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JOHNSON COUNTY BLUES
I got the Johnson County blues, yes I got ‘em here today
I got the Johnson County blues, yes I got ‘em here today
Sittin’ here on 11th
See what the judge has to say
Troubled times like these can sure make a man go wrong
Troubled times like these can make a good man go wrong
But I can’t make nothin’
Sitting here in 51
There ain’t no sleepin’ in this crowded dirty jail
There ain’t no sleepin’ in this crowded dirty jail
The train tracks right outside
You know it’s a busy rail
When the Burlington Northern runs across the Santa Fe Trail
When the Burlington Northern cuts across the Santa Fe Trail
Well I think about my baby
Every time I hear that whistle wail
Some folks got it made in this land of opportunity
Some folks got it made in this land of opportunity
This place called Johnson County, well it ain’t no place for me
I got the Johnson County blues, yes I got ‘em here today
I got the Johnson County blues, yes I got ‘em here today
Sittin’ here on 11th
See what the judge has to say
TOWN TOPIC
Yes, it was just another one of those nights, nothin’ was going alright
You been hangin’ around the place
waitin’ on that one phone call that ain’t comin’ in at all
So you get kinda tired of waitin’ and decide to walk on down to the local tavern on the corner just a block or so from here to have a drink or two
A drink or two o’clock in the mornin’
Three or four cocktails later they’re singin’ last call
The clock on the wall…..
You don’t have to go home but you can’t stay here…
Not unless you’re sleepin’ with
one of the waitresses and hoping to doesn’t count Sir, you gotta go
so you feel the immediate need for a late night greasy cheese burger and fries
The last stop in a less than perfect evening
Down at the Town Topic…..
Well I was downtown at the diner drinkin’ coffee ‘til two
Wondering how I was gonna get home, I was contemplatin’ calling you
I was over by the jukebox when you came rollin’ in
With Billy Ray and Bobby, my three best friends
Now you’re the Town Topic, everybody knows your name
And if the truth hurts Baby, you ain’t feelin’ no pain
I heard you were down on Broadway making trouble in the streets
I heard you and someone were gettin’ hot between the sheets
I heard a nasty rumor that I’m all out of time
And you’d no longer be all mine
‘Cause you’re the Town Topic, everybody knows your name
And if the truth hurts Baby, you ain’t feelin’ no pain
You know I love you Baby, it’s a matter of time
If I don’t get you Mama I’ll go out of my mind
I’d buy you a Quick Stop rose and a box of wine and all
If you would just return my call
Well I finally caught you Sunday you were down at the laundromat
What is that dress you’re wearin’, I don’t think I bought you that
I walked right up and asked you if what I heard was true
You said, “Don’t pay ‘em no attention Baby, they’re just jealous of you.”
You’re the Town Topic, everybody knows your name
And if the truth hurts you ain’t feelin’ no pain
Yeah, so there we were together again, you and me
and my so-called friends
But I let you go on, you didn’t have room for me in your car anyway
And besides that, I was waitin’ on my jukebox selections -
a little Ray Charles “I Can’t Stop Loving You” or Johnny Mathis “Chances Are”
But all I heard was Abba “Take A Chance On Me” and Barry Manilow crooning “I was a fool”
So I paid my check and left Shirley a quarter
She mumbled something obscene about me as she was puttin’ her receipts in order
And I turned and walked out into the sultry Kansas City night
I went south on Broadway, up the hill, through the park towards midtown
Damn! Just my luck, it’s startin’ to rain.
A GOOD MAN
My baby loves me, even though sometimes I can be unkind
My baby loves me, even though sometimes I can be unkind
But I try to be a good man, sometimes a good man’s hard to find
I do everything she tells me, sometimes I get it right
I do everything the way she wants, sometimes I get it right
And I try to be a good man, even though a good man’s hard to find
Go to work in the mornin’, do my job and I get my pay
I’m all tore up by the time I get home and I got nothing good to say
But I try to be a good man, but a good man’s hard to find
But in the absence of a good man, a hard man’s good to find
Yeah, when you just can’t find a good man, a hard man’s good to find
WAY UP YONDER
Way up yonder on that hill, that’s where my baby stayed
Way up yonder on that hill, that’s where my baby stayed
That house stands empty, my baby’s gone away
Way up yonder on that hill, that’s where my baby lived
Way up yonder on that hill, that’s where my baby lived
I was a foolish man and she could not forgive
Way up yonder on that hill, my baby’s gone
Way up yonder on that hill, my baby’s gone
That house is empty, and I’m down here on the farm
Way up yonder on that hill, love used to live
Way up yonder on that hill, love used to live
I was a mean, mean man, and she could not forgive
Way up yonder on that hill, that’s where my baby stayed
Way up yonder on that hill, that’s where my baby stayed
Well the house stands empty, my baby’s gone away
LONELY KANSAS CITY NIGHT
The steamy night has fallen, it’s just past twilight
A big full moon is risin’ from beneath a red streetlight
The traffic on the overpass cuts the silence like a knife
On a lonely Kansas City night
Neon lights are flashin’ down on the boulevard
There’s a taxi waitin’ in front of the old Westside bar
The cops are shakin’ someone down after playing his last card
On a lonely Kansas City night
No one knows our secrets, we don’t talk about our past
But time reveals the truth, a good secret never lasts
So I’ll walk on down to Broadway and curse the sky for being gray
I try to change the way things were but it ends up just the same
You never know just what you’ve had ‘til winter comes along
You never cared for loneliness and now you find yourself alone
The cold November wind cuts you right down to the bone
On a lonely Kansas City Night
No one knows our secrets, still the truth is plain to see
All that time with the truth, and a good secret never bothered me
As I look out my window and curse the world for being gray
The sun won’t shine, the clouds won't rain but they just won't go away
The seasons change like day and night every time I turn around
Autumn’s color never lasts and it’s a old dark, windy town
“Will work for food” the sign reads and there’s a cold rain fallin’ down
On a lonely Kansas City night
On a lonely Kansas City night
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