Capo 2

Tiger Tom Dixon had a gift from God

He could hit you quick, he could hit you hard

In a world where a man’s hands are put to the test

Tiger Tom Dixon’s hands were the best

Chorus:

Men came from Boston, from Ohio

Corners of counties that you’ll never know


Except for the fists that they did throw at Tiger Tom Dixon

Tiger Tom Dixon

He’d step into the ring, gloves tied on tight
After humbling a man Tom would tie one on in spite
Kick back into a whiskey like it was an easy chair
Drink to anything that the devil may care

Now Tom held the future in his right fist
But there was no good time Tom Dixon could resist
No neon in New England he hadn’t passed out under
No white lightning that hadn’t felt his thunder

Chorus

Tougher than leather and quick as a cat
Till a young man one day is no longer that
And the dreams of those around him sink to the quick
When he slows just enough for them to figure the trick

Come a day in December the steely winds did blow
Into the ring a man Tom Dixon did know
It was himself without the bottle, and the dream held fast
He took Tom’s dream with him and he never looked back

Tom rolled around that bottle for a couple of years
Till he was put in the ground by his own fears
Now all that is left is the story I have told
And the dream that still waits to unfold for Tiger Tom Dixon

Chorus

Intro chords:
[(Am)] [(C)] [(G)] [(C)] [(C/B)] [(Am)]
In the [(Am)]melting snows of On[(C)]tario where the [(G)]wind’ll make you [(Am)]shiver
‘Twas the [(Am)]month of May up in [(C)]Georgian Bay near the [(G)]mouth of the Musquash[(Am)] River
Where the [(C)]bears prowl and the [(G)]coyotes howl and you can [(C)]hear the [(C/B)]osprey [(Am)]scream
Back in ‘[(G)]99 we were cutting pine and [(C)]sending it [(C/B)]down the [(Am)]stream

Young Sandy Gray came to Go Hon Bay all the way from PEI
Where the weather’s rough and it makes you tough, no man’s afraid to die
Sandy came a smilin’, 30,000 Islands was the place to claim his glory
Now Sandy’s gone but his name lives on, and this is Sandy’s story

Chorus 1:
Young [(C)]Sandy Gray lives[(Am)] on today in the [(C)]echoes of a mighty [(Am)]yell
[(G)]Listen close and you’ll hear a ghost
In this [(C)]story [(C/B)]that I [(Am)]tell, boys
This [(C)]story [(C/B)]that I [(Am)]tell

Now Sandy Gray was boss of the men who’d toss the trees onto the shore
They’d come and go till they’d built a floe of 100,000 logs or more
And he’d ride ‘em down toward Severn Sound to cut ‘em up in the mills for timber
And ships would haul, spring, summer, and fall, ‘til the ice came in December

One Sabbath Day, big Sandy Gray came into camp with a peavey on his shoulder
With a thunder crack he dropped his axe and the room got a little bit colder
Said ‘Come all you, we’ve got work to do We’ve gotta give ‘er all we can give ‘er
‘There’s a jam of logs at the little jog near the mouth of the Musquash River

With no time to pray on the Lord’s Day, they were hoping for God’s forgiveness
But the jam was high in a troubled sky and they set about their business
They poked with their poles and ran with the rolls and tried to stay on their feet
Every trick they tried and one man cried ‘This log jam’s got us beat’

Chorus 2:
But Sandy Gray was not afraid and he let out a mighty yell
‘I’ll be damned, we’ll break this jam,
Or it’s breakfast in Hell, boys’
Breakfast in Hell’

Now every one of the men did the work of ten and Sandy scrambled up to the top
He’s working like a dog heaving 30 foot logs and it looked like he’d never stop
They struggled on those men so strong till the jam began to sway
Then they dove for cover to the banks of the river all except for Sandy Gray

Now with thoughts of death they held their breath as they saw their friend go down
They all knew in a second or two he’d be crushed or frozen or drowned
They saw him fall and they heard him call, just once and then it was over
Young Sandy Gray gave his life that day near the mouth of the Musquash River

Chorus 2

East of Giant’s Tomb, there’s plenty of room, there’s no fences and no walls
And if you listen close, you’ll hear a ghost, down by Sandy Gray Falls
Through the tops of the trees, you’ll hear in the breeze, the echoes of a might yell
‘I’ll be damned, we’ll break this jam, or it’s breakfast in Hell’

Chorus 3:
And Sandy Gray lives on today in the echoes of a mighty yell
‘I’ll be damned, we’ll break this jam,
Or it’s breakfast in Hell, boys’
‘Breakfast in Hell’

Get out of bed, put on your shoes

Make some coffee, turn on the news

There’s people dyin’ cryin’, singing the blues

In every age of the centuries’ span

Wise men try to understand

Why sorrow is forever the song of man

Hope lives in the hearts of men
Hatred creeps in now and then
I hate to tell you kid, but it’ll never end
Women cry as the men kill
Always have and always will
You know we’re never gonna run out of blood to spill

Chorus:

Hearts break, hearts mend

Pick up the pieces, you get up again

The sun comes up and the sun goes down

That’s just the way the world goes around

Lions kill and rabbits run
Men make bread and butter and guns
Death comes around to visit everyone
Empires crumble and fall from the
Twin towers to the wailing wall
One thing remains, the terrible beauty of it all

Chorus

Solo

Chorus

Capo 4

Intro – G – C – Em7 – D

Verse

She was leaning long legged
‘neath a bottle cap sign
Of a country store with a coke and a smile
the coolest place to linger
on an Arkansas day
when she saw him passing by
He said “I’ll take you back to Texas”
Said “my name is Ray”
where the stars are bigger than the Hit Parade
And she stopped dreamin’ her dream
and she started dreamin’ his
Traded in her childhood

Chorus

She wore flowered dresses for him
Rolled her hair, scrubbed her freckled skin
On the chance that they were goin’ out tonight
Catch a sh[G/F#]ow, maybe grab a bite
and she looked real nice, She looked real nice

Verse

Sometimes I think about my daddy

and his old spice grin,

Cleaned pressed shirts, and a farmers tan

She never asked him questions

So he never told her lies

but I heard my mama cry some

And I was sitting in the hallway on the night he left

huggin my knees, holding my breath

I never knew why but he was damn sure gone

thought it was maybe my fault

Chorus

Verse

Now the evening is just starting to chill a bit

with the fireflies in flight over the trees and it

Brings to mind the glider where she used to sit

And count the headlights on the highway

So I think of where you’re goin’

Where you are tonight

What you might have seen,

since I last saw those eyes.

I know that I can’t win, If I do not play

But this whole thing scares me

Chorus

and she looked real nice, She looked real nice

[(D)]Ricky got the quarters for the table and broke
While I [(G)]pulled hard on the sorrow and smoke
[(D)]Raising up my bottle I looked for a chance
As you [(G)]set your glass down on the bar with a glance at me

Chorus 1:
[(A)]Down at the Ho[(G)]rseshoe Loun[(D)]ge
[(A)]Shuffleboard and ne[(G)]on ligh[(D)]t
[(A)]Down at the Ho[(G)]rseshoe Loun[(D)]ge
[(A)]Cigarettes and wh[(G)]iskey tonigh[(D)]t

Ricky said ‘She’s out of your league, let her go’
As I watched you pick your partner on that old dance floor
I know it didn’t work out the first time we tried
But I’d do anything to have you by my side again

Chorus 2:
Down at the Horseshoe Lounge
Peel the label off a Miller Lite
Down at the Horseshoe Lounge
I sit here thinking ‘bout you every night

Bridge:
[(G)]Were you the one who fa[(D)]ltered
Was [(A)]I the one who st[(D)]rayed
Maybe [(G)]God left us ou[(D)]t of the plans he made[(A)]

So here’s to missed beginnings and things that never start
For these are the ghosts that run around in my heart
When I see that where I’m going isn’t where I want to be
I get the urge to look you up see if you would come and meet me

Chorus 3:
Down at the Horseshoe Lounge
Hey, buddy have you got a light
Down at the Horseshoe Lounge
One more and I’ll be alright

Repeat Chorus 2

Ricky got the quarters for the table and broke
(Sing slowly) While I pulled hard on the sorrow and smoke

Years ago on an April day
A crowd gathered from miles around
Over a thousand, I heard one say
All around me on the square in town

Ladies dressed up in their best
Kids ran around and played
They all come to see me I guessed
Me and the sheriff and a man in chains

The Reverend Sam began a prayer
To the women, the men, the boys and girls
”We are graveyard sons and daughters
Passing through an unfriendly world”

A few last words and down he goes
Teeth bared in an awful grin
A cheer rises up from the crowd
As I hold him, twistin in the wind

Men held up their babies to see
Reporters jotted down a tale
Hawkers brought out lemonade
And the ladies headed for the hangin’ day sale

And all but one would walk away
I’d shudder as the rope snapped tight
But I got used to hanging day

Now they don’t gather round no more
Though I’m tall and stouter still
Now they do it all behind closed doors
They say it’s a better way to kill

The Reverend Sam began a prayer
To the women, the men, the boys and girls
“We are graveyard sons and daughters
Passing through an unfriendly world”

A few last words and down he goes
Teeth bared in an awful grin
A cheer rises up from the crowd
As I hold him, twistin in the wind
One more poor boy dead and gone
Twistin in the wind

On a pawn shop radio I heard my favorite song

I could almost hear you whisper in my ear but I know that you are gone

Chorus

Don’t tell me it’s alright

Don’t tell me not to cry

You’ve got to admit

You got a better deal than I

If I could turn the hands of time

I’d turn them back till you were mine

But instead you haunt my dreams tonight

Don’t tell me it’s alright

In a dim lit restaurant you spoke with a breaking voice

Between the wine and the after dinner smoke i realized i had no choice

Repeat Chorus

Solo

Repeat Chorus

I know we don't deserve to be going down this way
Pushed around and bound to troubled days
And every time we stand up, dust each other off
I know we may be losin’ but we ain’t lost

Chorus:
Bring it on, bring it on
I’ve seen the rain tumblin’ down
I’ve felt the cold wind blow, I’ve seen trouble hanging ‘round
Bring it on, bring it on

Once I dreamed of riches, of happiness untold
Now hopes lie scattered, trash along a lonesome road
But I don’t ask for mercy, it just don’t work that way
Today I’m down but hope will rise another day
Chorus

All those little dreams that never came to be
Well I keep your every teardrop down inside of me
And as I watch you sleeping I hope that you still dream
Cause lately when I wake up I don’t feel anything

Chorus

Day after day after trying to understand

Why the world tries to grind you down, make a ghost out of a man

Your date of grace is due and you’ve pawned everything you own

I guess some dreams just don’t come true, nothin’ left but skin and wishbones

Each year the world gets lonelier and uglier with sin
You’ll never see those blue skies through young eyes again
You’ve prayed to every god you’ve known just to wind up all alone
Your friends are gone, your mama’s dead, nothin’ left but skin and wishbones

Chorus:

Spin the bottle cap, throw a shot back

Everything’s gonna be all right

Spin the bottle cap, throw a shot back

Cough and cry, Lay down and die

Grab an end, hold on tight

Bottles and bones in the night

You’ll never go back home

You old wishbone

Guitar Solo

Fiddle Solo

Can’t eat can’t sleep can’t think not knowing where to go
This is real life brother, this ain’t no reality show
If suffering is human well I guess we’re not alone
You’ll survive on next to nothing but you won’t live on skin and wishbones

Chorus

Repeat 2nd half of chorus

F G Am (Choke)
There??s an old dirt road, just off route nine.
Fades into the lake, at the low water line.
Sometimes I wander down that road alone.
Remembering the town, that I once called home.
I grew up on the valley, every neighbor a friend,
Until the modern world started creeping in.
One day came the lawyers, with cash in hand.
They swore that our village would light up the land.

Chorus:
The dusky waters move cold and slow,
And the ghosts of a village still wander below.
Homesteads of families and friends forever more,
Dm G Am (Choke)
Haunting the valley below this sparkling shore.

Surrounding the valley was a painted red line,
Drawn by company men like marking a crime.
A silent reminder that all inside it must go,
Or be lost to the rising dead river's flow.
Some folks took the money, started grinding gears,
While the rest of us held out, twenty odd years.
We watched our town, like a photograph fade,
Dm G Am (Choke)
As the company came, to take it all away.
They tore down the church, and the schoolhouse burned.
They dug up the graves, the wheels of progress turned.
They got Dutchie’s Store, and Hayden’s Pool Hall,
When the dozers rolled, it shattered us all.

Chorus:

The dusky waters move cold and slow,
And the ghosts of the village still wander below.
Homesteads of families and friends forever more,
Dm G Am (Choke)
Haunting the valley below this sparkling shore.

Instrumental Break
Am / F / G / Am / Dm / G / Am (Choke)

Old May Savage stayed as long as she could.
Her house on the hill towered over the flood.
It rose up alone, in the dark of night,
Its face on the water, in the cold moonlight.
I shake off the memories, on my lips a prayer.
Thanks for the grace, and the beauty down there.
And while the porch lights glow, all over the state,
There’s nothing but darkness, under the lake.

Chorus:

The dusky waters move cold and slow,
And the ghosts of a village still wander below.
Homesteads of families and friends forever more,
Haunting the valley below this sparkling shore.
They haunt the valley below this sparkling shore.