Empty Hearted Town
Warren Zevon
© Mr. Bones Publishing (BMI)
Ain't life strange? Ain't it funny?
Nothin’ matters much but love and money
Things don't work out the way you reckon
Money comes first and the love comes second
Cigarettes make the sun come up
Whiskey makes the sun go down
And in between
We do a lot of standin’ around
It's all I can do to make it through the day
She wrapped it all in darkness and I can't find my way
And I'm walkin’ down the sidewalks of L.A.,
Wishin’ I had a warmer jacket
And the leaves are fallin’ down.
I'm just another man
With an empty handed heart
In an empty hearted town.
Started out all right
Ended up all wrong
Shoulda done... shoulda done
That's my song
Now the night has fallen, hard and fast
All dressed up for the masquerade
And the lights of the city
Stretch as far as the eyes can see
Look what wonders man has made
Look what wonders man has made
And I'm walkin’ down the sidewalks of L.A.
Wishin’ I had a warmer jacket
And the leaves are fallin’ down.
I'm just another man with an empty handed heart
In an empty hearted town
And I'm walkin down the sidewalks of L.A.,
Wishin I had a warmer jacket
And something more to say.
Steady Rain
Warren Zevon
© Mr. Bones Publishing (BMI)
Silvery teardrops tricklin' down my windshield
Silvery teardrops tricklin' down my window pane
Steady rain falls night and day
And the vapors ride the wind away
I remember when the thunder hit the rainbow like a fist
And you kissed me with your face all dewy wet
Once upon a time I thought it would be easy to forget
But these misty memories of you are driving me insane, girl
Steady rain falls all night and day
And the vapors ride the wind away
Shining tears keep fallin....
fallin... fallin...
fallin...fallin...
fallin...fallin...
fallin...fallin...
Silvery teardrops tricklin' down my windshield
Silvery teardrops
Silvery teardrops
Silvery teardrops
Join Me In L.A.
Warren Zevon
© 1973 Warner Tamerlane/Darkroom Music. (BMI)
Well, they say this place is evil
But that ain't why I stay
'Cause I found something
That’ll never be nothing
And I found it in L.A.
It was midnight in Topanga
I heard the DJ say
There's a full moon a-rising
Join me in L A. (hah)
Join me in L A.
I was at the Tropicana, yeah,
On a grey and sultry day
I had to call my baby long distance
I said "Join me in L. A."
Sweet little woman, won’t you join me in L. A.
Hasten Down The Wind
Warren Zevon
© 1973, Warner-Tamerlane./Darkroom Music (BMI)
She tells him she thinks she needs to be free
He tells her that he don’t understand
She takes his hand
She tells him nothing's working out the way they planned
She's so many women
An’ he can't find the one who was his friend
So he's hanging on to half her heart
But he can't have the restless part
So he tells her to hasten down the wind
Then he agrees he thinks she needs to be free
Then she says she'd rather be with him
But it's just a whim
By which she hopes to keep him on the limb
She's so many women
He can't find the one who was his friend
So he's hanging on to half her heart
But he can't have the restless part
So he tells her to hasten down the wind
Werewolves Of London
Written By LeRoy P. Marinell, Waddy Wachtel and Warren Zevon
© Zevon Music (BMI) Tiny Tunes Music (ASCAP) and Leadsheet Land Music (ASCAP)
(Alas, Poor Yorick, I knew him well)
I saw a werewolf with a Chinese menu in his hand
S’walking down the streets of Soho in the rain
He was looking for a place called Lee Ho Fook's
Goin’ to get himself a big dish of beef chow mein
AHHOOOOOO Werewolves of London
AHHOOOOOO Werewolves of London
AHHOOOOOO Werewolves of London
AHHOOOOOO Werewolves of London
If you hear him howling around your kitchen door
Better not let him in
Little old lady got mutilated late last night
Werewolves of London again
He's the hairy handed gent who ran amok in Kent
Lately he's been overheard in Mayfair
Better stay away from him; he'll rip your lungs out, Jim
HAH! I'd like to meet his tailor (bite down!)
AHHOOOOOO Werewolves of London
AHHOOOOOO Werewolves of London
AHHOOOOOO Werewolves of London
AHHOOOOOO Werewolves of London
Well, I saw Lon Chaney walking with the Queen
They were doing the Werewolves of London
I saw Lon Chaney, Jr. walking with the Queen
They were doing the Werewolves of London
I saw George Zucco walking with the Queen
They were doing the Werewolves of London
I saw Euell Gibbons walking with the Queen
They were doing the Werewolves of London
I saw Oliver Reed walking with Glenda Jackson
They were doing...nothing. Hah!
I saw Jack Nicholson at a high-class Hollywood Party, y'all
Not in Hollywood
Up the nose
God I'm hosed
What a joke
Go for broke
Take a toke
I’ll see you in ten minutes, baby
I dreamed I saw Joe Tex
He was doing the Werewolves of London
And it felt so good, so good, so good
Hah! Bite Down! Draw Blood!
Tule's Blues
Warren Zevon
© Mr. Bones Music (BMI)
Oh Tule, it's on account of you that I've been weeping
Here behind my hand
And it's lonesome in my heart's land
As the sands of the desert
Oh, tell me, why was it always you, who, through the changes
You, who always sang
And played while the green vespers rang
In the heart of the hillside
It's a sad song; we always seem to be singing it to each other
You and me, sweet and slightly out of key
Like the sound of a running down calliope
Oh Tule, now wasn’t I once your knight in golden armor
With the sun behind my hair
My music filled the air
With symbols (cymbals?)and lightning
Oh Tule, now can't you see I'm changing like the seasons?
My hair is turning dark
And there's no room left in the ark
For a lark with a broken wing
It's a sad song; we always seem to be singing it to each other
You and me, sweet and slightly out of key
Like the sound of a running down calliope
Oh Tule, it's on account of you that I'll be leaving
'Cross the deep salt sea
Whatever wild worlds I may see
Will be empty without you
It's a sad song; we always seem to be singing it to each other
And a child's voice, so tender and out of tune
Does he ask if I’ll be coming home soon?
Does he ask if I’ll be coming home soon?
The French Inhaler
Warren Zevon
© 1973, Warner-Tamerlane./Darkroom Music (BMI)
How you going to make your way in the world
When you weren't cut out for workin’,
When your fingers are all slender and frail?
Oh, how you gonna get around
In this sleazy bedroom town
If you don't put yourself up for sale?
Oh, where you gonna go with your scarves and your miracles?
Who's gonna know who you are?
Drugs and wine and flattering light
You must try it again ‘til you get it right
Maybe you'll end up with someone different every night
All these people with no home to go home to
They'd all like to spend the night with you
Maybe I would, too
But tell me
How you gonna make your way in the world
When you weren't cut out for working
And you just can't concentrate
And you always show up late?
You said you were an actress
Yes, I believe you are
An’ I thought you'd be a star
So I went and drank up all the money,
With these phonies in this Hollywood bar,
These friends of mine in this Hollywood bar
Loneliness and frustration
We both came down with an acute case
But when the lights came up at two
I caught a glimpse of you
And your face looked like something
Death brought with him in his suitcase
Your pretty face
It looked so wasted
Another pretty face
It looked so wasted
The French Inhaler
He stamped and mailed her
"So long, Norman"
She said, "So long, Norman"
Going All The Way
Warren Zevon
© Mr. Bones Publishing (BMI)
Today’s the day you’re going all the way
You better make up your heart
You’re gonna make a new start today
You know you just can’t win
Waiting for your life to begin
It’ll slip right through your fingers
It’ll slip right through your fingers
And today’s the day you’re going all the way
You better make up your heart
You’re gonna make a new start today
Poor Poor Pitiful Me
Warren Zevon
© 1973, Warner-Tamerlane/Darkroom Music (BMI)
Well, I met a girl from the Vieux Carré
Down in Yokohama
She picked me up, she threw me down
I said, “Please don’t hurt me, Mama.”
Well, I go and lay on the railroad tracks
And wait for the Double "E"
But the railroad don't run no more
Poor poor pitiful me
Poor poor pitiful me
Poor poor pitiful me
These young girls won't let me be
Lord have mercy on me
Woe is me
Well, I met a girl in West Hollywood
I ain't naming names
She really worked me over good
She was just like Jesse James
She really worked me over good
She was a credit to her gender
She put me through some changes, Lord
Sort of like a Waring blender
Poor poor pitiful me
Poor poor pitiful me
These young girls won't let me be
Lord, have mercy on me
Woe is me
Poor poor pitiful me
Poor poor pitiful me
These young girls won't let me be
Lord, have mercy on me
Woe is me
Studebaker
Warren Zevon
© Mr. Bones Publishing (BMI)
I left my home in Monterey, just another no-prospects man
Who'd rather work in the foundries than put fishes in the can
I'm twenty-five and I haven't traveled far
And I've spent all my money on this misbegotten car
I'm up against it all like a leaf against the wind
And this Studebaker keeps on breakin’ down again
This Studebaker keeps on breakin’ down again
I thought I'd go to Fresno to see my friend
But this damn Studebaker keeps on breakin’ down again
I was speeding south on ninety-nine when the manifold started smokin'
I ran her off the shoulder, and now the axle's broken
It made a sound that cracked my heart in half
With less than half a half pint of vodka left
I'm up against it all like a leaf against the wind,
And this Studebaker keeps on breakin’ down again,
This...
Accidentally Like A Martyr
Warren Zevon
© Zevon Music
Why'd I let you get to me again?
You get me all confused.
Can’t I ever get it through my head,
I'm only being used?
Why'd I let you get to me again,
Why'd I let you in,
Knowin’ you were only gonna nail me up again?
Making mad love
Shadow love
Random love
And abandoned love
Accidentally like a martyr
The hurt gets worse and the heart gets harder
Why'd I let you get to me again,
And treat me like a fool?
Sometimes I wonder if you're being
Deliberately cruel.
Can’t I ever get it through my head,
And maybe time I learned,
That the greedy just get greedier
And the vulnerable get burned.
Making mad love
Shadow love
Random love
And abandoned love
Accidentally like a martyr (yeah)
The hurt gets worse and the heart gets harder
Why'd I give you all the love I have,
To squander like you did.
My friends all shook their heads and sighed
Such a naive kid.
My friends all shook their head and wished,
I'd find somebody else.
Now I'm all alone and feeling sorry for myself.
Making mad love
Shadow love
Random love
And abandoned love
Accidentally like a martyr
The hurt gets worse and the heart gets harder
We were making mad love
Shadow love
Random love
And abandoned love
Accidentally like a martyr
The hurt gets worse and the heart gets harder
Carmelita
Warren Zevon
© 1972, Companion Music c/o Warner-Tamerlane/Darkroom Music (BMI)
I hear Mariachi static on my radio
And the tubes they glow in the dark
And I'm there with her in Ensenada
And I'm here in Echo Park
Carmelita, hold me tighter
I think I'm sinking down
And I'm all strung out on heroin
On the outskirts of town
I been sittin' here playing solitaire
With my pearl-handled deck
The county won't give me no more methadone
And they cut off your welfare check
Carmelita, hold me tighter
I think I'm sinking down
And I'm all strung out on heroin
On the outskirts of town
Every time I hear the siren blow
You know, I almost have a heart attack
And your big Samoan boyfriend
Says he’s gonna come and break my back
Carmelita, hold me tighter
I think I'm sinking down
And I'm all strung out on heroin
On the outskirts of town
Well, I pawned my Smith & Wesson
And I went to meet my man
He hangs out down on Alvarado Street
By the Pioneer Chicken stand
Carmelita, hold me tighter
I think I'm sinking down
And I'm all strung out on heroin
On the outskirts of town
I hear Mariachi static on my radio
And the tubes they glow in the dark
And I'm there with her in Ensenada
And I'm here in Echo Park
Carmelita, hold me tighter
I think I'm sinking down
And I'm all strung out on heroin
On the outskirts of town
I Used To Ride So High
Warren Zevon
© Mr. Bones Publishing (BMI)
I used to drive all night
I used to drive all night, yeah
I used to do alright for myself
I didn’t think about nobody else
I used to drive all night, yeah
I used to ride so high
I used to ride so high, yeah
I used to think I had to be free
I didn’t notice that you needed me
I used to ride so high, yeah
She said I’m sorry to see I couldn’t be what you wanted to be
And I’ll never forget that you could’ve done better by me
Done better by me, now, baby
I used to shake ‘em on down
I used to shake ‘em on down, yeah
I used to do alright for myself
I didn’t think about nobody else
I used to shake ‘em on down, yeah
She said I’m sorry to see I couldn’t be what you wanted to be
And I’ll never forget that you could’ve done better by me
Done better by me, now, baby
I used to ride so high
I used to drive all night
I used to shake ‘em, shake ‘em on down
I used to ride so high
I used to drive all night
I used to shake ‘em, shake ‘em on down
I used to ride so high
I used to drive all night
I used to shake ‘em, shake ‘em on down
I used to ride so high
I used to drive all night
I used to shake ‘em, shake ‘em on down
I used to ride so high
I used to drive all night
I used to shake ‘em, shake ‘em on down
I used to ride so high
I used to drive all night
I used to shake ‘em, shake ‘em on down
I used to ride so high
I used to drive all night
I used to shake ‘em, shake ‘em on down
Stop Rainin' Lord
Warren Zevon
© Mr. Bones Publishing (BMI)
I rode down to Mechanicsburg on a cold and wintry day
And I heard a tramp by the railroad tracks
And he had these words to say
I worked forty years as fireman, boy, on the Pennsylvania line
And I ended up just a derelict
Drinkin' Boone's Farm apple wine
Oh, where can a bum find bed and board?
When you gonna make it stop rainin' Lord?
Where can a bum find bed and board?
When you gonna make it stop rainin' Lord?
I rode out of Mechanicsburg on a freight train a half-mile long
But I still think back to the railroad track
And that hobo’s mournful song
Oh, where can a bum find bed and board?
When you gonna make it stop rainin' Lord?
Where can a bum find bed and board?
When you gonna make it stop rainin' Lord?
Singin’, where can a bum find bed and board?
When you gonna make it stop rainin' Lord?
Where can a bum find bed and board?
When you gonna make it stop rainin' Lord?
When you gonna make it stop rainin' Lord?
The Rosarita Beach Café
Warren Zevon
© Mr. Bones Publishing (BMI) This is what the album booklet says. BMI has no information on this song. ASCAP says: William E. Martin, Winston Music Publishers (Benross Music), ASCAP, with WZ as being the only performer.
With Tennessee sour mash whiskey on my breath
And Rosalie, Suzie and Lucy on my mind
I drove my old car down the dusty streets of this old border town
But I never thought I'd get stuck here such a long, long time
I've got a million-dollar bill, and they can't change it
They won't let me leave until my tab is paid
So I might as well settle down, yes
And buy the house another round
Send my mail to the Rosarita Beach Café
It was one of those hot, dry, dime-a-dozen Mexicali days
When I fell through the door of the Rosarita Beach Café
And I got myself a table with a view of the breakers in the bay
And another cold Dos Equis on the way
I've got a million-dollar bill, and they can't change it
They won't let me leave until my tab is paid
So I might as well settle down, yes
And buy the house another round
Send my mail to the Rosarita Beach Café
Well, I soon fell in with thugs and thieves and gamblers from the beach
And the devil himself suggested an all-night game
But the night winds came along like some dark-eyed senorita's song
And blew my straight flush out across the waves
I've got a million-dollar bill, and they can't change it
They won't let me leave until my tab is paid
So I might as well settle down, yes
And buy the house another round
Send my mail to the Rosarita Beach Café
Ahhhwwwwww
Desperados Under The Eaves
Warren Zevon
© 1976, Warner-Tamerlane/Darkroom Music (BMI)
I was sitting in the Hollywood Hawaiian Hotel
I was staring in my empty coffee cup
I was thinking that the gypsy wasn't lyin'
All the salty margaritas in Los Angeles
I'm gonna drink 'em up
And if California slides into the ocean
Like the mystics and statistics say it will
I predict this motel will be standing
Until I pay my bill
(Hut...)
Don't the sun look angry through the trees?
Don't the trees look like crucified thieves?
Don't you feel like Desperados under the eaves?
Heaven help the one who leaves
Still waking up in the mornings with shaking hands
And I'm trying to find a girl who understands me
But except in dreams you're never really free
Don't the sun look angry at me?
I was sitting in the Hollywood Hawaiian Hotel
I was listening to the air conditioner hum
It went mmmmmm.. ...........................
And it went mmmmmm.. .............(alright!)..............
BONUS TRACKS (only at Best Buy)
Workin’ Man’s Pay
Warren Zevon
© ??
I tell you buddy it ain’t no fun
Workin’ all day in the hot, hot sun
It don’t seem right, a man should work all day
In the hot, hot sun earning workin’ man’s pay
Workin’ man’s pay
Workin’ man’s pay
Swingin’ that sledge hammer every day
A bottle of beer at the end of the day
And a naggin’ woman
That’s a workin’ man’s pay
I went to Hialeah with my pay in my hand
I bet all my money on an also-ran
Workin’, workin’ til you waste away
In the hot, hot sun earning workin’ man’s pay
Workin’ man’s pay
Workin’ man’s pay
Swinging that sledge hammer every day
It don’t seem right, a man should work this way
In the hot, hot sun earning workin’ man’s pay
I ain’t got much, but I ain’t no thief
And my old woman ain’t on relief
So while you hippies are pickin’ flowers,
Remember some jerk’s workin’ workin’ man’s hours
Hmmmmmmmmm...mmmmmmm...mmmmmmm
I tell you buddy it ain’t no fun
Working all day in the hot, hot sun
It don’t seem right a man should work all day
In the hot, hot sun earning workin’ man’s pay
Workin’ man’s pay
Workin’ man’s pay
Swingin’ that sledge hammer every day
A bottle of beer at the end of the day
And a nagging woman
That’s a workin’ man’s pay
Frozen Notes
Warren Zevon
© 1971 Mr. Bones Music (BMI)
Softly falls the morning rain
Loneliness comes around again
And I sit and sing my song
Though it never seems to matter
And it echoes in the emptiness inside
Frozen notes hang suspended in the autumn air
While someone waits for someone to come somewhere
No one waits for me
'Cause I thought I wanted to be free
Now I'm wondering why I said goodbye
Looking through my window
At the dark and troubled sky
I think I see the ship of the brokenhearted passing by
And I turn away
From the day
To where we used to lie
And I cry
Yes, I cry
While softly falls the morning rain
Loneliness comes around again
Some Kind Of Rider
Warren Zevon
© Mr. Bones Publishing (BMI)
Could you use some kind of rider
On your own lonesome ramble?
Could you use someone to share your weary way?
I’ll go with you anywhere you say
Oh, they call me a pariah
And they say my life’s a shambles
And I have used all my tomorrows up today
I’ll go with you anywhere you say
I will be a true, true companion
I will climb the highest mountain, cross the deepest canyon
No matter what you want me for
I’ll give you every??? and more
I would follow you through death’s door
Forever ???
Could you use some kind of rider
On your own lonesome ramble?
Could you use a friend to share your weary way?
I’ll go with you anywhere you say
I’ll go with you anywhere you say
I’ll go with you anywhere you say