Talkin' And Signifying'

Words and Music by :  Lee Hayes - Louise Dobbs

Recorded by Harry Belafonte with The Belafonte Folk Singers on:
Recording date: 1960
Playing time: 5:08
LP : LPM2194
Tape: FTP-1025
CD: RGMCD071


Lyrics:

Man it's sure hot in here tonight
Yeah, must be a hundred and twenty degrees in the shade
'Course you all don't have to stay in the shade you know
He Dallas, you know what the cook havin' for dinner?
He havin' a thousand things for dinner.
Every day other beans. Beans well done, beans smothered in beans,
beans medium rare And one other thing--~- beans.
Don't leave them out. You got to put some beans in there.
You know when I was a kid, I used to out into the pasture late at night
Kicked the old cow and made her get up, so I could lay down on the warm grass where she'd been.
Then I just lay there and wait for the 10.20 train to go by
And watch all them fine folks sittin' upon that train, everybody goin' somewhere
Maybe somebody waiting at the end o' line to say howdy.
I tell you right then and there I said to myself, someday I'm gonna have me a ride on a train, and when I get where I'm goin' there'll be somebody waitin' there for me too.
Well I got me a train ride alright, one way right in here, with a whole bunch of unfitting' people to be with. And when I got to the gate, there's somebody waitin'; old capt'n
And he didn't have the decency to say hello.
Well I didn't intend to stay this long you know, but I wanna ain't gonna leave here 'til he says hello.
He Billy Blue, you know how to cook opossum?
Don't everybody?
Not like my old lady.
Man when my old lady cook opossum.
The first day she diggin' in a bottle of scorn squeezings and juice it up a little while.
The next day she put in a bottle of bourbon and juice that up a little while.
Then she put in a bottle o' dandy lion wine and juice that up a little bit.
Then the 'possum man sure was ,some good gravy.
Oh Dowbally, what you figure your old lady's doin' in Memphis tonight?
Man one day I'm gonna put my footprint on top o' your head, I told you I don't play that.
He look here you naked ape tell 'em I was only asking.
Yeah I sure got hard luck bein' in here.
Don't knock it man. If I didn't have hard luck I wouldn't have no luck at all.
'Course it's true
Look at that new prisoner over there, he sure look lonely don' he?
That sure is a waste of time.
Hey new prisoner don't look so lonely man.
You just climb up in your bunk, you'll have more friends then you know what to do with and you be so busy scratching, you don't have time to get lonesome.
Anybody ever figured a way to get out o' here?
Nobody would ever make it.
I figured a way to get out o' here once.
I figured the only way to get out o' here was to make friends with old Rattler.
The lead hound?
Yeah that's him.
So every morning for six months I sneaked out and gave old Rattler all my breakfast scraps.
Six months, then I made my getaway.
But man showin' up, they turned old Rattler, and showin' off he treat me and showin' off to capt'n brought me right back in here.
Why you reckon old Rattler would have done that to you?
That dirty lousy old flea bitten, he got so used to them scraps, I guess he didn't wanna let 'em go.
That's old Rattler. Sshh, there goes a guard.
Man just listen to that rain.
This is the only bunkhouse it rains inside and leaks outside.