A Better Place to Be (Live)

Lyrics

[Intro] This is probably the favorite thing of mine, at least to me, that I've written. And um, it's about a small town upstate New York, called Watertown, New York. That's more than it deserves. I spent a week there one afternoon. And um, I came away with this story which is a rather, well, strange tale of a, of a little midnight watchman, a rotund waitress, and a girl he picks up one night. And it's called "A Better Place to Be." [Part I] [Verse 1] It was an early morning barroom and the place just opened up And the little man camе in so fast and started at his cups And the broad who servеd the whisky She was a big old friendly girl Who tried to fight her empty nights by smilin' at the world And she said, "Hey Bub, it's, it's been awhile since you been around Where the hell you been hidin', and why you look so down?" Well the little man just sat there like he'd never heard a sound [Pre-Chorus] The waitress, she give out with a cough And acting not the least put off She spoke once again [Chorus] She said, "I don't wanna bother you Consider it's understood I know I'm not no beauty queen But I sure can listen good" [Post-Chorus] And the little man took his drink in his hand And he raised it to his lips He took a couple of sips And then he told the waitress this story [Part II] [Verse 2] I am the midnight watchman down at Miller's Tool and Die And I watch the metal rustin', I watch the time go by A week ago at the diner I stopped to get a bite And this here lovely lady, she sat two seats from my right And Lord, Lord, Lord (Lord, Lord, Lord) she was all right [Verse 3] You see, she was so damn beautiful That she could warm a winter frost But she looked long past lonely, and well nigh on to lost Now I'm not much of a mover or a pick-'em-up easy guy But I decided to glide on over and give her one good try And Lord, Lord, Lord (Lord, Lord, Lord) she was worth a try [Verse 4] Well I was tongued-tied like a schoolboy I stammered out some words It did not seem to matter much, 'cause I don't think she heard She just looked clear on through me to a space back in my head It shamed me into silence as quietly she said [Chorus] "If you want me to come with you Then that's all right with me 'Cause I know I'm goin' nowhere And anywhere's a better place to be" [Post-Chorus] "Anywhere's a better place to be" [Verse 5] Well, I drove her to my boarding house, and I took her up to my room And I went to turn on the only light to brighten up the gloom But she said, "Please leave the light off Oh, I don't mind the dark" And as her clothes all tumbled 'round her I could hear my heart [Verse 6] The moonlight shone upon her as she lay back in my bed It was the kind of scene I only had imagined in my head I just could not believe it, to think that she was real And as I tried to tell her, she said "Shhh.. I know just how you feel" [Chorus] "And if you want to come here with me Then that's all right with me 'Cause I've been oh, so lonely Lovin' someone is a better way to be" [Post-Chorus] "Anywhere's a better place to be" [Verse 7] Well, the mornin' came so swiftly, I held her in my arms And she slept like a baby, snug and safe from harm I did not want to share her or dare to break the mood So before she woke I went out to buy us both some food [Segue] I came back with my paper bag To find that she was gone She'd left a six-word letter Saying, "It's time that I moved on" [Part III] [Verse 8] You know, the waitress, she took her bar rag And she wiped it across her eyes And as she spoke her voice came out as something like a sigh She said, "I wish that I was beautiful Or that you were halfway blind And I wish I weren't so goddamned fat I wish that you were mine And I wish that you'd come with me when I leave for home For we both know all 'bout emptiness and livin' all alone" [Pre-Chorus] And the little man Looked at the empty glass in his hand And he smiled a crooked grin He said, "I, I guess I'm outta gin And I know we both have been so lonely" [Chorus] "And if you want me to come with you Then that's all right with me 'Cause I know I'm goin' nowhere And anywhere's a better place to be"