Twenty Years Of Dirt

I beg your pardon, mama, what did you say?
My mind was drifting off on martinique bay.
It's not that i'm not interested, you see;
Augusta, georgia is just no place to be.

I think jamaican in the moonlight.
Sandy beaches, drinking rum every night.
We got no money, mama, but we can go;
We'll split the difference, go to coconut grove.

Keep on talking, mama, i can hear
Your voice, it tickles down inside of my ear.
I feel a tropical vacation this year,
Might be the answer to this hillbilly fear.

I think jamaican in the moonlight.
Sandy beaches, drinking rum every night.
We got no money, mama, but we can go;
We'll split the difference, go to coconut grove.

Voila! an american dream.
Well, we can travel girl, without any means.
When it's as easy as closing your eyes
And dream jamaica is a big neon sign.

Just keep talking, mama, i like that sound.
It goes so easy with that rain falling down.
I think a tropical vacation this year,
Might be the answer to this hillbilly fear.

Voila! an american dream.
Yeah, we can travel, girl, without any means.
When it's as easy as closing your eyes
And dream jamaica is a big neon sign.

Just think jamaican in the moonlight.
Sandy beaches, drinking rum every night.
We got no money, mama, but we can go;
We'll split the difference, go to coconut grove.

Way back in my memory there's a scene that i recall
Of a little run-down cabin in the woods
Where my dad never promised that our blue moon would turn gold
But he laid awake nights wishin' that it would.

When the world was on our radio, hard work was on our minds.
We lived our day-to-day in plain dirt fashion,
With ol' overalls and cotton balls all strapped across your back
Man, it's hard to make believe there ain't nothing wrong.

But momma kept the bible read and daddy kept our family fed,
And somewhere in between i must have grown
Cause someday i was dreamin' that a song that i was singin'
Takes me down the road to where i want to go.

Now i know, it's a long hard road

Sometimes i remember when i stay up late at night,
When the sun-up came, we got up and went
In the shadows of a working' day, our moonlight hours spent
Singin' songs along with gramma's radio.

Now i'm beatin' down a ol' blacktop road, sleepin' in a sack,
Livin' in my memories all in vain
'cause those city lights ain't all that bright, compared to what its like
To see lightning bugs go dancin' in the rain.

Momma played the guitar then, and daddy made the saw blade bend,
And raindrops played the tin roof like a drum.
But i just kept on dreamin' that a song that i was singin'
Takes me down the road to where my name is known.

Now i'm gone, and its a long hard road
Yes, i know, its a long hard road.

I knew a man bojangles and he'd dance for you,
In worn out shoes,
With silver hair, a ragged shirt, and baggy pants
The old soft shoe.
He jumped so high, jumped so high
Then he'd lightly touch down.

I met him in a cell in new orleans, i was down and out.
He looked to me to be the eyes of age as he spoke right out
He talked of life, talked of life, he laughed, slapped his leg a step

(chorus)

He said his name "bojangles" then he danced a lick across the cell
He grabbed his pants, a better stance, o he jumped so hi, & he clicked his heels
He let go a laugh, let go a laugh, shook back his clothes all around

(chorus)

He danced for those at minstrel shows & county fairs,
Throughout the south
He spoke with tears of 15 years how his dog and him traveled about.
His dog up and died, up and died, after 20 years he still grieves.

(chorus)

He said i dance now at every chance in honky tonks for drinks and tips
But most the time i spend behind these county bars cause i drinks a bit
He shook his head, and as he shook his head i heard someone ask him please

(chorus)

I don't need the same excuses
All this talk is really useless
You run for cover
Everytime i'm close to you

Don't want to hear about the others
There's something here we should discover
Let's make a little magic
Before the night is through

Oh, you've seen it all before
And heard the same lines,
But if you're willing to take a chance
It could be all right, so fine
We'll find ourselves dancing by firelight.

So don't you try to change the subject
Or try to put yourself above it,
A boy could get pneumonia sitting next to you
That's true

A little sleep is all we're losing
It's up to us to do the choosing
Let's make a little magic before the night is through
Make a little magic before the night is through

Ooh, to the blue skies
Where no one can reach us
It may sound crazy but just hold on tight,
Never has a love run deeper
Baby my heart is true
Baby my heart is true

A little sleep is all we're losing
It's up to us to do the choosing
Let's make a little magic before the night is through

We met on the highway, she flagged me down,
Had a flat on her stingray with nobody around
I helped her out, she said climb in
So i ditched my ol truck just to see where the party would end.

We spent the weekend in reno in the honeymoon suite,
Never saw the casino, barely took time to eat.
I never dreamed she would take me this far
But by sunday that lady had taken a hold of my heart.

It's a modern day romance, a new kind of game
With no time to slow dance in the fast lane.
I tried to love her without any strings
But a modern day romance has left me some old-fashioned pain.

She never said good-bye, just a note by the phone
Said "thanks for the good times, but it's time to move on."
Well i'm out here walkin' with my thumb in the air
Wondering where she might've gone and why i even care.

It's a modern day romance; old fashioned pain