Under bridges, beneath trestles, in the boxcars of dead trains
Livin' to beat the cold of the pouring driving rain
A silent society moves out in the night
Ragged rebels, homeless hobos, those like me
who've lost the light
St. Peter is a prophet to all the hobo world
An expert on everything from caviar to girls
I met him west of Memphis on the 8th of July
And he handed me a can of beans and a rusty knife
And he said, "Everything out here ain't what it seems
And when you're down to nothing, just go ahead and dream.
Face the fact that you're a circle in a world full of squares
Trading sorrows for tomorrows, and that's the hobo's prayer"
Mother Mary is a lady from down in New Orleans
She's seen a lot of livin' since she was 17
She said, "I'm bona fide and worldly wise with original parts,
Except for what set me to traveling, I'm talking about my heart"
She said, "I can spot a broken heart from 20 miles away
So are you passing through, and have you come to stay?
You're running from a woman" she said with a grin
"So what've you got to say?" and I said, "I am a pilgrim"
Where everything out here ain't what it seems
And when I'm down to nothing, I just go ahead and dream
And face the fact that I'm a circle in a world full of squares
Tradin' sorrows for tomorrows, that's the hobo's prayer
Tradin' sorrows for tomorrows, that's the hobo's prayer