Levon Helm Album

(Jerry Garcia, Robert Hunter)

Cold iron shackles
And ball and chain
Listen to the whistle
Of the evenin' train

You know you
Bound to wind up dead
If you don't head back
To Tennessee Jed

Rich man step on
My poor head
When you get back
You better butter my bread

You know you
Well, it's like I said
You better head back
To Tennessee Jed

Tennessee, Tennessee
There ain't no place I'd rather be
Baby, won't you carry me
Back to Tennessee

I woke up
But feelin' mean
Went down to play
The slot machine

The wheels turned around
Baby, the letters read
You better head back
To Tennessee Jed

I dropped four flights
And cracked my spine
Honey, come quick
With the iodine

Catch a few winks
Down, under the bed
And then we head back
To Tennessee Jed

Tennessee, Tennessee
There ain't no place I'd rather be
Baby, won't you carry me
Back to Tennessee

I run into
Charlie Fog
Blacked my eye
And he kicked my dog

My doggie turned to me
And he said
"Let's head back
To Tennessee Jed"

Drink all day
Baby, rock all night
The law come to get you
If you don't walk right

Catch a few winks
Down, under the bed
Then we head back
To Tennessee Jed

Tennessee, Tennessee
There ain't no place I'd rather be
Baby, won't you carry me
Back to Tennessee

Tennessee, Tennessee
There ain't no place I'd rather be
Baby, won't you carry me
Back to Tennessee

[No lyrics]

[No lyrics]

[No lyrics]

(Muddy Waters)

You know the girl you love she don't treat you right sometimes
You know the girl you love she don't treat you right sometimes
Well, that's the stuff you gotta watch because your girl is a liar.

You know, the girl you love stays out all night long,
Yeah, the girl you love, she stays out all night long.
That's the stuff you gotta watch because your girl's treatin' you wrong.

I need my hat, go get my coat,
Uncle Zak found out baby you don't want it anymore.
That's the stuff you gotta watch
That's the stuff you gotta watch
That's the stuff you gotta watch if you don't wanna lose your girl.

You know the girl's no good but don't you make no change.
Oh, the girl's no good but don't you make no change.
That's the stuff you gotta watch 'cause you're justified all the same.

She spends your dough, she drinks your gin
And if she rode round the corner then she's ready to go within.
That's the stuff you gotta watch
That's the stuff you gotta watch
That's the stuff you gotta watch if you don't wanna lose your girl.

Well, that's the stuff you gotta watch if you don't wanna lose your girl.
Yeah, that's the stuff you gotta watch if you don't wanna lose your girl.
Well, that's the stuff you gotta watch if you don't wanna lose your girl

(Carter Stanley)

In the deep rolling hills of old Virginia,
There's a place I love too well,
Where I spent many days of my childhood,
In the cabin where we loved so well.

[Chorus:]
White dove will mourn in sorrow,
The willows will hang their head.
I'll live my life in sorrow,
Since mother and daddy are dead.

We were all so happy there together,
In our peaceful little mountain home.
But the angels needed her in Heaven;
Now she sings around the great white throne.

As the years roll by, I often wonder
If we'll ever be together someday.
And each night as I wander to the graveyard,
Darkness finds me where I kneel to pray

(Randy Newman)

There's a hundred-thousand Frenchmen in New Orleans
In New Orleans there are Frenchmen everywhere
But your house could fall down
Your baby could drown
Wouldn't none of those Frenchmen care

Everybody gather 'round
Loosen up your suspenders
Hunker down on the ground
I'm a cracker
And you are too
But don't I take good care of you

Who built the highway to Baton Rouge?
Who put up the hospital and built your schools?
Who looks after shit-kickers like you?
The Kingfish do

Who gave a party at the Roosevelt Hotel?
And invited the whole north half of the state down there for free
The people in the city
Had their eyes bugging out
Cause everyone looked just like me

Here comes the Kingfish, the Kingfish
Everybody sing
Here's the Kingfish, the Kingfish
Every man a king

Who took on the Standard Oil men
And whipped their ass
Just like he promised he'd do?
Ain't no Standard Oil men gonna run this state
Gonna be run by little folks like me and you

Here's the Kingfish, the Kingfish
Friend of the working man
The Kingfish, the Kingfish
The Kingfish gonna save this land

(Muddy Waters)

Had a sweet little girl, i lose my baby, boy ain't that bad
Had a sweet little girl, i lose my baby, boy ain't that bad
You can't spend what you ain't got,
You can't lose some little girl you ain't never had

Had money in the bank, i got busted, people ain't that bad
Had money in the bank, i got busted, people ain't that bad
You can't spend what you ain't got,
You can't lose some little girl you ain't never had

Ain't that the truth boys

[Instrumental]

Had money in the bank, i got busted, people ain't that bad
Had money in the bank, i got busted, people ain't that bad
You can't spend what you ain't got,
You can't lose some little girl you ain't never had


Had a sweet little home, it got burned down, people ain't that bad
My own fault, people ain't that bad
Well you know you can't spend what you ain't got,
You can't lose some blues you ain't never had

[Instrumental]

Have mercy!

Sweet little home, got burned down, people ain't that bad
Yeah you know i had a sweet little home, it got burned down, people ain't that bad
Whoa you know you can't spend what you ain't got,
You can't lose some little girl you ain't never had

Early in the morning
When the church bells toll
The choir's gonna sing
And the hearse will roll
On down to the graveyard
Where it's cold and gray
And then the sun's gonna shine
Through the shadows
When I go away

Don't want no sorrow
For this old orphan boy
I don't want no crying
Only tears of joy
I'm gonna see my mother
Gonna see my father
And I'll be bound for glory
In the morning
When I go away

I'll be lifted up to the clouds
On the wings of angels
There's only flesh and bones
In the ground
Where my troubles will stay

See that storm over yonder
It's gonna rain all day
But then the sun's gonna shine
Through the shadows
When I go away

(I'm going home - Lift me up)
When I go away
(No more trouble - I'm going home)
(Lift me up - When I go away)
No more crying
(I'm going home - Lift me up - When I go away)
No more trials
(I'm going home)
Home to leave my worries in the ground
(I'm going home - Lift me up - When I go away)
No more troubles
(I'm going home - Lift me up - When I go away)
No more crying
(I'm going home - Lift me up - When I go away)
No more trials
(I'm going home)
Home to leave my worries in the graveyard
Home to leave my troubles in the graveyard
Home to leave my trials
And I'll be bound for glory
In the morning
When I go away

All my kin who love me
All my friends who care
Look beyond the dark clouds
We're gonna meet up there

When they lay me in the cold ground
Bow your heads and pray
(Bow your heads and pray)

And I'll be bound for glory
In the morning
When I go away

And then the sun's gonna shine
Through the shadows
When I go away

(I'm going home - Lift me up)
When I go away
(No more trouble - I'm going home)
(Lift me up - When I go away)
No more crying
(I'm going home - Lift me up - When I go away)
No more trials
(I'm going home)
Home to leave my worries in the graveyard
(I'm going home - Lift me up - When I go away)
No more troubles
(I'm going home - Lift me up - When I go away)
No more crying
(I'm going home - Lift me up - When I go away)
No more trials
(I'm going home)
Home to leave my worries in the graveyard
Home to leave my troubles in the graveyard
Home to leave my trials
And I'll be bound for glory
In the morning
When I go away

And then the sun's gonna shine
Through the shadows
When I go away
Ah, when I go away
When I go away
(When I go away)
When I go away
(When I go away)
When I go away

(Anthony Leone, Byron Isaacs, Fiona McBain, Amy Helm, Glenn Patscha)

Life's a strain, painful thing
To be overcome
We mark the nights by our triumphs
Suffers everyone

But hold them near
Keep them dear
Don't be ashamed

Triumphs of the world
On heaven's pearls
On heaven's pearls

Began the scars, tangled bars
Catch under the skin
Friction burns as they turn
Working deeper in

And day by day
Sharp edges fade
Smooth, furnished and fine

Triumphs of the world
On heaven's pearls
Triumphs of the world
On heaven's pearls
On heaven's pearls

Triumphs of the world
On heaven's pearls
Triumphs of the world
On heaven's pearls

The triumphs of the world
On heaven's pearls

(Richard Carroll Lamp, Willy E. Taylor)

I wish I knew how it would feel to be free
I wish I could break all the chains holding me
I wish I could say all the things that I should say
Say 'em loud, say 'em clear
For the whole round world to hear.

I wish I could share all the love that's in my heart
Remove all the bars that keep us apart
I wish you could know what it means to be me
Then you'd see and agree
That every man should be free.

I wish I could give all I'm longing to give
I wish I could live like I'm longing to live
I wish that I could do all the things that I can do
Though I'm way overdue I'd be starting anew.

Well I wish I could be like a bird in the sky
How sweet it would be if I found I could fly
Oh I'd soar to the sun and look down at the sea
And I'd sing cos I'd know that
And I'd sing cos I'd know that
And I'd sing cos I'd know that
I'd know how it feels to be free
I'd know how it feels to be free
I'd know how it feels to be free