Saturday, March 28, 2015

arrested


by alabama joe sternwall

illlustrated by konrad kraus






why are the streets deserted?
because a child will slap your face
they say i owe the man some rent
but i ain’t even got a place

have you ever been accused
and you ain't done nothing wrong?
they arrested me for murder
and i can't even sing a song

they arrested me for forgery
and i can’t even sign my name
they arrested me for cheating
but i don’t know the rules of the game

they arrested me for peeping
but i been blind from birth
they arrested me for vagrancy
but i’m a stranger on this earth

they arrested me for stealing sheep
but i don’t eat no mutton
they arrested me for exposure
but i always button my buttons

they arrested me for everything
since i can’t remember when
for preaching without a license
but i never confessed no sin

they arrested me for rustling
but i can’t even herd a cow
and for setting a bomb on the railroad track
but i swear i don’t know how

i never met st peter or paul
and the devil is my twin
and i washed my hands in a muddy stream
but i can’t say rightly when

i threw my bottle in the river
because the whiskey was all gone
and sat beside the waters of egypt
with the whore of babylon

the road is long and lonely
and the night is dark and cold
i could go on like this forever
but my soul is already sold



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