Lucinda Williams
"American Dream"


Last time I saw you, you had dirt under your nails
Your eyes were glassy and you looked so pale
You said my life has become a livin' hell
Ain't got enough money to pay my bills

Everything is wrong
Everything is wrong

Got a friend with a needle stuck in his arm
He got hooked on heroin in Vietnam
It used to help kill the pain some of the time
Now I can't sleep at all since I got back home

I worked in the strip mines off and on
Now I can't seem to get rid of this cough
Ain't been many jobs these last few months
And the last one I had I got laid off

I ain't got no hot water and they shut off the heat
Can you loan me some money for something to eat
Been out here on this corner for about a week
Tryin hard to stand on my own two feet

They want to try and tell me where I can live
They kicked me off my land and told me they'd give me
A nice little tract house with running water
But how am I gonna explain that to my Navaho mother

My American dream almost came true
But the things they promised me never came through
I believe in the American dream
But things are never quite what they seem

Everything is wrong
Everything is wrong
Everything is wrong