1. PRETTY BOY FLOYD

If you'll gather 'round me, children,
A story I will tell
'Bout Pretty Boy Floyd, an outlaw,
Oklahoma knew him well.

It was in the town of Shawnee,
A Saturday afternoon,
His wife beside him in his wagon
As into town they rode.

There a deputy sheriff approached him
In a manner rather rude,
Vulgar words of anger,
An' his wife she overheard.

Pretty Boy grabbed a log chain,
And the deputy grabbed his gun;
In the fight that followed
He laid that deputy down.

Then he took to the trees and timber
To live a life of shame;
Every crime in Oklahoma
Was added to his name.

But a many a starving farmer
The same old story told
How the outlaw paid their mortgage
And saved their little homes.

Others tell you 'bout a stranger
That come to beg a meal,
Underneath his napkin
Left a thousand dollar bill.

It was in Oklahoma City,
It was on a Christmas Day,
There was a whole car load of groceries
Come with a note to say:

Well, you say that I'm an outlaw,
You say that I'm a thief.
Here's a Christmas dinner
For the families on relief.

Yes, as through this world I've wandered
I've seen lots of funny men;
Some will rob you with a six-gun,
And some with a fountain pen.

And as through your life you travel,
Yes, as through your life you roam,
You won't never see an outlaw
Drive a family from their home.


2. WANDERING EYES

Never have I ever asked you what
Is missing from this picture that
I painted for you yesterday
I say better late than never
You say nothing lasts forever
We say that it happens day to day

And it’s all in the way that you look at it,
That makes you look this way
It’s all in the way you get used to it,
That makes you go astay

But nothing can stop these eyes from wandering
Nothing can stop these eyes from wandering
Nothing can stop these, stop these wandering eyes

Once I had a superstition that
I was on a secret mission to make everyone see things my way
And it’s all in the way
That makes you look at it, that makes you look this way
All in the way you get used to it makes you go astay

But nothing can stop these eyes from wandering
Nothing can stop these eyes from wandering
Nothing can stop these, stop these wandering eyes
Notice that I forgot to mention now that I’ve got your attention
I did not want you to see me this way

But it’s all in the way that you look at it, that makes you look this way
It’s all in the way you get used to it, that makes you go astay

But nothing can stop these eyes from wandering
Nothing can stop these eyes from wandering
Nothing can stop these, stop these wandering eyes
Nothing can stop these eyes from wandering
Nothing can stop these, stop these wandering eyes


3. BIRD ON A WIRE

Like a bird on the wire,
Like a drunk in a midnight choir
I have tried in my way to be free.
Like a worm on a hook,
Like a knight from some old fashioned book
I have saved all my ribbons for thee.
If I, if I have been unkind,
I hope that you can just let it go by.
If I, if I have been untrue
I hope you know it was never to you.

Like a baby, stillborn,
Like a beast with his horn
I have torn everyone who reached out for me.
But I swear by this song
And by all that I have done wrong
I will make it all up to thee.
I saw a beggar leaning on his wooden crutch,
He said to me, "You must not ask for so much."
And a pretty woman leaning in her darkened door,
She cried to me, "Hey, why not ask for more?"

Oh like a bird on the wire,
like a drunk in a midnight choir
I have tried in my way to be free.


4. SHIP OF FOOLS

We were shipwrecked sailors searching for some fool's gold
They are the drunken local boys
They'd been out drinking all night, feeling alright
We watched them kill each other in a fight

Ship of fools, drunken hearts
Making yet another new start
Ain't it hard to play that part
When you've got a drunken heart?

Well, I can't change the world by complaining
You can't change it with a kiss
Be no concentrating, contemplating
No time to find out what we miss

Ship of fools, drunken hearts
Making yet another new start
Ain't it hard to play that part
When you've got a drunken heart?


5. TWIDDLY DEE

Twiddly dee fe fo fi fum
There's a giant sleeping and his pants are undone
He shows no pity for anyone
He's sure to be killed before the morning comes

Twiddle my fingers and I twiddle my thumbs
'Cause I ain't gonna quit 'til my work is all done
I'm a high society skid row bum
Well on my way to kingdom come

Well, I twiddle in the middle of the moon and sun
I'm wishing and dreaming I'm a special someone
Ain't laying my load on anyone
It's way too high and it weighs a ton

Do re mi fe fo fi fum
I'm a slave to the music, it's my father and son
I never force it on anyone
Can't keep it a secret so I keep it on the run

They may say what they say
'Bout the way that we stay
They may do what they do
'Bout the things that we do

Hey diddle diddle, did you spill your rum?
Ain't worried about the dumb things I've done
Ain't worried about the dumb things to come
When I smell the blood of a little bit of fun

Hey diddy hi diddy ho hi hum
Sometimes I wanna be friends with everyone
My friends tell me it can't be done
And some days I feel I don't know anyone

Now what goes up doesn't always come down
You'll never believe the things I've found
Amazing what you learn just hanging around
Can't put a square peg in a hole that's round

They may say what they say
'Bout the way that we stay
They may do what they do
'Bout the things that we do

Hey gabba hi gabba do da day
Ain't for winning or for losing it's the pleasure to play
Work all night and I sleep all day
Yes, I guess I'm lucky I can live my own way


6. NEW WORLD

Lives in a little, lonely town
No one's around except for the drinking
Nobody ever gets around
But those who leave the township sinking

May you rot in heaven
Gotta be home by seven

And the field burns away
The sky breathes it in
So why sit and wait
For the new world to begin?

I'm coming out across your border
With new orders for you to take
I'd really like to take out your daughter
Down in the water, down by the lake

When the cold water's on her skin
I can feel how long it's been

And the neighbors will all be there
And no one will know what to wear
So why sit and wait
For the new world to begin?

I got a lot I've got to do
Just to get through the end of the day
It hardly ever even happens
But I go to sleep the same anyway

And you can't believe in yourself
You can't believe in anyone else
So why sit and wait
For the new world to begin?


7. NEVER REALLY BEEN

Sirens are a-screaming, shots ring out at night
Movie cameras rolling in
And there goes my hero with his head between his legs
And all this time I believed in him

Now, what is the sound of snow falling down
On the tombstone in the dead of the night?
And who is the hound at the downtown dog pound
Who speaks English when the watchman's not in sight?

And where will you be in 1993
Still sitting in the same chair
Sinning is for sinners and I'm just a beginner
But I've never really been punched there

Hey, ain't it strange how some things never change
Ain't it strange how nothing stays the same
You were thinking I was distressed about some universal press
But I was just depressed about my last pinball game

I've learned to accept and not to expect
The respect and neglect that I get
And I try not to forget about what hasn't happened yet
And on this, I place my last bet

Hey, did you give what you get
Did you get what you give of your fair share of wear and tear
Winning is for winners and I know spring follows winter
But I've never really been touched there

You know, it's hard to be nice when hate becomes your vice
And you can't find peace anywhere
Love's just not for lovers, get off your high horse brother
Drop your fist and get out of here


8. STRANGER

I said hey brown girl, I've seen your tears through the window
Of the junkshop downtown
Selling trinkets from your far off homeland
Did the promised land let you down?

I said now hey young boy
I notice that you ain't afraid to walk next to me
Old man, you look like you're dying
Is that all you want, is a quarter from me?

Oh, you know, sometimes I feel like a stranger
I feel like a stranger

(He, he, he, he)

I'm just another face in a faceless crowd
I'm just another king in a headless crown, I'm so alone
You know, I live here in this city
But this place it just ain't nobody's home

Now how many times do I got to tell ya
There's no such thing as a man made world?
And how many times do I got to tell you
There's no such thing as a man-tamed girl?

Sometimes I feel like stranger
I feel like a stranger

I want to buy some flowers for my mother,
If I only had a mother
You see I… I've got a happy family,
But that's oh so far away
You see I've got it all here inside me,
But I just can't seem to get it out
But I know with a little imagination we
Can work this whole goddamn thing out

Oh, don't make me feel so strange, I feel like a stranger


9. BLACK GOLD

Two boys on a playground
Trying to push each other down
See the crowd gather 'round
Nothing attracts a crowd like a crowd

Black gold in a white plight
Won't you fill up the tank, let's go for a ride
I don't care 'bout no wheelchair
I've got so much left to do with my life

Moving backwards through time
Never learn, never mind
That side's yours, this side's mine
Brother you ain't my kind

You're a black soldier, white fight
Won't you fill up the tank, let's go for a ride
Sure'd like to feel some pride
But this place just makes me feel sad inside

Mother, do you know where your kids are tonight?

Keeps the kids of the streets
Gives them something to do, something to eat
This spot was a playground
This flat land used to be a town

Black gold in a white plight
Won't you fill up the tank, let's go for a ride
Sure'd like to feel some pride
But this place just makes me feel sad inside

Black gold in a white plight
Won't you fill up the tank, let's go for a ride
I don't care 'bout no wheelchair
I've got so much left to do with my life


10. P-9

Somebody's thinking that there might be something wrong
Business is sinking and the crew's been casted off
Nobody's bailing, nobody's sailing, but we're watching here from shore
Nobody's working and we better work this out

If we could see eye to eye, you could see just exactly who is small
But I do my job and do it well and go to hell for writing on the wall
There'd be enough to go around if I could just get around you
I am not down, my hands are empty, and they're open and I need something to do

And it makes me wonder who I'm working for
'Cause I think you know just what I'm looking for
And it makes me wonder who you're working for

How many children are waiting by your door?
This is just a child that I'm working for

You gave me nothing, now you're taking it away
I should be walking and making it easy to ignore but I
guess I'd better stay
And I forgave you for all the people you've done wrong
Nobody's working and it's gone on far too long

And it makes me wonder who you're working for
'Cause I think you know just what I'm looking for
And it makes me wonder who I'm working for
How many children are waiting by your door

Is it just a paycheck I'm fighting for?


11. GROUNDED

When eight turns sideways
You head on down the highway
Say this is my way
Disappearing forever

But there ain't just one way
So you choose the fun way
Sliding down the runway
On a ticket that goes two ways

And by the way that it sounded
You thought that you'd be astounded
But you left it like you found it
'Cause it wasn't yours to take

What once seemed like dying
Soon turned into flying
So you settle for trying
And you wish you were grounded

No, you cannot get much higher
Than your utmost desire
So you bring it down to size and
Now it seems that you are grounded

Grounded (×4)

By the way that it sounded
You thought that you'd be astounded
But you left it like you found it
Now you find that you are grounded


12. RUNAWAY TRAIN

Call you up in the middle of the night
Like a firefly without a light
You were there like a blowtorch burning
I was a key that could use a little turning

So tired that I couldn't even sleep
So many secrets I couldn't keep
Promised myself I wouldn't weep
One more promise I couldn't keep

It seems no one can help me now
I'm in too deep
There's no way out
This time I have really led myself astray

Runaway train never going back
Wrong way on a one-way track
Seems like I should be getting somewhere
Somehow I'm neither here nor there

Can you help me remember how to smile?
Make it somehow all seem worthwhile
How on earth did I get so jaded?
Life's mystery seems so faded

I can go where no one else can go
I know what no one else knows
Here I am, just drowning in the rain
With a ticket for a runaway train

And everything seems cut and dry
Day and night
Earth and sky
Somehow I just don't believe it

Runaway train never going back
Wrong way on a one-way track
Seems like I should be getting somewhere
Somehow I'm neither here nor there

Bought a ticket for a runaway train
Like a madman laughing at the rain
A little out of touch, a little insane
It's just easier than dealing with the pain

Runaway train never going back
Wrong way on a one-way track
Seems like I should be getting somewhere
Somehow I'm neither here nor there

Runaway train never coming back
Runaway train tearing up the track
Runaway train burning in my veins
Runaway but it always seems the same


13. GET ON OUT

I gotta get on…
I gotta get on out
All these worried, troubled thoughts
Gotta get on out of my head

Gotta get on out of my head

Will I be on the streets tomorrow?
Will I have to beg and borrow?
Will I have to go back to the job I left behind?

Could you still make it
With a guy who never made it
Would you look into my eyes if I were to go blind?

Gotta get on…
I gotta get on out
All these worried, troubled thoughts
Gotta get on out of my head

Gotta get on out of my head

Now, will you leave me for another,
Send me running back to mother?
Will I have the time to tell you how I really feel?
Am I just getting slower or are you just talking faster?
Do we need bad disaster to make it plain to see?

That all these worried, troubled thoughts
Gotta get on out of my head
Gotta get on out of my head

Out of my head (×14)

Do I just feel like crying 'cause I'm sick and tried of trying
Trying to convince you this ain't how it has to be?
The ground you walk on's sacred, the sky above awaits you
So cast all your frustrations to the bottomless sea

Gotta get on…
Gotta get on out
All these worried troubled thoughts
Gotta get on out of my head

Gotta get on out of my head

Out of my head (×27)


14. WITHOUT A TRACE

I fell in love with a hooker
She laughed in my face
So seriously I took her
I was a disgrace

I was out of line, I was out of place
Out of time to save face
See the open mouth of my suitcase
Saying "Leave this place"

Leave without a trace (×3)

I tried to get a good job
With honest pay
Might as well join the mob
The benefits are okay

Standing in the sun with a popsicle
Everything is possible
With a lot of luck and a pretty face
And some time to waste

Leave without a trace (×3)

I tried to dance at a funeral
New Orleans-style
I joined the Grave Dancers Union
I had to file

Trying to do the right thing, play it straight
The right thing changes from state to state
Don't forget to take your mace
If you're out walking late

Liked to see your face
You left without a trace


15. NEVER REALLY BEEN

Sirens are a-screaming, shots ring out at night
Movie cameras rolling in
And there goes my hero with his head between his legs
And all this time I believed in him

Now, what is the sound of snow falling down
On the tombstone in the dead of the night?
And who is the hound at the downtown dog pound
Who speaks English when the watchman's not in sight?

And where will you be in 1993
Still sitting in the same chair
Sinning is for sinners and I'm just a beginner
But I've never really been punched there

Hey, ain't it strange how some things never change
Ain't it strange how nothing stays the same
You were thinking I was distressed about some universal press
But I was just depressed about my last pinball game

I've learned to accept and not to expect
The respect and neglect that I get
And I try not to forget about what hasn't happened yet
And on this, I place my last bet

Hey, did you give what you get
Did you get what you give of your fair share of wear and tear
Winning is for winners and I know spring follows winter
But I've never really been touched there

You know, it's hard to be nice when hate becomes your vice
And you can't find peace anywhere
Love's just not for lovers, get off your high horse brother
Drop your fist and get out of here


16. SOMEBODY TO SHOVE

Grandfather watches the grandfather clock
And the phone hasn't rang for so long
And the time flies by like a vulture in the sky
Suddenly he breaks into song

I'm waiting by the phone
Waiting for you to call me up and tell me I'm not alone
I'm waiting by the phone
Waiting for you to call me up and tell me I'm not alone

Hello, speak up, is there somebody there?
These hang-ups are getting me down
In a world frozen over with overexposure
Let's talk it over, let's go out and paint the town

'Cause I'm waiting by the phone
Waiting for you to call me up and tell me I'm not alone
'Cause I want somebody to shove
I need somebody to shove
I want somebody to shove me

You're a dream for insomniacs
Prize in the Cracker Jack
All the difference in the world is just a call away

And I'm waiting by the phone
Waiting for you to call me up and tell me I'm not alone
Yes I'm waiting by the phone
I'm waiting for you to call me? come call me
And tell me I'm? tell me I'm not alone

'Cause I want somebody to shove
I need somebody to shove
I want somebody to shove me

Yes I want somebody to shove
I need somebody to shove
I want somebody to shove me


17. CLOSER TO THE STARS

Caterpillar crawling up the big phone pole
Is there somebody that you want to talk to?
You know that pretty soon, you'll be able to fly
How is this going to affect you?

Do you think it might wreck you?
Your friends might reject you
Say you took it too far
You say you want to be, want to be, want to be, want to be

Hooked on glossy pictures and drugs I've never seen
Treat you with advice from a fashion magazine
One day she just walked into that magazine
I wonder if she'll ever come back

And they all said she would crack
They said her mind was one-track
Said she took it too far
You say you want to be, want to be, want to be, want to be

Closer to the stars

(Ahhhhhhh, ahhhhhhhhhh, ahhhhhhhh)

Every time you move your lips
Let me give you a few tips
Yesterday you were too young
Tomorrow you will be too old to regret all the things you've done

Who're you trying to hustle?
Somebody you wanna show your muscle
Second-hand excuses never went too far
What's this scene you're making?

Your ideas have been taken
We'll seek when you awaken, alone in someone's car
You just stood there shaking, you stood there shaking
They said you were faking

You say you want to be, want to be, want to be, want to be

Closer to the stars
Closer to the stars