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South of the South

by David Dondero

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1.
I was just a tender chicken In the Florida rotisserie My sweat’s basting me Thunderstorms are chasing me I bit into a lightning bolt My own tongue began to smoke I woke up with an empty mouth Watch the watch tick backwards South of the south The CSX vibrates the tracks Mighty roar it shakes the shacks Purple sky and orange moon Plants are confident in June Humidity is thick You can cut it with a knife If you’d like to take a breathe here honey I’m gonna cut you out a slice So i developed gills And i moved into the aquifer Fell asleep in Wakulla Springs Woke up down in Jupiter Then i moved back to Deland High into an orange tree I was set for life with citrus But my body couldn’t take this Acidity So i strolled down to Miami Tried to find myself some friends Found myself in South Beach And met some mannequins Who smelled of coconuts And Coppertone I like those smells real well But as far as conversations go I guess that it stopped at the start Of the smell It was Elvis and Sinatra Now where’s your wallet man i got you But if you’re poor like me They let poor people like me be They say that North Beach is a warzone Highrise hotels hollowed out But now we were living large We were stepping out In some thirty dollar beach front motel South of the south South of the south Down in North Miami South of the south Me and my old lover Terry We were practically married So i jumped my pogo stick All the way to Ybor City Where they burned up a couple blocks And to me seemed like a pity That was once a Cuban district And a center for the arts Was now a mall like atmosphere Homogenous and insincere They burned its heart right out Down south of the south So i became a snake bird An old swamp turkey And some redneck tried to shoot me Tried to make swamp turkey jerky But i evaded all his bullets And i flew into the Gulf And i jumped upon a west wind Out to a safer haven Out near Alcaniz and Baylen Down south South of the south The town of Pensacola Riding bikes like we were kids Over cobblestone and brick A tabby fence a moonlit bridge There’s a sandlot shot-gun shack Tin roof all rusted out There’s a couch on every front porch Flappin’ screen doors Ants on the apple cores Hawk’s boiled peanuts and more Down South South of the south South of the south South of Opelika South of the south Due south of Tuscaloosa South of the south South of ole Alpharetta South of the south South of South Carolina South of the south
2.
Drive around this country Pretending like we’re famous Wearing our disguises Of the people we are not And i know You’re just letting go Softly fading After all this time Don’t pretend like you don’t know me Treat me like a stranger Like some bum off of the street Don’t you know We were once like gold Set in concrete You, you were so confused You had much to much to lose You let it put you out Now you’re leaving i , i’ve seen the love That i let slip away I, i’ve been so lonely So much i could not say And are you still just okay? If instruments were ornaments Aesthetic with no purpose Hanging on your wall Out of tune without a song Don’t you know We ain’t got too long Let’s start singing Have you lost your passion Well, here take some of mine You can use my skeleton But don’t drink all my wine You have sung You sung your voice away No one listened Oh, heaven help a soul Who wanted to let it go Stuck inside a corpse No heart beating I, I’ve seen the love That i let slip away And i have been so lonely So much, i could say And are you still just okay? I have seen the love That i let slip away I have been so lonely So much i could not say And are you still Just okay?
3.
The party’s no fun if you’re not drinking The bar is no fun if you’re flying straight Sitting in the corner with a pen and paper Like a journalist with a deadline date Got a whole suitcase full of journals And i used to try to use ‘em as a reference point Now i kinda realize i run in circles Run in circles with a black ball point Well i got an idea if you wanna try it Meet me in the yard by the BBQ pit We can take everything that we’ve ever written Make a great big pile and put a match to it We’ll have a journal burning party have a journal burning party Have a journal We’ll get a clean slate honey At the journal burning party See we’ll write it down and then we’ll burn it up We’re gonna write it down and then we’ll burn it up We’re going page for page up into flames Page for page up into flames March 28, 1993 Those words mean nothing to me November 5th, 1994 I don’t wanna read it no more You see it tried to reflect It just made me depressed I tried to reflect It just made me depressed Let’s have a journal burning party Have a journal we’ll get a clean slate honey Come on Come on Come on I always wanted to write a song That said “come on” So come on Come on Come on Come on Alright Alright Come on Come on Come on Come on Come on
4.
Let go the past and step forward Let go your past my friend Past it will haunt you, daunt you and hurt you Let go the past til the end honey Let go your past til the end Let go your lonelies Let go your sorrows Let go the hurt in your heart Let go the pain That drove you insane Let go and find a new start honey Let go and find a new start Cause the sun still shines on the sidewalk Rain still falls on the trees You could sing a simple song Or get lost in the complexities Let go disappointments And lack of enjoyments Let go your troubles And doubts Let go your worry Slow down your hurry Step back and find a new route honey Step back and find a new route Let go depression Let go addiction Let go and let yourself win Let go your hate Go celebrate Let the new living begin honey Let your new living begin Cause the sun still shines on the sidewalk Rain still falls on the seas You could sing a simple song Or get lost in the complexities Let go your past and step forward Let go your past my friends Past it will haunt you, daunt you and hurt you Let go the past til the end honey Let go your past til the end Let go your past til the end
5.
That’s how the song sings When your heart begins its longing One day it’s a band of gold Next day it’s a chunk of coal You like a harmony I like a melody That’s you and me We only disagree That’s how the song sings It’s how it sings I like a bar with no tv Tend to let a little conversation breathe Keep your eyeballs glued to me Undistracted by the tv screen So you wanna talk? Wanna really talk? Let’s not talk Not even say a thing That’s how the song sings It’s how it sings You know i try to write a summer song But i feel i’ve been away too long Friends are grown and responsible I’m a child yet not capable That’s how i come That’s how i go That’s how the song sings When your heart begins its longings One day it's a band of gold Next day it’s a chunk of coal
6.
There’s a man whose daughter had died I believe it was in Gainesville He bought a cooler and he put her inside Went to Brownsville revival And he asked the congregation If they could bring her back for him He was looking for a miracle But it just didn’t happen Just didn’t happen And chameleons cling to the screens Beaches like snow Holy ghost dreams And the Brownsville revival Gonna save every single soul So send your dead children So they could revive them from the grave Everyone kneel down and pray The Gulf of Mexico Is a clear and aqua blue The clouds hung wispy and low With a red blood rusty hue From the lights of Pensacola hear the rush of the Navy jets They waiting for the rapture But it hadn’t happened yet Place your bets there’s a man with a cross Stands on the bridge Glaring at the traffic I wonder what it did The Brownsville revival Gonna save every single soul So send your dead children So they could revive them From the grave Everyone kneel down and pray
7.
Towing distance to Phoenix Tank away from LA The desert is draining in August I left her at the Greyhound station In Tucson today Pecans, walnuts and wine Naturally grown And easy to come by I have wasted my time Pickin’ a tomato That fell from the vine Always picking The one that fell from the vine I’m always picking The one that fell from the vine Maybe next time i’ll know Ones on the ground are rotten on one side Best leave those ones alone They’ve got worms They ain’t healthy Take that as a sign Always pickin’ The one that fell from the vine Maybe I I’m the one that fell from the vine And her and I come from the same kind
8.
Persevere 03:40
When you’re broke down on the highway And you don’t go no money And you know it’s who you know But you don’t know a single soul And you’re wondering what to do As they’re tightening up the screw Sit and wondering what to do You persevere I love you dear You persevere You got nothing left to lose You’re flat broke from paying your dues You know it’s best to let it ride You gotta go for broke until you’re up in smoke Least you can say that you tried Hold holy your highest hopes Don’t let go of the rope Don’t give up now Don’t give in Don’t you ever let them win Don’t give up now Don’t give in You persevere One more year You persevere cause You got nothing left to lose You’re flat broke from paying your dues You know it’s best to let it burn You gotta go for broke until your up in smoke Least you were living to learn
9.
You shouldn’t leave a lover alone too long Love will find another and then the lover is gone find yourself alone in the setting sun gonna take a couple years before the next dawn If your light is gone And my love is gone Lonesome leads to bitters And the bitters leads to pain And your pain started bubbling from your heart to your brain Swear you’ll never ever make her cry again The tears started welling in her eye again She was your best friend But you did it again and again I know that you’re tired of the drama Know that you’re tired of the strain Know that you’re tired of our love affair So honey, why don’t we, just be friends I’m the type of guy with a wandering eye Had a couple drinks and i don’t know why Everytime i see another girl walk by Wandering eye starts to objectify And i don’t know why I’m a natural guy blah Chains of codependence were disguised as love We were smothered by the touching And the kissing and the hugs Guess now you know i’m not a marrying type Don’t want kids and i don’t want a wife Just a friend for life Not a typical life I know that you’re tired of the drama Know that you’re tired of the strain Know that you’re tired of our love affair So honey, why don’t we, just be friends You shouldn’t leave a lover alone too long Love will find another then the lover is gone Find yourself alone in the setting sun Gonna take a couple years Before the next dawn
10.
Desensitized the conscience dies Here’s to your callaced thighs Here’s to your cold sore lips Here’s to your circus ride hips Here’s to my clammy cold hands I feel like a no woman’s land You tried to purchase a plot A quagmire’s what you got I was in love with defeat It drives a sporadic heartbeat You are the addict in purity You and your stoned insecurity Using your boyfriends for rent Fucking them all ‘til they’re spent Well, i can’t judge you lover We are the same under cover I’ve posted the same dark entries as you Your desperate puke stained grin You’re a poster girl for a lifelong sin He was a pedophile with a chaplains smile I can’t fix what that sucker defiled Let’s go make out on a binge Your heart locket’s got a rusty hinge Let’s feel false and unreal Let’s not feel how it doesn’t heal You are your own lost whore And i’m always wanting more and more Your bedroom is a porno booth I’ve got no money Honey got no use Ain’t it all so mechanical Our tainted love is habitual I can’t trust you lover You should never trust me either I posted the same dark entries as you Let’s not lie any less Unless you can’t somehow maintain Here’s your script for when you confess Learn your lines this time now say ‘em again I’m just a sucker for fun Chasing your dumb fleeting vanity Living a life on the run From a big black cloud of Christianity Don’t you feel guilty now? Sex was like milking the cow I was your boy for the night Staining your sheets with my blight Well, you sucked the cock of a swine How tenderly wasting your time I can’t trust you lover You should never trust me either I’ve posted the same dark entries as you
11.
Layin’ low in Ely, Nevada On the loneliest highway just west of Utah It had started to snow I got a room for the night I put a fiver in the slot I took a shot and then on came the lights Bars of four came up twice And a double super bonus Twice was nice You know i, couldn’t believe it I didn’t even know how much it was But it must have been a lot i hit the jackpot I mean that whole place was abuzz I’ve always been just a scratch off ticket away Always win another ticket to play Then i come up empty and i throw that thing away You know i tossed it on the floor like i was bored But it was worth a shot to play I’ve seen no luck in old Biloxi I’ve lost hundreds and hundreds worth of twenties But at the Hotel Nevada everything changed I bought drinks for the house A king suite with a couch I mean the whole scene was a little bit weird and strange The night went on and i got loaded When you’re loaded it’s too easy to get loaded Don’t you know what I mean? I’m talking loot cakes of cash My casino cup was full i had control But it was a drastic contrast I met this girl blue eyeshadow Bleach blonde hair silver sparkly stiletto She’s a dragstrip dream A real card playing queen But i could tell she’d come to scam With all her phony glitz and glam But she dammed my conscience stream This girl she was much like a slot machine Lowest odds You can’t win off some card playing queen But i let it roll I wanted a golden egg from this sparrow And then the pot bellied waitress Said “here’s a free shot, you should take this.” And my sights got a little narrow I got sleepy she said “Come on honey” Let’s go upstairs Before you lose the rest of your money Besides you might get a little bit lucky With this card playin’ queen My head was spinning like a roulette wheel With weighted dice the loaded feel But i was cooking up my own scheme So off to bed i go with a girl i don’t even know Yeah roll roll roll through sheets we did roll I woke up to empty casino cup Red lipstick on the mirror read “a sucker will suck” So i made a some coffee tried to reevaluate my luck Card playin’ queen departed So i’m back to where i started But she was kind enough She was a woman enough She was good enough To leave me five bucks
12.
There’s a cross in the weeds At the side of the road There’s a gash in the trees The car lost control Fragments of glass Mix with the gravel I was trying to pass A victim of travel Highway death shrine Last trace of me Highway death shrine Another casualty I didn’t feel a thing It happened just like that Late last spring A high speed crash X marks the spot Where the soul hit the air The lawnmower man Don’t mow around there Highway death shrine Last trace of me Highway death shrine Another casualty

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released October 25, 2005

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