Scott Cook's song "Further Down The Line"

Once again,


Scott Cook's song "Further Down The Line" with a very provocative question:

Aren't some people just famous for being famous? 
Isn't that about all that they do? 
And couldn't the radio leave you feeling aimless? 
Just a nameless person like you 
But I sure heard the words Woody Guthrie sang 
Even when they didn't quite rhyme 
He knew the heart was the stuff, they'd ring close enough 
Further down the line 

I've painted houses, mopped floors, and washed dishes 
Taught kids, cut grass and moved gear 
Swung hammer, cleaned toilets and dug ditches 
And I even sang songs to sell beer 
But it was all for someone else's dream, 
'Til I set out after mine 
Said, "take this hammer, take it to the captain 
Tell him I'm further down the line" 

I crossed the Fraser, the Columbia, the Mississippi, 
The Allegheny and the Ohio 
Saint Lawrence, Susquehanna, Chattahoochee, 
The Hudson and the Colorado 
I saw the big rigs sleeping in the starry desert 
Saw the snow piled 'round the Yukon pines 
But I couldn't hang around too long in New York Town 
Without lookin' further down the line 

Some of the joints in New Orleans ain't pretty 
But the waitresses'll call you "hon" 
And a cop'll stay on the white side of the city 
'Cause they paid for his hat and his gun 
And there's a Gulf War vet by the overpass 
Who says "Bro, can you spare a dime?" 
Who's he kidding? These days a dollar won't be getting 
You any further down the line, boys 

I saw the stars and bars flying in Dixie 
And doomsday prophets on capitol hill 
I saw a fast food mall named after Walt Whitman 
And Gettysburg ghosts wandering still 
If our families are so broken, 
How do we make a family out of humankind? 
We still got promises to break 
And miles to go before we wake further down the line 

I saw the homeless and the houses sitting empty 
I heard the explanations of learned men 
Nowadays they'll rob you with a computer 
'Cause it's faster than a fountain pen 
And if smarter people haven't found a gap in the armour 
Why do I keep trying? 
I still believe there's a world dying to be born 
Further down the line, friends 
Further down the line 

Aw Woody, I been through all kinds of weather 
Been searching all the faces for a sign 
As you know, love's hard to keep together 
As the miles and the years unwind 
And you never run out of blacktop 
Nah, you just run out of time 
That ribbon of songs keeps on winding along 
Ever further, down the line