lyrics from This One's on the House 

Carving Stone 

Car lights on the highway, like pearls at night 
A string of red going my way alongside a string of white 
And I'm trying to remember just how free and lucky I am 
But I'm racing back and forth to nowhere, and I'm too tired to give a damn 
Sometimes I feel I've been suckered by a dream of living on the roam 
Turns out it's a lot like bein' a trucker, it's a lot of drivin' alone 

Pull into the next town, feeling weary and strange 
Seems I'm coming to resemble the very things I wanna change 
A room full of strangers, and I'm trying to connect 
But they only wanna hear what they've already heard, what did I expect? 
One says you're some kinda tripper, just following the muse along 
And I say it's a lot like being a stripper, a lot of trying to turn drunks on 

Those of us who'll do it, we'll do it anyway 
And that suits those who'll use it, cause they don't have to pay, and they say, 
It's about the music, not the fifty dollars, and aren't you having fun? 
And I say it's a lot like working blue-collar, a lot of just gettin 'er done 

I'm thinkin' bout a young girl who caught me off guard with her smile 
She was following roads and songs, and she rode along awhile 
Like the boiling ocean she crashed in and rolled out again 
She was in love with a vague notion, not this particular man, and she says 
Don't sweat when things don't go well, there'll be plenty more along your way 
And I say it's a lot like livin' in hotels, it's nice, but you can't stay 

You start out with something sacred that you wanna tell someone 
But this mean old world might break you, or you might just take the money and run 
And it might be good for your karma, and yeah, ramblin' has its thrills 
But it's more like being a farmer, strugglin to pay the bills 

Met a kid in a campground with a guitar and a head full of dreams 
Starting on a road I've been partway down with no idea what it means 
I wanted to warn him about some stuff up ahead 
But it occured to me that his road ain't mine, I should be telling myself instead 
And he says he might starve alone, but he's hopin' for some bright day 
And I say it's a lot like carving stone, you just keep chippin' away 

This One's on the House (the Hobo Song) 

I live in my van, and it's a fine place to live 
I sleep where I please, and wake smilin' 
There's no rent to pay, and I change the yard most every day 
From Halifax out to the Queen Charlotte Islands 

There's no shame in being a hobo 
And it's a great luxury to have a car 
And it seems to me that I'm one lucky mofo 
Sleeping out alone beneath the stars 

I loaned my friend Brin an orange tarp to curl up in 
Out drinkin' one rainy night in Vancouver 
And he thanked me two times, he was just so happy to be dry 
Though the police tried to make him feel like a loser 

There's no shame in being a hobo 
Shame's only for those who got pride 
And you gotta keep an eye out for the po-po 
But sometimes even the po-po will let you ride 

This one's on the house, sweet child, this one's on the house 
Save your money for another mile, this one's on the house 

Sleeping in parks, and living in cars, sneaking drinks into bars 
And washing up in lakes and truck-stops might be frowned on 
But you'll do what you must, get love from those you trust 
And get yourself to the road that you'll be found on 

There's no shame in being a hobo 
And we always get taken care of somehow 
And you sure can't take it with you when you go 
Might as well get used to livin' without now 
You sure can't take it with you when you go 
Might as well get used to livin' without now 

Lucky Star 

These thoughts they would be nothin' if they weren't your thoughts too 
And if this bridge of words will bear our weight, I'll meet halfway with you 
Who knows what we're after, so who knows what we'll find 
Distraction and laughter are escape routes for the mind 
But this body only works so long, these lungs have just so many breaths 
Can't see the outside from within and you can't take both the right path and the left 
I chose this road I'm travelin' and I'd choose it again today 
Can't regret the time my heart spent beating by yours nor can I regret walking away 

Cause you're a lucky star 
You're burning out bright and true 
And it shines a light into my heart to be thought of by you 

I keep imagining a day and hoping it'll come soon 
Where I'd stumble off my way and I'll run into you 
And we'll agree that with circumstance and fate being what they are 
And with the hour being so late, we should just get out of this bar 

It was fiery while it lasted and it went out the way it came 
I'd like to say I'm past it, but I'm still moved by the mention of your name 
Whatever shores you reach, whatever good folks you come to know 
May they continue to teach, may you continue to burn, and shine, and grow 

The Dirt on Your Heart 

There's dirt on your heart from all the low-down, dirty places you been 
You dragged your poor heart through more than enough 
And more piled up from every time you lied 
And then kicked some dirt around to cover it up 
And from every one that gave you her love 
And you carelessly gave her back hurt 
There's dirt on your heart, 
You might think that it's art, it's just dirt 
You might think that it's art 

There's dirt on your heart that's hardened into a jacket 
To hold you through the cold and friendless months 
And you just never could bring yourself to crack it 
Remembering how well it served it you once 
But hearts that beat freely must surely be beaten 
Only bloodied and scuffed ones arrive 
And you believe that you need that dirt on your heart to survive 
Do you think you need to survive this world? 

There's dirt on your poor heart that's not your own 
Your friends and your family tracked it around 
And try as you might, you just can't always know 
And remember to pick up all that you put down 
And since you can't forget a mark on your heart 
Even when the one who left it's long gone 
There's some dirt on your heart that you'll have to scrub off on your own 
It hurts, but you scrub it off 

The Ramblin' Kind 

Don't you go fallin' for the ramblin' kind 
Soon as you quit following you'll get left behind 
You can love 'em, believe in them, 
But don't you get to needin' em 
Nobody owns the ramblin' kind 

She was strong-backed and wild, and had the open highway in her heart 
And I loved the way she'd kick-start her bike, and roar off in the dark 
And I loved the far-away in her eye, as she'd stare off down the line 
I couldn't hold her heart but now that same highway cuts through mine 

Don't you go fallin' for a ramblin' girl 
Keep your eyes open when she takes you for a whirl 
You can hold her at night, but don't you hold her too tight 
Nobody owns a ramblin' girl 

I was tired and weary and had the feeling I'd been running way too long 
And her arms held sweet comfort, and her eyes held a song 
When we parted ways I tried to make a joke, but she just couldn't laugh 
We split like a wishbone, somehow I got the big half 
Don't you go fallin' for a ramblin' man 
He's just like water, he'll slip through your hands 
You can love him, you can touch him, 
but don't you try to clutch him 
Nobody owns a ramblin' man 

They just go speedin' by 
And you can ride with them for a stretch 
But the thing that caught your eye 
Is the one that you can't catch 

Don't you go fallin' for the ramblin' kind 
Soon as you quit following you'll get left behind 
You can love 'em, believe in them, 
But don't you get to needin' em 
Nobody owns the ramblin' kind 

Shady Grove (traditional, re-arranged) 

Shady grove, my little love, shady grove, I know 
Shady grove, my sweet love, bound for the shady grove 

Once I had an old banjo, strings were made of twine 
The only tune that it would play was trouble on my mind 

Once I had a gold banjo, and every string did shine 
The only tune that it would play was I wish that girl was mine 

Once I had a fine banjo, precious but frail 
And every weary tune on it said while you can, set sail 

Wish I was in shady grove, sittin' on a rocking chair 
And if the blues won't leave me alone, I'll rock away from there 

People, Please 

People, please take my advice 
Be sure and treat your people extra nice 
Cause if it's real, they got your back 'til the end 
And there ain't nothing so good to find, or bad to lose as a friend, as a friend 

People, please take my advice 
There's no good sense in telling lies 
Cause while you may deceive those who believe it's true 
The real lie is forgetting that you are them and they are you, they are you 

Travelers, it may be a long way round 
Before you find yourself homeward bound 
But in your heart you can carry your family along 
Just as long as you remember where you got your song, where you got your song 

Though the air is wintry and the creek's all froze 
You can be sure that underneath the water flows 
And the birds are returning with southern songs 
New tunes that we'll be learning before too long, before too long 

If it Won't Break Your Heart 

By and by, the weeds run high 
And a dusty wind blows over the old place 
Bit by bit, the memory of it 
Returns to haunt me in familiar voices along those old pathways 
Side by side, we laughed so hard we cried 
And stayed up all night, getting rowdy, and making a scene everywhere 
But day by day, some drift further away 
And some pass through the curtain, and we can't follow there 
What could ever stop this parade of days 
From takin' everything you love away? 
And what am I so afraid of? 
If it won't break your heart, it ain't love 

Line by line, this cruel world undermines 
All that you fought for, they suck the soul of it and give you back the grief 
Turn by turn, everyone learns 
To guard their speech, and knot up their heart in disbelief 
What could ever stop this parade of days 
From takin' everything you love away? 
And what am I so afraid of? 
If it won't break your heart, it ain't love 
If it won't break your heart 
If it won't break your heart, it ain't love 

The Day After Tomorrow (Tom Waits, Kathleen Brennan) 

I got your letter today, and I miss you all so much here 
And I can't wait to see you all, and I'm counting the days, dear 
I still believe that there's gold at the end of the world 
And I'll come home to Illinois on the day after tomorrow 

It is so hard, and it's cold here, and I'm tired of taking orders 
And I miss old Rockford town up by the Wisconsin border 
What I miss you won't believe, shoveling snow and raking leaves 
And my plane, it will touch down, on the day after tomorrow 

I close my eyes every night and I dream that I can hold you 
They fill us full of lies, everyone buys, about what it means to be a soldier 
I still don't know how I'm supposed to feel about all the blood that's been spilled 
Will God on his throne get me back home on the day after tomorrow? 

You can't deny, the other side, they don't wanna die any more than we do 
What I'm trying to say is don't they pray to the same God that we do? 
And tell me how does God choose? Whose prayers does He refuse? 
Who spins the wheel, who rolls the dice, on the day after tomorrow? 

I am not fighting for justice, I am not fighting for freedom 
I am fighting for my life and another day in the world here 
I just do what I've been told, we're just the gravel on the road 
And only the lucky ones come home on the day after tomorrow 

And the summer, it too will fade, and with it comes the winter's frost, dear 
And I know we too are made of all the things that we have lost here 
I'll be twenty-one today, I've been saving all my pay 
And my plane, it will touch down, on the day after tomorrow 

This Old World's Got its Secrets to Keep 

This old world's got its secrets to keep 
This old world's got its secrets to keep 
If it's certainy that you want, you can wish away all the doubts that haunt 
But this world's got its secrets to keep 

Back and forth under blue heaven 
Back and forth under blue heaven 
Oh, the places we have been, all this troubled time wandering 
Back and forth under blue heaven 

Don't ask yourself if you want to die on the road 
Just ask yourself if this is the road you want to die on 

This old world's got its secrets to keep 
This old world's got its secrets to keep 
If it's certainty that you crave, you'll be following it to your grave 
Cause the world's got its secrets to keep 

Back and forth under blue heaven 
Back and forth under blue heaven 
Oh, the loves that we have passed, we were winding our ways fast 
Back and forth under blue heaven 

Don't ask yourself if you want to die on the road 
Just ask yourself if this is the road you want to die on 

Out of the blue, and into the black 
Out of the blue, and into the black 
What it's like I wish they'd say, but they never come back this way 
It's just out of the blue, and into the black 

This old world's got its secrets to keep 
This old world's got its secrets to keep 
If it's certainy that you seek, you can wish away all the doubts that creep 
But this world's got its secrets to keep