THE TRAIN I'M ON
I'VE GOT A THING ABOUT YOU BABY
(Tony Joe White)
I've got something to tell you
I think that you ought to know
I've had my eyes on you baby
Since a long time ago
And now I finally got the nerve
And I'm gonna make my move
Now don't you try to turn me off
Cause it's gonna be hard to do
I've got a thing about you baby
Ain't nothing I can do
I've got a thing about you baby
Thing about loving you
Aint no two ways about it baby
Your love was meant for me
I know that I can't do without it
If its mint to a tea
Uh there's something about you baby
Can't get you off my mind
I know that I can't live without you
I think about you all the time
I've got a thing about you baby
Aint nothing I can do
I've got a thing about you baby
Thing about loving you
Now aint it just like a woman
When she knows she's got a man
She rank you out and turn you about
In the palm of her hand
And then she starts to thinking
That maybe she's put you in a bind
She'll give you just a little loving
It will get you everytime
But I've got a thing about you baby
Aint nothing I can do
I've got a thing about you baby
Thing about loving you
THE FAMILY
(Jon Hurley and Ronnie Wilkins)
Weevils took to cotton
And the cows all took to drying
What the varmints left behind
The sun took up to drying
Trouble took to daddy
Like dewdrops take to night
Mama took to crying a lot
And daddy took to wine
And I took the train out of there
I told the engineer
I don't believe there's no help handed
Heaven helped the ties that bind the family
Sister took to walking
And brother he took to crying
Mama took up with new found friends
And I took up with crime
Hatred took the nighttime
And the government took the day
Can't find no hands at harvest time
And the hens refused to lay
And I took the train ...
Flowers took to daddy
And daddy took to going
Sister took to black real mice
And mama cried along
Brother took up preaching
And the bankmen took the farm
The state came in and took mama away
And she couldn't do herself no harm
And I took the train ...
IF I EVER SAW A GOOD THING
(Tony Joe White)
If I ever saw a good thing
Baby it's you
If I ever had a sweet dream
Baby it's you
There aint nothing else I want to do
But spend my time a-loving you
If I ever saw a good thing
Baby it's you
They say that one time in your life
You find the one
Who stands beside you
No matter where you go
Well I know that must be true
Cause baby I found you
If I ever had a good thing
Oh hon' it's you
You know that everybody needs someone to love
Cause it's a lonesome soul who walks alone
But I don't know what I would do
Baby if I didn't have you
Cause it's a long and lonesome road to walk alone
If I ever had a good thing
Baby it's you
If I ever had me a good thing
Yeah it's you
BEOUF RIVER ROAD
(Tony Joe White)
There was a bad cloud in the north
When I woke up this morning
And to tell you all the truth
I was feeling kind of bad myself
I walked out on the porch
And the day was a-dawning
It was such a blue day
That I wished I just stayed in bed
I heard the treefrogs calling
And then the rain started falling
Down on beouf river road
I looked up the dirt road
Lord and the water was rising
I'd seen the rain upon the water
And the little man dancing
My daddy said you all better get your things together
Cause old beouf river done overflowed his banks again
I picked up my cats and my coonhound
And we all had a laugh off some high brow
Away from beouf river road
Ever since the time that I got old enough to remember
Old beouf river has flooded time and time again
But we'ld always go back
And gather up all our belongings
And open up the windows and doors
And let the sunshine in
I know it may sound funny
But I won't trade it for no amount of money
My life in beouf river road
THE TRAIN I'M ON
(Tony Joe White)
If you see the train I'm on
Wave to me goodbye
But don't you shed
No tears on account of me
You know I hate to see you cry
Sometimes a train sounds lonesome
Sometimes it sounds soft and low
But everytime I hear an old train whistle blow
It always makes me wanna get up and go
If you ever think about me
Now should I ever cross your mind
Remember I'm a-coming back for you
Oh it's only a matter of time
If you see the train I'm on
But don't you shed no tears on account of me
Oh I hate to see you cry
EVEN TROLLS LOVE ROCK AND ROLL
(Tony Joe White)
Even trolls love rock and roll
One time I had this little band back home
A rock and roll band
Now we was going to play this job one night
And it weren't too far away
So we was walking
But we came upon a long black stretch of woods
Had an old river running through it
And an old wooden bridge across the river
Well just as I was about to step up on the bridge
Out stepped the troll
A whole mighty troll
And he said hey looks like you all are going to play somewhere
I said yes sir
He said look uh
Like I hate to mess up your boys job
But I sure could dig hearing a little music
I said man we can't just plug up
And play it right here upon the bridge
He said why? I said cause ... He said play!
And that's what we did ...
Well the wind was howling at the night
And the moon was covered up with clouds
Walking cross a bridge on a dirt road
When I heard a troll growl
He said don't you go walking cross my bridge
I am gonna make it rough on you
I will give you swamp fever
And you'll be wondering if you're you
You know you got to pay the toll
Cause even trolls love rock and roll
Uh it will keep you up all night
Drinking and carrying on
Getting it to the swamp music
Get it on - Get it on
Uh you know you got to pay my toll
Cause even trolls love rock and roll
He said hey ... he said look you all aint aint making it
He said would you mind if I borrowed that old guitar of yours?
And show you all a lick
Since we never heard a troll play we let him have it
And he said like this right here now ...
I said yes sir troll you can play it
Oh the fever isn't really such a bad thing
It's just hard to understand
But when you see me start to boogie
Well you know it's got me by the hand
Oh you know you got to pay the toll
Cause even tolls love rock and roll
AS THE CROW FLIES
(Tony Joe White)
As the crow flies baby
Well I aint too far from you
As the crow flies baby
Well I aint too far from you
Yeah but since I don't have wings
Well I can't get home as fast as I want to
Well you don't know baby
I've missed your sweet caress
Well you don't know mama
I've missed your sweet caress oh yeah
Yeah and when I'm in your loving arms
Oh I'm at my very best
In a dream last night
Well I heard you call my name
In a dream last night
Well I heard you call my name oh yeah yeah
Yeah I took it as an omen
And I jumped on the very first freight train
As the crow flies baby
Well I aint too far from you oh no no
As the crow flies mama
Well I aint too far from you
Yeah but since I don't have wings
Well I can't get home as fast as I want to
TAKE TIME TO LOVE
(Tony Joe White and Donnie Fritts)
I awoke late last night
And heard you cry softly by the window
I walked across the floor to ask what's wrong?
And as I put my arms around your shoulders
Right away I knew it had been too long
Since we walked hand in hand by the river
Or lay for hours watching the skies above
Or let our eyes hold each other cross a crowded room
So long since we had taken time to love
We've got to take some time for understanding
On that long and winding road back to love
Let's don't let our story have a sad sad ending
We got to take the time to love
So baby come and lay back down beside me
And let me hold you close and keep you warm
We don't need no special plans for tomorrow oh
Together we will take it as it comes
We can walk hand in hand by the river
And lay for hours watching the skies above
And taking time to find all those good things we once had
Taking time to love
Taking time to love
300 POUNDS OF HONGRY
(Eddie Hinton and Donnie Fritts)
Three hundred pounds of hongry
Down to her house every sunday
More temptation to butter them buns
Licking their grease right of the tongue
Three hundred pounds
Tall as she's round
Every pound of that body so fine
I can't hardly believe that it's mine
Hey how that three hundred pounds do amaze me
When she gets down in the gravy
But God oh mother what a soulful groove
When she gets down in a barbecue
Three hundred pounds
Long as she's round
Every pound of that body so fine
I can't hardly believe that it's mine
And they are all mine
Everybody ask me why
Do you love a woman twice your size
Well don't you know the bigger the better
That three hundred pounds
Sort of got it all together
Loving that lot
Getting that grease
Loving her more
Baby she gives
Now let yourself go
You big old thing don't you know
I don't care if you weighs a ton
Long as I can butter them buns
Your buns my buns
Three hundred pounds
Tall as she's round
You big old thing don't you know
Oh how I love you so much
Three hundred
(300 pounds is 136 kg)
THE MIGRANT
(Tony Joe White)
I know that your wheat fields need working
And there's just time
Before the rain it starts to fall
But I ... I just can't stay for the harvest
Cause tonight I'm heading down south
Goodbye I'll see you all
I hear there's a pipeline hiring hands way down in Texas
So I guess I'll go and brush a well or two
Can you wait 'til I've made enough
To get us through the winter
For the days are short and cold and work is scarce
The frequence of your hair is in each meadow
And your smile has touched the wind
And as I work my way closer to you
Oh Lord it feels so good to be close to home again
When the leaves fall from the trees look out your window
And you'll see me a-coming up the road
I want you to run
Just as fast as you can out to meet me
And throw your arms around me
Cause baby I'm home
SIDEWALK HOBO
(Tony Joe White)
As footsteps echo softly to the early morning hours
The slowness of his moves should be a warning
But from the trash he digs
He patchs socks and yesterdays flowers
What a way to start a monday morning
He might have been a carpenter at one time in his life
And he built a lot of homes but never had one
Or he could have been a poet
Who had come upon some hard times
And all that he had lived was just his sad poems
He could have been a singer with a lot of promise
But cigarettes and whiskey ruined his throat
Now it was hard to remember even a simple tune
Or the words to songs that he had wrote
Now take me back to Memphis
I've got to do some thinking
Cause I've been in this city way too long
And it lays heavy on my mind
When I see another man
Having to make the sidewalks his home
THE GOSPEL SINGER
(Tony Joe White)
In the town of Tifton, Georgia
On a hot and dusty day
You could see the heat coming off the ground
Up the street a man came running
Stumbling on his way
And he shouted that the gospel singer is coming to our town
Hallelujah the gospel singer is coming
Hallelujah the gospel singer is coming
He was born in Tipton, Georgia
With a voice as pure as gold
And his hair was golden as the sun
Drinking and women were his friends
But the people did not know
That he did not feel the songs he sung
Hallelujah the gospel singer is coming
Hallelujah yeah the gospel singer is coming
In a tent, a thick tarpaulin
In a pasture near the town
The people came and waited all day long
There were some who could not walk
And some who could not see
And it was believed that he could help them with his songs
But the singer he had grown tired
Of the life that he had lived
And to the rich and poor, sick and cripple
He looked at them and said
I cannot cure your illness
And I cannot make you see
For I have loved your women
And I sang to you for money
In the town of Tipton, Georgia
The sun was arising
But not a soul was seen out on the street
But some had gathered in the pasture
And were staring outside to believe
At the shadow of the singer
'Neath the tall and lonesome pine tree
Hallelujah, hallelujah ...
The lyrics of Tony Joe White you find on Leocort's Pages are all
"listen back and wrote down by"
Maurice Estourgie (Netherlands)
He has stopped his own sitepart with especially the lyrics of Tony Joe White.
My appreciation to him for disposal his works to me.