Lyrics

I dreamed I crossed the continent with poetry and speed
robust and mythological on my chrome and black steed
I woke up cramped in a tiny seat by a port-a-john that stunk
with six or seven Southern sisters crying, “Mercy, you smell that funk?”
I saw the rolling moonlit prairie and I knew I was glory-bound
it’s just a shame we’ve gotta ride in on this flea-bitten Hound

I got awakened by the singing of a drunk old nappy-head
someone said “shut up” and that pissed off that sketchy dread
he voiced his indignation to anyone who’d hear
“none but the righteous shall survive,” he said, as he cracked another beer
and stumbled off the bus in Windsor, thinking he was in Detroit
the driver’d be as unforgiving as the border patrol boys

well, I got off the bus in Michigan and that so-and-so left me behind
similar high-school incidents flashed back across my mind
‘cept only then, I didn’t have to sleep on the sidewalk in Traverse City
as we all know, faceless corporations have no pity
they left me luggage-less and sweatshirt-less but I was still doing alright
at least until the sprinklers came on in the middle of the night

soaked and battered but unbeaten, I got back on the bus
and what I saw there made me wonder what’ll come of all of us
they’d sifted through the human barrel and gathered such strange pickins
the scene would only be complete with bleating sheep and chickens
I saw the jobless and the vision-less, the pursuing and pursued
the whole shuddering scene all about to come unglued

dirty bathrooms and babies, I thought I’d seen it all
there was an eighteen-year-old mother going through withdrawal
there were Bible-belters arguing their doctrinal schisms
there were also rednecks advocating vigilante-ism
we were just outside of ludicrous and headed for profound
on that armpit-smelling, leg-cramping, smoke-colored Hound

we were kinda like a family cause we couldn’t choose each other
there was a pretty former stripper who was kinda like our mother
she started sharing food and stories, made us all get along
and for a while even the size of my seat didn’t seem so wrong
I could take all kinds of people, bad parenting aside
at least until we took our shoes off, you could say I enjoyed the ride

she managed to hold on to my faith come whatever
the sane and honest few of us have to stick together
but then the driver left our mom behind and showed himself to be
another inconsiderate so-and-so like the one who left me
for a while I forgot everything I thought I’d learned
I wished there was a Day of Judgment so we could laugh as he burned

by the time we reached Vancouver it was all that I could do
not to jump up and start singing songs to that oceanic blue
I wandered down the street and bought a bag of that kind leaf
had a smoke and donned my backpack with an exhale of relief
I’m not saying I’m regretting, just the next time around
I’m gonna ride that old Green Tortoise cause at least you can lay down