texas back in '69 was drive in movies and dashboard lights

Where is she now
The backseat queen of fraternity
Where is she now
She's heavy on thigh
And light on integrity
Someone should have told her
When beauty's all you offer
How soon the world discovers
That your beauty's gone
Its gone

Mother can't you hear your daughter crying
Father wake up her youth is dying
The kids are gone
Husbands gone away
And its a shame cause she had such a lovely face
Can't you see she needed more than
"Oh what a pretty child"
You never taught her truth from lie
All you told her was to smile
Texas back in '69 was drive in movies and dashboard lights

Where is she now
The backseat queen of fraternity
Where is she now
She's heavy on thigh
And light on integrity
Someone should have told her
When beauty's all you offer
How soon the world discovers
That your beauty's gone
Its gone

Texas back in '69 was drive in movies and dashboard lights.

There's a light beyond these woods, Mary Margaret.
Do you think that we will go there,
And see what makes it shine, Mary Margaret?
It's almost morning, and we've talked all night,
You know we've made big plans for ten-year-olds,
You and I.

Have you met my new boy friend, Margaret?
His name is John, and he rides my bus to school,
And he holds my hand.
He's fourteen, he's my older man.
But we'll still be the best of friends,
The three of us, Margaret, John, and I.

Let's go to New York City, Margaret!
We'll hide out in the subways
And drink the poets' wine, oh,
But I had John, so you went and I stayed behind.
But you were home in time for the senior prom,
When we lost John.

The fantasies we plan, I'm living them now.
All the dreams we sang when we knew how,
Well, they haven't changed.
There's never been two friends like you and me,
Mary Margaret.

It's nice to see you family growing, Margaret.
Your daughter and your husband there,
They really treat you right,
But we've talked all night
And what about the light, that glowed beyond
Our woods when we were ten?
You were the rambler then.

The fantasies we planned, well, Maggie,
I'm living them now.
All the dreams we sang, oh, we damn sure knew
How, but I haven't changed.
There'll never be two friends like you and me,
Maggie, can't you see?

There's a light beyond your woods, Mary Margaret.

I don't wanna be standing here
With this ticket for this outbound plane
Oh, I've been here before
Somehow this doesn't feel the same
Talk is cheap
So we could talk all night long
And we may never figure out just
Where your love went wrong

[Chorus:]
'Cause I don't wanna be standin' here
Don't wanna be talkin' here
And I don't really care who's to blame
'Cause if love won't fly on it's own
Free will
It's gonna catch that outbound plane

The old folks say
That love's not forever anymore
Because these young people walk
Away from love alone
To pace the floor
Young or old I say that love is still the same
You may walk away from love but
You'll fall head and heels again

[Chorus]

Two lonely hearts in this airport
Knowing
Neither cares where that other
Heart is going
But, if love won't fly on it's own
Free will, it's gonna catch that
Outbound plane

That frown you're wearing's
Just you're halo turned upside down
Where is the laughter we once
Shared back in the lost and found?
These broken wings are gonna leave
Me here to stand my ground
You can have this ticket for that
Lonely plane that's flying out

[Chorus]

I am a backseat driver from America
They drive to the left on Falls Road
The man at the wheel's name is Seamus
We pass a child on the corner he knows
And Seamus says, "Now, what chance has that
Kid got?"
And I say from the back, "I don't know."
He says, "There's barbed wire at all of these exits
And there ain't no place in Belfast for that kid
To go."

[Chorus:]
It's a hard life
It's a hard life
It's a very hard life
It's a hard life wherever you go
If we poison our children with hatred
Then, the hard life is all that they'll know
And there ain't no place in (Belfast) for
These kids to go

(Chicago)

(This world)
A cafeteria line in Chicago
The fat man in front of me
Is calling black people trash to his children
He's the only trash here I see
And I'm thinking this man wears a white hood
In the night when his children should sleep
But, they slip to their window and they see him
And they think that white hood's all they need

[Chorus]

I was a child in the sixties
Dreams could be held through TV
With Disney, and Cronkite, and Martin Luther
Oh, I believed, I believed, I believed
Now, I am the backseat driver from America
I am not at the wheel of control
I am guilty, I am war, I am the root of all evil
Lord, and I can't drive on the left side of the road

[Chorus]