I was born outside of lexington
The first son of oblivion
I came with a name that was on my tongue
I thought it might be you
I came of age and fell in love
I always pushed too hard or not enough
But I kept that song stuck too my tongue
I've been trying to get it out
See, I tried to marry Jesus christ
It didn't take, but the dress was nice
So I filled my pockets with bread and wine
And I went on down the road
Caught a train to babylon
Learned to sing the secret songs
I dreamt of God in foreign tongues
And I learned how to starve
In a beautiful dream you were walking
In the city by the sea
And you wanted me
Like I wanted you I wish that were true
I learned that dionysis dances well
But the hangover she hurts like hell
Apollo robs the wishing well
He's a liar and a thief
Blind lemon, jack, and kerouac
Henry miller in my gunny sac
Blind willie johnson and kierkegaard
Taught me the texas blues
I found a sleeping river man
Swore he would take me across the river to jerusalem
But he wanted more than I could offer him
I memorized some quotes and wrote some songs
Now I sing for food and cigarettes
In these noisy bar and cabarets
Cough up the songs stuck in my chest
And I trade them for a beer
In a beautiful dream you were walking
In the city by the sea
And you wanted me
Like I wanted you I wish that were true
The rain came in vichy france
In a rented room by pére lachaise
Calypso on the unmade bed
She wears grey, but you wear blue, don't you
There, I dreamt that I met kind louis
Who was waiting on the guillotine
He said "they just don't see the things I see"
I said "they see more than you think"
He said "eloi, eloi, lema sabachthani"
Like the son of God of or a fallen beast
C'est ne pas mon pais
This is not my home
Then I awoke by a chestnut tree
In the garden of gethsemane
For a moment I saw everything
Hallelujah and God damn.
In a beautiful dream you were walking
In the city by the sea
And you wanted me
Like I wanted you I wish that were true
Oh penelope, she ain't waiting on me no more
Queen of tennessee, every street to her was paved with gold
A thousand song I have sung
I got a hundred thousand in my lungs
But they never seem to be enough
To keep you by my side
All the lovers I have known,
Most for fun and some for show
They were only just a place to hold
The space I keep for you
And what may be the only sin
Is: Life keeps you hungry to the bitter end
And one trip to the well ain't enough to get
Every thing you'll ever need
But I do not tell the world my dreams
They are alone for me to keep
Like a forrest in a mustard seed
Like the fire in the black coals
In a beautiful dream you were walking
In the city by the sea
And you wanted me
Like I wanted you I wish that were true
Oh penelope, she ain't waiting on me no more
I heard that she left town, heard she settled on another shore
I made it back to ithaca
A high rise where the vineyard was
No magnolia trees up above
Blue gra** hills had turned to stone
Then the oracle came at last
Said "everything has come to pa**."
Disappeared in a camera flash
And left me with the bill
I am a dying leaf upon this tree
I'll maybe last a century
Just waiting for a gentle breeze
To cast these sails to shore
Then I'll return from where I came
Without a face or family name
And I'll dissolve in the winter's rain
Back into everything
In a beautiful dream you were walking
In the city by the sea
And you wanted me
Like I wanted you I wish that were true
Oh penelope, she ain't waiting on me no more
I sailed the seven seas
But she don't want a man, she wants her king
And that ain't me
I'm sorry