Ode To A Friend

Heard you playin'

Hang your head Tom Dooley

At that bar

Down that street

From where I used to live

You blew that harp, man

And you sounded just like a freight train

Of Boxcar soul from old folk row

you pick what you believe

As the weeks went by

You showed me your own songs

About ambition and your mother's wishin’

And the road your feet are bound

Your lantern lullaby

Makes the bones in my cheeks quiver

But it's your unpainted picture

It's my favorite of them all

Those mountains out

at the base of West Virginia

I was down Route 50

I was feeling filthy

because I hadn't showered for days.

But I hummed your songs

While the country slept beneath me

and I held my knife.

I prayed to God

That I would see you all again

When I got back home

I packed my bags again

Headed 65 to Chicago skies

for a paycheck to cash

But I haven't forgot about our old friends

Woody, and Arlo, and Bob,

Pete Seeger and Doc

and the train they rode in on

I heard you playing

Hang your head, Tom Dooley

At that bar

Down that street

From where I used to live

you blew that harp, man

You know it sounded just like a freight train

Of Boxcar soul

From old folk row

You know that you picked what you believed