Black Market Baby
Tom Waits Lyrics

She lives in a house
The woman in question resides in a home

That's way back off the road
The house is located far from the main road

There's a man with a lantern
A man carrying a lantern is present in her house

And he carries her soul
The man seems to carry the woman's soul with him

A coal stove and a bed
The house contains a bed and a coal stove

A skillet and a hound
There is also a frying pan and a dog in the house

She drove a camel through a needle
She accomplished something seemingly impossible, similar to a camel passing through the eye of a needle

In this sinking boardwalk town
The town where she resides is decaying and run-down

She's my black-market baby (she's my baby)
The artist refers to the woman as his secret, forbidden love

She's a diamond who wants to stay coal
The woman has potential to be great, but desires to remain unpolished and raw

I swang out wide with her
The singer has been involved in risky, dangerous behavior with the woman

On hell's iron gate
This behavior may lead to negative consequences

Anything that you wanted
The woman fulfills all desires and cravings

You could have
The singer has access to anything they want through the woman

My eyes say their prayers to her
The singer is obsessed and worships the woman

Sailors ring her bell
The woman is attractive to many people, particularly sailors

The way a moth mistakes a light bulb
People are drawn to the woman without fully knowing why

For the moon and goes to hell
Following the woman can lead to danger and negative consequences

There's no prayer like desire
Desire can be all-consuming and overpowering

There's amnesia in her kiss
Kissing the woman is so intense, it can cause memory loss

She's a swan and a pistol
The woman is simultaneously beautiful and dangerous

And she will follow you like this
The woman will pursue the artist persistently

In Moberly, Missouri
The scene shifts to a new location

At the Iroquois Hotel
The woman has checked into a hotel

She checked in with the President
The woman has important connections and powerful allies

And she ran up quite a Bill
The woman has expensive tastes and spends recklessly

Well, she's whiskey in a teacup
The woman may seem refined and sophisticated, but actually has a wild side

She gives blondes a lousy name
The woman is a negative stereotype of blonde women

She's a Bonzai Aphrodite
The woman is beautiful but deadly, much like a Bonsai tree

And a ticket back to Spain
The woman represents a one-way ticket to danger and risk

She's a hard way to go
Being involved with the woman is not going to be easy

And there ain't no way to stop
The artist cannot resist the allure of the woman

Everytime you play the red the black is coming up
Just when you think you know what to expect from the woman, she surprises you

My baby wants to stay coal, coal, coal
The woman desires to remain unpolished and raw, despite her potential for greatness