Today we might call him "homeless", but in 1975, we called him a "bum".
We (Deb - the girl who would become my wife - and I) happened upon him one day as we walked in the South Florida area where we lived and worked. (I was playing a regular bar gig, Deb waited tables (Ft. Lauderdale). We rented a one room garage apartment (not far from "homeless" ourselves)).

For a couples of hours we listened to the stories he spun - all the while "bumming" cigarettes from us. The price of admission.
We gave him the remainder of the pack when we went on our way...


THE BUM


i met a bum on the beach in boca
he said the islands is where i belong
if i was thirty years younger, i'd swim there
followin' the smell of the rum

he used his coat for a pillow
the state of the world for a crutch
he'd tell you a story for spare cigarette
two if you were a soft touch

his hands were swollen and bleeding
his stories as raw as they come
his whole life a matter of waiting to hear
he traveled the world on a thumb

i've sold more lies than the devil himself
bought love for more than it's worth
sailed every body of water there is
known every woman on the face of this earth

i could have been rich if i wanted
i could have been in heaven tonight
but a poor man sees a whole lot more
and i stuck around for the fight

success is just one way to grow old
mister's a name i'm not called
yeah, i could have been rich if i wanted
but getting back here is too long a fall

alaska, jamiaca, new zealand
i speak at least seven tongues
been drunk in london, in jail in hong kong
and twice almost got myself hung

well, i might die tomorrow
if i were you i wouldn't take bets
look me up next time you're around
hey, can you spare one more cigarette



The BAND:

RealTracks in song: ~520:Bass, Electric, Pop HalfNotes Ev 165
RealTracks in song: ~407:Guitar, Acoustic, Fingerpicking Ev 165
RealTracks in song: 378:Guitar, Acoustic, Strumming DoubleTime Ev 088
RealTracks in song: 623:Banjo, Background Backporch Ev 098
RealTracks in song: 1608:Guitar, High-Strung Acoustic, Rhythm Pop16ths Ev16 110
RealTracks in song: ~622:Pedal Steel, Background Waylon Ev 176
RealTracks in song: ~618:Fiddle, Background Allis Ev 120
RealTracks in song: 2172:Mandolin, Soloist CountryAndy Ev 165
RealTracks in song: ~597:Guitar, Acoustic, Soloist Bluegrass Doc Ev 100
RealDrums in Song: NashvilleBrushesCountryPopEv16: a: Sidestick, Brushes b: Brushes


Hope you enjoy the stories as much as we did.
Happy Thanksgiving.
Comments welcome.
Have at it.


floyd

Man, so good! My new favorite from you I think.

Classic changes and perfect key for your vocal I think, just sounds so smooth and natural. Love the instrumentation and production, the way you bring in the pedal steel at the beginning for example. I dig the fade out ending too, really works well. Mix is as good as it gets, totally pro.

Loved the backstory too!

Your music never fails to move me in some way, I'm a fan!

Hi Floyd.

The number of instruments in your track list belies the wonderful open feel of the arrangement.
I expected something more intense and involved, but was enthralled as the track evolved.

Terrific story. I think that the hardest thing to achieve in life is just being happy
and as I look around I don't see that the people with money and possessions are always the
best at that.

Loved the whole thing. As professional as always and a super mix. Particularly liked the
stereo on this one - big without sounding artificial.

One of your best. (Though I still like your heavier side!)

Cheers, ROG.

Wow - I thoroughly enjoyed this, Floyd. I love how vivid your storytelling is here. There's some seriously great lyrics here. I almost feel like the lack of a chorus made it hit even harder. It's a fantastically written song.

You should be very proud of this one - thanks so much for sharing

"the state of the world for a crutch"

that's a line that I wish I'd written

the entire song is a super write and shows great storytelling ability

I instantly fell in love with that acoustic bluegrass Doc soloist

easy flowing, takes you along gently painting images

makes you want to hear it again as soon as it ends

"I could've been rich if I wanted"

even if he could not have, his experiences made him

wonderful mix

as always, I enjoyed this very much

Kenny

I think that this song is probably my new favourite from you. Victoria has a pretty high homeless population (perhaps because it is so temperate year round; some also choose it as a lifestyle), so this song hits pretty close to home and almost moved me to tears. There is so much that we will never understand that they go through on a daily basis, and I feel like this song gives us a small glimpse in to what it's like.

Thanks for making and sharing this song with us! <3

All the lines are great, but these are genius:

his hands were swollen and bleeding
his stories as raw as they come
his whole life a matter of waiting to hear
he traveled the world on a thumb

Nice!!!!

Great song, Floyd. Kinda reminds me of Mr. Bojangles.

I have a story kind of like this. The result of it was REM's third album. Maybe I will tell it later.



Happy Thanksgiving.

Hi Floyd Jane, well done on this! I found the vocals quite captivating and an excellent groove with this. The Mandolin is a great touch too!

Hi Floyd.
Great this one.
Nice and relaxed.
A mixture of Tom T Hall and Jimmy Buffet to my ears.
Can relate to more of the song than I like to admit.
Sailing islands rum Hong Kong and more Oh dear. Cheers.

Hi Floyd,

What a great song! The simplicity of the backing tracks was great idea so as not to detract from fabulous lyric. By far the story telling in the lyric shines above all else.

Also, the way the backing tracks gentle layered up in about halfway through just added to the anticipation of the remainder of the song - compels the listener to pleasantly wait for the ending.

I could have heard Tom T. singing this back in '75 or '76. I'm quite comfortable with analogizing this to a Tom T. Hall effort. He's one of the very best story songwriters in country music history and this is right up there. It can be difficult to hold the listeners' attention without a chorus and a somewhat repetitive verse. But you threw all that out the window and stamped this with an indelible "can't wait to hear it again" mark.

I could ramble on more with seemingly unending praise, but I think you get the point that I believe this is a fabulous song on all accounts and I simply love it.

Best to you and yours.

Alan

Floyd you truly are a story telling in song.
Great lyrics and vocals.
Love your instrument choices.
Well told. Rob

Hi, Floyd !

The best I´ve heard from
you so far without any doubt !
Love your singing and that
superb tune with those beautiful
chords !:))

Cheers
Dani

floyd

A wonderful piece of storytelling.
The music sits perfectly behind the lyric with your trademark delivery.
Lovely mix and full of superb lines and touches.

Peter

Very cool lyric Floyd. Vocal and backtrack was such a smooth blend. Just fit so tight with each other. So enjoyable. Guitar was very cool as well. Well done

Thanks for that very nice review, Dave...

You the man FJ.

Floyd,
I could quote all the praise of listeners so far- Peter sums up my thoughts well.
This is the best song I`ve heard about "bums" ( we called them tramps in the UK) since Ralph McTell`s Streets of London.
Going back for another liten to all that streetwise wisdom!

Robert

Hello, floyd

There is a deep taste of the folk song in this tune.
I like your rock vocals very much, but this song is also very nice.
How to use RealTracks is really wonderful.
Particularly Mandolin, Soloist CountryAndy Ev 165.
And as always, your vocals are noteworthy.
Enjoyed my listen a lot.

Best regards.

Shigeki Adachi

ROG - thanks for all of that. Really appreciate it...

Nice of you to say, Deryk... Thanks.