Joni Mitchell - Magdalene Laundries Lyrics
I was an unmarried girlId just turned twenty-sevenWhen they sent me to the sistersFor the way men looked at meBranded as a jezebelI knew I was not bound for heavenId be cast in shameInto the magdalene laundriesMost girls come here pregnantSome by their own fathersBridget got that bellyBy her parish priestWere trying to get things white as snowAll of us woe-begotten-daughtersIn the streaming stainsOf the magdalene laundriesProstitutes and destitutesAnd temptresses like me--Fallen women--Sentenced into dreamless drudgery ...Why do they call this heartless placeOur lady of charity?Oh charity!These bloodless brides of jesusIf they had just once glimpsed their groomThen theyd know, and theyd drop the stonesConcealed behind their rosariesThey wilt the grass they walk uponThey leech the light out of a roomTheyd like to drive us down the drainAt the magdalene laundriesPeg oconnell died todayShe was a cheeky girlA flirtThey just stuffed her in a hole!Surely to God youd think at least some bells should ring!One day Im going to die here tooAnd theyll plant me in the dirtLike some lame bulbThat never blooms come any springNot any springNo, not any springNot any spring
