Manifesto

Granddad saw the Nazis fall

In 1945, France

They went back to Germany when the prisoners were free

And made the townsfolk tour the camps

I played Amazing Grace at the First Baptist Church

On a fiddle he built from spare parts

The vets blew taps and they lowered him down

Then I broke into "Old Joe Clark"

Hell, what have I ever done? 

My Grandpa fought the Nazis and won

All I do is bow bluegrass & blues

I hope you like it some

Dad could work it all, the rig, the saw,

The M-16 with "The Walking Dead"

But he packed it all in for a Yellow Rose and kids

When he said "adios" to Vietnam

Between furloughs and firings and early retirement

there was meat & gravy on our plates

And no machine shop's gonna run itself

Just because your hair's all gray

Hell, what have I ever done?

My Dad fought off the Viet Cong

& All I do is bow bluegrass & blues

I hope you like it some

The calls revved up the winter of '01

I had turned 18

You could almost smell the Barbasol & Brute through the phone

As the Sergeant made his pitch to me

Dad swiped the phone, warned him to move along,

A cigarette tucked in his mouth

Then he looked me in the eye and said, "Your family's done it's time"

Turned and snubbed the Pall Mall out

Well, my veins carry their blood

And they've cut this path for me to run

And what I do is bow Bluegrass & blues

I hope you like it some

& What I do is bow bluegrass & blues

I hope you like it some

The night is clear, the liqour is warm

The cases, in the back of the Ford

The Carolina mountainside had come to life

His pockets would be full by the morn

A red-faced man in a black Cadillac

Pulls in behind the truck

Says they'll burn the fields, blow up the still

If they don't get their cut

Well, there's Lightning on the Mountain

And there's fire in the still

Now Billy's got a new set of plans

And a Colt 45 in his hand

He lights a cigar with a crooked smile and says, 

"Do we have a deal?"

Bill doesn't move, he just spits in the dirt and says,

"Get your ass out of Waynesville"

They unstrap their pistols and soak the fields

throw dynamite into the barn

He winks at Billy as he slowly kneels

And lights it all with his cigar

Well, there's Lightning on the Mountain

And there's fire in the still

Now Billy's got a new set of plans

And a Colt 45 in his hand

He tracked them down just outside of town

To a station by a Blueridge mine

Tonight that son-of-a-bitch is gonna light his cigar

With the help of hellfire

Well, there's Lightning on the Mountain

And there's fire in the still

Now Billy's got a new set of plans

And a Colt 45 in his hand-

And a Colt 45 in his hand

Oh, Susanna, I’m alone again

You’re in Louisianne 'til Lord knows when

I'm stuck up here where the firewheels grow 

Waitin’ on word from my Sweet Delta Rose

We coasted into town on fumes 

Off a two-night-stand in Baton Rouge

And no columbine or blushing bride

 Has shown me colors you shined that night

April showers, bright May blooms

 Tangled satin sheets, discovering tattoos

Now I can be a gypsy and your darlin’, too

But I’d rather swim through your shade of blue

But as it goes 

I’ll wait on those 

Tender hands to pin me on a rose

And I’ll cut you magnolia n’ pack my bags

And bring Oklahoma to Louisianne

Oh, Susanna, we’ve got our scars 

Some in the daylight, some in the dark

And if yours are healing slow 

I’ll be right here ‘neath the afterglow

Cause as it goes 

I’ll wait on those 

Tender hands to pin me on a rose

And I’ll cut you magnolia n’ pack my bags

And bring Oklahoma to Louisianne

Yeah, as it goes 

I’m steady as an Oak 

Waitin’ on the word of my Sweet Delta Rose

She’s pressed against the bar

With lipstick on her glass

She’s known ‘round these parts

And he just stumbled onto the tracks

Hand him the spade, take your seat

Enjoy the show

Pretty girls make graves

But a fool will dig his own

He strolled up like the King of Hearts

Countin’ money for her drinks

Took her hand and brushed against

The Ace of Spades in her sleeve

Hand him the spade, take your seat

Enjoy the show

Pretty girls make graves

But a fool will dig his own

Now he’s clothed in skin and bones

The sky is turning black

He tells hisself he should have known

Opens the bottle and tips it back

Hand him the spade, take your seat

Enjoy the show

Pretty girls make graves

But a fool will dig his own-

But a fool will dig his own

She stood there on his steps cryin’, 

told him that his friend had been lyin’ 

and “I got nowhere else to go 

and the night is getting cold

Could I stay here with you for a while?“

What could he do- with her eyes that blue?

The writing was on the wall 

but lovin’ and losin’ sure beats not living at all

Conversation and California wine, 

Billie Holiday and bedroom eyes

One thing turns to two 

And with a sky full of moon

He’ll bet ‘all in’ on a 2 and a 5

But what could he do- with her eyes that blue?

The writing was on the wall 

but lovin’ and losin’ sure beats not living at all

Well, the words come rushin’ to his brain

And tumbled off the edge of his tongue

When she just smiled back at him he felt his age

 and he thought “Hell, you old man... what’s done is done”

She blew a kiss to him from her window of the bus 

And it hit him like a jab in the guts

He swallowed down some pain, walked home in the rain,

 While she sailed off into the sun

But what could he do- with her eyes that blue?

The writing was on the wall 

but lovin’ and losin’ sure beats not living,

 yeah, lovin’ and losin’ sure beats not lovin’

 yeah, lovin’ and losin’ sure beats not living at all

Screamin' through the pass in a cannonball flash

Half-lit, hell-on-wheels

Jesse's got a Mustang with four-on-the-floor

And Joanie's got it head-over-heels

Jesse & Joan were just flesh & blood

But that car was American steel

That's a bad combination when you're 17

With all your time to kill

But they got the Devil by the tail

And an Angel on their side

Livin' out their lives 

like they're Bonnie & Clyde

With the thunder of a Shelby '65

They must've wrecked that car a half-a-dozen times

Gettin' by without a scratch

But when the wheels come off the ground this time

They shatter through the front glass

But they got the Devil by the tail

And an Angel on their side

Livin' out their lives 

like they're Bonnie & Clyde

With the thunder of a Shelby '65

That Mustang rolled going 104

But somehow they made it out alive

And their wounds have healed into nice, big scars

They'll keep the rest of their lives

Now that hot rod Ford's just a junkyard heap

And those kids are now 35

And they cross their chest to their God and their flesh

For outlivin' that '65

They had the Devil by the tail

And an Angel on their side

Livin' out their lives 

like they're Bonnie & Clyde

With the thunder of a Shelby '65

They had the Devil by the tail

And an Angel on their side

The kind of luck that rolls 

Those sevens every time 

With the thunder of a Shelby '65

A blinding flash lit the midnight sky

I spun myself around, shielding my eyes

Dashing through the heavens, dying in a 7th chord

Was a light I beheld before

Velvet skin, her eyes like the sun

Don't stare too long lest you have visions

I had gotten mine before she even knew my name

And the sweet Psalms rolled through my veins

Oh, Josephine, look what you've done to me

yeah, Josephine, we sure were somethin'- you & me

I can feel the fire from the August night

Taste the wine on her lips as they close onto mine

Every nerve firing in a psychedelic dream

At the hands of Josephine

Oh, Josephine, look what you've done to me

A heart full of nothin, a head full of codeine

 Josephine, we sure were somethin'- you & me

Well, it's been a while now since I got the news

And walked through these doors to try something new

But if I could get myself a nickel or a dime

Maybe I could catch you flyin' by

Oh, Josephine, look what you've done to me

A heart full of nothin, a head full of codeine

yeah, Josephine, we sure were somethin'- you & me

The wind howls down off Saginaw Bay

Throwin' freezing, driving rain

In a snow-covered blind in the Tuscola pines

She raises her .308

She was showed how to shoot in size two boots

And her Father taught her well

Exhale and squeeze, be sure that it bleeds

"And darlin'- take care of yourself"

'Cause you don't know 'til they get close

If they're rootin' 'round for sheep

So keep your powder dry and your sharp eye

For when the wolf shows it's teeth

Handsome & sharp, chalk full of charm

He'd swept her off her feet

But it wasn't too long before the man was gone

And the wold showed it's teeth

Oh,  you don't know 'til they get close

If they're rootin' 'round for sheep

So keep your powder dry and your sharp eye

For when the wolf shows it's teeth

She didn't know how long she laid there alone

With the tile spotted and smeared red

He swore, "When I get back, if One bag is packed

I'll put 2 into your chest"

As she got to her feet she caught the gleam

Of an old familiar friend by the stairs

And in her hands she felt the weight, felt the steel, felt her fate

and made her way to the dark corner chair

Oh,  you don't know 'til they get close

If they're rootin' 'round for sheep

So keep your powder dry and your sharp eye

For when the wolf shows it's teeth

He threw it into park, stumbled through the dark

When he saw her bag on the front porch steps

And as he burst through the door she heard these words from before

"Darlin'- take care of yourself"

He was on the telephone 

Calling all the shots

A swagger in his step

And I was kickin’ rocks

Burnin’ through my last bent Marlboro Red

Chewin’ on my nails between every drag

A man oughta learn 

from mistakes he’s made

But some habits are hard to break

Ridin’ shotgun, went to meet his man

Got a bit chippy and we hit a few snags

But they got theirs

And I got mine

Now I gotta flip it faster 

Than a Tyson fight

Got a long-legged darlin’

With lavish taste—

Some habits are hard to break

Some habits are hard to break

Some dark-eyed women 

are eight-ball cocaine

Tremor in my hands

Pistol on the seat

The walls are comin’ down, man

I can feel the heat

All the badges and the bankers

And the fire in her eyes

The way her cotton dress

Lay gently on her thighs

Got the getaway hummin’ 

Like a Santa Fe freight—

Some habits are hard to break

Some habits are hard to break

Some dark-eyed women 

are eight-ball cocaine 

Went off the rails

Got a new set of clothes

Couldn’t keep up

With my Little Miss Jones

Withdrawal’s comin’ on

And I keep gettin’ lighter

On plates of cold turkey

And sides of barbed wire

They took away my Colt

But my hands still shake—

Some habits are hard to break

Some habits are hard to break

Some dark-eyed women 

are eight-ball cocaine 

This poor boy will never be the same

Well, she says that she don't drink

That she dumps his whiskey down the sink

But I've seen her put away some Old Crow

Bright as a flower, soft as rain

Tongue with a cuttin' Dust Bowl twang

And she wears a ring, the good girl down the road

Been close with Johnny since we was 12

With our single-shot rifles, raisin' hell

We got stories that nobody knows

We still get together for some cards and beer

When the work week's through and we're free & clear

And he's only a stone's throw down the road

Johnny had a bottle he'd tucked away

He tossed the cap like a bride's bouquet 

And laughed, "You ain't leavin' 'til this sucker floats"

We dealt and we drank 'til I stumbled to go

Then there she was like a Bright Red bow

Smiling at me through the door,

The Good Girl down the road

Well, I was full of cheap gin and my wishful thinkin'

But I swear that her eyes were cheatin'

And now I can't let it go...

She's the Good Girl down the road

Rose in the mornin' as slow as molasses

Felt around for my sunglasses

Last night sinkin' in like melting snow

And now I'm gettin' flashes of her big brown eyes

And they're lightin' up all kind-a wildfires,

Fillin' my mind with stupid thoughts and hopes

For the Good Girl down the road

Well, I was full of cheap gin and my wishful thinkin'

But I swear that her eyes were cheatin'

And now I can't let it go...

She's the Good Girl down the road

Johnny & I knew her in curls

Before Docs and Tommy Girl

She's had me since 1991

Oh, but my buddy's got himself one silver tongue

On a river road, hours away,

Sits a pine cabin in post oak shade

The woman on the phone says she'll let me know

I gotta get myself out of this county

The lines are blurring all around me-

Gonna break out the big bottle of Old Crow-

Gonna raise a few glasses 'fore I go-

To the Good Girl down the road

Well, I was full of cheap gin and my wishful thinkin'

Well now I know that her eyes were cheatin'

And now I can't let it go...

She's the Good Girl down the road...

The Good Girl down the road

If Ruby Ain't Happy, nobody's gonna be

If Ruby Ain't Happy, nobody's gonna be

So, I just keep my mouth shut, boys

I know what's good for me

Don't you go out drinkin' if you know what's good for you

Don't you go out drinkin' and come home 'round one or two

You'll be workin' tomorrow 'til you turn green & blue

She don't like them country songs that run down her name

She don't like them country songs that run down her name

She catch you singin', Oh Lord, it's Judgement Day!

A nail needs a hammer & a hammer needs a nail

A nail needs a hammer & a hammer needs a nail

And I need that woman, Lord, like the sick need well

So, If Ruby Ain't Happy, nobody's gonna be

If Ruby Ain't Happy, nobody's gonna be

So, I just keep my mouth shut, boys

I know what's good for me

Oh, If Ruby Ain't Happy, nobody's gonna be

If Ruby Ain't Happy, nobody's gonna be

So, I just keep my mouth shut, boys

I know what's good for me-

So, I just keep my mouth shut, boys

I know what's good for me

He leans on a banister, staring down the stairs

Toward the Woman in Gold with Platinum blond hair

Daddy's got the money, Mother wears her heels

And their Little Girl's cold as Steel

The family filters in, in Fours & Fives

He puts out the plates and the Forks and the Knives

November's been bitter but let's be real

It hasn't been cold as Steel

Well, the fire has died

And the embers won't glow

And this chill in the air cuts to the bone

Oh, but there was a time

Babe was soft as silk

Now he's livin' like a villain

With the Woman of Steel

They met in the hall, he studied her face

She pulled away as his hand touched her waist

When a Copperhead bites sometimes it feels

Just as cold as Steel

An uncle says the grace, they gather in the room

She grabs her plate and a Silver Spoon

And he's sittin' there like a sore thumb that just won't heal

Next to the Woman of Steel

Yeah, the fire has died

And the embers won't glow

And this chill in the air cuts to the bone

Oh, but there was a time

Babe was soft as silk

Now he's livin' like a villain

With the Woman of Steel

The curb is cluttered with cars & trucks

He slides in his cab and cranks the heater up,

Stares out the windshield toward Fayetteville,

Where it's not cold as Steel

They tell you it gets better

That the pain subsides

Slap your back, shake your hand, and say,

"Son, you'll be just fine",

Then pack into their cars and go on with their lives

But when I get home 

You'll still be gone

And I'll still be Lonesome For You

Idle hands are prone to the Devil's work

So I keep this body busy

From dawn 'til the dark

But an Angel's in my mind

She dances & she twirls

And when I get home

You'll still be gone

And I'll still be Lonesome For You

Still Lonesome For You

Those memories are Nailed to the wall

And the world will keep spinning

Like a battered, broken top

But you'll be on my mind when the Angels call

Calling me home, No longer to be alone

Or Lonesome For You

Just calling me home, No longer alone

Or Lonesome For You