To Beat The Devil

A couple of years back, I come across a

Great and wasted friend of mine in the hallway of a recording studio

And while he was reciting some poetry to me that he'd written

I saw that he was about a step away from dyin', and I couldn't help but wonder why

And, uh, the lines of this song occurred to me

I'm happy to say he's no longer wasted, and he's got him a good woman

And I'd like to dedicate this to John and June

Who helped show me how to beat the devil

It was wintertime in Nashville, down on Music City Row

And I was lookin' for a place to get myself out of the cold

To warm the frozen feelin' that was eatin' at my soul

Keep the chilly wind off my guitar

My thirsty wanted whiskey, my hungry needed beans

But it'd been of month of paydays since I'd heard that eagle scream

So with a stomach full of empty and a pocket full of dreams

I left my pride and stepped inside a bar

Actually, I guess you'd call it a tavern

Cigarette smoke to the ceilin' and sawdust on the floor

Friendly shadows

I saw that there was just one old man sittin' at the bar

And in the mirror, I could see him checkin' me and my guitar

And he turned and said, "Come up here, boy, and show us what you are"

I said, "I'm dry," and he bought me a beer

He nodded at my guitar and said

"It's a tough life, ain't it?"

I just looked at him

He said, "You ain't makin' any money, are you?"

I said, "You've been readin' my mail"

He just smiled and said, "Let me see that guitar

I got somethin' you oughta hear"

Then he laid it on me

"If you waste your time a-talkin'

To the people who don't listen

To the things that you are sayin'

Who do you think's gonna hear?

And if you should die explainin' how

The things that they complain about

Are things they could be changin'

Who do you think's gonna care?"

There were other lonely singers in a world turned deaf and blind

Who were crucified for what they tried to show