Your favorite song that tells a story (narrative ballad)

Your favorite song that tells a story (narrative ballad)

Growing up, I have always loved songs that told stories. Here are a few, vote for one or list your own:

El Paso by Marty Robbins: This was one of my early favorites, the story of a cowboy who falls for a Mexican girl, Felina. When it would come on the radio I would turn it up and sing the whole song, which drove my kids nuts. it dint take them long to be sucked into the story, though, and my fifteen year old's ipod now has El Paso on it mixed in with his red hot chili peppers and black eyed peas.

Out in the West Texas town of El Paso
I fell in love with a Mexican girl.
Night-time would find me in Rosa's cantina;
Music would play and Felina would whirl.

Blacker than night were the eyes of Felina,
Wicked and evil while casting a spell.
My love was deep for this Mexican maiden;
I was in love but in vain, I could tell.

B:
One night a wild young cowboy came in,
Wild as the West Texas wind.
Dashing and daring,
A drink he was sharing
With wicked Felina,
The girl that I loved.

So in anger I

Challenged his right for the love of this maiden.
Down went his hand for the gun that he wore.
My challenge was answered in less than a heart-beat;
The handsome young stranger lay dead on the floor.

Just for a moment I stood there in silence,
Shocked by the bountiful deed I had done.
Many thoughts raced through my mind as I stood there;
I had but one chance and that was to run.

B:
Out through the back door of Rosa's I ran,
Out where the horses were tied.
I caught a good one.
It looked like it could run.
Up on its back
And away I did ride,

Just as fast as I

Could from the West Texas town of El Paso
Out to the bad-lands of New Mexico.

Back in El Paso my life would be worthless.
Everything's gone in life; nothing is left.
It's been so long since I've seen the young maiden
My love is stronger than my fear of death.

B:
I saddled up and away I did go,
Riding alone in the dark.
Maybe tomorrow
A bullet may find me.
Tonight nothing's worse than this
Pain in my heart.

And at last here I

Am on the hill overlooking El Paso;
I can see Rosa's cantina below.
My love is strong and it pushes me onward.
Down off the hill to Felina I go.

Off to my right I see five mounted cowboys;
Off to my left ride a dozen or more.
Shouting and shooting I can't let them catch me.
I have to make it to Rosa's back door.

B:
Something is dreadfully wrong for I feel
A deep burning pain in my side.
Though I am trying
To stay in the saddle,
I'm getting weary,
Unable to ride.

But my love for

Felina is strong and I rise where I've fallen,
Though I am weary I can't stop to rest.
I see the white puff of smoke from the rifle.
I feel the bullet go deep in my chest.

From out of nowhere Felina has found me,
Kissing my cheek as she kneels by my side.
Cradled by two loving arms that I'll die for,
One little kiss and Felina, good-bye.

Big John by Tennessee Ernie Ford: This came on the radio a few months ago and I gave it the fifteen yr old test as well as I asked my boy to listen closely to the story which, after rolling his eyes, he reluctantly did. Its the story of a big man who sacrifices himself to save fellow workers in a mine collapse. If you teared up when ole yeller died you had to get misty eyed when Big John passed. My son gave it a surprising thumbs up.

Big John
Big John

Every morning at the mine you could see him arrive
He stood six-foot-six and weighed two-forty-five
Kinda broad at the shoulder and narrow at the hip
Everybody knew you didn't give no lip to Big John

Big John
Big John
Big Bad John
Big John

Nobody seemed to know where John called home
He just drifted into town and stayed all alone
He didn't say much, kinda quiet and shy
If ya spoke at all, ya just said hi to Big John
Somebody said he came from New Orleans
Where he got in a fight o'er a cajun queen
And a crashin' blow from a huge right hand
Sent a Lousianna fella to the promised land, Big John

Big John
Big John
Big Bad John
Big John

Then came the day at the bottom of the mine
When a timber cracked and men started cryin'
Miners were prayin' and hearts beat fast
And everybody thought they'd breathed their last, 'cept John
Through the dust and the smoke of this man-made hell
Walked a giant of a man that the miners knew well
Grabbed the saggin' timber and gave out with a groan
And like a giant oak tree, just stood there alone, Big John

Big John
Big John
Big Bad John
Big John

And with all of his strength he gave a mighty shove
Then a miner yelled out, there's a light up above
And twenty men scrambled from a would-be grave
now there's only one left down there to save, Big John
With jacks and timbers they started back down
Then came that rumble way down in the ground
As smoke and gas belched outta the mine
Everybody knew it was the end of the line for Big John

Big John
Big John
Big Bad John
Big John

Taxi by Harry Chapin: Chapin did a number of these type songs including the ultra depressing Cats in the Cradle which didnt make my list because its such a downer. Taxi is awesome. Its a great story from the get go, has great lyrics and a fabulous melody. I fly high, so highhhh, when I'm stoned.

It was raining hard in 'Frisco,
I needed one more fare to make my night.
A lady up ahead waved to flag me down,
She got in at the light.
Oh, where you going to, my lady blue,
It's a shame you ruined your gown in the rain.
She just looked out the window, and said
"Sixteen Parkside Lane".
Something about her was familiar
I could swear I'd seen her face before,
But she said, "I'm sure you're mistaken"
And she didn't say anything more.
It took a while, but she looked in the mirror,
And she glanced at the license for my name.
A smile seemed to come to her slowly,
It was a sad smile, just the same.
And she said, "How are you Harry?"
I said, "How are you Sue?
Through the too many miles
and the too little smiles
I still remember you."
It was somewhere in a fairy tale,
I used to take her home in my car.
We learned about love in the back of the Dodge,
The lesson hadn't gone too far.
You see, she was gonna be an actress,
And I was gonna learn to fly.
She took off to find the footlights,
And I took off to find the sky.
Oh, I've got something inside me,
To drive a princess blind.
There's a wild man, wizard,
He's hiding in me, illuminating my mind.
Oh, I've got something inside me,
Not what my life's about,
Cause I've been letting my outside tide me,
Over 'till my time, runs out.
Baby's so high that she's skying,
Yes she's flying, afraid to fall.
I'll tell you why baby's crying,
Cause she's dying, aren't we all.
There was not much more for us to talk about,
Whatever we had once was gone.
So I turned my cab into the driveway,
Past the gate and the fine trimmed lawns.
And she said we must get together,
But I knew it'd never be arranged.
And she handed me twenty dollars,
For a two fifty fare, she said
"Harry, keep the change."
Well another man might have been angry,
And another man might have been hurt,
But another man never would have let her go...
I stashed the bill in my shirt.
And she walked away in silence,
It's strange, how you never know,
But we'd both gotten what we'd asked for,
Such a long, long time ago.
You see, she was gonna be an actress
And I was gonna learn to fly.
She took off to find the footlights,
And I took off for the sky.
And here, she's acting happy,
Inside her handsome home.
And me, I'm flying in my taxi,
Taking tips, and getting stoned,
I go flying so high, when I'm stoned.

Boy named Sue by Johnny Cash: Okay, I will be the first to admit Boy Named Sue doesnt belong with classics like El Paso. Its much more of a novelty song and doesnt have the sadness and pathos of the others listed. Still, it was a funny story and wonderfully sung by Johnny Cash. The lyrics describing the fight with his old man are great.

Well, my daddy left home when I was three,
and he didn't leave much to ma and me,
Just this ole guitar and an empty bottle of booze.

Now I don't blame him 'cause he run and hid,
But the meanest thing that he ever did,
Was before he left he went and named me Sue.

Well, he musta thought that it was quite a joke,
An' it got a lot of laughs from lots a folks,
Seems I had to fight my whole life through.

Some gal would giggle and I'd get red,
And some guy'd laugh and I'd bust his head,
I'll tell ya, life ain't easy for a boy named Sue.

I grew up fast and I grew up mean,
My fist got hard and my wis got keen,
I roamed from town to town to hid my shame.

But I made me a vow to the moon and stars,
I'd search the honky-tonks and bars,
And kill that man that gave me that awful name.

Well, it was Gatlandburg in mid-July,
I'd just hit town and my throat was dry,
thought I'd stop and have myself a brew.

In and old saloon on a street of mud,
There at a table dealin' stud,
Sat the dirty, mangy dog that named me Sue.

Well I knew that snake was my own sweet dad,
from a worn out picture that my mother had,
& I knew that scar on his cheek & his evil eye.

He was big and bent and grey and old,
And I looked at him and my blood ran cold, and I said,
"My name is Sue! how do you do! Now you gonna die!"
Yeah that's what I told him.

Well, I hit him hard right between the eyes,
And he went down but to my surprise,
Come up with a knife a cut off a piece o' my ear.

I busted a chair right across his teeth,
And we crashed through the wall and into the street,
Kickin' and a gougin' in the the mud and the blood and the beer.

I tell you I've fought tougher men,
but I really can't remember when,
he kicked like a mule & bit like a crocodile.

Well I heard him laugh and then I heard him cuss,
He went for his gun but I pulled mine first,
He stood there lookin' at me and I saw him smile.

And he said, "Son, this world is rough,
And if a man's gonna make it he's gotta be tough,
And I know I wouldn't be there to help you along.

So I gave that name and I said goodbye,
I knew you'd have to get tough or die,
And it's that name what helped to make you strong.

Now you just fought one hell of a fight,
And I know you hate me and ya got the right,
To kill me now and I wouldn't blame you if you do.

But you oughtta thank me before I die,
For the gravel in your gut and the spit in your eye,
'Cause I'm the ------- that named you Sue."

Well, what could I do, what COULD I do?
Well I got a choked up and threw down my gun,
Called him a pa and he called me a son,
And I come away with a different point of view.

I think about him now and then,
Every time I try and every time I win,
And if I ever have a son,
I think I'm gonna name him,
Bill or George anything but Sue!
I still hate that name

Camp Grenada by Allan Sherman: Now I know this doesnt belong with the classics but I stuck it in because it came out when I was going to camps and catching poison ivy. the lead in line, hello muddah, hello faddah, is awesome. Its not a classic and I dont know why I included it, but I did.

Hello muddah, hello faddah
Here I am at Camp Granada
Camp is very entertaining
And they say we'll have some fun if it stops raining.

I went hiking with Joe Spivy
He developed poison ivy
You remember Leonard Skinner
He got ptomaine poison last night after dinner.

All the counselors hate the waiters
And the lake has alligators
And the head coach wants no sissies
So he reads to us from something called Ulysses.

How I don't want this to scare ya
But my bunkmate has malaria
You remember Jeffrey Hardy
They're about to organize a searching party.

Take me home, oh muddah, faddah
Take me home, I hate Granada
Don't leave me out in the forest where
I might get eaten by a bear.
Take me home I promise I will not make noise
Or mess the house with other boys.
Oh please don't make me stay
I've been here one whole day.

Dearest faddah, darling muddah,
How's my precious little bruddah
Let me come home, if you miss me
I would even let Aunt Bertha hug and kiss me.

Wait a minute, it's stopped hailing.
Guys are swimming, gals are sailing
Playing baseball, gee that's better
Muddah, faddah kindly disregard this letter.

The Boxer by Simon and Garfunkle: One of my favorite all times. My favorite verse is "In the clearing stands a boxer, and a fighter by his trade and he carries the reminder of every glove that laid him down or cut him 'til he cried out in his anger and his shame I am leaving, I am leaving, but the fighter still remains". Great song.

I am just a poor boy, though my story's seldom told

I have squandered my resistance for a pocketful of mumbles, such are promises

All lies and jest, still a man hears what he wants to hear

And disregards the rest (hmmmm....mmmm......)

When I left my home and my family, I was no more than a boy

In the company of strangers.....

In the quiet of the railway station, runnin' scared

Laying low, seeking out the poorer quarters, where the ragged people go

Looking for the places only they would know

(Li la li... li la la la li la li)

(Li la li... li la la la li la li)

(La la la la li...)

Seeking only workman's wages, I come looking for a job, but I get no offers.....

Just a come-on from the whores on Seventh Avenue

I do declare, there were times when I was so lonesome

I took some comfort there (li la la, la, la la)

Now the years are rolling by me, they are rockin' even me

I am older than I once was, and younger than I'll be, that's not unusual

No it isn't strange, after changes upon changes, we are more or less the same

After changes we are more or less the same ...

(Li la li... li la la la li la li)

(Li la li... li la la la li la li)

(La la la la li...)

And I'm laying out my winter clothes, wishing I was gone, goin' home

Where the New York city winters aren't bleedin' me, leadin' me to go home

In the clearing stands a boxer, and a fighter by his trade

And he carries the reminder of every glove that laid him down or cut him

'Til he cried out in his anger and his shame

I am leaving, I am leaving, but the fighter still remains

Yes, he still remains ...

(Li la li... li la la la li la li)

(Li la li... li la la la li la li)

The Night The Lights Went Out In Georgia by Vickie Lawrence: Some may not know this song but it listens like a mystery story. It has great lyrics, a wonderful melody and the requisite sad ending mixed in with a dash of irony. Good song. For those who care about music trivia the words and music were by Lawrence's husband, Bobby Russel.

He was on his way home from Candletop
Been two weeks gone and he thought he'd stop
At William's and have him a drink 'fore he went home to her
Andy Wolloe said "Hello"
And he said "Hi, what's doin', Wo?"
"Seth, sit down, I got some bad news, it's gonna hurt"
He said "I'm your best friend and you know that's right"
"But your young bride ain't home tonight"
"Since you been gone she's been seein' that Amos boy, Seth "
Well, he got mad 'n' he saw red and Andy said "Boy, don'tcha lose your head"
" 'cause to tell ya the truth, I been with her myself"

That's the night that the lights went out in Georgia
That's the night that they hung an innocent man
Well, don't trust your soul to no backwoods Southern lawyer
'cause the judge in the town's got bloodstains on his hands

Well, Andy got scared and left the bar
Walkin' on home 'cause he didn't live far
See, Andy didn't have many friends and he'd just lost him one
Brother thought his wife musta left town
So he went home and finally found
The only thing Papa had left him, that was a gun

And he went off to Andy's house
A'skippin' through the backwoods quiet as a mouse
Came upon some tracks too small for Andy to make
He looked through the screen at the back-porch door
And he saw Andy lyin' on the floor
In a puddle of blood and he started to shake

Well, the Georgia Patrol was a'makin' their rounds
So he fired a shot just to flag 'em down
And a big-bellied sheriff got his gun and said "why'dya do it?"
And the judge said "Guilty" in a make-believe trial
And slapped the sheriff on the back with a smile
Said' supper's waitin' at home and I gotta get to it"

That's the night that the lights went out in Georgia
That's the night that they hung an innocent man
Well, don't trust your soul to no backwoods Southern lawyer
'cause the judge in the town's got bloodstains on his hands

Well, they hung my brother before I could say
The tracks he saw while on his way
To Andy's house and back that night were mine
And his cheatin' wife had never left town
And that's one body that'll never be found
See, little sister don't miss when she aims her gun

That's the night that the lights went out in Georgia, oh-oh-aah
That's the night that they hung an innocent man, ah-huh-unh
Well, don't trust your soul to no backwoods Southern lawyer

FADE
'cause the judge in the town's got bloodstains on his hands

Ode To Billie Joe by Bobby Gentry: I threw this one in for Joe Okc. Its kind of in the same genre as Lights went Out in Georgia. The words flowed so well in the song and I guess the line that stands out for me is "And now Billie Joe MacAllister's jumped off the Tallahatchie Bridge".

It was the third of June, another sleepy, dusty Delta day
I was out choppin' cotton and my brother was balin' hay
And at dinner time we stopped and walked back to the house to eat
And Mama hollered out the back door "Y'all remember to wipe your feet"
And then she said "I got some news this mornin' from Choctaw Ridge"
"Today Billie Joe MacAllister jumped off the Tallahatchie Bridge"

And Papa said to Mama as he passed around the blackeyed peas
"Well, Billie Joe never had a lick of sense, pass the biscuits, please"
"There's five more acres in the lower forty I've got to plow"
And Mama said it was shame about Billie Joe, anyhow
Seems like nothin' ever comes to no good up on Choctaw Ridge
And now Billie Joe MacAllister's jumped off the Tallahatchie Bridge

And Brother said he recollected when he and Tom and Billie Joe
Put a frog down my back at the Carroll County picture show
And wasn't I talkin' to him after church last Sunday night?
"I'll have another piece of apple pie, you know it don't seem right"
"I saw him at the sawmill yesterday on Choctaw Ridge"
"And now you tell me Billie Joe's jumped off the Tallahatchie Bridge"

And Mama said to me "Child, what's happened to your appetite?"
"I've been cookin' all morning and you haven't touched a single bite"
"That nice young preacher, Brother Taylor, dropped by today"
"Said he'd be pleased to have dinner on Sunday, oh, by the way"
"He said he saw a girl that looked a lot like you up on Choctaw Ridge"
"And she and Billie Joe was throwing somethin' off the Tallahatchie Bridge"

A year has come 'n' gone since we heard the news 'bout Billie Joe
And Brother married Becky Thompson, they bought a store in Tupelo
There was a virus going 'round, Papa caught it and he died last Spring
And now Mama doesn't seem to wanna do much of anything
And me, I spend a lot of time pickin' flowers up on Choctaw Ridge
And drop them into the muddy water off the Tallahatchie Bridge

Operator by Jim Croce: The list wouldnt be complete without a Jim Croce song. Operator was my favorite, there were many more.

Operator, well could you help me place this call?
See, the number on the matchbook is old and faded.
She's living in L. A. with my best old ex-friend Ray,
A guy she said she knew well and sometimes hated.

Isn't that the way they say it goes? Well, let's forget all that
And give me the number if you can find it,
So I can call just to tell 'em Im fine and to show
I've overcome the blow, Ive learned to take it well --
I only wish my words could just convince myself
That it just wasn't real, but that's not the way it feels.

Operator, well could you help me place this call?
Well, I can't read the number that you just gave me.
There's something in my eyes, you know it happens every time --
I think about a love that I thought would save me.

Isn't that the way they say it goes? Well, let's forget all that
And give me the number if you can find it,
So I can call just to tell 'em Im fine and to show
I've overcome the blow, Ive learned to take it well --
I only wish my words could just convince myself
That it just wasn't real, but that's not the way it feels.
No, no, no, no -- that's not the way it feels.

Operator, well let's forget about this call --
There's no one there I really wanted to talk to.
Thank you for your time, ah, you've been so much more than kind.
And you can keep the dime.

Isn't that the way they say it goes? Well, let's forget all that
And give me the number if you can find it,
So I can call just to tell 'em Im fine and to show
I've overcome the blow, Ive learned to take it well --
I only wish my words could just convince myself
That it just wasn't real, but that's not the way it feels.
No, no, no, no -- that's not the way it feels.