Twofer my birthday Tuesday. Thought I would do a compare and contrast thing here with these two songs that recently crossed my Country Store threshold.
The first, Riley Green’s tune is a classic country tale told in three verses. He starts out describing a situation involving a girl when he was young, then slides into adulthood and eventually marrying and settling down. Nice little growing up story told all in about 3 minutes time.
On the other end of the song spectrum, here is classic Bob at his best with a rambling 7 minute word drunk story about what I’m not really sure of. (I have included the lyrics below for you to try and figure it out.)
Someone asked me the other day where I was going for my birthday as I usually take a trip to somewhere warm this time of year. I replied that I wasn’t going anywhere and that I’d be stuck in Piney Point with the Ridge boy blues again. The person I said this to did not get the reference and it’s just as well. You either get Bob or you don’t.
Oh, the ragman draws circles Up and down the block I’d ask him what the matter was But I know that he don’t talk And the ladies treat me kindly And furnish me with tape But deep inside my heart I know I can’t escape Oh, Mama, can this really be the end To be stuck inside of Mobile With the Memphis blues again. Well Shakespeare he’s in the alley With his pointed shoes and his bells Speaking to some French girl Who says she knows me well And I would send a message To find out if she’s talked But the post office has been stolen And the mailbox is locked Oh, Mama, can this really be the end To be stuck inside of Mobile With the Memphis blues again. Mona tried to tell me To stay away from the train line She said that all the railroad men Just drink up your blood like wine And I said “Oh I didn’t know that But then again there’s only one I’ve met And he just smoked my eyelids And punched my cigarette” Oh, Mama, can this really be the end To be stuck inside of Mobile With the Memphis blues again. Grandpa died last week And now he’s buried in the rocks But everybody still talks about How badly they were shocked But me, I expected it to happen I knew he’d lost control When he built a fire on Main Street And shot it full of holes Oh, Mama, can this really be the end To be stuck inside of Mobile With the Memphis blues again. Now the senator came down here Showing ev’ryone his gun Handing out free tickets To the wedding of his son And me, I nearly get busted And wouldn’t it be my luck To get caught without a ticket And be discovered beneath a truck Oh, Mama, can this really be the end To be stuck inside of Mobile With the Memphis blues again. Now the preacher looked so baffled When I asked him why he dressed With twenty pounds of headlines Stapled to his chest But he cursed me when I proved it to him Then I whispered, “Not even you can hide You see, you’re just like me I hope you’re satisfied” Oh, Mama, can this really be the end To be stuck inside of Mobile With the Memphis blues again. Now the rainman gave me two cures Then he said, “Jump right in” The one was Texas medicine The other was just railroad gin And like a fool I mixed them And it strangled up my mind And now, people just get uglier And I have no sense of time Oh, Mama, can this really be the end To be stuck inside of Mobile With the Memphis blues again. When Ruthie says come see her In her honky-tonk lagoon Where I can watch her waltz for free ‘Neath her Panamanian moon And I say, “Aw come on now You know you know about my debutante” And she says, “Your debutante just knows what you need But I know what you want” Oh, Mama, can this really be the end To be stuck inside of Mobile With the Memphis blues again. Now the bricks lay on Grand Street Where the neon madmen climb They all fall there so perfectly It all seems so well timed And here I sit so patiently Waiting to find out what price You have to pay to get out of Going through all these things twice Oh, Mama, is this really the end To be stuck inside of Mobile