Lover's Cross
By Jim Croce
Guess that it was bound to happen
Was just a matter of time
But now I've come to my decision
And it's a-one of the painful kind
Cause now it seems that you wanted a martyr
Just a regular guy wouldn't do
But baby I can't hang upon no lover's cross for you
Yeah I really got to hand it to you
Cause girl you really tried
But for ev'ry time that we spent laughin'
There were two times that I cried
And you were tryin' to make me your martyr
And that's the one thing I just couldn't do
Cause baby I can't hang upon no lover's cross for you
Cause tables are meant for turnin'
And people are bound to change
And bridges are meant for burnin'
When the people and mem'ries they join aren't the same
Still I hope that you can find another
Who can take what I could not
He'll have to be a super guy or maybe a super god
Cause I never was much of a martyr before
And I ain't 'bout to start nothin' new
And baby I can't hang upon no lover's cross for you
Cause tables are meant for turnin'
And people are bound to change
And bridges are meant for burnin'
When the people and mem'ries they join aren't the same
So I'll hope that you can find
Another who can take what I could not
He'll have to be a super guy or maybe a super god
Cause I never was much of a martyr before
And I ain't 'bout to start nothin' new
And baby I can't hang upon no lover's cross for you
BACK TO TOP
Bad, Bad Leroy Brown
By Jim Croce
Well ole south side of Chicago
Is the baddest part of town
And if you go down there you better just beware
Of a man named Leroy Brown
Now Leroy's more than trouble,
Yyou see he stand about 6 foot 4
All the downtown ladies call him treetop lover
All the men just call him sir
(CHORUS)
And its bad, bad Leroy Brown
The baddest man in the whole damn town
Badder than old King Kong
And meaner than a junkyard dog
Now Leroy he's a gambler,
And he likes his fancy clothes
And he liked to wave
His diamond rings under everybody's nose
He got a custom Continental,
He got an El-Dorado too
He got a 32 gun in his pocket for fun
He got a razor in his shoe
(REPEAT CHORUS)
Well Friday but a week ago,
Leroy shootin dice
And at the edge of the bar
Sat a girl named a Doris
And oh that girl looked nice
Well he cast his eyes upon her
And the trouble soon began
And Leroy Brown learned a lesson bout a messin
with the wife of a jealous man
(REPEAT CHORUS)
Well the 2 men took to fighting
And when they pulled them from the floor
Leroy looked like a jigsaw puzzle
with a couple of pieces gone
(REPEAT CHORUS TWICE)
Yeah he was badder than old King Kong
And meaner than a junkyard dog
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Operator
By Jim Croce
Operator, well could you help me place this call
See the number on the matchbook is old an faded
She's living in L.A
With my best old ex friend Ray
Guy she said she knew well and sometimes hated
(CHORUS)
But isn't that the way they say it goes
But let's forget all that
And give me the number if you can find it
So I can call just to tell them I'm fine and to show
I've overcome the blow
I've learned to take it well
I only wish my words could just convince myself
That it just wasn't real
But that's not the way it feels
Operator, well could you help me place this call
Cause I can't read the number that you just gave me
There's something in my eyes
You know it happens every time
I think about the love that I thought would save me
(REPEAT CHORUS)
No, no, no, no, that's not the way it feels
Operator, let's forget about this call
There's no one there I really wanted to talk to
Thank you for your time
Oh you've been so much more than kind
You can keep the dime
(REPEAT CHORUS)
BACK TO TOP
Time In A Bottle
By Jim Croce
If I could save time in a bottle
The first thing that I'd like to do
Is to save every day
Till eternity passes away
Just to spend them with you
If I could make days last forever
If words could make wishes come true
I'd save every day like a treasure and then
Again I would spend them with you
(CHORUS)
But there never seems to be enough time
To do the things you want to do
Once you find them
I've looked around enough to know
That you're the one I want to go through time with
If I had a box just for wishes
And dreams that'd never come true
The box would be empty
Except for the memory of how
They were answered by you
(REPEAT CHORUS)
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Which Way Are You Goin
By Jim Croce
Which way are you going,
Which side will you be on
Will you stand and watch while,
All the seeds of hate are sown
Will you stand with those who say,
Let his will be done
One hand on the bible
One hand on the gun
One hand on the bible
One hand on the gun
Which way are you looking,
Is it hard to see
Do you say what's wrong for him,
Is not wrong for me
You walk the streets, righteousness
But you refuse to understand
You say you love the baby
Then you crucify the man
You say you love the baby
Then you crucify the man
Everyday, things are changing,
Words once honored turned to lies
People wondering, can you blame them
Its to far to run, and to late to hide
Now you turn your back on,
All the things that you used to preach
Now its let him live in freedom, if he lives like me
Well you light has changed,
Confusion rains, what have you become
All your olive branches turned to spears
When your flowers turned to guns
Your olive branches turned to spears
When your flowers turned to guns
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I'll Have To Say I Love You In A Song
By Jim Croce
Well, I know it's kinda late,
I hope I didn't wake you
But what I've gotta say can't wait,
I know you'd understand
Cause every time I try to tell you,
The words just came out wrong
So I'll have to say I love you, in a song
Yeah, I know it's kinda strange,
Every time I'm near you
I just run out of things to say,
I know you'd understand
Cause every time I try to tell you,
The words just came out wrong
So I'll have to say I love you, in a song
Cause every time the time was right
All the words just came out wrong
So I'll have to say I love you, in a song
Yeah, I know it's kinda late,
I hope I didn't wake you
But there's something that I just gotta say,
I know you'd understand
Every time I try to tell you,
The words just came out wrong
So I'll have to say I love you, in a song
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The Way We Used To Be
By Jim Croce
How come we can't talk the way we used to do
Nothing seems to be the same
Have we forgotten all the things we knew
Was it you or I who changed
We got to find the answer, let the secrets fly
Enough of telling stories and our well meaning lies
Things don't seem to be the same
No matter how I tried
There's no rhythm to the rain
Wind still whispers, through the leaves on high
But they no longer sing your name
We got to find the answer, let the secrets fly
Enough of telling stories and our well meaning lies
We got to try to build what we had in the past
Trying's half the battle if we lose it we can't last
I heard myself just say the things
I could never say before
And listen to the rhythm, of the rain
Wind just whispered through the leaves on high
And I thought I heard them sing your name
We got to find the answer, let the secrets fly
Enough of telling stories and our well meaning lies
We got to try to build what we had in the past
Trying's half the battle if we lose it we can't last
I heard myself just say the things
I could never say before
And listen to the rhythm of the rain
Wind just whispered through the leaves on high
And I thought I heard them sing your name
And I thought I heard them sing your name
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Photographs And Memories
By Jim Croce
Photographs and memories,
Christmas cards you sent to me
All that I have are these to remember you
Memories that come at night, take me to another time
Back to a happier day
When I called you mine
But we sure had a good time,
When we started way back when
Morning walks and bedroom talks
Are how I loved you then
Summer skies and lullaby's,
Nights we couldn't say goodbye
And of all of the things that we knew
Not a dream survived
Photographs and memories,
All the love you gave to me
Some how it just can't be true
Thats all I've left of you
But we sure had a good time,
When we started way back when
Morning walks and bedroom talks
Are how I loved you then
BACK TO TOP
Ages
By Jim Croce
I've been up and down
And around and round and back again
Been so many places
I can't remember where or when
And my only boss was
The clock on the wall and my only friend
Never really was a friend at all
(CHORUS)
I've traded love for pennies
Sold my soul for less
Lost my ideas in that long tunnel of time
And I've turned inside out
And around about and back and then
Found myself right back where I started again
Once I had myself a million,
Now I only got a dime
Difference don't seem quite as bad today
With a nickle or a million I was searching all the time
For something that I'd never lost or left behind
(REPEAT CHORUS)
Well now I'm in my second circle
And I'm heading for the top
I learned alot of things along the way
I'll be careful while I'm climbing cuz
It hurts a lot to drop
When your down nobody gives a damn anyway
(REPEAT CHORUS)
BACK TO TOP
Railroads And Riverboats
By Jim Croce
The railroads, and the riverboats, that bred the mighty man
That we read about, and we dream about
The men who built this land
And the farmers and the lumbermen
And the men who worked the mills
And the poor hard working miners
Who died inside the hills
(CHORUS)
While the rivers that flow
Are the blood of our land
And the trucks they keep rumbling
On the great concrete band
And the railroads keep pushing
To be all they once were
And nature is calling
No one's listening to her
And the immigrants, by the boat load,
In a dozen different tones
Sang of freedom, in the new land
Climbed the ladder rung by rung
Some to Boston, some to Pittsburg,
Philidelphia and St. Paul
And the old ways, led to new days
They were welcome one and all.
(REPEAT CHORUS)
With the railroads, and the riverboats,
And the bread lines far behind
And the days we sang together
Long gone but still in mind
And the men who, came before us,
Mmen who brought us to today
And the story, still unravels,
From the dreams of yesterday
(REPEAT CHORUS)
And nature is calling, no one's listening to her
BACK TO TOP
Roller Derby Queen
By Jim Croce
Gonna tell you a story, that you won't believe
But I fell in love last Friday evening
With the girl I saw on a bar room TV screen
Well I was just getting ready to get my hat
When she caught my eye, and I put it back
And I ordered myself couple of more shots and beers
(CHORUS)
The night that I fell in love with a roller derby queen
around and round, a round and round
The meanest hunk of woman that anybody ever seen
Down in the arena
She was 5 foot 6, two fifteen
A beach blonde mama with a streak of mean
She knew how to knuckle
And she knew how to scuffle and fight
And the roller derby program said
that she was built like a fridgerator with a head
Her fans called her Tuffy,
Bbut all her buddies called her Spike
(REPEAT CHORUS)
Well I could not help it, but to fall in love
With this heavy duty woman I've been speaking of
Things were kinda bad,
Untill the day she skated into my life
Well she might be nasty, she might be fat
But I never met a person who would tell her that
She's my bleach blonde bomber,
my heavy handed hackin sack mama
(REPEAT CHORUS)
BACK TO TOP
A long time ago
- Jim Croce
Seems like such a long time ago
I was walking on lonely road
Getting tired of dreamin' alone
Like all the lonely people I had known
Seems like such a long time ago
There was no-one who would share my song
I was just a boy far from home
And I became a man when you came along
We spent the whole night talking
You said you'd like to see the sunrise
But in the gold of morning
There was nothing that I had not seen in your eyes
Hmmm
I was so afraid to touch you
Thought you were too young to know
So I just watched you sleeping
Then you woke and said to me
The night is cold it frightens me
I could sleep so easy next to you
Wasn't very long ago
You said that you would like to share my road
Then you started singing my song
You said so many nights are waiting
Let's not spent a moment wasting time
'Cause we have very far to go
I will go if you will take me
I have never had a lover
I am young but I am so alone
We spent the whole night talking
But in the gold of morning
Hmmm, mmm mmm
BACK TO TOP
Careful Man
-Jim Croce
I don't gamble, I don't fight
I don't be hangin' in the bars at night
Yeah I used to be a fighter
But now I am a wiser man
I don't drink much, I don't smoke
I don't be hardly mess around with no dope
Yeah I used to be a problem
But now I am a careful man
CHORUS:
But if you used to want to see a commotion
You should have seen the man that I used to be
I was trouble in perpetual motion
Trouble with a capital "T"
Stayin' out late, havin' fun
And shot off every single shot in my gun
Yeah I used to be a lover
But now I am an older man
(REPEAT CHORUS)
(REPEAT LAST VERSE)
Yeah I used to be a terror but now I am a tired man
BACK TO TOP
I got a name
Like the pine trees lining the winding road,
I got a name, I got a name
Like the singing bird and the croaking toad,
I got a name, I've got a name
And I carry it with me like my Daddy did
But I'm living the dream that he kept hid
CHORUS:
Moving me down the highway, rolling me down the highway
Moving ahead so life won't pass me by
Like a north wind whistling down the sky,
I got a song, I got a song
Like the whippoorwill and the baby's cry,
I've got a song, I've got a song
And I carry it with me and I sing it loud
If it gets me nowhere, I'll go there proud
CHORUS
And I'm gonna go there free
Like the fool I am and I'll always be,
I've got a dream, I've got a dream
They can change their minds but they can't change me
I've got a dream, I've got a dream
I know I could share it, if you want me to
If you're going my way, I'll go with you
CHORUS
CHORUS
BACK TO TOP
New York's not my Home
By Jim Croce
Things are spinning round me
And all my thoughts were cloudy
And I had begun to doubt all the things that were me
Been in so many places
You know I've run so many races
I've looked into the empty faces of the people of the night
Something is just not right
CHORUS
Cause I know that I've got to get out of here
I'm so alone
Don't you know that I got to get out of here
Cause New York's not my home
Though all the streets are crowded
There's something strange about it
I've lived there about a year and
I never once felt at home
I thought I made the big time
I learned a lot of lessons awful quick and
Now I'm telling you
That they were not the nice kind
It's been so long since I have felt fine
CHORUS
BACK TO TOP
SPEEDBALL TUCKER
Words and music by Jim Croce
I drive a broke-down rig on "may-pop" tires
Forty foot of overload
A lot of people say that I'm crazy
Because I don't know how to take it slow
I got a broomstick on the throttle
I got her opened up and head right down
Nonstop back to Dallas
Poppin' them West Coast turnarounds
CHORUS:
And they call me Speedball, Speedball Tucker
Terror of the highways, and all them other truckers
Will tell you that the boy is mad
To be drivin' in a rig like that
You know the rain may blow, the snow may snow
The turnpikes, they may freeze
But they don't bother old Speedball
He goin' any damn way he please
He got a broomstick on the throttle
To keep his throttle foot a-dancin' 'round
With a cup full of cold black coffee
And a pocketful of West Coast turnarounds
(CHORUS)
One day I looked into my rear-view mirror
And comin' up from behind
There was a Georgia state policeman
And a hundred dollar fine
Well he looked me in the eye as he was writin' me up
He said, "Driver, you've been flyin'
And ninety-five was the route you were on
It was not the speed limit sign."
(CHORUS 2X)
BACK TO TOP
THESE DREAMS
by Jim Croce
Once we were lovers,
But somehow things have changed.
Now we're just lonely people
Tryin' to forget each others' names.
Now we're just lonely people
Tryin' to forget each others' names.
What came between us?
Maybe we were just too young to know.
But now and then I feel the same.
And sometimes at night
I think I hear you callin' my name.
Mm, mm, mm, these dreams,
They keep me goin' these days.
Once we were lovers,
But that was long ago.
We lived together then,
And now we do not even say hello.
We lived together then,
And now we do not even say hello.
What came between us?
Maybe we were just too young to know.
But now and then I feel the same.
And sometimes at night
I think I hear you callin' my name.
Mm, mm, mm, these dreams,
They keep me goin' these days.
BACK TO TOP
Walkin back to Georgia
By Jim Croce
Mmm...Mmm
Walkin back to Georgia
And I hope she takes me back
Nothin in my pockets,
All I own is on my back
She's the girl who said she loved me
On that hot dusty Macon road
And if she's still around,
I'm gonna settle down
With that hard lovin Georgia girl,
Mmm Mmm Mmm...
Walkin back to Georgia,
She's the only one who knows
How it feels to live a dream
And how it feels to dream alone
She's the girl wo said she loved me
On the hot dusty Macon road
And if she's still around
I'm gonna setlle down,
With that hard lovin Georgia girl
Mmm....
Georgia can you hear me callin,
I'll be home in just a while
And if I had to I'd be crawlin
Just to share another morinin' smile
Your the girl who said you loved me,
On that hot dusty long ago
And if you're still around,
Im gonna settle down
With that hard lovin' Georgia girl.
Mmm...
Walkin back to Georgia,
And I hope she will take me back,
Nothin in my pockets
All I own is on my back
She's the girl who said she loved me
On that hot, dusty Macon road
And if she's still around Im gonna setlle down
With that hard lovin Georgia
girl. Mmm..Mmmm...
BACK TO TOP
Alabama Rain
by Jim Croce
Lazy days in mid-July
Country Sunday mornings
Dusty haze on summer highways
Sweet magnolia calling
Chorus:
Now and then I find myself
Thinkin' of the days
That we were walking in
The Alabama rain
Drive-in movies, Friday nights
Drinkin' beer and laughin'
Somehow things were always right
I just don't know what happened
(Repeat Chorus)
We were only kids
But then I've never heard it said
That kids can't fall in love
And feel the same
I can still remember the first time
I told you "I love you"
On a dusty mid-July
Country summer's evenings
Weeping willows sang it's lullaby
And shared our secret
(Repeat Chorus)
BACK TO TOP
Hey Tomorrow
(Croce)
Hey tomorrow
Where are you goin
Do you have some room for me
Night is fallin
And the dawn is callin
I'll have anew day if she'll have me
Hey tomorrow
I can't show you nothin
You've seen it all pass by your door
So many time I said
I've been changen
Then step into patterns of whats happened before
CHORUS
Cause I've been wasted and I've over tasted
All the things that life gave to me
And I've been trusted, abused and busted
And I've been taken by those close to me
Hey tomorrow
You've gotta believe that
I'm through wastin' what's left of me
Night is callin and the dawn is fallin
I'll have a new day if she'll have me
CHORUS
Hey tomorrow
Where are you goin'
Do you have some room for me
Night is callin' and the dawn is fallin'
I'll have a new day if she'll have me
BACK TO TOP
One Less Set of Footsteps on your Floor
(croce)
We've been runnin' away from
Sumthin' we both know
We've long run out of things to say
And I think I'd better go
So don't be getting' excited
When you hear that slammin door
Oh baby one less set of footsteps on your floor
In the morning
And we've been hiding from somethin
It should have never gone this far
After all it's what we've done
That makes us what we are
And you've been talkin in silence
Well if it's silence you adore
Oh baby, one less set of footsteps on your floor
In the mornin
CHORUS
Well that's one less set of footsteps on your floor
One less man to walk in
One less pair of jeans upon your door
One less voice a'talkin
Well tomorrows a dream away
And today has turned to dust
Your silver tongue has turned to clay
And your golden rule to rust
If that's the way that you want it,
Then that's the way I want it more
Oh baby one less set of footsteps on your door
In the mornin
CHORUS
One less set of footsteps on your floor
In the mornin
BACK TO TOP
Box 10
(croce)
Well outta Southern Illinois
Came a down home country boy
He's gonna make it in the city
Playin guitar in the studio
Well he hadn't been there an hour
When he met a Broadway flower
You know she took him for his money
And she left him in a cheap motel
Oh well its easy for you to see
That that country boy is me
Sayin how'm I gonna
Break the news to the folks back home
Well I was gonna be a great success
Things sure ended up a mess
But in the process I got messed up too
CHORUS
Hello Mamma and Dad I had to call collect
Cause I ain't got a cent to my name
Well I been sleepin in the hotel doorway
And tonight they say it's gonna rain
And if you'd only send me some money
I'll be back on my feet again
Send it in care of the Sunday mission
Box # 10
Oh Back in Southern Illinois
They still worrin' bout they're boy
This boy's goin home soons he gets the fare
Because as soon as I get my breath
I got a pipe upside my head
You know they left me in a alley
Took my money and my guitar too
CHORUS
BACK TO TOP
Hard Way Every Time
(Croce)
Well I've had my share of broken dreams
And more than a couple of falls
And in chasing what I thought were moonbeams
I have run into a couple of walls
But in lookin back at the places I've been
And the changes that I left behind
I just look at myself to find
I learned the hard way every time
Cause I've had my share of good intentions
And I've made my share of mistakes
And I've learned sometimes it's best
[T'have been, Cause if you don't,
Well those are the breaks]
Should listened to all the things I was told
But I was young and too proud at the time
Now I look at my self and find
I've learned the hard way every time
But in looking back at the lessons I've learned
At the mountains I wanted to climb
I just look at myself and find
I learned the hard way every time
Well I've had my share of broken dreams
And more than a couple of falls
And in chasing what I thought were moonbeams
I have run into a couple of walls
But in lookin back at the faces I've been
I would sure be the first one to say
When I look at my self today
I wouldn't have done it any other way
BACK TO TOP
Workin' At The Car Wash Blues
Well,
I had just got out from the county prison
Doin' ninety days for non-support
Tried to find me an executive position
But no matter how smooth I talked
They wouldn't listen to the fact
Tthat I was a genius
The man say,
"We got all that we can use."
Now I got them steadily depressin',
Low down mind messin'
Working at the car wash blues
Well, I should be sittin'
In an air conditioned office in a swivel chair
Talkin' some trash to the secretaries
Sayin', "Here, now mama, come on over here."
Instead,
I'm stuck here rubbin' these fenders with a rag
And walkin' home in soggy old shoes
With them steadily depressin',
Low down mind messin'
Workin' at the car wash blues
You know a man of my ability
He should be smokin' on a big cigar
But till I get myself straight
I guess I'll just have to wait
In my rubber suit a-rubbin' these cars
Well, all I can do is a shake my head
You might not believe that it's true
For workin' at this end of Niagara Falls
Is an undiscovered Howard Hughes
So baby, don't expect to see me
With no double martini
In any high-brow society news
Cause I got them steadily depressin',
Low down mind messin'
Workin' at the car wash blues
So baby, don't expect to see me
With no double martini
In any high-brow society news
Cause I got them steadily depressin',
Low down mind messin'
Workin' at the car wash blues
Yeah I got them steadily depressin',
Low down mind messin'
Workin' at the car wash blues
BACK TO TOP
You Don't Mess Around With Jim
Uptown got it's hustlers
The bowery got it's bums
42nd Street got Big Jim Walker
He's a pool-shootin' son of a gun
Yeah, he big and dumb as a man can come
But he stronger than a country hoss
And when the bad folks all get together at night
You know they all call big Jim "Boss", just because
And they say
You don't tug on Superman's cape
You don't spit into the wind
You don't pull the mask off that old Lone Ranger
And you don't mess around with Jim
Well outta south Alabama came a country boy
He say I'm lookin' for a man named Jim
I am a pool-shootin' boy
My name Willie McCoy
But down home they call me Slim
Yeah I'm lookin' for the king of 42nd Street
He drivin' a drop top Cadillac
Last week he took all my money
And it may sound funny
But I come to get my money back
And everybody say Jack don't you know
And you don't tug on Superman's cape
You don't spit into the wind
You don't pull the mask off that old Lone Ranger
And you don't mess around with Jim
Well a hush fell over the pool room
Jimmy come boppin' in off the street
And when the cuttin' were done
The only part that wasn't bloody
Was the soles of the big man's feet
Yeah he were cut in in bout a hundred places
And he were shot in a couple more
And you better believe
They sung a different kind of story
When big Jim hit the floor now they say
You don't tug on Superman's cape
You don't spit into the wind
You don't pull the mask off that old Lone Ranger
And you don't mess around with Slim
Yeah, big Jim got his hat
Find out where it's at
And it's not hustlin' people strange to you
Even if you do got a two-piece custom-made pool cue
Yeah you don't tug on Superman's cape
You don't spit into the wind
You don't pull the mask off the old Lone Ranger
And you don't mess around with Slim
BACK TO TOP
Tomorrow's Gonna be a Brighter Day
(croce)
Well I'm sorry for the things that I told you
But words only go so far
And if I had my way
I would reach into heaven
And pull you down a star
Or a present in a big huge chain outta diamonds
Or pearls from a summer sea
But all I can give you is a kiss in the mornin
And a sweet apology
Well I know that it hasn't been easy
And I haven't always been around
To say the right words
Or to hold you in the mornin
Or to help you when your down
I know I never showed you much of a good time
But baby things are gonna change
I'm gonna make up for all of the hurt I brought
I'm gonna love away all your pain
CHORUS
And tomorrow's gonna be a brighter day
There gonna be some changes
Well tomorrow's gonna be a brighter day
This time you can believe me
No more cryin in your lonely room and no more empty nights
Cause tomorrow mornin everything'll turn out right
Well there's somthen that I gotta tell you
Yes I've got something on my mind
But words come hard
When you're lyin in my arms
And I'm lookin deep into your eyes
Well there's truth and consollation
What I'm tryin to say
Is that nobody ever had a rainbow baby,
Till he had the rain
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Sun Come Up
Words and Music by Jim Croce and Richard Croce
Sun come up in the morning
Blues round my head
I've got a troubled mind and plenty of time to roam
As I walk this crooked highway
Never knowin' where to go
You know the only life I know is bein' on the road
I've got holes in my shoes that I fill with paper
When the sun's out they dry
And when it rains well they get wet but I don't cry
Because the sun don't know no difference
Between a rich man and a bum
And the only life I know is movin' round the sky
See him grin down at you people
I guess you don't know what his laughter's from
But if you spend enough time on the road
Maybe you'd find out
Because the sun goes round in an endless circle
Never knowin' the reason why
Still there's something in the path that it traces round the sky
It's like a circle with no ending
But it's a race we all must run
And it's the same bein' a rich man or a bum
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Another Day, Another Town
Words and Music by Jim Croce
My dusty feet have kicked the stones
Between a thousand railroad ties
From Boston down to New Orleans
I left the girls a-cryin'
But I've still got some ramblin' in me
Got some miles left on my shoes
And before I take a job again
I'll have to be low-down
Cryin' the blues
So it's goodbye, baby,
the whistle is a-blowin'
If I miss the train I'll have to stay around
But as long as those
railroad tracks go on unending
I'll be off to another day in another town
You say you'd like to ramble with me
This ain't no life for a girl
Too many people out
to get you in a hobo's world
And it gets mighty cold
when you're on the road
'Cause a boxcar never was a home
But you could join me if you want
I'm gettin' mighty tired of bein' alone
So it's goodbye, baby,
the whistle is a-blowin'
If we miss the train we'll have to stay around
But as long as those
railroad tracks go on unending
We'll be off to another day in another town
But as long as those
railroad tracks go on unending
We'll be off to another day in another town
We'll be off to another day in another town
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Big Wheel
Words and Music by Jim & Ingrid Croce
CHORUS:
Big wheel, don't you roll
Big diesel, don't you whine
Through the night as I'm runnin' down the road
Big semi, don't you stop, 'cause if you do I'm not
Gonna make it back to Baltimore with my load
Well, the truckstop's warm and friendly
And the coffee keeps me up
And the waitress there would like to waste my time
But I'll have to pass it by
As it's down the road I fly
Just a racin' with that pocket watch of mine
(Repeat Chorus)
Smoke a-puffin', tires a-hummin'
Burnin' up the road
Countin' road signs and the miles to Baltimore
One eye out for weighin' stations
One for radar traps
They can't stop me, 'cause my plans don't call for that
(Repeat Chorus)
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Spin, Spin, Spin
Words and Music by Jim & Ingrid Croce
Spin, spin, spin
Spin around. spin around
The harlequin dances in a costume of green
Spin around
But under his makeup his age can't be seen
Spin around
But where are you spinnin'
When will you know
That life is for livin'
That it isn't a show?
Spin, spin, spin
Spin around. spin around
You look out on the city from your penthouse so high
Spin around
But your pedestal's your prison and so is your high
Spin around
But where are you spinnin'
When will you know
That life is for livin'
That it isn't a show?
Spin, spin, spin
Spin around. spin around
Your pills are you conscience
They make ev'rything seem all right
Spin around
Take a white one go to sleep
Take a red one to stay up all night
To spin around
But where are you spinnin'
When will you know
That life is for livin'
That it isn't a show?
Spin, spin, spin
Spin around. spin around
Spin, spin, spin
Spin away. spin away
Spin, spin, spin
Spin around. spin around
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Charlie Green Play that Slide Trombone
Traditional Adapted and Arranged by Jim Croce
I know a fool who blows a horn
He comes from way down South, oh yeah
And you ain't seen some blowin' since you been born
Like when a trombone's to his mouth
He wails and moans, grunts and groans
He can moan just like a cow
And you ain't seen some blowin' since you been born
Cause he won't show them how
CHORUS:
Oh Charlie won't you play that thing
I mean it's my trombone
Make it talk
Make it sing
I mean it's my trombone
If Gabriel knew how you could blow
He'd let you lead his band I know
Oh Charlie won't you play that thing
I mean it's my trombone
(Repeat Chorus)
Now you ain't seen such movin' hips
Like when the trombone do his licks
Charlie Green play that thing
I mean it's my trombone
Oh yeah, I mean it's my trombone
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Country Girl
Words and Music by Jim Croce
She was just a country girl
Didn't have those New York City ways
When she hopped a bus in Ohio
Headin' for the crowded streets where no one says a word
She was just a country girl living in the lonely city
Met a man who learned her name
She became a woman on a rainy New York night
CHORUS:
There's a new day dawnin' in the city
She calls her Mama collect
Sayin' Mama send bus fare back to Ohio
Have somebody meet me at the depot
She was just a country girl
Spent some time in New York City
Now she tells her friends about lonely New York City
And her lonely New York night
(Repeat Chorus)
She was just a country girl
She was just a country girl
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Hard Time Losin' Man
Words and Music by Jim Croce
CHORUS:
And you think you've seen trouble
Well you're lookin' at the man ah ha
Oh the world's own original hard luck story
And a hard time losin' man
Oh sometimes skies are cloudy
And sometimes skies are blue
And sometimes they say that you eat the bear
But sometimes the bear eats you
And sometimes I feel like I should go
Far far away and hide
'Cause I keep a waitin' for my ship to come in
And all that ever comes is the tide
(Repeat Chorus)
Oh I saved up all my money
I gonna buy me a flashy car
So I go downtown to see the man
And he smokin' on a big cigar
Well he must'a thought I were Rockefeller
Or an uptown man of wealth
He said "Boy I got the car that's made for you
And it's cleaner than the Board of Health"
Then I got on the highway -- oh I feelin' fine ... I hit a bump
Then I found I bought a car held together
By wire, and a couple a' hunks of twine
(Repeat Chorus)
Oh Friday night, feelin' right
I head out on the street
Standin' in the doorway
Was a dealer known as Pete
Well he sold me a dime of some super-fine
Dynamite from Mexico
I spent all that night
Just tryin' to get right
On an ounce of Oregano
(Repeat Chorus) 4 times
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New York's Not My Home
Words and Music by Jim Croce
Well things were spinnin' round me
And all my thoughts were cloudy
And I had begun to doubt all the things that were me
Been in so many places
You know I've run so many races
And looked into the empty faces of the people of the night
And something is just not right ... 'cause I know
CHORUS:
That I gotta get out of here
I'm so alone
Don't you know that I gotta get out of here
'Cause New York's not my home
Though all the streets are crowded
There's something strange about it
I lived there 'bout a year and I never once felt at home
I thought I'd make the big time
I learned a lot of lessons awful quick
And now I'm tellin' you
That they were not the nice kind
And it's been so long since I have felt fine ...
that's the reason
(Repeat Chorus)
�.that's the reason
(Repeat Chorus)
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Rapid Roy (The Stock Car Boy)
Words and Music by Jim Croce
CHORUS:
Oh Rapid Roy that stock car boy
He too much too believe
You know he always got an extra pack of cigarettes
Rolled up in his T-shirt sleeve
He got a tattoo on his arm that say "Baby"
He got another one that just say "Hey"
But every Sunday afternoon he is a dirt track demon
In a '57 Chevrolet
Oh Rapid Roy that stock car boy
He the best driver in the land
He say that he learned to race a stock car
By runnin' 'shine outa Alabam'
Oh the Demolition Derby
And the Figure Eight
Is easy money in the bank
Compared to runnin' from the man
In Oklahoma City
With a 500 gallon tank
(Repeat Chorus)
Yea Roy so cool
That racin' fool he don't know what fear's about
He do a hundred thirty mile an hour
Smilin' at the camera
With a toothpick in his mouth
He got a girl back home
Name of Dixie Dawn
But he got honeys all along the way
And you oughta hear 'em screamin'
For that dirt track demon
In a '57 Chevrolet
(Repeat Chorus)
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