John Wesley Harding - The Red Rose & The Briar Lyrics
Midweek and we reached scarlet townI was almost dying of thirstWe parked the car in some old schoolyardThe windscreen caked in dirtThere was no water in the engine leftNo tread upon the tyresThe electrics were broke cos you went madYou ripped out all the wiresAcross the road, a small cafeIn this state of disrepairYou went for papers and a shaveSo I saved you a chairI knew it wasnt the journeys endAnd that your dream was incompleteBut I just could not stand anymoreI was dead upon my feetI was dead upon my feetTheres nothing there in the market squareBut the ghost of the scarlet town crierI was dead upon my feetI sing the red rose and the briarI sing the red rose and the briarThe waitress told me her life storyShed always meant to up and goShe wiped a cup on her red pinaforeAs we waited for you to showAnd I told her just a little of youBut left the picture incompleteYou still werent there to paint it in personSo I skipped out on the streetI skipped out on the streetThe newsagent grinned, he said yes youd been inYou bought a local paper and some shadesThe washroom attendant said that youd freshened upThat youd left but you hadnt paidAnd I couldnt figure out where you wereSo I went back just to look near the carThere was nothing there where it should have beenJust oil on dirt and tarJust oil on dirt and tarTheres nothing there in the market squareBut the ghost of the scarlet town crierAnd there was nothing there where it should have beenI sing the red rose and the briarI sing the red rose and the briarI saw it parked way down the streetIn a garage off on the rightAnd a man said get your hands off sonI just traded that wreck for a motorbikeThere was nothing left of mine insideNot even the broken radioAnd I couldnt figure out where that left meSo I went back to look for roseThe cafe rouge was a lunchtime rushOf regulars yelling for foodThe service in there left a lot to be desiredAnd all the regulars were getting rudeI saw an apron thrown over a chairA note said hey john were gone, were goneAnd I just smiled cos I loved you bothSo I put the apron onI put the apron onTheres nothing there in the market squareBut the ghost of the scarlet town crierAnd I just put the apron onI sing the red rose and the briarI sing the red rose and the briar
