We Cant Make It Here
James McMurtry
Continues after the ad
Key:
D There's a Vietnam Vet with aCadd9 Cadd9/B cardboard sign sitting there byD the left turn lineD Cadd9 Flag on the wheelchair flappingCadd9/B in the breeze, one leg missing andD both hands freeD Cadd9 No one's paying much mind to him,Cadd9/B D the V.A. budget's just stretched so thinD And there's more comin' home fromCadd9 Cadd9/B the Mideast war, we can't make itD here anymoreD Cadd9 G D Cadd9 GD And that big ol' building was theCadd9 Cadd9/B textile mill, it fed our kids andD it paid our billsD But they turned us out and theyCadd9 Cadd9/B closed the doors, we can't makeD it here anymoreD Cadd9 G D Cadd9 GD See those pallets piled up on theCadd9 Cadd9/B loading dock, they're just gonnaD set there till they rotD 'Cause there's nothing to ship,Cadd9 nothing to pack, just bustedCadd9/B D concrete and rusted tracksD Cadd9 Empty storefronts around theCadd9/B square, there's a needle in theD gutter and glass everywhereD You don't come down here 'lessCadd9 you're looking to score, weCadd9/B D can't make it here anymoreD Cadd9 G D Cadd9 GD Cadd9 The bar's still open but man it'sCadd9/B slow, the tip jar's light and theD register's lowD Cadd9 The bartender don't have much toCadd9/B D say, the regular crowd gets thinner each dayD Some have maxed out all theirCadd9 Cadd9/B credit cards, some are workingD two jobs and living in carsD Cadd9 Minimum wage don't pay for aCadd9/B D roof, don't pay for a drink, if you gotta have proofContinues after the adD Cadd9 Just try it yourself Mr. CEO SeeCadd9/B D how far 5.15 an hour will goD Cadd9 Take a part time job at one ofCadd9/B your stores I bet you can't make itD here anymoreD Cadd9 G D Cadd9 G DCadd9 G D Cadd9 GD And there's a high school girl withCadd9 Cadd9/B a bourgeois dream, just like theD pictures in the magazineD She found on the floor of theCadd9 Cadd9/B Laundromat, a woman with kids canD forget all thatD Cadd9 If she comes up pregnant what'llCadd9/B D she do, forget the career, forget about schoolD Cadd9 Can she live on faith? live onCadd9/B D hope, high on Jesus or hooked on dopeD Cadd9 When it's way too late to just sayCadd9/B D no, you can't make it here anymoreD Cadd9 G D Cadd9 G DCadd9 G D Cadd9D Now I'm stocking shirts in theCadd9 Cadd9/B Wal-Mart store just like the onesD we made beforeD Cadd9 'Cept this one came fromCadd9/B Singapore, I guess we can't make itD here anymoreD Cadd9 G D Cadd9 GD Should I hate a people for theCadd9 shade of their skin or theCadd9/B D shape of their eyes or the shape I'm inD Cadd9 Should I hate 'em for having ourCadd9/B jobs today, no I hate the men sentD the jobs awayD Cadd9 I can see them all now, they hauntCadd9/B my dreams, all lily white andD squeaky cleanD They've never known want, they'llCadd9 Cadd9/B never know need, their s**t don'tD stink and their kids won't bleedD Their kids won't bleed in theCadd9 Cadd9/B damn little war and we can't makeD it here anymoreD Cadd9 G D Cadd9 GD Cadd9 Will work for food, will die forCadd9/B oil, will kill for power and to usD the spoilsD Cadd9 The billionaires get to pay lessCadd9/B D tax, the working poor get to fall through the cracksD Cadd9 Let 'em eat jellybeans, let 'emCadd9/B D eat cake, let 'em eat s**t, whatever it takesD They can join the Air Force, orCadd9 Cadd9/B join the Corps if they can't makeD it here anymoreD Cadd9 G D Cadd9 GD Cadd9 And that's how it is, that's whatCadd9/B we got if the president wants toD admit it or notD You can read it in the paper,Cadd9 Cadd9/B read it on the wall, hear it onD the wind, if you're listening at allD Cadd9 Get out of that limo, look us inCadd9/B the eye, call us on the cell phone,D tell us all whyD Cadd9 In Dayton, Ohio or Portland, MaineCadd9/B D or a cotton gin out on the great high plainsD Cadd9 That's done closed down along withCadd9/B the school and the hospital andD the swimming poolD Cadd9 Dust devils dance in the noondayCadd9/B heat, there's rats in the alley andD trash in the streetD Cadd9 Gang graffiti on a boxcar door, weCadd9/B D can't make it here anymore