The Ballad of Miss Amelia

On any southern afternoon
If anyone would care to look
A face appears inside a house
A terrible face
It is sexless
And white
It is dim
Like the faces
In dreams…
It’s Miss Amelia
She’s waiting by the window
Remembering the laughing
In the cafe down below
Once Miss Amelia
Married a man
She married Marvin
No one could understand
She must have done it for the presents
Cause she didn’t like him much
And even on their wedding night
She wouldn’t let him touch
Well, he hung around the doorways
Acting foolish with bliss
Until he came too close one day
She swung once with her fist
Miss Amelia was a strong woman
She was big and tall
Swung once and Marvin
Well he fell against the wall
Now Miss Amelia is
Sitting by the shutters
Remembering the laughing
In the cafe long ago…
After Marvin
Had long gone away
A little hunchback came to town
And this is strange to say
That Miss Amelia who had never loved
She fell in love with him
He was a skipping little troublemaker
Still she took him in
And so they lived together
And were happy for a time
Everybody came around
And they would drink and dine
Miss Amelia made a whiskey
It was fine and it was rare
Would warm a man into his soul
And show' the writing there
Miss Amelia’s story
Is simple and sad
Marvin, he returned to town
With all the evil that he had
The skipping little hunchback
He was quite impressed
With Marvin Macy’s history
Of robbery and the rest
I will not get specific
But just let it now be said
There was terrible light one night
And Miss Amelia was ahead
Until the little hunchback
Jumped in on Marvin Macy’s side
Everybody all agreed
That’s the night the cafe died
On any southern afternoon
If anyone would care to look
A face appears inside a house
A terrible face
It is sexless and white
It is dim
Like the faces
In dreams
It’s Miss Amelia
She’s waiting by the window
Remembering the laughing
In the cafe down below
It’s Miss Amelia
Sitting by the shutters
Remembering the laughing
In the cafe long ago…