Tom Waits - Potter's Field Lyrics






well you can buy me a drink and i'll tell you what i seen
and i'll give you a bargain from the edge of a maniac's dream
that buys a black widow spider with a riddle in his yarn
that's clinging to the furrow of a blindman's brow
i'll start talking from the brim of a thimble full of whiskey
on a train through the bronx that will take you just as far
as the empty of a bottle to the highway of a scar
that stretched across the blacktop of my cheek like that
and then ducks beneath the brim of a fugitive's hat
and you'll learn why liquor makes a stool pigeon rat on every face
that ever left his shadow down on saint marks place

hell i'd double cross my mother if it was whiskey that they payed
and so an early bird says nightsticks on the hit parade
and he ain't got a prayer and his days are numbered
and you'll track him down like a dog
well it's a tough customer you're getting in this trade
Óause the nightstick's heart pumps lemonade
well whiskey keeps a blindman talkin alright
and i'm the only one who knows just where he stayed last night

he was in a wreckin yard in a switchblade storm
in a wheelbarrow with nothing but revenge to keep him warm
and a half a million dollars in unmarked bills
was the nightstick's blanket in a febuary chill
and as the buzzard drove a crooked sky
he was dealin high chicago in the mud
and stackin' the deck against a dragnet's eye
a shivering nightstick in a miserable heap
with the siren for a lullaby singing him to sleep
he was bleeding from a buttonhole
torn by a slug fired from the barrel of a two dollar gun
that scorched a blister on the grip of a punk by now
is learnin what you have to pay to be a hero anyhow

he dressed the hole in his gut with a hundred dollar bandage
a king's ransom for a bedspread that don't amount to nuttin
just cobweb strings on a busted ukulele
and the nightstick leaned on a black shillelagh
with the poison of a junkie's broken promise on his lip

he staggered in the shadows screaming i ain't never been afraid
and he shot out every street light on the promenade
past the frozen ham and eggers at the penny arcade
throwin out handfuls of a blood stained salary
they were dead in their tracks at the shootin gallery
and they fired off a twenty one gun salute
and from the corner of his eye he caught the alabaster orbs
and from a dime a dance hall girl and stuffed a thousand dollar bill
in her blouse and caught the cruel and unusual punishment of her smile
and the nightstick winked beneath a rainsoaked brim
ain't no one seen hide nor hair of him see
no one but a spade on rikers island and me
and so if you're mad enough to listen to a full of whiskey blindman
then you're mad enough to look beyond where bloodhounds dare to go
so if you want to know just where the nightstick's hidin out
you be down at the ferry landin oh let's say bout half past a nightmare
when it's twisted on a clock you tell 'em nickels sentcha
whiskey always makes him talk
and you ask for captain charon with the mud on his kicks
he's the skipper of the deadline steamer
and she sails from the bronx across the river styx
and a riddle's just a ticket for a dreamer

cause when the weathervane's sleepin and the moon turns his back
you crawl on your belly long the railroad tracks
and cross your heart and hope to die and stick a needle in your eye
cause he'd cut my bleedin heart out if he found out that i squealed
cause you see a scarecrow's just a hoodlum
who marked the cards that he dealed
and pulled a gypsy switch
out on the edge of potter's field





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Tom Waits Potter's Field Comments
  1. g.... ....

    fantastic footage of mid-20th cent. waterfronts in NYC

  2. J.... R....

    This is unique to say the least!!

  3. G.... S....

    If only tom waits wrote travel guides, imagine the sights you would see and the people you would meet. Off the beaten track wouldn't even come close. Still we can all dream.

  4. K.... ....

    The best sounding album of the 70s. They skipped the 24-track tape and went straight to the 2-track stereo master tape which eliminates a lot of tape hiss. So everything is clear and up close. But everything has to be recorded and performed perfectly. No mistakes because you can't fix it. You'd have to record it all over again. Also no overdubbing. Everything must be recorded in real time. The orchestra was right there playing. Everything was perfect. Top notch productoon values thanks to Bones Howe.

  5. m.... ....

    Great, great poetry. My favorite Tom Waits song. I also like the one on Small Change about the guy caught in the rain of his own .38

  6. N.... W....

    I'm sure I read somewhere that this was recorded in one take straight to 2 track tape. If so it's an absolutely bloody amazing piece of work - not that it isn't anyway. I don't know who did the orchestration but it's absolutely brilliant,. The crescendo when he sings "scorched a blister on the grip of a punk by now" is unsurpassable. It's hard to pick a favorite Tom Waits track let alone a favorite track of all time but this one is right near the top.

    And many thanks for the transcription.

    N.... W....

    Orchestration was done by Bob Alcivar.

  7. m.... h....

    nice job ol chap

  8. C.... S....

    This film is perfect ! I like how you got the Hell's Gate bridge in right when he mentions The Bronx....was that intentional ?

  9. C.... S....

    .....and caught the cruel and unusual punishment of her smile

  10. C.... S....

    ......with nothing but revenge to keep him warm

  11. C.... S....

    The best music and lyrics ever created. I hang on every word ,every image, his lyrics paint pictures

  12. J.... P....

    This guy to me as a young man speaking is the King of Deep Jazz. ..The upright Bass

    J.... P....

    Jim Hughart. I wrote a transcription of this bass line.

  13. J.... P....

    This is freaking awesome !!!

  14. T.... P....

    Very atmospheric, amazing lyics from the genious that is Tom Waits

  15. T.... H....

    He has great taste in side men, too.

  16. M.... R....

    Many thanks for the evocative and complementary visuals

  17. a.... ....

    Hey, your film is compelling to watch, deftly edited and works beautifully with this epic TW Americana.Nice job!

  18. K.... ....

    Excellent visuals--really sets the mood. Thank you for this!

  19. S.... B....

    Probably the best thing he wrote.
    Your backdrop is great.

  20. c.... ....

    This is incredible stuff here! Rare footage and especially rare talent.

  21. c.... b....

    @MSYNGWIE12 Coolsville .. love it !

    c.... b....

    One of the few people who can use the word "spade" and nobody bats an eye. A contextual stroke of genius.

  22. b.... ....

    @rockingirlsusan You have a pretty cool dad!

  23. s.... ....

    Lovely footage.

  24. M.... R....

    once upon a time, you had to be a poet to write a song.. today you only need boobs or to be a 13 yearold spoiled brat...

  25. T.... R....

    This is AMAZING!

  26. l.... ....

    How can someone not like this?! :o\.

  27. b.... b....

    thanks for posting

  28. t.... ....

    Hell, I'd double cross my mother if it was whiskey that they payed.

  29. P.... B....

    @scream62 Thank you, Lars.

  30. s.... ....

    very nice, phil