Country House

Remember that country house we used to own
The one with the busted fence
We'd sit on our porches and greet all the passers by
Not giving more than a glimpse

In that little town off the border of Pittsburgh
We knew every face, every smile, every laugh
Remember the luster of a freshly dampened sidewalk
How the children would purposely Splash

Oh we worked in Señor Gonzales's shop
Preparing the lunch after lunch
Mrs. Petunia would give me a tip
And say "keep the change, don't show your boss"
On my way home, I'd pass Mark and his kids
Playing with a round orange ball
He and his kids have a big house with a sturdy yard
Complete with a bathroom stall

And the street boy is practicing violin
On his way to Carnegie Hall
When a hobo says "hi" to you
Time to go inside for you
That's when you'll get my call
Get my call

I heard on the local news
That Joshua was arrested
For stealing from the Ocean Frontier
Everyone had said that he was up to no good
But no one expected such a sin
Mark said he'd kill himself if his kids grew up to be like that
That's cause' he raised them so well
If he was joking or maybe just bragging
I was not able to tell
And a rock was thrown through my window last night
And it landed near the foot of my couch
And looked out my window
And saw those Mexicans again
Smoking and laughing and peeing on my house

And the street boy is practicing violin
On his way to Carnegie Hall
When a hobo says "hi" to you
Time to go inside for you
That's when you'll get my call
Get my call

Oh, the good man is rich
And the bad man is poor
When we play this game
And oh, the school bus is filled
With a number of close
Who live just the same

Mr. Gonzales came into work one day
He said that he was offered a job
That's when I met Mrs. Self-Absorbed no one
Who took the job of my new boss
I couldn't afford to live all by myself
So I moved in with Sally and Ken
They seemed real nice but after a while
It seemed like my old life again

Forty years later, I started a business
Selling small trinkets to Spain
I live in Manhattan, I own my apartment
And I have a little queen named Lorraine

I got a phone call last week
Got invited to a funeral
But I didn't remember who died
It turns out that Mark's son
Had stolen a Mercedes
And Mark had agreed what he'd promised to do
And he was the last man in my hometown
So the memory left Arrup with him

And the street boy is practicing violin
On his way to Carnegie Hall
When a hobo says "hi" to you
Time to go inside for you
That's when you'll get my call
Get my call