Seven Silver Curses Lyrics - The Fiery Furnaces

Seven Silver Curses 

My little sister had a glass of wine 

No doubt a glass of wine too many 

"I bet he's out right now with his Nazi whore 

That's right, I said it, that's what she is, and when he 

Finally saunters back at three or four, 

Don't let him in, put the chain on the door." 

But of course I'd let him in, the jerk. 

Now my silly little sister went to some vlachos coffee-grind reader 

Ad had a gypsy glint in her eye when she'd smirk 

"Since that's how you feel, I know what to do 

Make sure she gets fixed before she takes him from you." 

It's a hot August night and my sister and I are creeping down south Halsted 

Towards a storefront past a storefront stoop and a moon 

And a star and a placard that says Madame Maria's. 

"Tell me your troubles, 

But five dollars first." 

That's what she said 

And of course, I thought the worst 

Charlatan, phony 

Fraud gypsy bitch whose Greek was bad and English was worse 

I held tight to my purse 

My sister did the talking and I looked down 

And tapped my foot and sort of twisted on one heel. 

Madame pointed to corner 

And twisted her shawl, 

Uncovered a dusty old crystal ball 

I peered in despite myself 

Somewhere on some love seat, my husband was there 

Paying court to his mistress and stroking her hair 

I saw it for myself 

"I can't believe it!" I cried 

Madame Maria said, "Well, I had a notion 

So before you came in, I prepared half a potion 

Now you must do the other half 

I wrote you a list 

You must get seven part-silver curses made special out of bullet bits by some Pollock I know in Evergreen Park 

And dip them in the potion and drop them in Buckingham Fountain at 3:13 on Friday morning 

And then she'll be gone, you'll be rid of her!" 

Quick, for the potion, we have to get three dozen crabapples that fell off a raggedy old tree right in the southwestern corner of Columbus Park! 

Faster, we have to go up to Caputo's Produce and Fruit Market on Harlem and get the garden snake that lives in the banana bin! 

Hurry, we have to get the mercury out of the old thermometer they have through the north-facing doors 

To the left by the shoe-shine boys in the lobby of the Monadnock building! 

And don't be late, for you must get the silver out of the teeth of one George Karmalitis 

Who as we speak lies dead under a dirty wool blanket in the basement of the morgue of Laretto hospital 

The silver teeth of a man killed by a jealous wife! 

I wasn't always an old maid 

I didn't always walk down the street 

And have the children yell at me Spinny Spinny the Spinster 

And try to knock the hat off my head 

I had a fiancee, or he led me to believe I'd soon be his fiancee 

And I did believe him, as I had every right to 

And I'd put on my best dress and we'd go dance at all the dances 

And I'd never let the boys from the barracks cut in 

They'd come out of Great Lakes, usually straight off the farm anyway 

And I'd never really let any of the country club beaus get a chance 

Those cream-colored summer suits were never cut to my taste anyhow 

And those Hyde Park fraternity fellas were out as a matter of course 

I don't enjoy a man in red, so certainly not maroon, that's for sure 

I only had eyes for my guy, see 

But one night he had said he wouldn't be able to take me 

As he hurt his shoulder and had his arm in a sling 

But I went anyway and saw him with another woman 

And she was wearing his ring 

The silver still smelled and smelted down quick into the copper or lead or whatever else it was 

And when the metal was still soft and hot you'd engrave the curse into it with a stylus from an old whale bone 

I thought for a second of what I might write 

Something a little different, but with the correct sort of spite 

One of them asked panayia mou to make that blonde's hair fall straight out 

The potion was ready back at my apartment 

And my sister and I mumbled and crossed ourselves when we dropped the curses in 

And I thought of my husband 

My husband and her 

And I thought of me and him, of what we were 

I thought of our wedding day 

And I was happy, very simply happy 

Do you hear it 

A modest young woman's simple contentment 

It's probably a sunny day, and I think it was 

The birds were chirping 

And I felt like I was dancing on air 

But not very far off the ground 

I wonder if I knew even then that things wouldn't always be perfect 

That one day he'd seek solace in the arms of another woman 

And that to win him back, to win him back, I'd have to do this 

3:11!, 3:12!, 3:13! 

On a hot August night everyone is asleep 

But the crows were watching, witching and my temple was twitching 

Twitch, twitch, twitch, twitch, twitch, twitch, twitch, twitch 

Fountain, sweet fountain 

Fountain, sweet fountain 

Let your water react and turn the curses to fact and come true 

Fountain, sweet fountain 

Fountain, sweet fountain 

Let your water react and turn the curses to fact and come true 

And they do 

The instant we dropped them in, our hearts started to race 

And a wind came up off the lake; make no mistake, we felt something released out into the city 

And I swore 

And I swooned 

As I swept back somehow to Austin, I don't remember how 

Scared of what I had wrought 

But terrified, I didn't get what I had sought 

Oh Jimmy, where you been so long 

Oh Jimmy, where you been so long 

Oh Jimmy, where you been so long 

Oh Jimmy, where you been so long 

Oh Jimmy, where you been so long 

Oh Jimmy, where you been so long 

And as the clock struck eight the next morning 

My husband was next to me with a smile on his face 

And I looked, no blond hairs on his pajamas 

And it was as if I had been awakened from a bad dream