Lyrics

West to Portland (C Cain)

The road’s the colour of steel and its cold, the wind hunts the bones of the old
Early light, transparent and thin, dull like the tint of gin
The waitress looks like she’s been hurting, she might be a movie prize
Mascara keeps the curtains over the vacancy that’s in her eyes, she said:

“Hide me, conceal me, in the back but don’t reveal me
Whatever you’re running from, oh lord I wish I could come”

The engine’s hot from a night of miles, so let’s let it cool awhile
See if the sun with come along, see if it’ll brighten up her song
She’s trapped in all this space, dreaming of almost any place
Her boy is 10 years old, and on, “soon even he’ll be gone” she said

The road is all kinds of future, South to sun and West to Portland
When things don’t work as they should, even the nothing ain’t no good
Like as not she’ll faint some time soon, from the lack of air in this town
North to snow or East to Hartford, she’ll die if she don’t start it