Time Don't Pass by Here
The Marshall Tucker Band Lyrics

Last night I dreamed I laid me down and died
The singer has a dream in which he dies.

And lots of people came and signed their name
Many people attended his funeral and signed the guest book.

But only a few of them cried
Only a few people were truly sad about the singer's death.

They put me in a big pine box
The artist's body is placed in a coffin.

And dropped me in a deep dark hole
The coffin is lowered into the ground.

And the preacher said a prayer for my lost soul
The preacher offers a prayer for the singer's soul.

Well they covered me up and left me there to rot
The coffin is covered with dirt and the singer's body is left to decompose.

And the guy next to me said, "Friend, I see
The artist speaks to someone buried in a neighboring grave.

That's a mighty fine box you've got"
The person in the neighboring grave compliments the artist's coffin.

He seemed kind of friendly
The person buried in the neighboring grave appears to be friendly.

So I asked him the time of day
The singer strikes up a conversation with the person in the neighboring grave.

I heard him laughing
The person in the neighboring grave laughs in response to the artist's question.

Then I know I heard the devil say
The singer imagines hearing the devil speak.

Time don't pass by here no more
Once you are buried, time stops passing by in the grave.

Just empty space and fear
The grave is a place of emptiness and fear.

No plane to fly, no wine to pour
There are no pleasures or distractions in the grave.

Only pain to replace the tears
The pain of death replaces the sadness of those who mourn.

You can never recall your memories
Once you are dead, you cannot remember anything.

You can never retrace the years
Time cannot be undone or revisited.

You'll cry but no one hears
Those who mourn the dead are alone in their sorrow.

'Cause time don't pass by here
Time stops in the grave.

Well, I woke up
The artist wakes up from his dream.

And wiped a tear away from my eye
The singer was emotional after his dream.

And me and Mary Jane made a paper plane
The artist and Mary Jane make a paper airplane.

Just to see how high we'd fly
They test how high the paper airplane can go.

She's just like each passing day
Mary Jane is like every other day that passes by.

She's there and then she's gone
Mary Jane is sometimes present and sometimes not.

And I'm the one that's always gettin' stoned
The artist frequently smokes marijuana.

Seems it's hard for me to find where I belong
The artist feels lost or uncertain about his place in the world.

But I think that I'm the happiest
Despite his struggles, the singer is happy.

When I'm singing the saddest songs
The singer finds joy in singing sad songs.

When it comes my turn to die
The artist thinks about his own death.

And when I'm really gone
Once he dies, he will be truly gone.

I hope the devil writes these words
The artist imagines the devil writing something on his tombstone.

Upon my tombstone
The words will be written on his tomb.

You'll cry but no one hears
Despite the sorrow of those who mourn, no one can hear them in the grave.

'Cause time don't pass by here
As before, time stops in the grave.