Greyhound to Georgia - George Shingleton

504 black girl carried me In her womb to the land of the peach Her birthing pains brought me low But she held me high on Peachtree road Got my mother's eyes and my father's nose Also got brother's hand-me-down clothes We had no green but the love was strong It was all we'd need to get us along, get us along Left ATL for the Texas way We drove 20 East in my daddy's '88 I learned in school I didn't measure up I fell short of what true blackness was Mama taught the righteous way I set down that path but went astray Paid for love on a crescent moon In that Oklahoma motel room Kyree taught me chords to strum They got me through when I felt numb 504 black girl 504 black girl carried me 504 black girl, black girl 504 black girl carried me 504 black girl carried me 504 black girl carried me

The devil went down to Georgia, he was looking for a soul to steal He was in a bind, 'Cause he was way behind and he was willing to make a deal When he come across that young boy playing and playing that fiddle hot And the Devil jumps up on a hickory Stump and said: Boy let me tell you what I bet you didn't know it but I'm a fiddle player too And if you'd care to take a dare I'll make a bet wit you Now you play a pretty good fiddle boy but give the Devil his due I'll bet a fiddle of gold against your Soul 'cause I think I'm better than you The boy said: "My name's Johnny and it might be a sin But I'll take your bet, you're gonna regret 'Cause I'm the best there's ever been! Johnny rosin up your bow and play that fiddle hard 'Cause hell's broke loose in Georgia and the Devil deals the cards And if you win you'll get this shiny fiddle made of gold But if you lose the Devil gets your soul The Devil opened up his case and said: I'll start the show And fire flew from his fingertips as he rosined up his bow And he pulled the bow across the strings and it made an evil hiss Then a band of demons joined in and it sounded something like this When the Devil finished Johnny said: Well you're pretty good old son Just sit down in that chair right there, let me show you how it's done Fire on the Mountain! Run, boys, run! The Devil's in the house of the rising sun The Chicken in the bread pan picking out dough Granny does your dog bite? No, child, no The devil bowed his head because he knew that he'd been beat He laid that golden fiddle on the ground at Johnny's feet Johnny said: Devil, just come back if you ever wanna try again I told you once you son of a bitch, I'm the best that's ever been! Fire on the Mountain! Run, boys, run! Devil's in the house of the rising sun Chicken in the bread pan picking out dough Granny, does your dog bite? No, child, no

[Originally by Gladys Knight And The Pips] L.A. proved too much for the man (He couldn't make it) So he's leavin' the life he's come to know [He said he's goin'] He said he's goin' back to find Ooh, what's left of his world The world he left behind Not so long ago He's leavin' On that midnight train to Georgia Said he's goin' back To a simpler place in time And I'll be with him On that midnight train to Georgia I'd rather live in his world Than live without him in mine He kept dreamin' That someday he'd be a star But he sure found out the hard way That dreams don't always come true So he pawned all his hopes And he even sold his old car Bought a one way ticket back To the life he once knew Oh yes he did He said he would He's leavin' On that midnight train to Georgia Said he's goin' back to find A simpler place in time And I'm gonna be with him On that midnight train to Georgia I'd rather live in his world Than be without him in mine He's leavin' On that midnight train to Georgia Said he's goin' back to find A simpler place in time And I've gotta be with him On that midnight train to Georgia I'd rather live in his world Than be without him in mine Go, gonna board, gonna board The midnight train to Georgia Gonna board the midnight train Gotta go, gonna board Gonna board Gonna board the midnight train

She wore a dress with cherries on it Goin' somewhere where she'd be wanted A town this small, all they do is talk No wedding ring, chipped fingernail polish She always wished that she could go to college But some dreams fade, they just slip away She started to show A few months ago and she had to go That's how she wound up On the backseat of a Greyhound bus Head on down with the windows up Starin' at the rest of her life She never thought this would be the place Where she would find her saving grace But she fell in love, she fell in love On the backseat of a Greyhound bus Hell yeah, yeah The moon was full, stars were smilin' God has a funny sense of timin' The baby came on the interstate Somewhere between Jackson and Memphis She finally found what she had been missin' She cried and laughed while the red lights flashed Sweet baby girl She looked into the face of a new The face of a brand new world On the backseat of a Greyhound bus Heart so full that it could bust Starin' at the rest of her life She never thought this would be the place Where she would find her saving grace But she fell in love, she fell in love On the backseat of a Greyhound bus Sweet baby girl She found a brand new world On the backseat of a Greyhound bus Heart so full that it could bust Starin' at the rest of her life She never thought this would be the place Where she would find her saving grace But she fell in love, she fell in love On the backseat of a Greyhound bus She wore a dress with cherries on it Goin' somewhere where she'd be wanted Hey yeah Oh yeah Oh, oh yeah