Cocaine Blues
Luke Jordan Lyrics

Now, go on, gal, don't you take me for no fool
I am not gullible and won't let you think otherwise.

I'm not gonna quit you, pretty mama, whilst the weather's cool
I will not leave you until conditions get tough.

Around your back door, says, honey, I'm gonna creep
I will secretly approach you at the back door.

As long's you make me those two and a half a week
As long as you bring me the payment of two and a half dollars per week.

Now I've got a girl, she works in the white folks yard
I have a lover who works in a white family's garden.

She brings me meal, I can swear, she brings me lard
She brings me food items including meal and lard.

She brings me everything, I swear, that she can steal
She brings anything that she can manage to steal for me.

Now, Barnum Bailey's Circus came to town
A circus called Barnum Bailey came to the town.

They had the dancers looking good and brown
The circus had good-looking dancers who were having a dark complexion.

They didn't know it was against the law
The circus people didn't know it was illegal.

For the monk' to stop at a fine drug store
For the black man to stop at a high-end drug store.

Just around the corner just a minute too late
I almost got caught by the cops who were nearby and arrived just a minute later.

Another one standin' at the big back gate
Another cop was standing at the main entrance.

I'm simply wild about my good cocaine
I'm deeply passionate about the high-quality cocaine I have.

I call my Cora, hey, hey
I call my lover named Cora.

She come on sniffin' with her nose all sore
She comes sniffing with a sore nose due to cocaine addiction.

The doctor swore ain't gonna sell no more
The doctor refused to sell her any more cocaine.

Sayin', run, doctor, ring the bell
He yelled for the doctor to flee from the scene.

The women in the alley
The prostitutes in the alley.

Am simply wild about my good cocaine
They are extremely fond of my high-quality cocaine.

Now, the furniture man came to my house
A furniture salesman came to my house.

It was last Sunday morn
It happened early on a Sunday morning.

He asked me was my wife at home
He inquired if my wife was present.

And I told she had long gone
And I had to tell him that she had left me.

He backed his wagon up to my door
He put his wagon close to my door.

Took everything I had
He took all my belongings.

He carried it back to the furniture store
He took everything to his furniture store.

And I swear I did feel sad
I felt extremely disheartened about losing everything.

What in the world has anyone got
What does anyone have to do with this incident?

Dealin' with the furniture man?
What business does anybody have with the furniture salesman?

If you got no dough
If you have no money.

To stand up for show
To have a good public image.

He certainly will back you back
He will back you into a corner.

He will take everything from an ugly plant
He will take anything you own even if it is of no value.

From a skillet to a frying pan
From a large cooking vessel to a small one.

If it ever was a devil born without any horns
If there could have been a devil who was not intimidating or scary-looking.

It must have been the furniture man
It was the furniture salesman who was the devil-like character in this case.

The babies in the cradle in New Orleans
The young ones in the cradle in New Orleans.

They kept a-whiffin' 'til they got so mean
They kept sniffing cocaine until they became very hostile.

They kept a-whiffin' had to fix it so
They kept sniffing so much that it had to be stopped.

The judge wouldn't 'low to sell no more
The judge disallowed any further sales.

Sayin', run, doctor, ring the bell
The people present there urged the doctor to leave immediately.

The women in the alley
The prostitutes in the alley.

Am simply wild about my good cocaine
They are extremely fond of my high-quality cocaine.