THE SINS OF MEMPHISTO
Written by John Prine
As recorded by John Prine on “The Missing Years” (1991)

CHORUS: From the bells of St Mary's
To the Count of Monte Cristo
Nothing can stop
Nothing can stop
Nothing can stop
The sins--of Memphisto

1. Sally used to play with her hula hoops.
Now she tells her problems to therapy groups.
Grampa's on the front lawn staring at a rake
Wondering if his marriage was a terrible mistake.
I'm sitting on the front steps drinking orange crush
Wondering if it's possible for me to still blush.
Uh-huh. Oh, yeah.

2. A boy on a bike with corduroy slacks
Sleeps in the river by the railroad tracks,
Waits for the whistle on the train to scream
So he can close his eyes and begin to dream.
Uh-huh. Oh, yeah. CHORUS

3. The hands on his watch spin slowly around,
With his mind on a bus that goes all over tow,n
Looking at the babies and the factories,
Listening to the music of Mister Squeeze.
As if by magic or remote control,
He finds a piece of a puzzle that he missed in his soul.
Uh-huh. Oh, yeah. CHORUS

4. Adam and Eve and Lucy and Ricky
Bit the big apple and got a little sticky.
Esmeralda and the Hunchback of Notre Dame
They humped each other like they had no shame.
They paused as they posed for a Polaroid photo.
She whispered in his ear "Exactly-Odo, Quasimodo." CHORUS

Sally used to play with her hula hoops.
Now she tells her problems to therapy groups.
Uh-huh. Oh, yeah.


Norman