Buffalo Gospel We Can Be Horses +Song of the Ox I can’t tell where one year ends And the next year begins But I know it’s a thin line Between heaven and here And I wash in the river And this year will be my year I know that the sun will shine And then comes the wintertime But I do prefer sunshine Just to be perfectly clear And I wash in the river And this year will be my year I sing me the song of the ox Right over that long pine box That they left in the field By the hole full of ghosts By the busted old post That are shaped like a cross And they make me feel Like a dirty old sinner And the line gets thinner I am an ox and I eat the grass If the preacher don’t like it He can kiss my ass Let me tell a secret, friends About where you go when it all ends Well I know it is a thin line Between heaven and here We can wash in the river And this year will be our year I sing me the song of the ox Right over that long pine box That they left in the field By the hole full of ghosts By the busted old post That are shaped like a cross And they make me feel Like a dirty old sinner And the line gets thinner I am an ox and I eat the grass If the preacher don’t like it He can kiss my ass If the preacher don’t like it He can kiss my ass If the preacher don’t like it He can kiss my ass +Mule I ain’t said nothing worth saying In over a year And I’m double bred for a death By fire and fear Blue-collar bastard I am With the blood on my hands Sometimes I’m lonesome Sometimes I’m grand But the things that I seen are tearing me apart This town’s a lesson in lonesome Lonesome and love And I’ve had one hell of a life But I’ve had enough Mine is a history of blues Worn out and used Well I’m damned if I don’t And I’m damned if I do And the heaviest thing that I carry is my heart And you never know that a little love is all you need Till a little love is all you got And you never know that a little love is all you need Till a little love is all you got And you never know that a little love is all you need Till a little love is all you got I ain’t said nothing worth saying In over a year And I’m double bred for a death By fire and fear Blue-collar bastard I am With the blood on my hands Sometimes I’m lonesome Sometimes I’m grand And the heaviest thing that I carry is my heart And the heaviest thing that I carry is my heart And the heaviest thing that I carry is my heart +Hoarse as a Crow Had another dream about the day I die Fifty-dollar suit looking Sunday fine You were sittin’ pretty and I wish I’d known We were in the city and you were stoned Told me you were tired and you couldn’t see And the bottom of the bottle looked a lot like me Widdlin’ and a wearin’ and I wore you down Honey, you could be a profit in your own hometown You are the only home You are the only home I know You are the only home I am horse as a crow Well I would be liar if I didn’t say If this is where I meet you, it’s where I’ll stay Find a little lovin’ in the middle west Find a little wreckage and a missile test Built on wishes and drunk on wine Short a little money and long on time Take you to a city that’s beautiful Maybe down to Memphis or Istanbul You are the only home You are the only home I know You are the only home I am horse as a crow We can get around ‘till we’re good and old I’d sill call like a little crow Take you to a city in our Sunday best Find a little lovin’ in the middle west You are the only home You are the only home I know You are the only home I am horse as a crow +When God's Away on Business Dime store trash And paperbacks Cheap red wine In paper bags I’ve got all that I could need Walking home In the rain Marquee says There’s a picture playin’ Called She’ll Make a Man Outa Me I’d run myself ragged I’d ring the quitting bell I’d cut my kin from every one Of the stories that I tell If I thought it would make a difference He’d be an easy sell But when God’s away on business Your tears go straight to hell The rats have come to drank the wine Puts a hitch in Suppertime What’s a lonely man to do They dance along The wooden floor Where you and I Had danced before Back when I had everything to lose I’d run myself ragged I’d ring the quitting bell I’d cut my kin from every one Of the stories that I tell If I thought it would make a difference He’d be an easy sell But when God’s away on business Your tears go straight to hell Morning time Is here again I have to ask What kind of friend Would take everything that gives me thrills Nighttime comes To say hello And make sure I ain’t running low On wishes, memories, and pills I’d run myself ragged I’d ring the quitting bell I’d cut my kin from every one Of the stories that I tell If I thought it would make a difference He’d be an easy sell But when God’s away on business Your tears go straight to hell +The Northern I read your letter It read like another nail Heard you been tying Knots in the devil’s tail Well you’re drenched to the bone Lie in your park bench hotel Won’t you pick up the phone Let me come live in your hell And your smoke turns to black Covered by city lights I heard you sing your goodbyes To the city nights Bottles of blues and broken down stars Go on dancing The Northern will come And it’s never one for romance We can be horses We never have to come back Wrapped in our voices Wrapped in our downtown rags Just like a pair Of worn out whiskey doves Sweet sons of bitches and Old sweet sons of love Bottles of blues and broken down stars Go on dancing The Northern will come And it’s never one for romance I read you letter It read like another nail Heard you been tying Knots in the devil’s tail +The Western (The Devil Is Me) A higher warning On the morning Of new years day And I am moving west This is my darkest holler This is my beck and caller This is what I must do to rest Well I know that I can swing A mighty might chain Right here in the garden of a lion But I know that I will say Goodbye, goodbye someday To the Devil and his weary mind It took a while to catch my breath It took a while to catch my breath It took a while for me to see That the devil, well the devil is me I could stay here All the day dear But I must go now ‘Cause I was headed west I’ve heard that times are hard I’ve seen the windows barred In the valley of the shadow of death Pockets sewn with line Up against the tide With glory drums and pistols firing Hammer set and light I will sleep the night Upon your grave if you will sleep on mine It took a while to catch my breath It took a while to catch my breath It took a while for me to see That the devil, well the devil is me A higher warning On the morning Of new years day And I am moving west +The Eastern I can’t tell you where my heart lies But there’s a ghost in the valley and he’s just my size You gonna love me You gonna love me when I’m gone Well I done my best to drink myself blind I would have stood beside you like a piece of iron You gonna love me You gonna love me when I’m gone You gonna love me when I’m all in roses You gonna love me when I’m gone There’s a busted fence that’s fallin’ down But it’s the only thing that’ll hold me now You gonna love me You gonna love me when I’m gone There’s a row of oaks and a row of graves Like a row of free and row of slaves You gonna love me You gonna love me when I’m gone You gonna love me when I’m all in roses You gonna love me when I’m gone I’m’a catch a train Put a bullet in your brain Right below that line of oaks Put you in the ground Never make a sound Ride that pony east I know You gonna love me when I’m all in roses You gonna love me when I’m gone You can say your prayers and you can dress in white But what’you tell yourself when you’re alone at night? You gonna love me You gonna love me when I’m gone I can’t tell you where my heart lies But I’m’a love to be there oh to watch you die You gonna love me You gonna love me when I’m gone You gonna love me when I’m all in roses You gonna love me when I’m gone +If I Was the Last Man For richer or for poorer For meager or for grand A belly full of fire A bible busted land Hand on the girl that brung me She came from way back east She done it like a master I done it like a beast Hey Rose, double on the wall First to fire is the first to fall My blood dries black and it dries fast Hey Rose, saddle and the sin Angel that you are and the devil that I been If I was the last man Could I be your man at last? I’m just a lonesome loser Dust up and torn to shreds I’d cut them down for miles Just to get you in my bed St. Peter would see me coming Wearing a bastard grin He’d ask me why I’m smiling I’d tell him where I been Hey Rose, double on the wall First to fire is the first to fall My blood dries black and it dries fast Hey Rose, saddle and the sin Angel that you are and the devil that I been If I was the last man Could I be your man at last? My soul don’t need no saving This creek runs deep and strong I wake up every morning And hum a gospel song My clothes could use a washing My boots could use a shine But if you’ll be my woman I suppose I’ll be just fine Hey Rose, double on the wall First to fire is the first to fall My blood dries black and it dries fast Hey Rose, saddle and the sin Angel that you are and the devil that I been If I was the last man Could I be your man at last? +The Long Way Home Third of December, my world in a trunk I joined with an army of sailors and skunks I was just seventeen, fragile and green But I knew that that ocean would spit me out mean Belly of fire with hair on my chest With limited options and this was my best Bartender, bartender I best double down That devil will know that I’m leaving this town I’ve still got to find me a sweet little girl Heals up to Jesus, my face in her curls That’s just what a God-fearing sailor would do Now pour me that drink and pour one for you Glory by land Glory by sea Diddle-ey Diddle-ey Don’t you cry for me Now give me a reason And I’ll take the long way home Bartender, bartender that whiskey was warm Maybe I had better wait out this storm It’s not like that ship is the last one to leave I heard that it’s rough living out on the sea No women and wishes and warm feather beds Just working and fishes and sailors instead Glory by land Glory by sea Diddle-ey Diddle-ey Don’t you cry for me Now give me a reason And I’ll take the long way home Bartender, bartender oh what have I done I’ve signed up to die out at sea with a gun I’d rather grow old and fat on a farm With a sweet little curly haired girl on my arm I’m just seventeen, fragile and green Ain’t no way that ocean has mercy on me Glory by land Glory by sea Diddle-ey Diddle-ey Don’t you cry for me Now give me a reason And I’ll take the long way home I’ll hide with the butcher I’ll hide with the hounds I’ll stay on this stool till that ship leaves this town I’ll hide in the bottle all drunken and warm Up on that shelf and away from that storm Dreaming bout growing up fat on that farm With a sweet little curly haired girl on my arm Glory by land Glory by sea Diddle-ey Diddle-ey Don’t you cry for me Now give me a reason And I’ll take the long way home Give me a reason And I’ll take the long way home Give me a reason And I’ll take the long way home +The Hill Outside My Home I woke to the sound of a military band Five old dirt coats full of brass buttons Tell the horse to swing down low On the hill outside my home God give but he pretty damn good at the take Took my ma and my pa and got his hand on my neck Three boys buried way down low In that hill outside my home Broke down at the bottom of a big old hill I’m a fool with a broken heart Time’s heavy for a man with plenty to kill And I don’t know where to start And I got no time for hope I’m old and growing older And this town, it is a joke It’s cold and growing colder Like my brothers in the hill outside my home Whole world stained black from a coal mine Ain’t got coal boots because I sold mine Don’t need them where I’m going Heart flush and aces showing I swept the leaves from in front of the door No use cause I ain’t coming back anymore Old mister rooster crowing Heart flush and aces showing Broke down at the bottom of a big old hill I’m a fool with a broken heart Time’s heavy for a man with plenty to kill And I don’t know where to start And I got no time for hope I’m old and growing older And this town, it is a joke It’s cold and growing colder Like my brothers in the hill outside my home They were men who were known for a song and a dance You could tell how it goes from the mud in their hands When they up on the hill and crawling And the kingdom’s tears are falling I will go late at night by the light of the moon Sweet breeze on the hill sing a military tune I can hear my momma bawling As the kingdom’s tears were falling Broke down at the bottom of a big old hill I’m a fool with a broken heart Time’s heavy for a man with plenty to kill And I don’t know where to start And I got no time for hope I’m old and growing older And this town, it is a joke It’s cold and growing colder Like my brothers in the hill outside my home +All That I Got Left This trouble I found And this empty house Ain’t the kind of life We sang about But it feels just a little bit like all that I’ve got left This heart full of blues Moves blood full of booze Either way I’m down Either way I lose But it feels just a little bit like all that I’ve got left People say we’re the lucky ones Never answer anyone Rambling wild and free And they say let me tell you son Let’em go and if they come back it’s meant to be I’ve loved and I have left them And I’m left here with this lesson This lonesome night feels a little bit like All that I’ve got left I lie here awake And I can’t shake The picture of that southbound train And it feels just a little bit like all that I’ve got left That whistle it blows And it’s you I know With miles behind A southbound ghost And it feels just a little bit like all that I’ve got left People say we’re the lucky ones Never answer anyone Rambling wild and free And they say let me tell you son Let’em go and if they come back it’s meant to be I’ve loved and I have left them And I’m left here with this lesson This lonesome night feels a little bit like All that I’ve got left I know my friend That this ain’t the end We’re gonna raise hell in heaven again And it feels just a little bit like all that I’ve got left All that I am A shell of a man Ain’t half as strong As this steel in my hand And it feels just a little bit like all that I’ve got left People say we’re the lucky ones Never answer anyone Rambling wild and free And they say let me tell you son Let’em go and if they come back it’s meant to be I’ve loved and I have left them And I’m left here with this lesson This lonesome night feels a little bit like All that I’ve got left +Letters to Georgia Dear Georgia, my Georgia The girl I call home The years I was drunk Were the good ones I’m told And out in the distance The 4am bells My old trusty horse Are these old rusty rails My shoes are worn thin My money ain’t good I ain’t got nothing A Georgia man should ‘Cept I been busted And broken on down By the sweet Georgia girls In my sweet Georgia town I’m a dog in the dirt You’re the salt of the Earth We’re hounds in the whispering light I’m a book full of words You’re the lesson I learned Sincerely, I love you, goodbye I never been no place Passed the state line Never had stones To say my goodbyes So hold this old note That I wrote to your breast And let the sweet Whiskey I drank to the rest I’m a dog in the dirt You’re the salt of the Earth We’re hounds in the whispering light I’m a book full of words You’re the lesson I learned Sincerely, I love you, goodbye Shaken awake And I’ve been deceived The wind’s got no warm And the trees got no leaves But it don’t make no difference If the sun doesn’t show These tracks run one way And that way ain’t home I’m a dog in the dirt You’re the salt of the Earth We’re hounds in the whispering light I’m a book full of words You’re the lesson I learned Sincerely, I love you, goodbye The Good Land (2010) +Sundays Never Smile Anymore Sundays with the drink and the hounds and the whores Señoritas and their long black hair in the doors Dirty bar room floors and open pours Sundays never smile anymore Between the bums and dead end kids I can hear ‘em all laugh at the lives they live I can hear ‘em all laugh at what they been Doctors, lawyers, bankers, bums in the end Twenty dollars on the windowsill Bet it all that we get our fill We can ride on out tonight Old Cadillac Coupe Deville Bet your sweet ass I will We can ride on out tonight I remember what my dear old momma said You’re gonna live ‘round here ‘till your dead You’d better get that through your head Oh momma how could I forget She’d say it with an angel’s kiss But angels would never live like this We can ride on out tonight There are some that I’m gonna miss But it ain’t much of a list We can rid on out tonight Well I live in a no good town She gets worse when the sun goes down I can hear her dirty magic sounds She drops her bombs upon the ground Bombs in her clothes, bombs in her prose Bombs in the basements down below Bombs in the Sunday picture show Sundays never smile anymore No money and my hands are sore Aw honey that’s what roads are for We can ride on out tonight I heard it said many times before Sundays never smile anymore We can ride on out tonight +The Southern (the Good Land Suite) Don’t let your heart Don’t let your heart Don’t let your heart Be troubled when I lay my boots to rest When I lay them to rest For I’ve walked these old boots ragged and half to death Don’t let your heart Don’t let your heart Don’t let your heart Be troubled when I lay my guns to rest When I lay them to rest For they’ve cried like thunder when they shaken on down the best What good is a horse without a rider? And a gun without a hand? What good is man without a woman? And a woman without a man? South sun shines South sun shines South sun shines so bright On my baby in the morning In the morning sun All I need are my boots, my baby and gun The good land comes The good land goes The good land turns to bad With a little change of clothes And some neon lights I never seen nothin’ so sad in all my life What good is a horse without a rider? And a gun without a hand? What good is man without a woman? And a woman without a man? Never known what I was after Spent my whole life ramblin’ round Well the good lord’s gonna hold me As the good land’s commin’ down What good is a horse without a rider? And a gun without a hand? What good is man without a woman? And a woman without a man? Never known what I was after Spent my whole life ramblin’ round Well the good lord’s gonna hold me As the good land’s commin’ down Well the good lord’s gonna hold me As the good land’s commin’ down +Rock Island Kill em all slowly, kill em all soft Kill em all lonely, kill em all lost I dream a promise, and I long for the day Kill em all slowly, kill em all brave Saddled in sadness, saddled in sin Rattled by roses, rattled by gin I have grown weary of the morning sun Smolderin’ madness, smolderin’ gun Oh Rock Island Carry me something Oh Rock Island Take care of me good Have mercy on a man And his late life crimes Oh Rock Island Only friend of mine They say wild is the reason, rage is the style Won’t you stay a little longer, just a little while I love these crooked evenings with you and your wine Oh Rock Island, only friend of mine To be your sweetheart, to be your man Take all my money, take all my land I dream of lightning and streets of gold Kill em all slowly, kill em all cold Oh Rock Island Carry me something Oh Rock Island Take care of me good Have mercy on a man And his late life crimes Oh Rock Island Only friend of mine Oh Rock Island Only friend of mine +North Mountain Bride I was born to some north mountain lovers I was born to the dirt and the pine I will take me a north mountain lover And she will be my north mountain bride There was a time I was stuck in the bramble I was alone with myself on my side Just wakin’ up was a hell of a gamble That’s when I saw my north mountain bride North mountain bride North mountain bride North mountain bride North mountain bride Hills were painted with sun and flowers I could smell Texas if I only tried I could see cities and walls and towers All that I want is my north mountain bride Where I been and where I’m going Don’t mean a thing if she ain’t by my side All that I know’s if I’m gone then I’m going And I will be there with my north mountain bride North mountain bride North mountain bride North mountain bride North mountain bride Someday my boy will say to the others Someday not too far down the line I was born to a north mountain lover And I was born to his north mountain bride North mountain bride North mountain bride North mountain bride North mountain bride +The Cat, the Stranger and Me Goodbye, goodbye, goodbye my friend I whisper to the door The snow has covered everything You don’t need me anymore I’ll keep the time that we have shared Fresh upon my mind Please be gentle, please be fair When you’re leavin’ me behind The cat will cry When you say goodbye Please be gentle, please be fair When you’re leavin’ me behind When you’re leavin’ me behind When you’re leavin’ me behind +Abigail I love you my sweet Abigail I hope this finds you well I’ve not a second I can spare So my story I will tell Oh Joseph when I read the words In letters that you send I pray that in this world or next I’ll see your face again We left Danville for Caroline And on to St. Louis We stopped a while to dry our bones That’s where they got to me You’d never know your son I say He’s grown up tall and right He’s got his momma’s golden hair And all his daddy’s fight We marched for weeks and months my love Straight through the driving rain I’m just as worn as this tattered flag They’ve tied around my brain The sun, it shines, upon our home Our family and our farm I’d gladly trade it all away To lie within your arms I sit beneath this old oak tree And fear I won’t return The bullet’s deep inside my chest As I watch our battle turn Easy come and easy go That’s what my father says I can’t imagine that he’s known A love quite like this I long to come back home to you And hold you in the night Where willows hold those cobbled streets And war is far from sight There’s just one thing I ask of you That’s keep me in your mind And I will think of you my dear When I leave this world behind The Four Letter Words (2009) +Four Letter Words Twelve sunflowers Sad and sour Dried and dead upon the floor The blinds have been drawn All your shit’s in the lawn Don’t you come ‘round here no more Good as you been Spent my fortune As sad as it might seem Now I’m wiped out Wanderin’ about This ain’t all you said it’d be Go on and get now, I ain’t buying I can’t stand the things you do But I would not be lying Love’s just one of the four letter words That I would like to do to you I been doing some thinking I been doing some drinking We know what happens then It would be all right Just for one night To make mistakes all over again Go on and get now, I ain’t buying I can’t stand the things you do But I would not be lying Love’s just one of the four letter words That I would like to do to you Where are the days that you promised Said a fueled up boy to his lady love She said son I must be honest You ain’t the man, you ain’t the man I’m dreaming of Twelve sunflowers Sad and sour Dried and dead upon the floor The blinds have been drawn All your shit’s in the lawn Don’t you come ‘round here no more Go on and get now, I ain’t buying I can’t stand the things you do But I would not be lying Love’s just one of the four letter words That I would like to do to you +I Need a Miracle Oh my darling You stole my fire again Never sorry You hold my heart in your hands Four in the morning And the streets are covered in fall Without any warning You break loose and rattle the walls Why do you love me? Why do you want me so much? So much for easy So much for leaving a crutch How long can I wait Wait for the trumpets to call Stare out at the grey As the snowfall covers it all Everyone packed Just upped and disappeared Magnificent act It’s just what I had feared Why do you love me? Why do you want me so much? So much for easy So much for leaving a crutch I need a miracle and the days that just passed me by And I’ll always have your streets to get me high Battered and cold I still have to come home I’m growing old I still face you alone It doesn’t matter It may be hard to believe Windows are shattered I know that I’ll never leave Why do you love me? Why do you want me so much? So much for easy So much for leaving a crutch I need a miracle and the days that just passed me by I’ll always have your streets to get me high +Tree of Good and Evil That slow freight’s running Like a back country line I’m running out of reasons Like we’re running out of time Went to see my Beulah With her whisper and her bells And her cold black fields Right outside of life itself Oh Sweet Beulah Where’s that love you lost Oh Sweet Beulah In that cold December frost I went to see my Beulah Lord, what did I see? Branches wrapped like ribbons On that good and evil tree Knots up in her belly And her feet beneath the ground I listened to her sing I listened to her sound Oh Sweet Beulah Where’s that love you lost Oh Sweet Beulah In that cold December frost I been to Lincoln Lord, I love that town But I ain’t never seen it Lay the good and evil down Dead but not forgotten As the city walks on by They can’t hear the sound Of the good and evil cry Oh Sweet Beulah Where’s that love you lost Oh Sweet Beulah In that cold December frost Oh my Beulah Lay your sweet black eyes on me Oh my Beulah And the good and evil tree +I'm the Ghost I woke up one Sunday morning To a bang and a cold, cold head Hands they felt like hammers And my legs stuck to the bed Tried to stand and use my words But nothing could be said Was right then that I realized That I was stone cold dead I’m the ghost of an orphan I’m the ghost of a man I’m the ghost of a streetcar And the ghost of a van I’m the ghost of a boardroom Full of cheats and drunks I’m the ghost of an artist And an elephant’s trunk Well I stayed right there inside my bed Feeling sorry for myself I never knew that dying Could be so bad for my health But then all of a sudden Well it occurred to me That there may be an upside To being what I be I’m the ghost of an orphan I’m the ghost of a man I’m the ghost of a raincoat And a newspaper stand I’m the ghost of a trashcan Full of food and dust I’m the ghost of nickel Cause in God I trust To be a ghost, it ain’t that bad On that you can rely But I sure miss the alcohol Cigarettes and apple pie At least I get to see all Those who did not say goodbye If there’s one thing that we all share It’s we’re all gonna die I’m the ghost of an orphan I’m the ghost of a man I’m the ghost of a ladder I’m the ghost of the land I’m the ghost of a deep hole I’m the ghost of the sea I’m the ghost of my father And I’m the ghost of me I’m the ghost of an orphan I’m the ghost of a man I’m the ghost of a ladder I’m the ghost of the land I’m the ghost of a deep hole I’m the ghost of the sea I’m the ghost of my daddy And I’m the ghost of me +Goodnight Moon Goodnight moon I’d love to stick around And watch you fill the streets from town to town I would like to ask before I go How to turn tonight to tomorrow It’s that time again My old friend Goodnight moon Oh Goodnight Goodnight moon Oh Goodnight Goodnight moon Goodnight moon I’d love to stick around Bitter lover baggage on the ground Free my hands from what they’ve come to be And say goodnight to Baltimore for me It’s that time again My old friend Goodnight moon Oh Goodnight Goodnight moon Oh Goodnight Goodnight moon Goodnight moon And don’t forget my name Just like rye you help me feel no pain I would like to ask before I go Help me turn tonight to tomorrow It’s that time again My old friend Goodnight moon Oh Goodnight Goodnight moon Oh Goodnight Goodnight moon Goodnight moon I’d love to stick around And tear this motherfucker to the ground Take me, put a smile upon my face I’m still too young to have to act my age +Oh Be Joyful Sweet singers of old country lands I can hear them clap their hands Old lovers are home with their men And I’m beside you once again One last city, one more Dixie town One last hammer coming down Long has it been since I could be found Long has my heart been rambling round Oh be joyful When we say goodnight And sing my name In your southern lullaby Please don’t you ask me Where I been Oh be joyful once again Say goodbye to sugar rhymes Do not waste your precious time And before it strikes me blind I’d like to leave this war behind Some will watch the lines all break Some will watch them twist and quake I will trade my gun for rake And live to love another day Oh be joyful When we say goodnight And sing my name In your southern lullaby Please don’t you ask me Where I been Oh be joyful once again When I grow to be too old All my stories have been told When my blood runs thin and cold When I’ve got to go Come to me oh gentle death When I live with nothing left Let me feel that sweet black breath Let me be your gentle guest Oh be joyful When we say goodnight And sing my name In your southern lullaby Please don’t you ask me Where I been Oh be joyful once again All content (c) 2014 Buffalo Gospel. 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