Well, the ragman draws circles
Up and down the block,
I'd ask him what the matter was,
But I know that he don't talk,
And the ladies treat me kindly
And furnish me with tape,
But, deep inside my heart,
Lord, I know I can't escape.
Oh, mama, can this really be the end –
To be stuck inside of Mobile with the Memphis blues again?
Shakespeare, he's in the alley
With his pointed shoes and his bells,
Speaking to some French girl,
Who says she knows me well.
And I would send a message
To find out if she's talked,
But the post office has been stolen
And the mailbox is locked.
Oh, mama, can this really be the end –
To be stuck inside of Mobile with the Memphis blues again?
Mona tried to tell me
Stay away from the train line,
She said that all the railroad men
Drink up your blood like wine.
And I said, "Oh, I didn't know that,
But, then again, there's only one I've met
And he just smoked my eyelids,
And punched my cigarette."
Ooh, mama, can this really be the end –
To be stuck inside of Mobile with the Memphis blues again?
Grandpa died last week,
Now he's buried in the rocks,
Everyone still talks about
How badly they were shocked –
But me, I expected it to happen
When I seen him lose control,
He built a fire on Main Street
And shot it fulla holes.
Oh, mama, can this really be the end –
To be stuck inside of Mobile with the Memphis blues again?
Well, my Ruthie said come see her
In her honky-tonk lagoon,
Where I could watch her waltz for free
'Neath her Panamanian moon.
I said, "Oh, come on, now,
You must know about my débutante."
She said, "Your débutante knows what you need,
But I know what you want."
Oh, mama, can this really be the end –
To be stuck inside of Mobile with the Memphis blues again?
Now, the bricks, they fall on Grand Street,
Where the neon madmen climb,
They'd all fall there so perfectly,
It all seemed so well-timed,
And here I sit so patiently,
Waiting to find out what price
You have to pay to get outta
Going through all these things twice.
Oh, mama, can this really be the end –
To be stuck here inside of Mobile with the Memphis blues again?