Blue Wing
Tom Russell Lyrics

He had a blue wing tattooed on his shoulder
The subject had a tattoo of a blue wing, or possibly a bluebird, on his shoulder

Well, it might have been a bluebird, I don't know
The singer is unsure whether the tattoo was of a bluebird or a blue wing

but he'd get stone drunk and talk about Alaska
The subject would get very drunk and reminisce about his time in Alaska

The salmon boats and 45 below
He would talk about the salmon boats and the extreme cold of Alaska, which can reach temperatures of 45 degrees below zero

Well, he got that blue wing up in Walla Walla
The subject got his tattoo while in Walla Walla

and his cellmate there was a Little Willy John
While in Walla Walla, his cellmate was a man named Little Willy John

and Willie, he was once a great blues singer
His cellmate, Little Willy John, was a famous blues singer

so Wing & Willie wrote him up a song
The subject and Willie wrote a song together while in prison

They sang, it's dark in here, can't see the light
The song they wrote together talks about the darkness of prison and the inability to see the light

but I look at this blue wing when I close my eyes
The singer finds solace in his tattoo of the blue wing when he pictures it in his head

and I fly away, beyond these walls
The blue wing helps the singer escape from the confines of prison

up above the clouds, where the rain don't fall
The blue wing takes him to a place of freedom and beauty

on a poor man's dreams
This new world of freedom is something a poor man can only dream of and hope for

They paroled blue wing in August of 1963
The subject was released from prison in August of 1963

He moved north, picking apples in the town of Wenatchee
He moved to Wenatchee, Washington and worked in the apple orchards

And then winter finally caught him in a rundown trailer park
He eventually found himself in a dilapidated trailer park during the winter

on the south side of Seattle where the days grow grey and dark
This trailer park was located on the south side of Seattle where the days were dreary

And he drank and he dreamt a vision of when the seven still ran free
He drank and returned to the happy memories of times when his people still had freedom

and his father's fathers crossed that wide old Bering sea
He remembers the days when his ancestors traveled across the Bering Sea

and the land belonged to everyone, and there were old songs yet to sing
During that time, the land was owned by everyone and there was still much to be done and created

now, it's broken down to a cheap hotel and a tattooed prison wing
Now, the world he lived in has been reduced to a cheap hotel and a tattoo of a prison wing

Well, he drank his way to L.A., and that's where he died
He moved to Los Angeles and continued to drink until he passed away

and no one knew his Christian name, and there was no one there to cry
No one knew his real name and no one cared enough to mourn his passing

but I dreamt there was a funeral; a preacher and a cheap pine box
The singer remembers dreaming of his funeral, where only a preacher and a cheap coffin were present

and halfway through the sermon blue wing began to talk
Halfway through the sermon, the blue wing tattoo seemingly came to life and spoke

He said, it's dark in here...
The blue wing spoke the first line of the song written in prison, reminding the singer of where he came from and the struggles he faced