The Brooklyn Kid

by Cross Canadian Ragweed

Well I got a friend that lives south of town
Loves to sit and burn one down
Spin some vinyl on his stereo
Every now and then he speaks of war
One tour of duty on a foreign shore
Fightin' for his way home
Fightin' for his way home

Returnin' home to his native land
Left New York for Texas man
Quieter times were in his cards
He met a girl she met a man
Dropped to his knees and he took her hand
A simple life ain't that hard
No, a simple life ain't all that hard

A new generation on the ground
Nothin' in the world could bring him down
Flyin' like he had wings
Several years came and went
Not one of them was poorly spent
A good man's life he was chiselin'
Yeah, a good man's life he was chiselin'

Reflecting on the Viet-Cong
Uncle John's Band and a Dylan song
Smellin' like it's supper time
You know it brought a tear to his eye
The day that Jerry Garcia died
He said he was the genius of his time
Yeah, A Friend of the Devil is a Friend of Mine

Don't try to find it
Make the time
A couple of joints and a bottle of wine
You'll be glad that you did
With the Grateful Dead spinnin' round
Kick your feet back and be astound
By the life of the Brooklyn kid

Mornin, rock, well.

Born To Boogie- Hank Williams Jr

Morning, Rebel!

The Cramps:  ...Off The Bone

From AMG's Bio:

Conjuring a fiendish witches' brew of primal rockabilly, grease-stained '60s garage rock, vintage monster movies, perverse and glistening sex, and the detritus and effluvia of 50 years of American pop culture, the Cramps are a truly American creation much in the manner of the Cadillac, the White Castle hamburger, the Fender Stratocaster, and Jayne Mansfield. Often imitated, but never with the same psychic resonance as the original, the Cramps celebrate all that is dirty and gaudy with a perverse joy that draws in listeners with its fleshy decadence, not unlike an enchanted gingerbread house on the Las Vegas strip. The entire psychobilly scene would be unthinkable without them, and their prescient celebration of the echoey menace of first-generation rock & roll had a primal (if little acknowledged) influence on the rockabilly revival and the later roots rock movement.

Digitaljukebox started a great thread called "songs everyone should hear at least once."

Here is my entry:

 Bruce Springsteen:  "Thunder Road"

The greatest rock & roll song ever.  It touches on so many universal themes, I could't possibly name them all:  Love, nostalgia, dreams that never came true, growing older and on and on.

Warren Zevon:  "Roland The Headless Thompson Gunner"

A great story-song with all the elements of a film noir classic:  love, violence, betrayal and a boatload of dark humor.

Chris Knight:  "Down The River"

My nominee for the greatest story-song ever written, it is the tale of a man seeking vengeance for the death of his brother.

Drive by Truckers:  "When The Pin Hits The Shell"

In this song, the narrator tries to cope with the suicide of a friend.  It's not a very sympathetic song; while it does acknowledge some of the reasons a person may feel like ending it all, it also takes an uncompromising look at the damage done to those left behind.

Delbert McClinton:  "When Rita Leaves"

Simply the best break-up song ever written.  The lyrics are powerfully evocative and visual, so that you can picture the entire scenario in your head while listening.  Delbert has a great voice, too, which makes this song even more powerful.