Credits
PERFORMING ARTISTS
Tom Hampton
Performer
COMPOSITION & LYRICS
Tom Hampton
Composer
PRODUCTION & ENGINEERING
Tom Hampton
Producer
Songteksten
You say you're certain that you know me
Though you've never seen my face
Some feature that's familiar
Still it's something you can't quite place
You probably won't be surprised
I still get this now and then
Still you look like you could be old enough
That you might remember when
When I was king of Philadelphia
Late night rock and roll radio
In your dashboard, by your bedside
You'd take me everywhere you'd go
Well, it sure is nice to meet you
And it's good to be recognized
But you know, you oughta hear the story
Of the ghost of the girl with the smiling eyes
See, I landed here in college
Came up from baltimore
Another wannabe folk singer
From the days of the cellar door
I gave up my spot at hoot night
To a girl with long black hair
That night I heard Miss Emmylou
I put my Martin away and left it there
I took a shift at my college station
At the time, I was just a kid
I was reinvented by that music
Doin' things nobody did
I did my best work in darkness
There wasn't a rule I didn't bend
The music was alive, it was exploding
The folks who heard me heard a friend
I was riding a wave I created
The moment she materialized
An angel flown down through the phone line
The voice of the girl with the smiling eyes
We were fully formed from the beginning
Straight past the insecurity
Like a story already written
Playing out as it was meant to be
We were promised to each other
Ready for forever to begin
But the shadow that would steal her
Was already creeping in
The darkness soon descended on her
She was gone quick as she came
I carry deep scars from those shadows
A burden I can't seem to name
I don't think you ever quite recover
From the theft of a love like this
She's an echo over my shoulder
She's a light I'll always miss
I never took a day for granted
When she was gone, I realized
That I'd be spending my tomorrows
With the ghost of the girl with the smiling eyes
Now I have thousands of radio children
But none that share my DNA
I never wanted to be a father
And fate made sure I got it my way
I've got good friends here who love me
I've got my guitar and I'm back in the game
I'm still doing radio my way
But the landscape ain't the same
I walk up these stairs every evening
Each day ends with fresh goodbyes
I fall asleep next to the picture
Of the ghost of the girl with the smiling eyes
So I appreciate the conversation
It's still good to be recognized
And I do love to tell the story
Of the ghost of the girl with the smiling eyes
The ghost of the girl with the smiling eyes
Written by: Thomas Hampton
