hey pop; really, i wouldn't want to swap

hey pop;
really, i wouldn't want to swap
you had a hard time on the far side of the tracks
when the coal was black you piled it on your back
and when the ice was cold you went door to door and sold
and saw the good boys who had the better toys
and all those young girls with their fancy blond curls
telling stories from the river that always made you shiver
and there seemed no way out
no one would ever hear your shout
but in time there opened a dangerous door
everyone called it the Second World War
and you took it
and took the hit
with brass knuckles in your hand, a handsome face
drinking on a ladder to reach the old rat race
Naval pants and combat with a gun
not much you ever left undone
you carried the ball but finally let it drop
ran full speed and couldn't quite make it to the top
hey pop;
you took a good run and made one hell of a charge
ran a long way past that small town river barge
best-looking man (you said!) with an Earl Flynn grin
cutting the cards four ways to win
buying a new car to show everyone who you are
as you drove down every fast lane
turning from a side street onto Main
you never looked back at the coal and ice
felt the wind in your hair and thought it damn nice
hey pop;
where are you now and whatever else comes can anybody say?
i saw you disappearing softly but i can't go that way:
so toss me another pitch and make it straight
i'm heading for home and don't want to be late.

another shot of Gin

i know where the easy cliff ends and the hard stairs begin
it wasn't so long ago i took a stand
and took it on the chin
i wasn't afraid to lose
but i didn't expect to win
i sat down and poured myself another shot of London Gin
when i saw you come in
and then there rose a sun; it burned inside my heart
made a complete circle before it flew apart
one season came and soon became four
i heard all the stories of what came before
a Jack and a Jill and the Kingdoms of yore
the crown with thorns and the sharp thorns of a red flower
i saw a man consumed with thoughts of pure power
trying to kill the passing of an hour
he wrote a book with words he went to the central bank to borrow
a five year plan was to publish it today or sometime tomorrow
but i tried to play the game without having to slide
every time they gave an explanation i knew they lied
four thousand children on the streets bowed down and cried
the wailing of a father and the tears of a mother
a wheelchair once carried the weight of my brother
its' tires traveled a hundred miles before a quick U-turn
all is quiet on the western front but what did any of us learn?
i know where the easy cliff ends and the hard stairs begin
it wasn't so long ago i took a stand
and took it on the chin
i wasn't afraid to lose
but i didn't expect to win
i sat down and poured myself another shot of London Gin
when i saw you come in.

i questioned myself and i questioned you

the moon was an exploding bomb

deep in the distance a puzzling light
i looked left and i looked right
there was nothing special i wanted to do
i questioned myself and i questioned you

i hid behind a cellar door

asked a whispering ghost why he was so quiet
heard a news story about the Attica riot
saw a young boy he was crying in bed
read the latest warning but ignored what it said

the black swords flew out of the east

the swans flew out to the nearest river
a scarecrow stood naked and started to shiver
an angry young girl walked up to a tall ladder
she hit it with hatred until it started to shatter

the porch swing was like a white rope

on the way south it hung from a church steeple
black souls on ice kept looking for people
a shout in the throat kept getting swallowed
it wasn't history but everything that followed

and the good book on the sidewalk

each page and every chapter in fine print
hands waving to provide every eye a helpful hint
my own way home with a compass and a smile
and the park bench where i wanted to sit for a little while

the moon was an exploding bomb

deep in the distance a puzzling light
i looked left and i looked right
there was nothing special i wanted to do
i questioned myself and i questioned you.

Guinness isn't just a beer

there was a time in California
when i thought i had an extended reach
so i went walking with a musical woman
to the crazy Pacific beach
and we built a fire
and read Russian poetry
while watching the fiery sun
lower itself into the still-glowing sea
i asked her to sing
the Beach Boys who came first to mind
but she sang Dead Man's Curve
and I didn't want to seem unkind
so i had another drink
while she played her B Flat clarinet
like a famous French little bird
who escaped her net
and she started to dance
wet sand between her toes
i considered heading to San Francisco
to see the variety shows
but the wild surf made a steady roar
Big Sur darkness held me to the floor
and she asked for a foot massage
said both her feet were damp
so i lit a Coleman lantern
and settled into camp
i found another Guinness
but it wasn't just a beer;
she handed me oil and spices
and said "Any time now, dear."

Red Mountain

i saw her on Red Mountain
but no one knew her name
how far she had wandered
or from where she came
no one would ever say
but i'll never forget that day
i know she treated me like a stranger
and at first i didn't walk so fine
there was a strong wind blowing
which knocked me off my line
and i started out fawning
and she might have been yawning
but we watched the stars overhead
they kept spinning in their night sky bed
and heard a wolf pack prowling
and a dark bear somewhere growling
and she put her hand on my chest
she felt my heart and i guessed
but i believed everything i felt
kept playing all the cards i was dealt
well, i awoke on a stone cold mesa
and down in the valley far below
the wagon trains kept moving
i didn't know which way they'd go
looked around to see Red Mountain
and it seemed mighty proud and brave
there was one lonely feature
a small tombstone on a freshly dug grave
i saw her on Red Mountain
but no one knew her name
how far she had wandered
or from where she came
no one will ever say
but i'll never forget that day.