The Ballad of Jeannie Ray

Her temper’s shorter than her skirt - she doesn’t care
And her hearts more marked up than the tattooed skin she wears
She’ll fly by night and won’t stay long
Cause somewhere down the road
They’re playing a different song.

Well I knew a girl like that once
Her name was Jeannie Ray
Met her at a bar downtown and I never was the same
She kicked it like an old school Maggie May
Eyes on fire and Rod Stewart on the player
Singing songs about how he loved her
When he only knew her name

Smoke gets in her eyes
But all she does is laugh
And damn the girl says “fuck” enough
To give me a heart attack
She said she used to have a bunny or a cat
Told me she’s a pescatarian
I said “What the hell is that?”

And if pbr and taillights are all that you have
Don’t hold it against her
She doesn’t try to be bad
And if you miss the glimmer in her eye
You’d do well to remind yourself she’s somewhere
Trying not to cry
Cause when that girl’s heart goes, she goes.
She’ll remember you forever, but
She can’t stand getting close.

We all saw her walk in her first day in town
I remember that night
Cause she bought me a round
And I could see the circles
Made by some sleepless nights
And all those shots of whiskey
Didn’t stand a chance to fight

Well she had a soft spot for Chuck Berry’s “Blues”
Had an old school fixie and she knew all the news
She took pictures of bugs and called it art
And lord knows we loved it when she’d kill on the guitar
But oh that woman had her scars
I’d hear her screaming in the bathroom
And crying in the dark

If pbr and taillights are all that you have
Don’t hold it against her
She doesn’t try to be bad
And if you miss the glimmer in her eye
You’d do well to remind yourself she’s somewhere
Trying not to cry
Cause when that girl’s heart goes, she goes.
She’ll remember you forever, but
She can’t stand getting close.

The boys all loved her
With their side swept hair
And their big rimmed glasses
And their desperate airs
Jeannie, well, she always played nice
Asked them about their projects
Loaned them a light
Even though it got real cold at night
That girl lit a fire that kept them burning bright

And Jeannie was a good friend of mine
Sometimes she’d let me know about her life between the lines
Told me about Boston
And how’d she left her mother there
And moved out to Austin
Cause the winter made her scared
Then she thought she might outrun her past
If she settled down in my town
And tried to start from scratch

She said there was a boy once, way back
Told me she couldn’t help him
But that he’d always made her laugh
And I remember how she left
And how the lights went out downtown
When she’d finished out her breath
And the world came tumbling down

She said I hate to disappoint you friend
But I can’t stick around
I’ve got things to attend to and
The weather’s coming down
This town’s too quiet anyway
And that’s how we all got
Our heart broke by Jeannie Ray

Found her body the next morning
With a note laying by the bed
Said “I love you Tim in Austin,
I’ll see you in the end.”
She still had the circles under her eyes
And all the loudness in that quiet room
Made me break down and cry

If pbr and taillights are all that you have
Don’t hold it against her
Cause that girl ain't coming back
And if you miss the glimmer in her eye
You’d do well to remind yourself she’s somewhere
Trying not to cry
Cause when that girl’s heart goes, she goes.
She’ll remember you forever, but
She can’t stand getting close.

Folks listen carefully
For I tell no lies
About Jeannie Ray from Boston
Who we didn't want to die
Be careful who you love
Be careful what you hide
Lest your learn life's hardest lesson
That you can't escape alive

Her temper’s shorter than her skirt - she doesn’t care
But her smile’s more contagious than any flu scare
She’ll fly by night and won’t stay long
Somewhere down the road,
They’re playing her song.

Wedding Season

Well, wedding seasons started
And this year one’s for you
I can’t help but hate it
Even though there’s nothing I can do
The scars are all fresh
And baby this one’s for you
Now I’m drowning out my wedding season blues

I met you on New Years
You were a friend of a friend
We hit it off, then we hit it off again
I couldn’t help but notice
And you noticed me too
Now I’m stuck in the middle
Of the wedding season blues.

And I’ll be watching a picture in my mind
It promises to last for a lifetime
It’s all in the rearview
And even though you showed it
I sure as hell didn’t want to know it.

Maybe we’ll spend out whole lives
Half looking back
At time when what we needed
Wasn’t quite what we had
I’ll wonder how you’re doing
And you’ll do the same
Will you question if you might have
Gave the wrong girl your name

I’ll drink you under the table
And I’ll drink me there to
As I’m drowning out
The “this wasn’t it” blues
I’ll shoot ‘em,
I’ll chug ‘em,
The best that I can
To forget wedding season
And how you took the wrong hand

And I’ll be watching a picture in my mind
It promises to last for a lifetime
It’s all in the rearview
And even though you showed it
I sure as hell didn’t want to know it.

Goodnight, Barlight

She's wearing the bar-light
She's in that dress
The one that they all like
She'll have her pick
But she still thinks about the one
That brought her here

A kiss in the moonlight
Then time spent alone
Fragile hearts open
But no way to know
Will these dreams that we have
Along with everything we lack
Stand up to the daylight?

His back's in the corner
He's drowning his pain
Everyone loves a loner
It's always the same
But he still hopes it will be different
Every time

A kiss in the moonlight
Then time spent alone
Fragile hearts open
But no way to know
Will these dreams that we have
Along with everything we lack
Stand up to the daylight?

Don't you speak too loudly
So we don't get caught
Just hoping too proudly
For things almost forgot
How sometimes love can last on
Past a night

A kiss in the moonlight
Then time spent alone
Fragile hearts open
But no way to know
Will these dreams that we have
Along with everything we lack
Stand up to the daylight?

Don't worry it's alright
Living this way
Make it through tonight
These games that we play
Will these dreams that we have
Along with everything we lack
Stand up to the daylight

Sunk

Here comes a heartbroken lady
Setting sail across a heartbroken sea
She thought that maybe
She could find a man to set her free
At night, she switches the lights off
Thoughts of his body on her mind
And as she's slowly sinking
She remembers his last line

He'd sworn he loved no other
She cried please come back to me
But even that night she’d known the look in his eyes
Her heart floats heavy on the sea

She sits on the sofa
Trying to make some sense of what was said
The answering machine sits silently
As all he didn't say filled her head
She grabs at the moorings
Trying to keep a hold on what’s in her heart
But as is the way with many a young sailor
You can't end what didn't start

He'd sworn he loved no other
She cried please come back to me
But even that night she’d known the look in his eyes
Her heart floats heavy on the sea

She thinks of his eyes
She ponders the life they could have made
Emotions running high
While her vessel ‘s tossed and swayed
She knew her best bet would be
Calling on some friends still around
But there wasn't much use for a life boat
She knew no matter what she was going down

With the waves rocking
That woman made a promise to herself
That no matter what she wanted
She would never come back to this hell
She looked out at the sunrise
Wondered how things ever got this far
But when you fall for a false love
Falling apart ‘s not very hard

He'd sworn he loved no other
She cried please come back to me
But even that night she’d known the look in his eyes
Her heart floats heavy on the sea

Little Gitl Lost

She looks in the mirror thinking
Tomorrow I’ll be thinner
I’m okay with that
And she misses his calls
But the writing’s on the wall
And that’s a fact
But she can’t help but miss him
Telling herself
Things weren’t supposed to end well, they were just supposed to end

Now she’s nursing
A bottle of whisky
Holding onto a memory
A love she’s forgetting
If only
She could calm the thoughts long enough to get some sleep

Little girl lost
It’s not your fault
Sometimes buildings fall
Sometime they just don’t come home
Men get caught in games they play
But the hurt goes away
So don’t lose your hope
It’s still your show
Little girl lost

There are days she spends debating
If all the time was wasted
And can she get it back
And she fills empty drawers
Folding the clothes all by fours
Making stacks
And since she found the give away
Stuck to his tie that day
Doing laundry for one’s been easier than doing laundry for three

Now she’s nursing
A bottle of whisky
Holding onto a memory
Replaying the tears she’s cried
And the way they said goodbye

Little girl lost
It’s not your fault
Sometimes buildings fall
Sometime they just don’t come home
Men get caught in games they play
But the hurt goes away
So don’t lose your hope
It’s still your show
Little girl lost



She saw him at the station
It always makes her crazy
To see that smile
And as he pumps his gas
You can bet your ass
He does it in style
But there’s more to life than tight jeans
Blue eyes and wedding rings
So today she’ll choose dignity and
Won’t let check the rearview
As the tires spin
And she drives away


Little girl lost
It’s not your fault
Sometimes buildings fall
Sometime they just don’t come home
Men get caught in games they play
But the hurt goes away
So don’t lose your hope
It’s still your show
Little girl lost