Steve Goodman

By the shore's of old Lake Michigan Where the "hawk wind" blows so cold An old Cub fan lay dying In his midnight hour that tolled Round his bed, his friends had all gathered They knew his time was short And on his head they put this bright blue cap From his al...

Down to the banana republics, down to the tropical sun Go the expatriated americans, hopin' to find some fun Some of them go for the sailing, caught by the lure of the sea Tryin' to find what is ailing, livin' in the land of the free Some of them are running...

The day you're born they sign a piece of paper To certify the date of your birth And the day you die they sign another Just to prove you've gone back to the earth And between those two pieces of paper There's the truth that is so hard to find And the story of...

One evening as the sun went down and the jungle fire was burning Down the track came a hobo hiking and he said boys I'm not turning I'm headin for a land that's far away beside the crystal fountains So come with me we'll go and see the Big Rock Candy Mountains...

Beneath the moonlit sky Shadows walk beside the water Sad goodbye whispered on the shore Hear those wind chimes play They serenade the shadow lovers Ring and fade away Like California promises I will never love another Wait for me, 'til I return But she never...

When I first met you baby, you fed me on chicken and wine. It was steak and potatoes and lobster and babe I sure felt fine. But now all you give me is seaweed and alfalfa sprouts And sunflower seeds and I got my doubts - Babe, you left me here with the Chicken...

Riding on the city of New Orleans Illinois Central Monday morning rail There are fifteen cars and fifteen restless riders Three conductors and twenty-five sacks of mail There all out on this southbound odyssey And the train pulls out of Kankakee Rolls past th...

Looking out the window of this Hollywood hotel, You'd never know that it was Christmas Eve. The billboards and the neon took the place of silver bells, And the temperature is 84 degrees. I can hear the traffic on the crowded strip below As the palm trees poke...

A traveling salesman stopped for gas, as it was getting late. He sure was getting tired, and it was snowing on the Interstate. He says, "Will you fill her up, my friend, and see if my oil's alright, And do you know a place where a tired-out traveling man might...

If I thought for just one moment I could take you at your word I'd let you in on almost anything I see but you been caught in the act of spreading secrets that you heard and they got a way of gettin' back to me (chorus) Total strangers come and tell me my li...

Well I wish I had some memories That I'd keep inside my trunk I wish I had a nickel for every beer I've drunk And I wish I had me a sailing ship That'd take me over the sea. I wish I could talk you in to coming home with me Is this the part where I came in I'v...

Come on babe, won't you take a chance, Your papa's gonna show you a brand new dance, You shuffle on down, now don't you be no drag And do that Election Year Rag. You take two steps to the left and two steps to the right, Then just land in the middle and you h...

Well.... I walk up to the mike and and then I shake my hips I take a deep breath and put a snare on my lips See me on the street you wouldn't know my name But imitating Elvis is my claim to fame So when you put my imitation name in lights There'll be imitation...

She is history, No one will give her a star on the walk, She'd have a hundred if pillows could talk, Where have I seen her before? She's the face on the cutting room floor. Life's no mystery, Acting in school at the tenderest age, Lit up the room when she wal...

When Johnny got the letter It had no return address, But he recognized the writing And he didn't have to guess. The postmark said Seattle Just a thousand miles away, So he put it in the drawer For fourteen days Every night he'd take that envelope And hold it...

Baseball season’s underway Well you better get ready for a brand new day Hey, Chicago, what do you say The Cubs are gonna win today They’re singing Go, Cubs, go Go, Cubs, go Hey, Chicago, what do you say The Cubs are gonna win today Go, Cubs, go Go, Cubs, go...

We had a city hall wedding And our friends all laughed And they started betting On how long it would last Some give it a week some give it a year Now the honeymoon's over and we're still here I've got to hand it to you babe You've changed my life I never thou...

Some people sit in the jacuzzi Every night and every day, They think that boiling water Will take all their blues away. To be successful is so stressful, So the hottentots unwind, And party, party, party While they're boiling their behinds. But not me, I lik...

How much tequila did I drink last night? It's really anybody's guess. I poured them so fast, I couldn't keep them in the glass, But this morning I sure am a mess. My head is four or five times its normal size And I got this big old cactus stuck between my eyes...

Last night I stayed up late to watch the sunrise It afforded a wonderful view Count the sheep till I cry Count the times you said goodbye I can't sleep when I can't sleep with you There's no need to think you'd remember A love like some forgotten I.O.U. I've...

You want me to leave, Well maybe you're right. You had what it was that you wanted tonight. Now you liked the party But after the ball, You want to be free to feel nothing at all. I just keep falling in love, I should know better But I don't know better. How...

Is it true what they say about Dixie? Does the sun really shine all the time? Do the sweet magnolias blossom 'round everybody's door? Do folks keep eatin' possum Until they can't eat no more? And Jethro, is it true what they say about Swanee? Is a dream by t...

In Chicago where I live, there's an outfit that'd tow almost anything off the street. They deal mostly with automobile. And we call 'em the Lincoln Park Pirates The streetlamps are on in Chicago tonight And lovers are gazing at stars The stores are all closin...

Went out on 42nd street That's where the elite all retreat to greet You can see them coming from everywhere Every kind of man and woman you will find there There are men who love women who love men There are women who love women every now and then There are m...

~~~~♫ ♫ ♫ ~~~~ 1’15 My funny Valentine Sweet comic Valentine You make me smile with my heart Your looks are laughable, Unphotographable Yet you're my favorite work of art Is your figure less than Greek? Is your mouth a little weak? When you open it to spea...

I miss my old man tonite And I wish he was here with me With his corny jokes and his cheap cigars He could look you in the eye and sell you a car. That's not an easy thing to do, But no one ever knew a more charming creature On this earth than my old man. He...

Friends are always telling me that I'm old fashioned Out of date and born too late to ever catch on But maybe that's because they can't imagine The love of an old fashioned girl When they tell you you don't have a leg to dance on She's the one that you can ta...

My grandfather used to take us Down to the ice skatin' show, At the hockey rink at the stadium, When the Blackhawks were on the road. We'd cheer for the clowns in their costumes, And the beautifal figure ballet, Of the former Olympic champions As they'd spin o...

I've seen the world, been to many places Made lots of friends, many different races I've had such fun around the world it's true African skies with a Nairobi mood I fell asleep in Tuscany and dreamed The one thing missing was you Runaway with me my love, Yeah...

Hey everybody wherever you are They've got a new way of talking and it's gonna go far You take the letters in the words Turn 'em around Say the last one first and check out the sound Talk Backwards I know what you're thinking That it sure sound strange You ta...

Yesterday I went downtown and saw an old-time picture show And the hero got a pie in the face. He didn't like that and he stormed around the screen, But everybody else was laughin' in that place. That's cause it ain't hard to get along with somebody else's tr...

I see the question in your eyes Wanna think about it twice For you find your feelings Reaching out to me Two different worlds Too far apart Too many stops Right from the start That say our love could never be Sometimes love forgets Where love belongs...

Splish splash, I was takin' a bath 'long about a Saturday night A rub dub, just relaxing in the tub, thinkin' everything was all right Well, I stepped out the tub, put my feet on the floor I wrapped the towel around me and I opened the door And then a splish s...

All of the river boat gamblers are losing their shirts All of the brave union soldier boys sleep in the dirt But you know and I know, there never was reason to hurt All of our lives were entwined to begin with, Here in spoon river. All of the calico dresses,...

Take me out To the ball game Take me out To the crowd Buy me some peanuts And Crackerjacks I don't care if I never never get back Let me root, root root For the home team If they don't win It's a shame For it's one, two, Three strikes you're out At the old ba...

The way you make me feel like I belong; The way you make me right when I am wrong; The way you sacrifice just for me; Just how lucky can a poor man be? That is why. (That's why I love you so.) That is why. (That's why I love you so.) Don't you know, baby? (Th...

Oh my name is Penny Evans and my age is twenty-one A young widow in the war that's being fought in Viet Nam And I have two infant daughters and I do the best I can Now they say the war is over, but I think it's just begun. And I remember I was seventeen on th...

The Dutchman is not the kind of man Who keeps his thumb jammed in the dam That holds his dreams in That's a secret that only Margaret knows When Amsterdam is golden in the summer Margaret brings him breakfast, she believes him He thinks the tulips bloom benea...

There were two old middle aged men, They were sittin , in the corner bar. They were all lying about what wonderful lovers they are. Bending each other's ears, Bending their elbows too. Holding their arms apart The way that fishermen do, singin' You should have...

The water is wide I can't cross over And neither have I wings to fly Build me a boat That can carry two And both shall row My love and i There is a ship And she sails the sea She's loaded deep As deep can be But not so deep As the love I'm in I know not how I...

There's a girl in the heart of maryland With the heart that belongs to me. When i told her of my love The oriole above sang from the old apple tree. And maryland was merry and she promised My bride to be; There's a girl in the heart of maryland With the heart...

Oh this hotel room's gotta lotta stuff Laundry bag and a shoe shine cloth Thirty two hangers and a touch tone phone Well a light that comes on when I ain't home I ain't home I ain't home You better leave a message 'cause I ain't home They got an air conditio...

Baby, baby, can't you see what you're doing to me? I couldn't sleep a wink last night just a-thinking of you Baby things weren't right I kept on tossin' and turnin' Turnin' and tossin' tossin' and turnin' all night I threw the blankets on the floor, turned my...

Well, I've got two lovers, and I ain't ashamed, Two lovers and I love them both the same. Let me tell you 'bout my first lover. He's sweet and kind and he's mine all mine. He treats me good like a lover should and makes me love him, I really, really love him,...

Fell asleep last night with the T-V on. Oh, what a dream I had. I dreamed I answered every single one of those late night mail order ads. And four to six weeks later, much to my surprise, The mailman came to my front door, and I couldn't believe my eyes When h...

If your life was on video tape Wouldn't everything be all right? When your head hurts the morning after You could roll it back to late last night. You could replay all the good parts And cut out what you don't like. Oh wouldn't you be in good shape If your lif...

It's a long time since I saw you last So tell me how you've been Did you ever get to buy that yellow coat? Do the flowers in you window box Still smile when you walk in? Did you read the letters that I wrote? And I've been on the road since Christmas But...

I remember when I met Carl Martin, It must have been a dozen years ago. A spectacular gent, he was old and bent, But his eyes had a fiery glow. He was born April Fools Day, 1906, Near Big Stone Gap, VA. He could play a little fiddle And some blues guitar he'd...

Well it was all I could do to keep from cryin' Some times it seems so useless to remain You're the one who always tried to change me And that is why I will always stay the same But I'll hang around as long as you will let me I never minded standing in the rai...