All lyrics are (c) and (p) 2004-2005 The Smokehouse Style Kings/ Clear Blue Records. Please contact us before reposting.


OUTSIDE

nine to five shit hate it worse than the plague
end up wound up and sick every day
people just bitch but they all still stay
punch their cards and watch their minds rot away
so i quit and i quit and i can't quit enough
and i couldn't care less if life'll be rough
life's rough anyway without these handcuffs
wrists all scarred no point keeping this up
so i air up my tires and hit the road
drivin' through the spring heat always in escape mode
got the wind blowin' warm like soul melodies
new views and days become full and complete
each day new life becomes blues free
gravel trees hills oil care for me
nothing fleeting bout the will to take a stand and flee
backlit road twists all i wanna see

crack the window look outside
drivin' along in the sunshine
no more lonely days

don't want their lame rewards - i got my own
get in my car and drive into the unknown
left right swervin' feels like being home
crowds bicker and barter gotta go it alone
all the bills and the drills lead to vodka and pills
and the life once thrilling loses all of its thrills
bullshit hamster life non-stop treadmill
'til you end up all skittish sullen and ill
winter up north so i make my way south
bottle of some cheap ass bourbon in my mouth
pack of some cheap ass kentucky cigarettes
not a picky man as such - i take what i can get
and i get what i catch and i'm catching the drift now
bright days ahead i can feel the shift now
nothing like the open road to hot wire a lift now
leave all the shit that makes life dull and stiff now

escape like seascapes vast and expansive
will wash away lifetimes of day to day sadness
open like kansas or points on the atlas
where space makes the days flow slow like molasses
slow down this thing let the hassles go past us
it's always the fastest that burn out the fastest
the vision will cast us away from the masses
come back to life in the last perfect vastness


HILLBILLY WASTELAND

blank stares at the package store
natural light 6 pack smashed on the floor
eight beers each wasn't nearly enough
ridin' bikes cause the law tore their licenses up
without the grand prix can't be ridin' round free
handle bar jimmy's lost in the remedy
can't be runnin' no meth lab them trailer walls leak
stink up the summer and make your mind weak
so he's thinkin' and thinkin' - but he's too drunk to think
he keeps tryin' to link things - but he can't find a link
walks out spaced out steps out into doubt
to the girl that he thinks he once was about
but she's gone now like the daffodills in may
rode down the interstate and out of this decay
so it's back to work to wash the dead bugs away
10PM til the sun comes up the followin' day

hillbilly wasteland
not for me
i got a different pace man

wires swayin' in the wind on an overcast day
jimmy's brother danny found himself a place to stay
wrestling mind red like the break neck pace
at which the heavy metal kitsch brings joy to his face
he's got the stereo bass pumpin pumpin away
likes it loud likes it late cause he's a dj
at the local club - he loves being from nowhere
wears his long black leather coat for all the girls who go there
spins 50 cent mixes in tim mcgraw
for that cute girl who drove all the way from arkansas
now she's brain-dead like him so it's a good mix
get together do some crack have some half retarded kids
whacks punching bags mean gotta stay hick lean
gotta stick to the dream of mud truck routines
slowly he's sinkin' into hillbilly wasteland
just another sad human placemat

this shit is not for me


NOT THE ONE

my lover's got the sharp simple moves
on the garbage filled banks where the river runs smooth
in the budding may trees when there's nothing to do
her eyes wild diamonds from the heat and the booze
we don't really connect but we connect and we use
each other each day 'til we lose
the sun - and the moon shines in muted dark hues
look at each other and go at it anew
soft kisses soothe and do their work like crews
that are paid well to do whatever they do
but the kisses and glances come and go like the blues
of the sky at dusk before night comes through
still nights get hot like skillets on high heat
moments pop and we don't wanna stop when our eyes meet
insect sounds we drown them out she reminds me
of nothing but the moment that's around and inside me

you're not the one
just the one i'm lusting after
but if it dies
it still might matter

tomorrow comes like it means to heal
and the gravel road beckons to come join the real
of the big truck small talk of not big deals
deep fried camouflage flourescent appeals
got wheels - but i ain't gonna take them that way
you can take the main road we're gonna take the back way
my nascar ways ain't up to pace
might just stay right here in this morning embrace
we drive out to the world on bald tires and tired
past the fast food chains eyes closin' but wired
gonna come back again where the river banks grow
round the trailers where spiders make their homes below
and just sit with her watchin' barges float home
not holding hands cause it's a different tone
care free days might be on loan
lips sealed we hone in on the things that we know

things seem
like a daydream
sweet and serene


WHERE I'M FROM

welcome to the fields of soybeans and cotton
where skinny truck drivers beat their fat wives rotten
proud of the hole they were born and grew up in
got drunk passed out had some chicken threw up in
see all my friends settle for and get stuck in
got bored got broke found a job drove a truck in
waited for breaks but just ran out of luck in
did shit work just to make shit buck in
it's just killin' a six-pack by the highway
drivin' in a 50 zone doin' 98
car wash scenesters bad moustache faces
defective young dolls with the pork rind graces
some run themselves ragged 'til they turn into wrecks
some on the boat spendin' all their government checks
some in the past cause there's too much unease
most feed the fire of the walmart disease

where i'm from
(who cares man)
(who cares)

welcome to the land of the glamor and glitz
where it's rats not the ritz if you don't make hits
with indie impostors with millionaire sponsors
got as much substance as fools and white rastas
where the sunshine is sweet but you can't really taste it
from the office windows mall jobs or other such places
car food rent phone life alone catch a stare
incidental meetings often lead to dead air
amongst the bent knees and the fauxhawk disease
here i am again representing just me
beat down so hard i don't swagger i stagger
walkin' past your house lookin' mean and haggard
and on the tv's the happy monkees
dance around like bee gees in the late seventies
west side brain freeze and they aim to please
slicked back phrases straight out the nurseries

street names man nobody cares
neighborhood names never been there
where i'm from man it ain't a big deal
ain't a big deal
ain't a big deal

i'm from small town charm strip mall city cars
i'm from midwest mexico smashing guitars
i'm from flow like fluid southern cheap beer bars
i'm from desert night outlines half asleep stars
i'm from lake drive city scapes broken tape scars
i'm from jump joy great escapes wash off the tar
i'm from knowin' where i'm goin' never gettin' what i'm knowin'
stop flowin' start flowin' two ways at once goin'


POVERTY STREET AMERICA

name the shit and i've been through it
hands all dirty from primerin' the buick
gotta can of bud light and a cap against the sun
catfish lunch gonna get this shit done
them firemen stare with their thick thick necks
and their chain cigarettes like they're placin' their bets
but even when i'm face to face with it i never ever fret
chronic unemployment and mountains of debt
so i'm set for this life on a tray there before me
duct tape this day but tomorrow might bore me
dealt a bad card like them sneaky old dealers
or the deaf half-retarded old mascot faith healers
one white door on a half-dead car
life keeps attackin' got about five scars
couldn't pay rent-a-center took my dining room set
now i'm just sittin' on the floor all drunk and upset

poverty street america
poverty street america

so i got this black eye from fighting outside
it was two or three guys jumped me last night
ran upstairs to get my gun but that goddamn bitch stole it
so i just sat outside smokin' engrossed in the moment
it's been flailing - thinkin' it's here but it's bailing
frequencies hailing but dead air prevailing
state troopers trailing - screaming and wailing
radar detectors failing - drying to dock but it's sailing
spent time in jail over real stupid shit though
still tryin' to climb this thin rope out of this shithole
don't click though these days find me in limbo
hypnotized and unfit shit i'm feelin' a bit low
bored paranoia pretty regular now
lack of work lack of money hasslin' like a sick hound
dead downtown all the buildings run down
boarded up like everyone packed up and left town

racist white boys ride blastin' gangsta-rap tunes


ONE OF THOSE DAYS

been one of those days
shit done froze days
shit don't grow days
move real slow days

just what i need - another drunk song
just so i can brag about how shit goes wrong
got my hand on the pulse of nothing - ain't connected with the "in" clique
fantasize about my life wish it was a skin flick
want it now instant but i look at the dipstick
and it's low always low so i'll just have to skip it
just rollin' on the fumes of vodka straight no mix
surrounded by the mean and dumb and simple lunaticks
light my smoke the shit i spoke is broke and not repairable
or really really pricey either way it's fucking terrible
fog comes up when the river gets high
stumblin' stuck in the mud by the riverside
it's just dull stores, old whores, turkey neck bar bores
pretty faces rotten cores
moccasin swamp tours
outdated folklore from another life
gotta break through the muck try to find a brighter side

and the world often ain't cool
and the world often does suck
most folks ain't free
most folks are just stuck

no i'm not consistent - i change in an instant
one second i'm with it the next second i'm distant
with clenched fists in piss fits - yelling not listening
just tired of it all and pissed at the whole system
the next day love glistens and i'm in sin whistlin'
with a girl i picked up pumpin' her ass like a piston
i met her at the bar where she smoked the air blue
flashed hair and stomach straight from baton rouge
woke up later she was gone with her tacky pink thong
lipstick on the pillows cd player gone
it's more i didn't really care than i didn't really know
most people in this world have long lost their halo
walk outside ninety five like bein' fried alive
head buzzin' like a beehive that's been hit three times
try to keep it all steady but i'm on an incline
seems like everyone else is beatin' me blind


SUGAR TREE

well i gotta tell you man - i just cooked up some rhymes
that'll leave your ears wonderin' where i've been all this time
well i've been on and spit on
been off and hit on
boilin' like a kettle and they can't keep the lid on
still got this shit on my mind but it's fading fast
hard times been frequent - but they always pass
cast aside hassles while my girl spins her tassles
with my hands on her ass in a motel in nebraska
it's like it's on track for the first time no lack of
the good it's in stacks like cupid attacked
got it back where it went thought that it would be bent
and unusable throw away no good with dents
but it's mint and i'm taken aback at the change
of long takes of clear skies over vast cotton plains
and if the clouds come around even the spring rain
would be fine on our faces all smiles and no strain

these days are
(sweet like a sugar tree)
life ain't always
(sweet like a sugar tree)
these days are
(sweet like a sugar tree)
wanna make it last
(sweet like a sugar tree)

well i gotta tell you man - i got this free flowin' tongue
flowin' so hard like i got two pairs of lungs
easy smooth fresh spoken even when i'm drunk
but push me too far you ass is gonna get stung
not really into parties - only go for the bathroom sex
watching her back move up and down while i'm feeling up her leg
get out have a couple of beers chase 'em with a cigarette
sky's a medium orange tone in the fading sunset
most folks here are just sad little fools
strip mall life's got their focus all screwed
tv show phrases just the way they were taught
talkin' lots of nonsense 'bout the things that they got
pick up my friend wheels roll drivin' round
empty bottles out the window smash on the ground
last one thrown out before we roll into town
crashes the silence like a loud cymbal sound


COME BACK

well i knew this one girl whose beauty would stun
her and i from day one like non stop fun
spontaneous girl energy high on the run
sometimes too much like playing all day in the sun
fun frolics in bed she was kind of white bread
though it would last once again i misread
she started to dream screens palm trees and waves
future like outer space that she couldn't wait to taste
cause round here it's just waste - folks sellin' lawnmowers
in front of their trailers and hunting gear stores
old farmers ridin' round causin' high prices stitches
by sprayin' mud on the roads and leavin' cars in ditches
yellow ribbon life was just too simple for her now
tv got her thinking and her mind was all astir now
she said break i guess she meant it should be clean
i thought i could deal but dealin' ran out of steam

come back baby
i've been missing you so
been stuck in a rut - ain't got thing on the go
come back baby
i've been missing you so
it just ain't the same hangin' out here alone

days flowed slow right after the cut
first time stopped then it started back up
thought of her often but less as time passed
a flash here and there and then flings full blast
and thing we had was just making its way
from the tip of my tongue to lost in the hay
a drawn out summer like a long holiday
kind of relegated kate to the back plate
as fate would have it she never made it to cali
ended up in vegas dealin' blackjack at bally's
with a little bow tie watchin' losers come by
and then walk back away boring hot dusty days
she'll probably stay i settled all my past dues
life rollin' smooth in control like a cruise
sometimes when you gamble you just crap out and you lose
some singin' hallelujah some singin' the blues


BETTER THINGS

My baby's eyes like fire - burnin' lips like August heat
Her bein' next to me is like instant relief
From the sadness of life that I often get to see
Should feel privileged I guess - hell, lucky old me
She can wipe out all that with a word or a glance
Pretty enough to have men doin' handstands to catch her eye
And she's the apple of mine
I haven't been sweet on someone like this for a long time
Radiant as the sun - as natural as they come
I'd walk drive and run to be with her some
And I always stay longer whenever she's around
'Cause to this beautiful girl I'm fully and totally bound
Yeah I've seen a fair share of doubtful girls of all kinds
Promise you the world - then rob your ass blind
You're fixin' to give 'em your heart while they're fixin' to pull one on ya
Pretty soon it's just doubts, lies, and paranoia
Not this though…

Everybody is at work
But I got better things to do
so come on over pretty baby
and I'll spend the day with you

So I got these dreams of you dancin' around my head like
Fouled up so many things - with you I'm gonna do right
Don't wanna have to spend another day without you
To you I always listen to the rest of the world I'm soundproof
I hardly ever feel low (and never because I'm broke)
But these days I just can't tell which way it'll all go
I just know my love is constant - unlike any you've seen before
I really can't describe it - come by and I'll show you more
Yeah I've seen you hangin' out with them boys and I just don't get it
Some people seem to do things so in the end they can regret it
Yeah those other boys - slick as an eel - nice clothes, talk sweet
Drop you off, go hit on another girl down the street
Yeah I figure it's a waste to waste your days in their company
You know where I am so get in your car and come to me
I'm just layin' 'round the house watchin' clouds float by
Don't bring nothing' but yourself and stay a while


ON A SLANT

Just got back - walkin' on a slant
Been strollopin' out all night
Could have drank less - felt better
20/20 hindsight
All kinds of drinks and beer and gin
'Til way past midnight
Could have drank less - felt better
20/20 hindsight

So them girls in bars - I tell ya, some of them are sweet
A couple of beers and I'm on that like a dog on meat
Don't even have to beg, buy drinks or lie
Just be my bad-ass self - so far it's got me by
Drunk in Podunk but still always alert
You let that booze start talkin' man you're bound to get hurt
'Cause 'round here, I tell ya, you say the wrong thing
You end up in a hospital bed with both arms in a sling
Eyes turn red bottles smashed loud fist fights
Sirens flare blue light jail cell all night
Bars close, walkin' home - everything's on a slant
Tryin to find my way home the best way I can
Get home - clothes stinkin' of smoke and cologne
Too drunk to bring a girl home so I'm sleepin' alone
Face down black out like those nights with no moon
Ain't doin' this again anytime too soon

So one night I was talkin' to this girl - thought she was pretty
She was with her boyfriend - he got jealous - tried to hit me
But he missed - I swung back - caught his jaw, broke my knuckle
Took off my belt and got him good with my buckle
Didn't ask for this trouble - but it can't be helped
Some fool always ruins my night when it's goin' well
I just wanted to lay low, get a drink, relax
Instead I end up fighting some jealous dumbass
Walkin' home just singin' a song
Bought a bottle of Beam in case the walk took too long
A little tired, I stopped by a payphone
Called my friend in Dyersburg so as not to drink alone
You know it's bad when I start swayin' from the gin

Best I find my bed soon before they bring my ass in
Take them side streets, parking lots and parks
Swayin' whiskey totin' fool makin' his way in the dark


CRAPPED OUT AGAIN

hide + fur plaid shirt smokin' em reds scraggly hair
in the dumpster found a cable gonna keep it don't stare
orange cap shut your trap walk down bike down
two guns three kids husband servin' time now
other cousin in iraq other son high on crack
drive to kennett drive back night black a setback
alternator died cold no lights no control
how things sposed to unfold sposed to care for my soul
church banned after the stunt aint been back three months
still believe in every bit Lord's got the way lit
mangy dogs outside barkin' dogs all night
power cut no light arm stitched spider bites
'bout twenty last week lost blood lost sleep
pawn shop no dice doctor said head lice
no cash to pay the price e+b no ice
on the boat rolls dice one more little vice
crapped out again


OKLAHOMA STATE TROOPERS

oklahoma state troopers are some mean motherfuckers


CARUTHERSVILLE

This ain't nothin' but a goddamn whorehouse
Fuckin' cat up there jumpin' all over the place
(Man, fuck them people)