Kiss of a Man

The strangers came
The strangers went
To my daddy's bar
The floor was cement
And wet all the time
It never got dry
Nothing but the smell of old beer and rye

Mama and daddy and me
We lived in the back
The door wasn't but twenty-five feet from the tracks
And trains would roll by
All day and all night
Rattle them bottles
And shake all them lights

And the strangers would come and the strangers
Would go
Talking too fast or walking too slow
Sometimes they'd say hey
Pretty girl what's your name?
Why don't you come here and be
Pretty for us?
Then my daddy would make like he'd reach
For his gun
And those boys would shake
Or hush up and run

Now some of those boys
I noticed them too
Looking at me
But there was nothing to do
When daddy stood watch
Big mean and sober
Like a wall so tall
No one could get over

Sometimes at night
Under the sheets
I'd cover myself from my head to my feet
And wait till my mama and daddy went to sleep
And though I was awake
Dream a dream so sweet

Dream a dream so sweet
Though I was awake
Dream a dream so sweet
All of me ached
Close my eyes and pretend
On the back of my hand
What it would be like
The kiss of a man