Bruce Hornsby

Van and Willie went out one night Once they get out on the road Well then everything is alright Had to get away from the kids and the wives Well they ran into some city boys that didn't walk just right And the line was drawn for another showdown Like the...

She moved back around here thirty-five weeks ago today Oh down the lane At night she walks on the banks and remembers how she Dreamed of rowing away And how she left one day She left with a driven look in her eyes Came back around with it still inside T...

Woke up this morning looking at the screen There's a couple of men talking I'm not sure what they mean There's a conversation many men running wild We learn about the world while they're fighting in the aisles Here we go What do you say, what do you kno...

There were people living in a green valley Found a way to make a lot of money Made the green turn gradually gray They figured they could do whatever they wanted Everything would be alright But scars don't always heal away And the sons and the daughters g...

Cocked and ready oh here I stand Anticipating the laying on of hands Might be frivolous, may be profound But it feels like deliverance going down Hey now, come on around The big rumble is coming down Go tell it on the mountainside Over the hills and ac...

I'm driving down the highway Headed to the range Gonna knock 'em out stong But I'm feeling no pain Got an old brown bag Big stick in the back Where the grass don't grow Gonna take a few hacks There's a place for you if you're just like me Armchair g...

Your cymbal crashing Your teeth are gnashing You're in your element We'd love to see you We'd love to be you You're in your elephant costume You do what the hell you want to do Make people scream for you We love to hear you You've got your big swing...

Rollin' and a-tumblin' Take me to the mountain Fly closer to the sun Wailin' and a-rumblin', I'm movin' not stumblin' Come, come with me on my Candy Mountain Candy Mountain run Dropping lots of little ones from up high Gumdrops, lemondrops rainin' from...

Some live life with eyes that don't see They look away at the time of your greatest need Some talk, some'll just do, some turn their back Turn around and just walk away I know I've done that Lonely Days and lonely nights Easy to be cynical never put yours...

Oh don't the sun look lonesome tonight Shining down through the trees I'm feeling like such a mannish child Bottlenecking while I'm eating gummy fleas I'm watching cartoons and eating little candy And everybody here wants to be like me Walking on the si...

You lie over there in a bed with iron rails Like a frightened child in the cold light, so frail Things were going so well,just rolling along Now, just when you think you got it all made, You think it's all gone China Doll, I've got something for you A f...

Hey out there, are you hearing my call It's a cry for help but all you see are these craters and these walls I've erected in my room I'd like you to see, I'm a performer with skills Don't make fun of me with my whistles and my bullhorns and my bells And...

We were new to love when we were young Lying in our arms, gravity unwinding Not knowing we were too young to love And the years passed by in our entwining And the eastern coast met the western shore And the masses of land fit just like a glove And the d...

Deep down in the south county Over where the paper mill runs Lived a man, a young coutnry doctor With the perfect wife and sons Well he worked his days And Sundays he'd pray And nobody knew Why the wife slowly withered away I saw the country doctor, t...

She came from the backwoods Bright teeth, stylish hair Good fortune and everyone's smiles Followed her everywhere Had a taste for the good life Had some stars in her eyes Thought she would have it all Once her name was in lights Hey, hey little Miss J...

It's been a long time coming, this feeling I've got That things'll always go your way, such a long shot Been so deep in the hole, never thought i'd come out Anything can happen, I know that now One slip, one fall A turn of the head can change it all A s...

Most of our years have flown away with nothing much decided Except the board we're playing on, how it's to be divided Will more years yet die alone? The question's many sided Got no answers of my own and none have been provided When I was young there was...

Come and talk of all the things we did today Hear and laugh about our funny little ways While we have a few minutes to breathe And I know that it's time you must leave Oh but darling, be home soon Well, I couldn't bear to wait An extra minute if you daw...

It's coming any day said the captain It's coming any day now cried the priest The people in high places may defend you But son you better hope they keep the peace Can't you hear them calling Can't you see them shine The city halls are falling The defen...

You say your arms are empty And your eyes are full of tears Haven't had no lovin' For so many years Don't blame it on me I'm not guilty can't you see Don't blame it on me I'm the same as I used to be I tried to tell you baby A long time ago now I w...

There's a place A local roadside shack A poor man's Paris with a parking lot in the back There's a girl there She knows how to unwind She don't talk much but she knows just how to act I said - Don't tell me she don't love me The money's just a mere form...

Isn't this old night so nice I hope you can feel what I feel tonight Little boy's not getting it right Trying so hard with all his might Clouds in the sky keeping the sun away Doesn't mean the sun isn't shining today Seems something's always in your way...

Way out here, working on the docks Everyone sees the long day through Well what would I do without the nights and the phone And the chance just to talk to you A thousand miles away What I wouldn't give for only one night A little relief in sight Or som...

When the night lies so still Before I go to sleep I come by, I come by Just to look at you In the dim light I say That in my own small way I will try, I will try To help you through There'll be blue skies falling There'll be sad scenes and bad dreams...

They're looking for some hired guns on the Texas border To shoot 'em all down if they try to cross over the water And they've got their old white hoods and the same old orders To keep the dark sons away from their daughters The nights they came on horses...

I'm sitting wondering, watching the parade In my ever-present chair People laughing and smiles all around me Balloons and paper in my hair There's a man in a car with the top down Waving wildly at me "The poor son of a gun", I know he's thinking Better him, hi...

Jenny drove out to Vegas for the first time Picked up a guy hitching on the highway side Rode into town together looking for a sign Thought they saw something in the keno lights She'd always do what she should Nice girl of the neighbourhood Had everything that...

Well, if you're travelin' in the north country fair, Where the winds hit heavy on the borderline, Remember me to one who lives there. She once was a true love of mine. Well, if you go when the snowflakes storm, When the rivers freeze and summer ends, Please s...

Hide in the bayou under the gun Been to the house of the rising sun Come down here trying to make a connection Must have a bad sense of direction Go back, go back to your woods (Go back, go back, go back to your woods) Go back, go back, go back to your...

Gonna be some changes made man was a knife expert kinda of a Jim Bowie type, swaggerin', blusterin', 'coon skin I said, "You're not serious, right?" then I saw him grab my friend by the hair and I guess I should have prayed as he dragged him around, I s...

You're saying I've got, got a lot, a lot of nerve To say that we could, we could be friends YOu're thinking I'm just another one telling lies You don't want to be fooled, fooled again And you always go your way And I always go mine Maybe one day we'll come to...

Bright light streaming in, through my window pane Think I'll stare at the shapes it makes on the floor and then stare again You've got your curtains drawn, anything I can do? Maybe a rose or a pillow or a picture or a funny joke just for you To carry you...

Close your eyes and slip away To the dream of your fancy Close your eyes and float downstream To where the marsh grass dances Take you down where the air is thick Try to make you shake and shiver Make you see there will be no tricks There will be no tri...

There was a young man name Arthur Gordon Heir to a large family fortune Walking around all prissy and full of himself Pissing money and showing his wealth Built a little shrine to the Gordon name Hyped it from his front-row seat at all the games Opened...

Here we are again Here where the darkness ends I close my eyes and then I see things as they were back when We had our own Closed off universe Closed time like curves Fly east around the world And here we are again The air between us bends Seven ti...

Will it really help me to learn About Frederick the Great and when Rome burned? Wish they'd skip over me when it's my turn All this useless information so I can talk way above my station And I lost when I couldn't spell "Congratulations" Well, Hooray, Hooray...

We've lived around here most all of our lives Did most anything we wanted to do We will celebrate every 4th of July Just a little tamer than most of the rest of us do Don't light a match, don't play with fire Pull down easy on the gas lighter There's a...

A strong man feels weak in the still heat of the day Nothing is black and white, just a hazy gray There's a long lonesome sound in the distance calling back to me You look for some small reward Everybody wants a little more You could be the one at my door...

Imagine there's no heaven It's easy if you try No hell below us Above us only sky Imagine all the people Living for today... Imagine there's no countries It isn't hard to do Nothing to kill or die for And no religion too Imagine all the people Living life in...

Got mayflies in May, June bugs in June Mosquitoes all summer long and by July you're through August is beautiful for copperheads and their friends And ticks will embrace you all until September's end Hey, we're having a ball in the low country We're havi...

What do you do? Where do you go? What do you say? And how do you know? I'll say who cares When people stare I will make myself invisible Yes I will, yes I will When I feel like a freak When I'm on the other end of someone's mean streak People make...

Someone's dancing on the table Someone's got an old book in the back Some old jocks are sitting round their neighbors Exaggerating their stats Again There's Mr. D.E. in the corner Dancing with Miss Virginia former I didn't think I'd really have a good t...

We can share the women, we can share the wine We can share what we got of yours, 'cause we done shared all of mine Keep on rollin', just a mile to go Keep on rollin', my old buddy, you're movin' much too slow I just jumped the watchman, right outside the...

I met a fan dancer down in southside Birmingham She was running from a fat man selling salvation in his hand She said he's tryin' to save me But I'm doin' alright, the best that i can Just a pair of fallen angels tryin' to get through the night Step by s...

I'm leaning on a rail Letting my eyes roam over the plain I'm laughing on my break Feeling like a captive on a long chain Watch the people pick up sticks Big boss man cracks his whip It's serious but we laugh to keep from crying Spouting out the company line E...

Let my inspiration flow in token rhyme, suggesting rhythm That will not forsake you, till my tale is told and done While the firelight's aglow, strange shadows from the flames will grow Till things we've never seen will seem familiar Shadows of a sailor, form...

Well, what have we here, what do I see? I think someone's coming up to challenge me I love it, I say bring it, I'm well prepared Confidence rises with the heat out there Well, this thing is great My excitement will not abate I will act and not hesitate...

I'm walking outside and I see you arrive You say let's go for a ride, and have a good old time I'm saving up lies, or just stay quiet every time While you talk your line, keep everything fine Bwtween us, I can see, things are not what they used to be My old fr...

You know I think it's a funny thing People talk without listening People listen without hearing I do it all the time You know it's a funny phenomenon People on their constant run So obvious to me and yet I never stop to get set Listen to the silence You might...

Is he sane or insane That's all they want to know Is he crazy or strange then If so I want to go I've seen him leave at night Followed him so far Drove out about thirteen miles Then he pulled in to a shothouse bar For a... Long Tall Tool One Don't k...

There's a man workin' in a field See's the rain and it's burning He's saying this can't be real As he sees the color of the fields turning Far away the men too busy getting rich to care Close their eyes and let it all out into the air Hoping nobody else...

1. Come on kids y′all come with me Let′s go looking for a Christmas tree Across the river and through the woods I′ve got my axe and works real good 2. Such a strong boy, good hiker too Eight years old, could arm-wrestle you Fast as a horse and slick as a snak...

There was a man of confused and sad nature Thought no one loved him that was not true He said he was a lost soul didn't fit in anywhere Didn't know where to turn or who to turn to There's a lost soul coming down the road Somewhere between two worlds Wit...

Here is my hand for you to hold Here's the part of me they have not told Lovers may come and they may go I love you young, I love you old Only you can see it (The) other side of me Call me naive, I think you will I love you now, do you love me still...

I can see very well There's a boat on the reef with a broken back And I can see it very well There's a joke and I know it very well It's one of those that I told you long ago Take my word I'm a madman don't you know Once a fool had a good part in the pl...

The song came and went Like the times that we spent Hiding out from the rain under the carnival tent I'd laugh and she'd smile It would last for awhile You don't know what you got till you lose it all again Listen to the mandolin rain Listen to...

Remember those cartoons we watched when we were younger Opposing angels sat there on Bugs' and Daffys' shoulders And baffled and confused them with their clever banter Now the gods a young boy saw there reappeared when he was older And driving I have Mich...

1. I′d like to try throwing the I-Ching I′d like to try someone analyzing my writing I′d like to see what′s written on the crystal stones And see what happens if I put on my turban and start throwing bones Maybe I′ll be a gopher getting bagels for the U.N. Ma...

He ain't got good sense His drawers are a mess (cabbage greens) Ain't hittin' on nothing Or' God'll kill me God keloid skin Makes us all feel him (get some leg) Stylin', profilin' That's why we like to hang with him Poppy ain't got no home training Mama gives...

Oh I wish I could laugh When I look way back To find out who stole all my dreams Whoa I wish it was easy To face the fact There's nobody there but me Well it's hard not to smile When I'm back on high ground I'm wishing someone could see 'Cause when...

About this time of evening, out by the bay They turn the roadlights on the bridge A diesel rolls in silhouette, eastbound Lovers glad the sun has set I'm staring into the twilight Wishing I could find someone tonight I know she's out there somewhere On...

Let's all keep our voices low, here's a story you don't know As good as anything we can't watch on HBO Before you say it's all bunk or throw it out as so much junk Listen what this guy's been hiding in his trunk He's looking for me, he's looking for you...

Train rolls by about 3 a.m. Wakes me from a fitful sleep Got the urge to jump on board I believe I'm in a little too deep Walk the train station Walking through the park Looking out for something Still in the dark One day you'll see something Oh, with...

Hey Now, where are you going Where are you going to my friend Said I'm going out to find The pastures of plenty I believe they're out there somewhere Did you hear about the girl Alone in the world Thought she was losing her mind She found it in the di...

Pete took up Latin dancing Sherry loved his style We loved to laugh as they glided past But he kicked the blues for a while Mannby wanted to be artsy Always dressed in black Our spirits rose as he struck the pose But he found peace in the wonderful pose Hey...

I've been bouncing around Trying hot coals, jogging shiatsu, cooking, golf, great books Crochet, croquet, fitness clubs and the stylish looks Tried shiatsu, psychic hotline, rollerblades, stamp collecting comic, books Never did Jack for me In the swirling how...

Spent the night over at a friend's place Sunday morning came, he was in my face Said I want to take you to a place Put you in a state of grace Drove way out to a cinderblock house I walked in like a Thomas in doubt Saw a man in a reptile suit With a rattling s...

Well he came to town with a strong pull Would flash his moves for the worshipful Shoulder moves from side to side Go over your head and dot your eyes Every night about a quarter to ten >From the middle of June to the summer's end People would gather...

I'm on a long sojourn I'm sitting here shedding my skin Don't know about inside, ugly on the outside They're all messing with me for the shape I'm in I'm looking for a clean slate Just need to find a new mind state Hey, let's go looking for squirrels Let's fin...

The rain held back again Haven't felt a drop since you went away Outside of town, the hills are brown I guess way out there you'd call them golden Lines outside the welfare store The clock is stopped at the bank next door They yelled like hell when the boys le...

I think maybe I knew her in school In my memory's faded view I remember years ago, her name I barely knew Years later I saw her in town Knocking on my window talking loud She said baby do you need a date Or just a little foolin' around Way down where the red...

I got me in bed and covered my head Wish I was dead with Sally Jo Sally Jo, where did you go Sally Jo? Since you have gone my days are turned to night Nothin' goes right Sally Jo Sally Jo, where did you go Sally Jo? The hurt you left has just begun to...

There was a little girl picked up a doll Oh so white as snow Said this is me as I really am Same little girl picked up a doll Looked just like her And threw it away in the garbage can One man in a courtroom with a grim-faced stare A sea of armchair experts ju...

Sit there with a blank expression Say you can't go on anymore It's not like me to come out and help you Mabye I've been down this road before Been living in the shadows Now you come out slow Now you're in the saddle Got to ride a long Now you're dream...

In light of all I've learned so far I don't believe I'm so strange In spite of all this time I spend Calling the air by a name When the first light comes over the trees He will be singing with me And if I feel like singing alone He always leave me be I'm shak...

Darkness is definitely fallin' Movin' so slow I'm barely crawlin' Here I sit dirt on my hands Lying way out in the Shadowlands Made my bed and here I lie Try to hold my head up high Lyin' to myself sometimes Bad decisions but I won't cry Been down a long and...

I've got a humble question, respectfully suggested For Jehovah or Allah, my witness to bear Final examination, cross multiplication Let me pass algebra that's my simple prayer God, I've got a problem, a moral conundrum Proportion biblical and importance...

Crawl up the back steps Up to the back door Reach up in the dark Turn the handle a little more Open up real slow So the door don't creak Look ahead and look behind Don't shuffle your feet They say he's crazy, they say he's gone We play our tricks, make up fun...

This is so out but I like it So outside but I′m in This is so out but it′s alright Way out there in the spheres Silver streamers streaking strangely Swirling savage savants grazing Smoking on a pink pacifier Genitalia in a hair dryer This is so out but I like...

You may discover the limits of the universe You could come upon a place that's this world in reverse And you may find galaxy producing ancient gas And you may find a special way to get there real fast Space is the place Space is the place Space is the p...

Riding in the early evening I'd say I know of a certain tree I always asked if you wanted to go You'd just sit there silently Now you say come on let's go You know where you want to be As I watch you tan in the waters so brown Desire gets the best of mo...

So nice to be here With all you good people Is anybody listening To what we're doing tonight Could you give us a chance While you hit the sauce Might try a little flash up here Just to get oursleves across Hit it Let the spirit linger Get up And do...

And he stands at the banquet room bar Looking over the crowd The reunion band playing too loud And he sees his fellow old star Looks him up and down Sees a little of himself in his frown The stander on the mountain Looking for the fountain to drink som...

Scabby head knobby kneed old nappy head Thunder thighs, juicing all turning red Pizza face pop it quick old nasty old Pits old panty waist Knotty headed fatty cakes Oh sticks and stones can break my bones But your words always hurt me the most My scars will h...

Well she was so fine On the first impression I was taken, taken in by the view With eyes so soft And a face so smooth I found her selling in a fashion booth All that I said was "Do you sell suits?" She said you're a scream and your accent's so cute Her...

One eye is open, the other eye is shut Don't throw anything to me I'm in no place, no place to receive And I just can't move a thing Things are rough down here You know it's a little grim Whatever you've got to pick me up To help me out, I'm in I'm down with t...

I would try most anything While I stand here lingering Have a couple of songs to sing To take your mind away Promises of treats I bring I'd give you most everything "Doesn't change anything You're just going away". Going away going, going, gone away again Her...

This is no fond farewell You can be sure I could wish it was no farewell at all It's been a good long run Oh, to be sure I don't regret much, not much at all I'm gonna dance the right away Gonna do what I want to any old day And all at once I know the cl...

I heard you say that tonight's the night You say there's a party going on I'm in the door lik an old 78 side And I hear 'em out hitting on a Coleman song My friend John with a mirror and spoon Got a belt and a mainline scene A couple getting off in the...

I've been riding around with the top down Like I always do My love at my side, but only this time My friends say something's changed you They said you're running with the wrong set The girl is someone you should never have met Let her go on her own, son...

In our beautiful pursuit of manifest destiny We give ourselves great credit, we thank the Good Lord so earnestly But something's been omitted by the writers of history Now stand up all unsung heroes who made this world for you and me Jamestown Night craw...

The scene is set, everybody's in place Two chairs filled for every five gone to waste Pantsuit girl gives me a nasty gaze She says play that on your own time Walk to the bandstand blow my horn Nobody knows what we're really here for Let's take it out har...

I swear I see shadows and movement Seen the signs and heard the rumors Adrenaline is a-flowing Look at me with my eyes a-glowing I feel a man there with eyes a-blazing I say this and know no one′s listening Stand on the corner, sweat a-glistening See dim light...

Remember when the days were long And rolled beneath a deep blue sky Didn't have a care in the world With mommy and daddy standin' by But "happily ever after" fails And we've been poisoned by these fairy tales The lawyer dwell on small details Since dadd...

I′m gonna buy a big red truck Then a rabbit′s foot for real good luck Gonna get me some plastic gunga dins Then I′ll buy a big house to put ′em all in I′ll buy a new suit when I′m feeling down Picks me up and i show it around I′ll wear it once or twice I′m sur...

It's a hazy winter's day And I'm staring out on the southland In the twilight distance on the bay My mind sees you running through the marshland All these years I've been waiting for you Through the high tides and the low tides too But if I stop now how...

Someone's dancing on the table Someone's got an old book in the back Some old jocks are sitting round their neighbors Exaggerating their stats Again There's Mr. D.E. in the corner Dancing with Miss Virginia former I didn't think I'd really have a good t...

Walking on the sidewalk, roundball under my arm Everybody knows how you play is who you are Walking down the road, looking for a game or two The real moves come through, no matter what they're gonna do It's down to you Take me to the old playground Wher...

Four walls I built one winter She came to share my name For years we lived as lovers on the open plains Far off the heat wave shimmers Pipelines and the gasoline One day it all came running like a bad dream Fire, smoke-filled lungs I hope I'll be standi...

The rain held back again Haven't felt a drop since you went away Outside of town, the hills are brown I guess way out there you'd call 'em golden Lines outside the welfare store The clock is stopped at the bank next door They yelled like hell when the bo...

Down in the southwest Virginia town of Richlands I fell in love with an Appalachian girl She lived in a long line of little row houses On the side of an old strip mining hill She walked along on the jagged ridge And looked as far as she could see But the...

What's the long face, whats all the crying for Didn't you expect it when you opened your door To the man with the long coat and the long list of victims Everybody watching knows he's the one keeping score From where she sits, everyone stands in judgement...

Parking lot's full, the crowd's here All to see and hear the food and beverage seer Bumpin' time, everyone side to side Left allemand and do-pah-so time Here she comes, coming round the bend Been to the bathroom and she's going back again Just to give a...

Sometimes I get lucky Most times I come up short Got to pull up the lines Got to move around the bend They say it's a dying breed They say it's going to disappear Nothing I can do, oh but pull up the load again The tide will rise And the tide will fal...

Sometimes I lead sometimes I follow This time I'll go where she wants me to go She said maybe today maybe tomorrow Go deep in the woods down the low valley road While no one was lookin on the old plantation He took her all the way down the long valley ro...

Standing in line marking time- Waiting for the welfare dime 'Cause they can't buy a job The man in the silk suit hurries by As he catches the poor ladies' eyes Just for fun he says "get a job" CHORUS That's just the way it is Some things will never change Tha...

Here I am I'm in a gaseous haze Ten lanes and tall boys Going both ways El dorado riding on the fringe Aztec princess take revenge This ain't my style, this ain't my home I'm going where it's safe to roam Take me all the way back To the wild frontier...

Well I'm walking on the floor Hanging right round the door Hoping you will come through Wanting you to, sweat on my brow I'm no saint Nothing left but a bad excuse The heat makes you do things You might just not do In your right mind But you'll do wha...

Got to get something done today Give accomplishment a shot Might not have a full palette to use But I'm gonna paint with the colors I've got There're your hopes and ideals you embrace Then there's what's staring you in the face Sorrowful times are here...

Well I saw her one day At the corner cafe Everybody there knew she's a wonder I sat there all night Too shy to say Honey you could keep me from going under Oh my my when she walks on by It's hard not to get lost in the view How can you know if the fee...

Somebody cracks you upside the head Makes you forget everything you read Bet you don′t have to crack him back Walk away let it go and you′re in the stack What the hell I′ll try anything once Got to keep an open mind this time What the hell I′ll try anything on...

My name is Vernon James and I live to the south of town I work my window watching the women go round and round Some people come here for love Some people come for fantasy When two in the morning comes round My baby comes around for me Someone come, come...

It came on fast when I heard the blast And the main generator gave a giant gasp It was round about midnight, about half past And the city went black as coal so fast Oh, what a time Everybody was fazing, hazing Oh, what a time It was time to be amazing...

1. Look at my mama Look at my pop Look at my brother Making them little girls′ jaws drop Look at my sister So beautiful to see What the hell happened to me? 2. Got a big-ass nose Fat gaps in my teeth Hair coming out of my ears And big stinky old feet I swear...

She walked into town in a long white gown And the band played on with no one around And the rice was gone oh hours ago And the white wheeled limosine's standing alone Well they met at the club where the brasses blow Where the wine did flow oh he moved so...