the junkie and the juicehead
Kris Kristofferson Lyrics

I was a stumble bummin' down the neon Music City sidewalks
I was wandering aimlessly in the streets of Music City, without any clear direction.

With the junkie and the juicehead who had problems of their own
Accompanied by two other men who also had their share of issues.

Stuck with luck it kept me standin' just a step away from starvin'
I was surviving on luck and barely had enough to eat.

And the talent that I swore I'd show before I'd go back home
I still believed in my talent and was determined to showcase it before returning home.

Ninety days I looked the army makin' neither love nor money
I spent ninety days in the army without making any money or falling in love.

And my only set of clothes was gettin' closer to the bone
My only pair of clothes was getting worn out.

And the junkie placed an order with the prophet on the corner
One of my companions, the junkie, ordered something from a street seller.

And he told him of the soul that he'd been sellin' for a song
The seller claimed to have been selling a precious thing for a very low price.

He said my future was my fortune but I let it slip away
The seller told us that our fortunes were in our own hands, but I didn't capitalize on my opportunities.

Slowly smokin' myself broke on eighty cigarettes a day
I was spending too much money on cigarettes and it was damaging me financially.

Findin' out that crime ain't all there is that doesn't pay
I realized that crime also had consequences.

And writin' words that no one's gonna see but did you said it? Who said it?
I was writing things that may not be seen by anyone, but it's worth asking who said it.

I can read my fortune in the bottom of a glass
I look at the bottom of a glass to determine what's in store for me.

And I can see it's time for me to make my last request
I realized it's time for me to make a final wish.

Won't you fill my grave with whiskey when I'm laid away to rest
My final request is for my grave to be filled with whiskey.

So the boys can say I drank myself to dead
So that others can say I drank myself to death.

Well, I drank the whole thing over puttin' one and two together
I finally made sense of everything.

And it added up to more of what I didn't want to be
But it equated to becoming something I never wanted to be.

I ain't blamin' Music City but it's only gonna see me
I'm not blaming the city, but I know it won't see me for much longer.

One more day and the wake up and the time it takes to leave
Just one more day until I wake up and leave this city.

Cause I got a dirty picture of what could have been my future
I have a bleak outlook on what my future could have been.

In a prophet pushin' day dreams on a corner for a fee
The street seller offered fake hopes and dreams for a price.

And the wino lookin' lonely at a bottle gettin' empty
I saw an alcoholic who looked sad as his bottle was slowly getting empty.

And a hungry lookin' junkie huntin' tea in sympathy
Another one of my companions, who appeared famished, was searching for tea out of understanding.

And I bet that junkie's laughin' after the life he threw away
I wouldn't be surprised if the junkie was laughing at the kind of life he chose to live.

Pleadin' down the prophet to a price that he can pay
The junkie begged the seller to lower the price to what he could afford.

And writin' words that no one's gonna see but did you said it? Who said it?
I was still writing things that may not see the light of day; but still, it's worth asking who said it.

Every empty bottle is my private crystal ball
To me, every empty bottle foretells my future.

And starin' into the future, findin' nothin' there at all
When I look at the future, I can't see anything promising.

Which is what I'll miss tomorrow when the neon shadows fall
Tomorrow, I'll miss seeing anything positive when the shadows fall.

On the junkie and the juicehead minus me
But I won't be around to see my companions, the junkie and the juicehead, when the shadows fall.