12 Gardens Live
Live - 9 giugno 2006 - Debaser id 342681

Got a call from an old friend we used to be real close
said he couldn’t go on the American way
closed the shop sold a house bought a ticket to the west coast
now he gives them a stand-up routine in L. A.

I don’t need you to worry for me ’cos I'm alright
I don’t want you to tell me it’s time to come home
I don’t care what you say anymore this is my life
go ahead with your own life leave me alone

I never said you had to offer me a second chance
I never said I was a victim of circumstance
I still belong, don’t get me wrong
you can speak your mind but not on my time

They will tell you you can’t sleep alone in a strange place
then they’ll tell you you can’t sleep with somebody else
oh but sooner or later you sleep in your own space
either way it’s okay you wake up with yourself

I don’t need you to worry for me ’cos I'm alright
I don’t want you to tell me it’s time to come home
I don’t care what you say anymore this is my life
go ahead with your own life leave me alone

I never said you had to offer me a second chance
I never said I was a victim of circumstance
I still belong, don’t get me wrong
you can speak your mind but not on my time

I don’t care what you say anymore this is my life
go ahead with your own life leave me alone

From a town known as Wheeling, West Virginia
Rode a boy with a six-gun in his hand
And his daring life of crime
Made him a legend in his time
East and West of the Rio Grande

Well he started with a bank in Colorado
In the pocket of his vest a Colt he hid
And his age and his size
Took the teller by surprise
And the word spread of Billy the Kid

Well he never travelled heavy
Yes, he always rode alone
And he soon put many older guns to shame
Well he never had a sweetheart
And he never had a home
But the cowboys and the ranchers knew his name

Well he robbed his way from Utah to Oklahoma
And the law just could not seem to track him down
And it served his legend well
For the folks they love to tell
'Bout when Billy the Kid came to town

One cold day a posse captured Billy
And the judge said, "String 'im up for what he did."
And the cowboys and their kin
Like the sea came pourin' in
To watch the hangin' of Billy the Kid

Well he never travelled heavy
Yes, he always rode alone
And he soon put many older guns to shame
Well he never had a sweetheart
Tho' he finally found a home
Underneath the Boot Hill grave that bears his name

From a town known as Oyster Bay, Long Island
Rode a boy with a six-pack in his hand
And his daring life of crime
Made him a legend in his time
East and West of the Rio Grande

I am the entertainer, and I know just where I stand,
Another serenader and another long-haired band
Today I am your champion, I may have won your hearts
But I know the game you'll forget my name
And I won't be here in another year
If I don't stay on the charts

I am the entertainer and I've had to pay my price,
The things I did not know at first I learned by doing twice
But still they come to haunt me,
Still they want their say,

So I've learned to dance with a hand in my pants
I let 'em rub my neck and I write 'em a check
And they go their merry way

I am the entertainer, been all around the world,
I've played all kinds of palaces and laid all kinds of girls
I can't remember faces, I don't remember names,
But what the hell, you know it's just as well
'Cause after a while and a thousand miles
It all becomes the same

I am the entertainer, I bring to you my songs,
I'd like to spend a day or two, but I can't stay that long
I got to meet expenses, I got to stay in line,
Got to get those fees to the agencies
And I'd love to stay but there's bills to pay
So I just don't have the time

I am the entertainer, I've come to do my show,
You've heard my latest record spin on the radio
It took me years to write it, they were the best years of my life,
It was a beautiful song, but it ran too long
If you're gonna have a hit you gotta make it fit
So they cut it down to 3:05

I am the entertainer, the idol of my age,
I make all kinds of money when I go on the stage
You see me in the papers, I've been in the magazines,
But if I go cold, I won't get sold,
I get put in the back in a discount rack
Like another can of beans

I am the entertainer and I know just where I stand,
Another serenader and another long-haired band
Today I am your champion, I may have won your hearts,
But I know the game, you'll forget my name,
I won't be here in another year If I don't stay on the charts

Slow down, you crazy child.
You're so ambitious for a juvenile.
But then if you're so smart, tell me why are you still so afraid?
Where's the fire? What's the hurry about?
You better cool it off before you burn it out.
You got so much to do and only so many hours in a day.

But you know that when the truth is told
That you can get what you want or you can just get old.
You're gonna kick off before you even get halfway through.
When will you realize Vienna waits for you?

Slow down, you're doing fine.
You can't be everything you wanna be before your time,
Although it's so romantic on the borderline tonight.
Too bad, but it's the life you lead.
You're so ahead of yourself that you forgot what you need.
Though you can see when you're wrong,
You know, you can't always see when you're right.

You've got your passion. You've got your pride,
But don't you know that only fools are satisfied?
Dream on, but don't imagine they'll all come true.
When will you realize Vienna waits for you?

Slow down, you crazy child.
Take the phone off the hook and disappear for a while.
It's all right you can afford to lose a day or two.
When will you realize Vienna waits for you?

You know that when the truth is told
That you can get what you want or you can just get old.
You're gonna kick off before you even get halfway through.
Why don't you realize Vienna waits for you?
When will you realize Vienna waits for you?

Some folks like to get away
Take a holiday from the neighborhood
Hop a flight to Miami Beach
Or to Hollywood
But I'm taking a Greyhound
On the Hudson River Line
I'm in a New York state of mind

I've seen all the movie stars
In their fancy cars and their limousines
Been high in the Rockies under the evergreens
But I know what I'm needing
And I don't want to waste more time
I'm in a New York state of mind

It was so easy living day by day
Out of touch with the rhythm and blues
But now I need a little give and take
The New York Times, The Daily News

It comes down to reality
And it's fine with me 'cause I've let it slide
Don't care if it's Chinatown or on Riverside
I don't have any reasons
I've left them all behind
I'm in a New York state of mind

It was so easy living day by day
Out of touch with the rhythm and blues
But now I need a little give and take
The New York Times, The Daily News

It comes down to reality
And it's fine with me 'cause I've let it slide
Don't care if it's Chinatown or on Riverside
I don't have any reasons
I've left them all behind
I'm in a New York state of mind

I'm just taking a Greyhound on the Hudson River Line
'Cause I'm in a New York state of mind

Ali dances and the audience applauds
Though he's bathed in sweat he hasn't lost his style
Ali don't you go downtown
You gave away another round for free

Me, I'm just another face at Zanzibar
But the waitress always serves a secret smile
She's waiting out in Shantytown
She's gonna pull the curtains down for me, for me

CHORUS
I've got the old man's car,
I've got a jazz guitar
I've got a tab at Zanzibar
Tonight that's where I'll be

Rose, he knows he's such a credit to the game
But the Yankees grab the headlines every time
Melodrama's so much fun
In black and white for everyone to see
Me, I'm trying just to get to second base
And I'd steal it if she only gave the sign
She's gonna give the go ahead
The inning isn't over yet for me

CHORUS

Tell the waitress I'll come back to Zanzibar
I'll be hiding inthe darkness with my beer.
She's waiting out in Shantytown
She's gonna pull the curtaains down for me, for me

CHORUS

Well, we're living here in Allentown
And they're closing all the factories down
Out in Bethlehem they're killing time
Filling out forms
Standing in line

Well, our fathers fought the second World War
Spent their weekends on the Jersey shore
Met our mothers in the USO
Asked them to dance
Danced with them slow

And we're living here in Allentown
But the restlessness was handed down
And it's getting very hard to stay

Well we're waiting here in Allentown
For the Pennsylvania we never found
For the promises our teachers gave
If we worked hard
If we behaved

So the graduations hang on the wall
But they never really helped us at all
No they never taught us what was real
Iron and coke(not coal)
Chromium Steel

And we're waiting here in Allentown
But they've taken all the coal from the ground
And the union people crawled away

Every child had a pretty good shot
To get at least as far as their old man got
But something happened on the way to that place
They threw an American flag in our face

Well, I'm living here in Allentown
And it's hard to keep a good man down
But I won't be getting up today

And it's getting very hard to stay
And we're living here in Allentown

All the waiters in your grand cafe
Leave their tables when you blink, oohh
Every dog must have his every day
Every drunk must have his drink

Don't wait for answers, just take your chances
Don't ask me why

All your life you've had to stand in line
Still you're standing on your feet, oooh
All your choices make you change your mind
Now your calendars complete

Don't wait for answers, just take your chances
Don't ask me why

MMm You can say the human heart is only make believe
But I am only fighting fire with fire
You are still the victim of the accidents you leave
Sure as I'm a victim of desire

All the servants in your new hotel
Throw their roses at your feet, whoaa
Fool them all but baby I can tell
You're no stranger to the street

Don't ask for favors, don't talk to strangers,
Don't ask me why

Yesterday you were an only child
Now your ghosts have gone away, oooh
You can kill them in the classic style
Now you parlez vous francais

Don't look for answers, you took your chances,
Don't ask me why
Don't ask me why

Laura
Calls me
In the middle of the night
Passes on her
Fateful information

Then these careless fingers
They get caught in her vise
Til they're bleeding
On my coffee table

Living alone isn't all that
It's cracked up to be
I'm on her side
Why does she push the poison on me?

Laura
Has a very hard time
All her life has
Been one long disaster

Then she tells me
She suddenly believes she's seen
A very good sign
She'll be taking
Some aggressive action

I fight her wars
While she's slamming her doors
In my face
Failure to break
Was the only mistake
That she made

Here I am
feeling like a fucking fool
Do I react the way exactly
She intends me to?
Everytime I think I'm off the hook
She makes me lose my cool
I'm her machine
And she can punch all the keys
She can push any button I was programmed through

Laura
Calls me
When she needs a good fix
All her questions
Will get sympathetic answers

I should
Be so
Immunized
To all of her tricks
She's surviving
On her second chances

Sometimes I feel like this
Godfather deal is all wrong
How can she hold an umbilical chord
For so long?

I've done everything I can
What else am I supposed to do
I'm her machine
And she can punch all the keys
She can push any button I was programmed through

Laura
Loves me
Even if I don't care
That's my problem
That's her sacred absolution

If she had to
She would put herself in my chair
Even though I
Faced electrocution

She always says
I'm the best friend that
She's ever had
How do you
Hang up on someone
Who needs you that bad?