Lyrics
I heard a man talking last night and he said
"I could actually make more money when the depression was on"
And the lady laughed at him and said
"Oh, you couldn't be there, how could you?"
And the man told her, "Yes, I could. I made more because I could
Steal more. Nowadays, this damn war makes it awful hard to steal
And besides, I don't know, I just
Don't enjoy stealing like I once did."
And a scared look was on his face
And he looked all around up and down the street
And there he said, "That's it. That's what I mean. And when I look
Around all over town, and see all of these pictures, pictures of
Hungry kids looking at you, and see these pictures of hungry soldiers
Needing a donut or a cup of coffee, I don't know. I just feel like
I don't wanna steal no more, till after this damn war is over."
And heard the lady say, "You look like a pretty good
Guy to me. How would it happen that you want to steal?"
"Damned if I know nowadays. But I used to like it
I just naturally got a kick out of stealing. I stole
Stuff because the rest of them were stealing off of me."
And she pulled a red fire on the end of her cigarette
And she said, "It's been very few green dollars that I
Lifted off from men. Why, how many is the wallet they
Dropped on my floor? And money fell loose all over my place."
"I found out, we'll say, that if you was, well, if I was to
Meet you right here on the street, and give you back your
Wallet, with all your papers and cards and pictures and stuff
In it, and your money too, twenty or thirty bucks in it
Not even touched, well, you'd like me for that, wouldn't you?"
And he said, "Sure, sure I would."
And she kept on and said, "Why would you like me? It'll
Be because you thought more of your pictures and cards
And things than you did of the money, wouldn't it?"
And he shook his head yes and told her, "A fellow just
Don't forget something like that with a snap of his finger."
She said, "Green as they make 'em, but you still
Got a little speck of brains, or something like
Brains, a-rattling around inside of your head."
"How dumb are you, sister? How thick does your block gets her? There
Ain't a dry bitch in this town no more ignorant than you are. How the
Hell come you say how dumb I am? You're dumb because you're here with
Me. That's how I know you're dumb. You hadn't ought to be missing
Out on your sleep. You got a hell of a hard day's work ahead of you
Tomorrow. So what in the hell do you
Want to suck around after me for?"
"You teach me a lot of stuff," he told her. "You always do. You
Ain't nothing fancy and nothing on a stick, but I don't know
I always feel like you know a dang sight more than you act like."
And she said, "Well, you're still a
Damn fool for being with a damn fool."
"Just because somebody is a damn fool," he said, "and somebody else
Is with them, it don't always mean that both of them are damn fools."
And she said, "And whose work, whose hard-earned money was it we
Blowed? Yours, your own, gone, wasted, drunk down, pissed out, then
Drunk down, pissed out, cold going in, hot coming out. You know good
And well you don't really give a particular good goddamn about me."
So he said, "No, no I don't. Not this long time stuff. Not in
A way like two sweeties about to get married. Not in a little
Love nest full of baby talk. No little cottage with a rose
Bush and a gate. But you see, I'm not ever ready to think about
That stuff right now anyhow. So I like to spend my time in a
Lot of crazy ways, just to learn about the world, people, who
They are, where they are, what they are, and what they think."
And while he was talking, she walked up the street
And he walked along behind her a few steps
"I could actually make more money when the depression was on"
And the lady laughed at him and said
"Oh, you couldn't be there, how could you?"
And the man told her, "Yes, I could. I made more because I could
Steal more. Nowadays, this damn war makes it awful hard to steal
And besides, I don't know, I just
Don't enjoy stealing like I once did."
And a scared look was on his face
And he looked all around up and down the street
And there he said, "That's it. That's what I mean. And when I look
Around all over town, and see all of these pictures, pictures of
Hungry kids looking at you, and see these pictures of hungry soldiers
Needing a donut or a cup of coffee, I don't know. I just feel like
I don't wanna steal no more, till after this damn war is over."
And heard the lady say, "You look like a pretty good
Guy to me. How would it happen that you want to steal?"
"Damned if I know nowadays. But I used to like it
I just naturally got a kick out of stealing. I stole
Stuff because the rest of them were stealing off of me."
And she pulled a red fire on the end of her cigarette
And she said, "It's been very few green dollars that I
Lifted off from men. Why, how many is the wallet they
Dropped on my floor? And money fell loose all over my place."
"I found out, we'll say, that if you was, well, if I was to
Meet you right here on the street, and give you back your
Wallet, with all your papers and cards and pictures and stuff
In it, and your money too, twenty or thirty bucks in it
Not even touched, well, you'd like me for that, wouldn't you?"
And he said, "Sure, sure I would."
And she kept on and said, "Why would you like me? It'll
Be because you thought more of your pictures and cards
And things than you did of the money, wouldn't it?"
And he shook his head yes and told her, "A fellow just
Don't forget something like that with a snap of his finger."
She said, "Green as they make 'em, but you still
Got a little speck of brains, or something like
Brains, a-rattling around inside of your head."
"How dumb are you, sister? How thick does your block gets her? There
Ain't a dry bitch in this town no more ignorant than you are. How the
Hell come you say how dumb I am? You're dumb because you're here with
Me. That's how I know you're dumb. You hadn't ought to be missing
Out on your sleep. You got a hell of a hard day's work ahead of you
Tomorrow. So what in the hell do you
Want to suck around after me for?"
"You teach me a lot of stuff," he told her. "You always do. You
Ain't nothing fancy and nothing on a stick, but I don't know
I always feel like you know a dang sight more than you act like."
And she said, "Well, you're still a
Damn fool for being with a damn fool."
"Just because somebody is a damn fool," he said, "and somebody else
Is with them, it don't always mean that both of them are damn fools."
And she said, "And whose work, whose hard-earned money was it we
Blowed? Yours, your own, gone, wasted, drunk down, pissed out, then
Drunk down, pissed out, cold going in, hot coming out. You know good
And well you don't really give a particular good goddamn about me."
So he said, "No, no I don't. Not this long time stuff. Not in
A way like two sweeties about to get married. Not in a little
Love nest full of baby talk. No little cottage with a rose
Bush and a gate. But you see, I'm not ever ready to think about
That stuff right now anyhow. So I like to spend my time in a
Lot of crazy ways, just to learn about the world, people, who
They are, where they are, what they are, and what they think."
And while he was talking, she walked up the street
And he walked along behind her a few steps