Songs of Bob Coltman

Subject: RE: Songs of Bob Coltman
From: Joe Offer
Date: 23 Oct 13 - 04:09 AM

Bob sent me 26 of his songs for posting. Some are on the "Son of Child" CD, but many are not available on recordings. I hope you enjoy them. I'll put the Child songs on the Son of Child thread, even if they aren't on the Son of Child CD. If they aren't Child and they aren't on the Lonesome Robin CD or the Before They Close the Minstrel Show CD, I'll post them here. I think you'll find some new gems you haven't heard before.
Thanks a lot, Bob.

-Joe Offer-

Subject: ADD: Scorchy Can't Play (Bob Coltman)
From: Joe Offer
Date: 23 Oct 13 - 04:30 AM

SCORCHY CAN'T PLAY
(Bob Coltman)

Scorchy is gone, and I keep asking why,
But I can't get no answer, the hardest I try,
All that they tell me, and all that they say
Is, Scorchy is sick and can't come out to play,

CHORUS
The rain in the rafters, the brush and dead leaves,
And the small skreaky mice are what Scorchy believes,
Forever goes on until supper and bed,
Forever puts cobwebs in poor Scorchy's head,
Rainy old day, won't go away,
Poor little, sad little Scorchy can't play.

Crayons taste good when supper is far,
But Scorchy's forgotten how good crayons are,
Scorchy, old Scorchy, Scorchy, don't freeze,
Don't disappear, Scorchy, I'm tellin' you please,

Scorchy is funny, Scorchy's my friend,
Scorchy would miss me if they had me penned,
Scorchy is funny, he's sad and he's strange,
His mom said she wishes that Scorchy would change, CHORUS

They used to tell Scorchy, Scorchy be good,
But he never was, I don't know if he could,
They used to tell Scorchy, Don't say such a thing,
But he couldn't not say 'em, like birds can't not sing,

Poor little Scorchy, they took you away,
What did you do bad? What did you say?
Rain eats my windows, the sun drinks my door,
I don't think I'm gonna see Scorchy no more, CHORUS

If I got a letter from Scorchy today,
If I got a letter, what would it say?
I'm okay, don't worry 'bout me,
I'm okay, I just tried to see
What was over the top of the high climbin' tree,
I'm just the same Scorchy, just the same me,

Or would the letter be paper all white?
And a tear and a squiggle, like noise in the night, CHORUS

Middle of morning, crackers and jam,
Big boys don't cry, but I know that I am,
Mama, oh Mama, oh Mama and Dad,
I miss ol' Scorchy, I miss him so bad, CHORUS

---

Click to play (joeweb)

Subject: ADD: Kokomo Kitty (Bob Coltman)
From: Joe Offer
Date: 23 Oct 13 - 07:29 PM

KOKOMO KITTY
(Bob Coltman)

CHORUD
Kokomo Kitty, she's so pretty,
My heart goes pitty-pat,
Giddiest pretty in Kansas City,
She's my Kokomo kitty-cat.

She's so tall and slender
She nearly breaks the roof,
When she goes on a bender
She bends, and that's the truth,
Built like the Rock of Ages,
And that's no alibi,
Don't need to go to heaven, just give me
Kitty when I die.
CHORUS

Kokomo Kitty went to Kansas City
Just to learn the ropes,
She made all them fancy gals
Look like a bunch of dopes,
Give 'em a little love lick, little
Flick of her eyes,
Her hands was in their wallets
'Fore those silly chumps got wise.
CHORUS

She's stickin' to Kansas City,
Works her fingers to the bone,
I'm stickin' with my Kokomo Kitty
An' leavin' other women alone,
Give her a little pitty pat,
Give her a little squeeze,
Give her a little goodnight kiss
To use it as she please, oh,
CHORUS

Copyright Bob Coltman

---

Click to play (joeweb)

Subject: ADD: Then My Deodorant Failed (Bob Coltman)
From: Joe Offer
Date: 23 Oct 13 - 07:47 PM

THEN MY DEODORANT FAILED
(Bob Coltman)

Tune: Acres of Clams (Old Rosin the Beau)

I had sixteen guests on the patio,
Burgers and dogs on my cart,
I stood there like Rambo in apron,
I could not get the charcoal to start,

CHORUS
Right then my deodorant failed,
Right then my deodorant failed,
It sputtered and died for the fifth time,
Right then my deodorant failed.

A book was lying on the table
With the library's mark on its spine,
Oh my god, it was due back last April,
It's racked up ninety dollars in fines,
CHORUS
I've got sixty cents till next Wednesday, right then...

I flew on the redeye to Frisco,
With more than my share of cold dread,
The pilot said, Fasten your seatbelts,
There's turbulent weather ahead.
CHORUS
We dropped like a rock through a raincloud, right then...

I was checking the figures for Temco
When the boss said, Come in! You're required,
He only wanted some data
I thought he was saying, You're Fired.
CHORUS
Heh-heh, what an error, good heavens, right then...

I got home early last Wednesday,
Joanne acted funny as hell,
A shadow sneaked out through the kitchen?
-A lover?- I just couldn't tell.
CHORUS
Who was it? I better not ask her, right then...

I was backing my car from the driveway,
I was halfway out into the street,
When a furniture van came barreling by,
And nearly turned me to ground meat.
CHORUS
My brake foot went right through the floorboards, right then...

I've known for some while it will happen,
Something truly horrid! And odd!
I've gone to church Sunday and listened,
But I got no assurance from God.
CHORUS
I just hunkered down and I quivered, right then...

Sometimes when I turn off the TV,
With its crises and terrorist bombs,
I dream I am somewhere real quiet,
Surrounded by acres of calms.
CHORUS 2
And deodorant that never fails,
Deodorant that never fails,
All I want is a life with no problems
And deodorant that never fails.

---

Click to play (joeweb)

---

The last verse is "surrounded by acres of calms" - right, Bob? - Bob confirms this, and I like the wordplay. -Joe-

Subject: ADD: Henry in his Boat (Bob Coltman)
From: Joe Offer
Date: 23 Oct 13 - 08:01 PM

HENRY IN HIS BOAT
(Bob Coltman)

For Henry Thoreau, along the Great Meadows of the Concord River.

Yellow reeds frozen in the ice,
Twice a crow calls in the black trees,
A moth flutters across the waters low,
Lower and lower till his wings make ripples go,
There goes Henry with his oarlocks
Muffled, so as to make no sound,
Reflections paint the trees upside down,
Henry in his muffler and his serviceable coat,

CHORUS
There goes Henry in his boat again,
Floating on the river seldom lets you down,
It's so quiet you can scarcely hear a sound,
And the grey sky takes you by the throat,
There go the rocks idly gliding by,
An airplane makes a big dent in the sky,
The long horizon seems to float -
There goes Henry in his boat.

I think he's thinking of his brother John
Dead in a winter of a quick chill,
I think he's thinking of that bare hill,
That fallen tree that seems to float,
Seeds strung on a weed stem,
Alder thickets in the meadow's hem,
Winter cattails, leaning, breaking,
Ice patterns softly shaking,
CHORUS

A mouse stirs in the curly leaves,
Two otters floating like unemployed thieves
Huff and dive as they see me
Standing by the water dark as whiskey,
Sparrows speaking out of the woods-line,
Stones that scarcely notice spring or wintertime,
Silver light and golden grass are kind again,
There goes Henry in my mind again,
CHORUS

---

Click to play (joeweb)

Subject: ADD: Wolf in the Clover (Bob Coltman)
From: Joe Offer
Date: 23 Oct 13 - 08:16 PM

WOLF IN THE CLOVER
(Bob Coltman)

Hang your head in the cold soft snow,
Cold soft snow all alone,
For the snow girl's laughing and she says it's time,
Little wolf, it's time for you to go,

CHORUS
Little wolf in the clover,
Too tired to chase the sheep,
I'll hold back the shepherd's arm
And let you go to sleep.

Little fat wolf in the warm sunshine,
Remember how you loved to rub
Up against your grey mother's side
When you were a big-footed cub,

But now you're alone in the winter,
Shiv'ring and shaggy and thin,
You've left no trail to find you by,
And you can't remember where you've been,
CHORUS

Dogs have hunted you down in the fields
Where the little wolf cub used to play,
Restless ladies have bitten your nose,
And your hungers have led you astray,
CHORUS

There's nobody left to remember
What the little wolf cub has done,
And there's nobody left to notice
That the little wolf cub is gone,
CHORUS

Just pretend you're back in the clover now,
Happy and tired and round,
You've been lost along time on the wrong kinds of roads,
Little wolf, it's time you were found,
CHORUS

---

Click to play (joeweb)

Subject: ADD: Flight of Juanita Cardoza (Bob Coltman)
From: Joe Offer
Date: 23 Oct 13 - 08:23 PM

FLIGHT OF JUANITA CARDOZA
(Bob Coltman)

I hear the pretty music, I think it is a song,
I got good legs for runnin', and I've got to run on,
Find me a shotgun, I'll be tough to cut down,
'Cause I done wrong, ain't afraid to die.

CHORUS
No way to go back, you got to go on,
No way to go back, you got to go on,
And honey, when I go, you know
I will be gone.

Juanita Cardoza put on her best shoes,
Went down to the bank with nothing to lose,
Put a pistol in her handbag, just in case they should refuse,
Done wrong, ain't afraid to die.

She took it in fifties, as fast as they fell,
She drawed on the teller when it looked like he'd tell,
Shot him dead center as he lunged for the bell,
You know she done wrong, ain't afraid to die.
CHORUS

She run down the alley, she heard the alarm,
A wild police bullet took her in the arm,
She suddenly realized she might come to harm,
For she'd done wrong, ain't afraid to die.

She found an old Mercury parked by the jail,
The motor was runnin', she got in all pale,
Slammed out of town with the law on her tail,
Done wrong, ain't afraid to die.
CHORUS

When the gas tank was empty she run through the weeds,
Her arm is all sticky, oh see how it bleeds!
No husband, no comrade to see to her needs,
'Cause I done wrong, ain't afraid to die.

She ran in the tunnel of an old worked-out mine,
Pausing not to notice the words on the sign,
The bright fifty-dollar bills fluttered behind,
'Cause I done wrong, ain't afraid to die.
CHORUS

A long way behind her she heard the dogs bark,
She ran like a leopard, she sang like a lark,
She fell sixty feet down a shaft in the dark,
Done wrong, ain't afraid to die.
CHORUS

---

Click to play (joeweb)

Subject: ADD: The Dark Rosaleen (Bob Coltman)
From: Joe Offer
Date: 23 Oct 13 - 08:30 PM

THE DARK ROSALEEN
(Bob Coltman)

As I walked out in the dawnin', in the mists of the mornin',
By the waves that were runnin' from the hills to the sea,
I saw her eyes glancin', her feet softly dancin',
'Twas the form so entrancin' of the Dark Rosaleen.

She stopped once to view me, her gaze piercin' through me,
The kind of her beauty I never had seen,
She said, Few have ever known me, and none has outshone me,
Now, live and be lonely for the Dark Rosaleen.

CHORUS
She's the fairest of roses that grows by the edges,
Along the high ledges she wanders unseen,
She's the voice in the water, the Creator's daughter,
Long time I have sought her, the Dark Rosaleen.

The sun was just risin', the shadows disguisin'
All sign of the beauty I thought I had seen,
I tried to espy her, but I could not come high her,
She vanished like a fire in a downpour of rain.
CHORUS

I dared not to linger, and so, visioning her,
With my heart in my fingers I walked on in a dream,
It's the dream I still carry, wherever I tarry,
To find and to marry the Dark Rosaleen.
CHORUS

---

Click to play (joeweb)

Subject: ADD: Easy Chance (Bob Coltman)
From: Joe Offer
Date: 23 Oct 13 - 08:38 PM

EASY CHANCE
(Bob Coltman)

Dockyards, stockyards,
And the old railroad gang
Hangin' round the depot,
Waitin' for the bell to ring,
Watchin' out for the good-lookin' women,
Shinin' the seats of our pants,
Mumblety-peg in the corner yard,
And waitin' for the easy chance,

CHORUS
Easy chance, easy taker,
No good loafer and a trouble maker,
Ain't got the good sense to keep yourself home,
Easy chances about all gone.

In came Johnson Scotter,
The smile was in his eye,
Says, Break it up, shake it up,
Don't you know the day's flyin' by?
Now, how do you like a little wager
Just to liven up the brain?
Think you've got the courage in you
To go and steal a train?
CHORUS

Willie John got on his feet,
And Charlie cracked a yawn,
But Austin ran over to Number Twelve,
And daggone if he didn't hop on,
They hollered, "Come on, Bobby,"
I had to take the dare,
She was movin' when I hit the step,
And we hauled her out of there,
CHORUS

Boy, that speed was blindin',
We never did look back,
A hundred tons of rattle and bang
Pourin' down the track,
Admirin' the country,
Ain't it a hell of a view?
We don't know how to work the brake,
We don't know what to do,
CHORUS

Charlie gazed out over the stack
And casually said, You know,
I think you can go to the rock hotel
For pullin' this kind of a show,
If the bulls get hold of us
They'll skin us just for the pelts,
Right then I didn't feel as good as I had,
And I wished I was somewheres else,
CHORUS

Daggone you, Johnson Scotter,
You said you was my friend,
I hope you're ready to explain all this
When we get to the other end,
You and all your bright ideas,
I hope you're satisfied,
Don't forget I'm a passenger,
I just came along for the ride!
CHORUS

Well, that was some disaster,
They'll be gassin' 'bout that for a year,
I jumped and rolled before she hit,
And I dragged myself off here,
I'm livin' in this broke-down barn
Among the rats and the hay,
Eatin' what I can steal at night,
Can't show my face in the day,
CHORUS

---

Click to play (joeweb)

Subject: ADD: Jeremie Boat Gone Down (Bob Coltman)
From: Joe Offer
Date: 23 Oct 13 - 09:09 PM

JEREMIE BOAT GONE DOWN
(Bob Coltman)

CHORUS
Jeremie boat gone down in a storm,
Jeremie boat gone down (what a sorrow, now),
Jeremie boat gone down in a storm,
Oh the Jeremie boat gone down, an' if you're on the
Jeremie boat, you gone die in this world,
Nine hundred people drown.

ALT CHORUS
Jeremie boat, Jeremie
Boat, oh my Lord, 'n how the
Jeremiea boat -
Jeremie boat - gone down -

On the sixteen of February,
My God it was a storm that day, and the Neptune
Leavin' east out of Jeremie, sailin'
And the people crowd on board - three decks -
An' they hoping to see their faily, (???)
Go look for work in the capital,
But the sky come over black, and the rain come
Pourin' down and the decks give way, an' the -
CHORUS

Was men and women and families
Set out on that terrible day, my God,
They had goats and sheep and chickens on board
In that hour to be swept away,
The water come rage, toss the boat like a toy,
And the people run to the side, she tip,
The people screamin' and thrown in the water,
Nine hundred people died, and they cryin' -
CHORUS

They clingin' to piece of wreck, arm by the neck,
Crate and a charcoal sack, children cryin' out
Mama, sister I cannot see,
Bumped by the dead body,
While on the shore of Petit Goave and Mira-
Goane the bodies floatin' in on the tide,
Till the black sky blow away like a dream,
And the sun shine bitter on the dead and alive, when the -
CHORUS

How long, long, oh my people, how long
Must we die like animal, pressing together,
When the boat go down in the rocky sea,
No life jacket, no chance -
As they lay them out in the sand, poor soul,
The tears come pourin' in the afternoon,
So many dead that was alive this mornin',
Thinkin' nothing of going on the boat Neptune -
CHORUS

Yes, they laid them out in the sand like logs,
Like animals they died, and the tears come
Streamin' down, poor people to die
Such a dreadful death, the gulls come cryin',
So many people alive this mornin',
But now in the afternoon they dead,
Salt water, sand and the rocky sea
Breakin' up the last of the sad Neptune - when the -
CHORUS

Notes: On Tuesday, February 16, 1993 the Neptune, an overcrowded ferryboat believed to have been carrying some 1500 people, traveling to Port-au-Prince from the west coastal town of Jeremie, sank in stormy seas halfway there, off Petit Goave, Haiti. Over 900 were drowned.
I would never have been able to make a song like this if it weren't for the great calypsonian Blind Blake,* whose "Run Come See Jerusalem" captured my imagination at an impressionable age and hasn't let it go ever since.

*Blake Higgins of Nassau, Bahamas, who flourished at the Royal Victoria Hotel in Nassau, Bahamas, in the 1950s. Not to be confused with 1920s-30s bluesman Arthur 'Blind Blake' Phelps.

---

Click to play (joeweb)

Subject: ADD: Unknown Song (Bob Coltman)
From: Joe Offer
Date: 23 Oct 13 - 09:18 PM

UNKNOWN SONG
(Bob Coltman)

I sleep and dream of heroines
Sitting on marble balconies,
Laughing as if nothing is wrong,
Breaking into some unknown song,
CHORUS
Some unknown song, some unknown song,
Into some unknown song.

I do not break, I merely bend,
I stay my welcome out, and then
I rise and go among the throng
Trying to hear that unknown song,
CHORUS
That unknown song, that unknown song
To hear that unknown song.

I saw your face across the square,
You seemed all lost and unaware,
It seemed to me, if I'm not wrong,
You were hearing that unknown song,
CHORUS
That unknown song, that unknown song
Hearing that unknown song.

Now here I stand with empty hands
Between the waters and the sands,
I have no place that I belong,
But I try to sing that unknown song,
CHORUS:
That unknown song, that unknown song
To sing that unknown song.

---

Click to play (joeweb)

Subject: ADD: Bruin's Gone (Bob Coltman)
From: Joe Offer
Date: 23 Oct 13 - 10:17 PM

BRUIN'S GOIN'
(Bob Coltman)

CHORUS
But Bruin's goin',
Ridin' his old triciyle and blowin' his horn,
Bruin's goin', Bruin's goin',
But Bruin's goin',
Ridin' his old tricycle and blowin' his horn,
Bruin's goin', Bruin's goin'.

Smoky light, canvas sky,
And the beam's too bright for a poor bear's eye,
And Claire's aloft like a spangled sigh,
She came 'round once and patted my head,
Aren't you a funny old bear, she said,
And I thought I'd surely die,

Oh Claire, Claire, don't you stare
At poor old Bruin, the circus bear,
Oh Claire, Claire, don't you stare
At poor old Bruin, the circus bear,
CHORUS

Circus bear has got no business
Loving a dancer with long gold hair,
She don't care for an old trained bear,
She flies through the air like an air-o-plane
And Bruin stares like he's goin' insane,
And forgets his tricks again,

Oh, Claire, Claire, I'm so ashamed,
I lost my wits when they gave me my name,
Oh Claire, Claire, I'm so ashamed,
I want to be wild, but they made me tame,
CHORUS

When I was a cub they captured me,
I never had any chance to see
What I was losing so easily,
They fastened on this dinky hat,
Taught me to dance and ride on that -
And I thought it was all right,

Oh Claire, Claire, I didn't know,
The nets and traps confused me so,
Oh Claire, Claire, I didn't know,
I thought it'd be fun to be in the show,
CHORUS

But if I was where I belong
In the mountain forest, I'd sing my song,
And then it wouldn't be all wrong,
I'd show you the life of a savage bear,
And maybe you'd want to be with me there,
Away from the brass band blare,

Oh Claire, Claire, then I'd be me,
A real bear and not the clown you see,
Oh Claire, Claire, I'd be me,
A real bear, and proud to be,
CHORUS

But here I am in the human world,
With a crazy love for a human girl,
And I can't stay here no more,
I'm going to escape, I'm going to run,
They trust old Bruin, so it's easily done,
But I'm scared of the wind and the sun,

Oh, Claire, Claire, I'm shivery scared,
For I've forgotten how to be a real bear,
Oh Claire, Claire, Claire, I'm scared,
I can't remember how to be a real bear,
CHORUS

---

Click to play (joeweb)

Subject: ADD: Bridal Day (Bob Coltman)
From: Joe Offer
Date: 23 Oct 13 - 10:26 PM

BRIDAL DAY
(Bob Coltman)

Home come the new-wed bride,
All turn out to meet her,
Kiss her chin, bring her in,
Give her gift and greet her,
Never gonna quit dancin' tonight
Till the rooster crow in the mornin',

CHORUS
Bride, a bride, a bridal day,
A new-wed lord and a lady.

When she come up to her room,
She sheets turned down so pretty,
She run, she run, she rise and come
Quick, and she did not tarry,
Into the arms of the wedding guest,
Hide me, darling, hide me.
CHORUS

Bonnie, lovely Bonnie,
The wedding it is over,
The vows are said, the book is read,
No longer I'm your lover,
She looked her tears into his eyes,
And oh, his heart turned over,
CHORUS

Cranmore spied them at the gate,
His pistol up and he fired,
Down fall the new-made bride,
The wedding guest beside her,
All into the frozen snow
Their steaming blood it mingled,
CHORUS

He reached down a trembling hand,
He turned his young bride over,
He reached, but did not turn again,
For oh, he knowed the other,
Alas, for with these two swift shots
I've killed my wife and brother!
CHORUS

Cranmore looked in the face of death,
He wept like a baby,
I will not live one minute more
Without my bride and lady,
This is the ending of my song.
I wisht it ended happy.
CHORUS

---

Click to play (joeweb)

---

Bob - in the second verse - "She sheets turned down so pretty," - is that correct?

Subject: ADD: 99 Degrees (Bob Coltman)
From: Joe Offer
Date: 23 Oct 13 - 10:32 PM

99 DEGREES
(Bob Coltman)

CHORUS
Ninety-nine degrees, fish are jumpin',
People makin' for the sesashore sea,
Apartment building's like an oven,
Too hot for lovin', ninety-nine degrees.

This fan's not workin', just makes it hotter,
Get some ice water, it's too hot for me,
Stick to my chair, stick to my clothin',
Walk around in nothin', ninety-nine degrees.
CHORUS

Stuck in town for the weekend,
Fryin' in a third-floor walkup flat,
My bedroom window looks at the river,
But I can't move, and honey, that is that.
CHORUS

Gets hot like this, you start wantin' -
You don't know what, whatever it could be,
Could be love, could be torment,
All or nothin', ninety-nine degrees.
CHORUS

---

Click to play (joeweb)

Subject: ADD: Tenement Children Dance (Bob Coltman)
From: Joe Offer
Date: 23 Oct 13 - 10:39 PM

TENEMENT CHILDREN DANCE
(Bob Coltman)

Tenement children wake up, put on their old clothes,
Run downstairs and take themselves outdoors,
Big hollow eyes and arms and legs so thin,
Their little bones showing through their skin,

CHORUS
Tenement children dance, tenement children play,
Good you can be happy today,
Tenement children dance, dance around in a ring,
Try not to worry about a thing.

Daddy is gone to the print plant, Mama's gone to the mill,
Sister's gone to the big house on the hill,
Taken all together, all they can bring home
Barely enough for food until it's gone.
CHORUS

Go to the school, teacher will say,
Come now, children, recite your lesson today,
But Oh! so very tired, you usually forgot,
Get a name for stupid - and you're not -
CHORUS

Tenement children grow up to be tenement men,
Tenement women have babies soon as they can,
To run downstairs, run outdoors and sing,
All join hands and dance in a laugh and a ring,
CHORUS

---

Click to play (joeweb)

Subject: ADD: West Mayfair (Bob Coltman)
From: Joe Offer
Date: 23 Oct 13 - 10:59 PM

WEST MAYFAIR (I LOVE YOU, YOU'RE MY KIND OF PERSON)
(Bob Coltman)

We met in an all-nite donut place,
We had it to ourselves, except the all-nite cops were there,
Right then I saw you were my kind of person,
It was two-forty-seven a.m. in West Mayfair.

CHORUS
I love you - you're my kind of person -
Just as well we're each other's kind of person,
We've been places together that didn't cost much,
Takin' buses from West Mayfair.

We've been places like Cleveland and Utica,
Sleepin' in rear seats, savin' motel money,
We were someplace not far north of Shreveport,
You said, I love you, I said, I love you too, honey,
CHORUS

We took in a couple of used bookstores,
A triple feature, a soda fountain,
Spent our honeymoon sleeping in a roadside
By the last trailer park to Sunset Mountain,
CHORUS

When we got home we went for all-nite donuts,
But the shop was converted to a Laundromat,
So we watched our soapy clothes go round,
Anybody else I guess woulda left each other flat, but
CHORUS

We prob'ly won't move, as we haven't the boxes,
So we'll probably stay more or less right here,
It's a life - we often say so -
By hooky or crooky in West Mayfair.

---

Click to play (joeweb)

Subject: ADD: The First Black Day (Bob Coltman)
From: Joe Offer
Date: 23 Oct 13 - 11:27 PM

FIRST BLACK DAY
(Bob Coltman)

CHORUS
Love lasts, they say,
Love lasts until the first black day.
The first black day,
The first black day.

I came around the corner,
Bumped into my father,
But he was a younger man,
And he didn't know me.
CHORUS

I said where have you been?
What have you been doin'?
He gave me an awful look,
And kept goin'.
CHORUS

I thought he didn't know,
Should I have told him so?
I just stood there,
Watched my father go.
CHORUS

I stubbed my toe
Kickin' pebbles into the road,
Thought there was nothin'
I didn't know.
CHORUS

Child's play
To finish out the day,
I wasn't gonna do nothin'
Anyway.
CHORUS

Love lasts till the first black day. - Russian proverb.

---

Click to play (joeweb)

Subject: ADD: Jacob's Pillow (Bob Coltman)
From: Joe Offer
Date: 23 Oct 13 - 11:52 PM

JACOB'S PILLOW
(Bob Coltman)

It's dark and late, I'm tired and lonely,
They said the wagons would be along,
But the moon's far down, and the path is empty,
I guess by that there's something wrong.

My boots are hard, my rifle's heavy,
And Jacob's Pillow's far away,
And little Ruthie lies home lonely,
At least that's what her letters say.

CHORUS
If I could have my dear desire,
I'd be safe through this battleground,
Lie my head over on Jacob's Pillow,
Let my love Ruthie roll me down.

Oh, war is fear, and war is waiting,
I hear the guns behind the hill,
There's no one keeping me from running,
I don't know why I sit here still,

I don't know why I watch so eager
For the wagons to top the shore,
For if they do, I'm s'posed fire,
And I never killed no one before,
CHORUS

And if I shoot, and shoot to murder,
If what the Captain says is true,
I'll be a man, and save the army,
I'll be a hero of the Blue,

But that's a hard thing to put on me,
To put me in a shooting case,
If I get back to Jacob's Pillow,
Can I look Ruthie in her face?
CHORUS

---

Click to play (joeweb)

Subject: ADD: Waiting for the Evening Train (Bob Coltman)
From: Joe Offer
Date: 24 Oct 13 - 01:36 AM

WAITING FOR THE EVENING TRAIN
(Bob Coltman)

Waitin' for the evening train,
Waitin' for the whistle to blow, oh,
Thinkin' maybe it's about time to get a-goin' home,
List'nin' to the wind,
Waitin' for the evenin' train to pull in.

Lookin' in the evenin' sky,
Lookin' where the sun done gone,
Lights a-goin' on in a hundred places ain't my home,
Chilly on my skin,
Waitin' for the evenin' train to pull in.

Thinkin' 'bout the things you said,
Thinkin' how your eyes done shine, oh,
Thinkin' 'bout the times, in the days that you were mine,
Kinda makes me grin,
Waitin' for the evenin' train to pull in.

Looks like it's a-getting dark,
Looks like it's a-getting cold,
Looks like it might come on to snow before long,
Collar to my chin,
Waitin' for the evenin' train to pull in.

Waitin' for the evenin' train,
Waitin' for the train to come,
Lookin' for the light, wheels'll make the nighttime hum,
Livin' in my skin,
Waitin' for the evenin' train to pull in.

---

Click to play (joeweb)

Subject: ADD: The Last Indian (Bob Coltman)
From: Joe Offer
Date: 24 Oct 13 - 01:41 AM

THE LAST INDIAN
(Bob Coltman)

Based on the famous words of Seattle, the Dawamish chief, and Smohalla of the Wanapum.

The Last Indian rode out on his canvas
Horse, and he looked the country up and down, and he said,
Shame on you, you built a building instead of standing under the sky,
And you know you never used the sun to see your happiness by.

CHORUS
And he said,
Oh, wo, should I cut my mother's hair?
Should I take a knife her bosom to tear?
No, my invisible dead throng around you, they're pulling on your hand,
You will never be alone, never be free from the Last Indian.

The Last Indian ran, dived into the
Lake, and he felt the water stream behind, and he said,
Yes, and you know you're having trouble calming your mind,
My knife is in your heart, and my agony is making you blind.
CHORUS

The Last Indian rose on his tiptoe
High, and he spread his arms to the sky, and he said,
Yes, and you know your works will not last long,
They will crumble and fall, and this land will forget your song.
CHORUS

---

Click to play (joeweb)

Subject: ADD: Mountain Whippoorwill (Bob Coltman)
From: Joe Offer
Date: 24 Oct 13 - 01:48 AM

MOUNTAIN WHIPPOORWILL
(Bob Coltman)

Mountain whippoorwill, singin' on the hill,
Wish you'd tell your secret now, but I don't guess you will,
'Mid the whisp'ring pines, in the sunbeams still,
Is there nothing you can tell me, mountain whippoorwill?

I hear you in the meadows, standin' in the grass,
The beards bending over where the silent footsteps pass,
I'm near you in the forest, in the shadow by the rill,
But still you keep your secret, mountain whippoorwill.

I long to ask a question, it lies within my heart,
But each time I forget it when the lovely trillings start,
Your voice is like an echo, my heart to catch and thrill,
And still you keep your secret, mountain whippoorwill.

Mountain whippoorwill, singin' on the hill,
Wish you'd tell your secret now, but I don't guess you will,
'Mid the whisp'ring pines, in the sunbeams still,
Is there nothing you can tell me, mountain whippoorwill?

---

Click to play (joeweb)

Subject: ADD: Tear Old Wilson Down (Bob Coltman)
From: Joe Offer
Date: 24 Oct 13 - 01:58 AM

TEAR OLD WILSON DOWN
(Bob Coltman)

Well, late last night I was a-walkin' down town,
And I met up with the hard case crew,
They was sniffin' and a-pokin' and a-moochin' all around,
And lookin' for somethin' to do,
Lookin' for somethin' to do, good Lord,
No matter what the old folks say,
We'll make it bright in the middle of the night,
And go home and sleep in the day.

Well, I wasn't doin' nothin' that I couldn't leave off,
And I'd had me a quart of beer,
I was full of fight and ready for fun,
And it seemed like a good idear,
Seemed like a good idear at the time,
'Cause this is a deadhead town,
So I j'ined up with them hard case boys
For to tear old Wilson down.

We whooped and we hollered till the winders banged,
And a voice cried, Hush that noise!
But it takes more than a voice in the night
To scare us hard case boys,
Scare us hard case boys at all,
Why, they'd have to knock us down,
So we loosed their chickens and we stole us a car,
And we tore old Wilson down.

We run the car through six back yards
And up and over the ridge,
Then we turned around, and we come back to town,
And we run clean off of the bridge,
Run clean off of the bridge, and wound up
Fender-deep in the stream,
I lay there hopin' that I wasn't awake,
'Cause it seemed like a terrible dream.

We come down town with our clothes all soaked,
And nigh 'bout froze to the core,
We lit up a fire for to get ourselves warm,
And it caught old Blackwell's store,
Caught old Blackwell's store on fire,
And the durned thing burned to the ground,
We like to got lynched as they took us to jail
For a-tearin' old Wilson down.

Now there's just one thin old timber wall
Between me and that crowd,
And I wish it was three times as thick,
'Cause I never heerd nothin' so loud,
Never heerd nothin' so loud in my life,
Oh Lord what a terrible noise,
I wisht I'd a never a-come down town
Or j'ined with the hard case boys.

Now, it ain't no use in a-tryin' to explain
'Bout any of what we done,
They ain't about to understand
That it was just innocent fun.
Was just innocent fun, that's all,
It just got out of bounds,
Who would a-thought that we'd ever really go
And tear old Wilson down?

---

Click to play (joeweb)

Subject: ADD: Make My Present Small (Bob Coltman)
From: Joe Offer
Date: 24 Oct 13 - 02:34 AM

MAKE MY PRESENT SMALL
(Bob Coltman)

Santa Claus, I'm writing you
With extra special care,
This request's important,
Please grant it in this year,
I'm asking for just one thing,
And it is for us all,
Not asking much for me alone,
So make my present small.

CHORUS
Make my present small,
Just peace on earth for all,
Real peace on earth, goodwill to men,
And make my present small.

I know I've asked you other years
For trains and other toys,
This year I wish you'd simply bring
Joy to all girls and boys,
The hungry ones, please bring them food,
The chilly ones, bring fire,
And Santa, bring each if you can
Peace for heart's desire.
CHORUS

I know this letter's getting long,
And there's so little time,
But Santa, bring an end to all
The hurtfulness and crime,
To every face please bring a smile,
To every heart a kiss,
I'd forfeit all my Christmas gifts
If you would just do this.
CHORUS

---

Click to play (joeweb)

Subject: RE: Songs of Bob Coltman
From: Joe Offer
Date: 27 Nov 21 - 04:28 PM

And one more:

Thread #170652   Message #4127172
Posted By: Joe Offer
24-Nov-21 - 12:58 PM
Thread Name: Lyr ADD: Pony Tail Bow (Bob Coltman)
Subject: ADD: Pony Tail Bow (Bob Coltman)

Hello Joe,

Good to hear from you! On you haven’t got all my songs yet, by a long stretch. I have recently passed song number 6,000. Not all up to par, some I’ve thrown away, but among what's left, there’s no shortage.

“Pony Tail Bow” is a joking song I made up to sing because I am not a better fiddle player. It’s easy to play! “Bow” is correct, as in horse-hair fiddle bow. The lyrics tell why.

It’s been a long while, in fact a whole new computer and operating system, on which I have yet to try to make an Mp3. I will get it together and send an Mp3 presently, with guitar, to save your ears (and hope my voice works), but for the moment, here are the lyrics.   

PONY TAIL BOW
(By Bob Coltman)

1.
I wake up in the morning, and the very first thing I do
Is reach and get my fiddle, and try a lick or two.
Lady give it to me last month, so’s I could learn to play,
But it makes the most peculiar noise—it drives everybody away.

CHORUS: (after every verse)
Seems like it’s simple, Why won’t it go?
Musta give me a cat scratch fiddle or a consarn pony tail bow.

2.
I kep’ myself hard at it, to make it play a tune,
I thought I’d try an easy one like “Chicken Behind the Moon,”
But one lick sound like an old buzz saw, and the next like the whooping’ cough,
I ‘clare I think them notes ain’t there, the feller left ‘em off.

3.
You stick your fingers here and there, and run the bow acrost,
But the doggone thing tangles up on the string, and all I get is lost.
I think the man that invented this musta had it in for me,
I might as well a-took up fishin’ and left this fiddlin’ be.

4.
But here I sit an’ I ain’t gonna quit, it’s got into my blood,
I’m bound I’ll play this fiddle bad, if I can’t play it good,
Saw and saw and never let up, them’s my only joys,
Thing I notice more and more: I’m starting’ to like the noise.

===

On Nov 23, 2021, at 7:34 PM, Joe Offer wrote:

Hi, Bob -
I haven't seen you around Mudcat for a long time, but I still think of you now and then. I've enjoyed the correspondence we've had over the years. I got a call from Bob and Jeanne Zentz yesterday. They're looking for your song "Ponytail Beau" (they think that's the title). I thought I had posted every song you've written, but that's not one I knew of.
Can you help?
All the best to you.
-Joe Offer, The Mudcat Cafe-

---

Click to play (joeweb)

Subject: RE: Songs of Bob Coltman
From: GUEST
Date: 28 Nov 21 - 10:02 AM

I was meaning to relearn Tear Old Wilson Down - thanks for posting.

Anyone who hasn't should hear Murray Callahan sing Jacob's Pillow. The definitive version, I think.

wg