Swordfishtrombones Lyrics - Tom Waits

Well, he came home from the war 

With a party in his head 

And modified Brougham DeVille 

And a pair of legs that opened up like butterfly wings 

And a mad dog that wouldn't sit still 

He went and took up with a Salvation Army band girl 

Who played dirty water on a swordfishtrombone 

He went to sleep at the bottom of Tenkiller lake 

And he said "gee, but it's great to be home" 

Well, he came home from the war with a party in his head 

And an idea for a fireworks display 

And he knew that he'd be ready with a stainless steel machete 

And a half a pint of Ballentine's each day 

And he holed up in room above a hardware store 

Cryin' nothing there but Hollywood tears 

He put a spell on some poor little Crutchfield girl 

And stayed like that for twenty-seven years 

He packed up all his expectations, he lit out for California 

With a flyswatter banjo on his knee 

With a lucky tiger in his angel hair and Benzedrine for getting there 

They found him in a eucalyptus tree 

Lieutenant got him a canary bird and skanked her head with every word 

Chesterfielded moonbeams in a song 

He got twenty years for lovin' her from some Oklahoma governor 

Said "everything this Doughboy does is wrong" 

Now some say he's doing the obituary mambo 

Now some say that he's hanging on the wall 

Perhaps this yarn's the only thing that holds this man together 

Some say he was never here at all 

And some say they saw him down in Birmingham 

Sleeping in a boxcar going by 

And if you think that you can tell a bigger tale 

I swear to God you'd have to tell a lie 

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