Johnny Strikes Up The Band
Warren Zevon
© 1978 Zevon Music (BMI)

    Waddy Wachtel: Guitars and Harmony
    Warren Zevon: Piano
    Leland Sklar: Bass
    Russell Kunkel: Drums
    Danny Kortchmar: Percussion

Dry your eyes my little friend
Let me take you by the hand
Freddie get ready; Rock steady
When Johnny strikes up the band

They'll be rocking in the projects
Walking down along the strand
Freddie get ready; Rock steady
When Johnny strikes up the band
Johnny strikes up the band
When Johnny strikes up the ...
When Johnny strikes up the ...
When Johnny strikes up the band

And Johnny is my main man
He's the keeper of the keys
He'll put your mind at ease
He's guaranteed to please
Back by popular demand

Look around, my little friend
Jubilation in the land
Freddie get ready; Rock steady
When Johnny strikes up the band
Johnny strikes up the band
When Johnny strikes up the ...
When Johnny strikes up the ...
When Johnny strikes up the band

Johnny strikes up the band
Johnny strikes up the band
When Johnny strikes up the ...
When Johnny strikes up the ...
When Johnny strikes up the band

Roland The Headless Thompson Gunner
Warren Zevon & David Lindell
© 1976 Zevon Music (BMI)

    Waddy Wachtel: Guitar
    Warren Zevon: Piano and Organ
    Bob Glaub: Bass
    Russell Kunkel: Drums
    The Gentleman Boys: Harmonies

Roland was a warrior from the Land of the Midnight Sun
With a Thompson gun for hire, fighting to be done
The deal was made in Denmark on a dark and stormy day
So he set out for Biafra to join the bloody fray

Through sixty-six and seven they fought the Congo war
With their fingers on their triggers, knee-deep in gore
For days and nights they battled the Bantu to their knees
They killed to earn their living and to help out the Congolese

Roland the Thompson gunner...
Roland the Thompson gunner...

His comrades fought beside him - Van Owen and the rest
But of all the Thompson gunners, Roland was the best
So the CIA decided they wanted Roland dead
That son-of-a-bitch Van Owen blew off Roland's head

Roland the headless Thompson gunner
         Time, time, time
        For another peaceful war
Norway's bravest son
        But time stands still for Roland
        'Til he evens up the score

They can still see his headless body stalking through the night
In the muzzle flash of Roland's Thompson gun
In the muzzle flash of Roland's Thompson gun

Roland searched the continent for the man who'd done him in
He found him in Mombasa in a barroom drinking gin
Roland aimed his Thompson gun - he didn't say a word
But he blew Van Owen's body from there to Johannesburg

Roland the headless Thompson gunner...
Roland the headless Thompson gunner...
Roland the headless Thompson gunner...
Talkin’ about the man
Roland the headless Thompson gunner...

The eternal Thompson gunner
Still wandering through the night
Now it's ten years later but he still keeps up the fight
In Ireland, in Lebanon, in Palestine and Berkeley
Patty Hearst heard the burst of Roland's Thompson gun and bought it

Excitable Boy
Warren Zevon & LeRoy P. Marinell
© 1976 Zevon Music (BMI) and Polite Music (ASCAP)

    Waddy Wachtel: Guitar
    Warren Zevon: Piano
    Bob Glaub: Bass
    Russell Kunkel: Drums
    Jim Horn: Saxophone
    Linda Ronstadt, Jennifer Warnes and Waddy Wachtel: Harmonies

Well, he went down to dinner in his Sunday best
Excitable boy, they all said
And he rubbed the pot roast all over his chest
Excitable boy, they all said
Well, he's just an excitable boy

He took in the four a.m. show at the Clark
Excitable boy, they all said
And he bit the usherette's leg in the dark
Excitable boy, they all said
Well, he's just an excitable boy

He took little Suzie to the Junior Prom
Excitable boy, they all said
And he raped her and killed her, then he took her home
Excitable boy, they all said
Well, he's just an excitable boy

After ten long years they let him out of the home
Excitable boy, they all said
And he dug up her grave and built a cage with her bones
Excitable boy, they all said
Well, he's just an excitable boy

Werewolves of London
LeRoy P. Marinell, Waddy Wachtel and Warren Zevon
© 1975 Zevon Music (BMI) and Polite Music (ASCAP)

    Waddy Wachtel: Guitars
    Warren Zevon: Piano
    John McVie: Bass
    Mick Fleetwood: Drums

I saw a werewolf with a Chinese menu in his hand
Walking through the streets of Soho in the rain
He was looking for the place called Lee Ho Fook's
Going to get a big dish of beef chow mein
Ahhooooo  Werewolves of London Ahhooooo
Ahhooooo  Werewolves of London Ahhooooo

If you hear him howling around your kitchen door
Better not let him in
Little old lady got mutilated late last night
Werewolves of London again
Ahhooooo  Werewolves of London Ahhooooo
Ahhooooo  Werewolves of London Ahhooooo

He's the hairy handed gent who ran amok in Kent
Lately he's been overheard in Mayfair
Better stay away from him
He'll rip your lungs out, Jim
Hah. I'd like to meet his tailor
Ahhooooo  Werewolves of London Ahhooooo
Ahhooooo  Werewolves of London Ahhooooo

Well, I saw Lon Chaney walking with the Queen
Doing the Werewolves of London
I saw Lon Chaney, Jr. walking with the Queen
Doing the Werewolves of London
I saw a werewolf drinking a pina colada at Trader Vic's
His hair was perfect
Ahhooooo  Werewolves of London
Hut...Draw blood
Ahhooooo  Werewolves of London

Accidentally Like A Martyr
Warren Zevon
© 1978 Zevon Music (BMI)

    Waddy Wachtel: Guitar
    Warren Zevon: Piano
    Leland Sklar: Bass
    Russell Kunkel: Drums
    Karla Bonoff with The Gentlemen Boys: Harmonies

The phone don't ring
And the sun refused to shine
Never thought I'd have to pay so dearly
For what was already mine
For such a long, long time

We made mad love
Shadow love
Random love
And abandoned love
Accidentally like a martyr
The hurt gets worse and the heart gets harder

We made mad love
Shadow love
Random love
And abandoned love
Accidentally like a martyr
The hurt gets worse and the heart gets harder

The days slide by
Should have done, should have done, we all sigh
Never thought I'd ever be so lonely
After such a long, long time
Time out of mind

We made mad love
Shadow love
Random love
And abandoned love
Accidentally like a martyr
The hurt gets worse and the heart gets harder

We made mad love
Shadow love
Random love
And abandoned love
Accidentally like a martyr
The hurt gets worse and the heart gets harder

Nighttime In The Switching Yard
Jorge Calderón, David Lindell, Waddy Wachtel, and Warren Zevon
 © 1978 Zevon Music (BMI) and Polite Music (ASCAP)

    Waddy Wachtel: Guitar (right), Lead Guitar and Synthesizer
    Danny Kortchmar: Guitar (left)
    Warren Zevon: Synthesizer
    Bob Glaub: Bass
    Jeff Porcaro: Drums and Percussion
    Greg Ladanyi: Bell
    The Gentlemen Boys: Harmonies

Nighttime in the switching yard
Nighttime in the switching yard
Nighttime in the switching yard
Nighttime in the switching yard

Get it out on the mainline
Listen to the rhythm of the train go by
Get it out on the mainline
Listen to the rhythm of the train go by

Listen to the train whistle whine
Listen to the train whistle whine

Nighttime in the switching yard
Nighttime in the switching yard
Nighttime in the switching yard
Nighttime in the switching yard

See that train...
See that train...
See that train...
See that train...

See that train...The midnight train runs both ways
See that train...The midnight train runs both ways
See that train...The midnight train runs both ways
See that train...The midnight train runs both ways

Nighttime in the switching yard
Nighttime in the switching yard

Do it
Doot dat doot dat doot dadoot
Doot dat doot dat doot dadoot
Doot dat doot dat doot dadoot
Doot dat doot dat doot dadoot

Doot dat doot dat doot dadoot
Doot dat doot dat doot dadoot
Doot dat doot dat doot dadoot
Doot dat doot dat doot dadoot

Listen to the train whistle whine
Listen to the train whistle whine
Listen to the train whistle whine
Listen to the train whistle whine

Listen to the train
Listen to the train
Listen to the train
Listen to the track

Veracruz
Warren Zevon and Jorge Calderón
 © 1978 Zevon Music (BMI) and Polite Music (ASCAP)

    Waddy Wachtel: Guitar
    Warren Zevon: Piano
    Kenny Edwards: Bass
    Rick Marotta: Drums
    Arthur Gerst: Mexican Harp
    Luis Damian: Jarana
    Manuel Vasquez: Rrquinto Jarocho
    Jim Horn: Recorders
    Jorge Calderón: Harmonies and Spanish Vocals

I heard Woodrow Wilson's guns
I heard Maria crying
Late last night I heard the news
That Veracruz was dying
Veracruz was dying

Someone called Maria's name
I swear it was my father's voice
Saying, "If you stay, you'll all be slain
You must leave now; you have no choice
Take the servants and ride west
Keep the child close to your chest
When the American troops withdraw
Let Zapata take the rest"

I heard Woodrow Wilson's guns
I heard Maria calling
Saying, "Veracruz is dying
And Cuernavaca's falling"

Aquel dia yo jure
        (On that day I swore)
Hacia el puerto volvere            
        (To the port I will return)
Aunque el destino cambio mi vida    
            (Even though destiny changed my life)
En Veracruz morire
        (In Veracruz I shall die)
Aquel dia yo jure
        (On that day I swore)

I heard Woodrow Wilson's guns
I heard them in the harbor
Saying, "Veracruz is dying"

Tenderness On The Block
Warren Zevon and Jackson Browne
 © 1978 Zevon Music (BMI) and Swallow Turn Music (ASCAP)

    Waddy Wachtel: Guitars
    Warren Zevon: Piano
    Kenny Edwards: Bass
    Rick Marotta: Drums
    The Gentlemen Boys: Harmonies

Mama, where's your pretty little girl tonight
Trying to run before she can walk - that's right
She's growing up
She has a young man waiting
She's growing up
She has a young man waiting
Wide eyes
She'll be street-wise
To the lies
And the jive talk
She'll find true love
And tenderness on the block

Daddy, don't you ask her when she's coming in
And when she's home don't ask her where she's been
She's going out
She has a young man waiting
She's going out
Can't keep her young man waiting
She'll be okay
Let her have her day
Cause it's a long way
It's a long walk
But she'll find true love
And tenderness on the block

I know how much it hurts to see her go
She has a mind of her own, you know
She's all grown up
She has a young man waiting
She's all grown up
She has a young man waiting
She was wide-eyed
Now she's street-wise
To the lies
And the jive talk
But she'll find true love
And tenderness on the block
She'll find true love
And tenderness on the block

Lawyers, Guns And Money
Warren Zevon
© 1978 Zevon Music (BMI)

    Waddy Wachtel: Guitars
    Warren Zevon: Piano
    Kenny Edwards: Bass
    Rick Marotta: Drums

Well, I went home with the waitress
The way I always do
How was I to know
She was with the Russians, too

I was gambling in Havana
I took a little risk
Send lawyers, guns and money
Dad, get me out of this     Hah!

I'm the innocent bystander
Somehow I got stuck
Between the rock and the hard place
And I'm down on my luck
Yes, I'm down on my luck
Well, I'm down on my luck

Now I'm hiding in Honduras
I'm a desperate man
Send lawyers, guns and money
The shit has hit the fan

Send lawyers, guns and money
Send lawyers, guns and money
Send lawyers, guns and money
Send lawyers, guns and money

BONUS TRACKS w/ 2007 Re-Issue:

I Need A Truck (Outtake)
Warren Zevon
© Zevon Music (BMI)

I need a truck to haul my pain
I need a truck just to haul around my name
I need a truck to haul all the womens from my bed
I need a truck to haul my body when I’m dead

I need a truck to haul my guns to town
I need a truck to haul my bad thoughts around
I need a truck to haul my Percodan and gin
And I need a truck to haul all my trucks in

Werewolves Of London (Alternative Version)
LeRoy P. Marinell, Waddy Wachtel and Warren Zevon
© 1975 Zevon Music (BMI) and Polite Music (ASCAP)

I saw a werewolf with a Chinese menu in his hand
Walking through the streets of Soho in the rain
He was looking for the place called Lee Ho Fook's
Going to get a big dish of beef chow mein
Bite Down!
Ahhooooo  Werewolves of London Ahhooooo
Ahhooooo  Werewolves of London
Dah-dah-dangerous man
Come down! Listen!

If you hear him howling around your kitchen door
You better not let him in
Little old lady got mutilated late last night
Werewolves of London again
Draw Blood!
Ahhooooo  Werewolves of London
Ahhooooo  Werewolves of London
Ahhooooo  Ahhooooo
Walk Tall!

Come down! Listen!
He's the hairy handed gent who ran amok in Kent
Lately he's been overheard in Mayfair
You better stay away from him
He'll rip your lungs out, Jim
Hut. I'd like to meet his tailor
C’Mere
Ahhooooo  Werewolves of London
Ahhooooo  Werewolves of London
Ahhooooo  Werewolves of London
Come down!

Well, I saw Lon Chaney walking with the Queen
Doing the Werewolves of London
I saw Lon Chaney, Jr. walking with the Queen
Doing the Werewolves of London
I saw a werewolf drinking a piña colada at Trader Vic's at the Hilton
Dressed to the nines and his hair was perfect 
Hit me!
Ahhooooo 
Ahhooooo


Tule’s Blues (Solo Piano Version)
Warren Zevon
© Mr. Bones Music (BMI)/1996 EMI-Capitol Music Special Markets

Oh Tule, it's on account of you that I've been weeping 
Here behind my hand 
It's lonesome in my heart's land, as the sands of the desert
Oh, tell me, why was it always you, who, through the changes 
You, who always sang and played while the green vespers rang
In the heart of the hillside

It's a sad song; we always seem to be singing it to each other
You and me, sweet and slightly out of key
Like the sound of a running down calliope

Oh Tule, now wasn’t I once your knight in golden armor
With the sun behind my hair? 
And my music filled the air with cymbals and lightning

Oh, tell me, now can't you see I'm changing like the seasons? 
My hair is growing dark
And there's no room left in the ark for the lark with a broken wing

It's a sad song; we always seem to be singing it to each other
You and me, sweet and slightly out of key
Like the sound of a running down calliope

Oh Tule, it's on account of you that I'll be leaving
'Cross the deep salt sea 
Whatever wild worlds I may see, will be empty without you

It's a sad song; we always seem to be singing it to each other 
And a child's voice, so tender and out of tune
Does he ask if I’ll be coming home soon?
Does he ask if I’ll be coming home soon?


Frozen Notes (Strings Version)
Warren Zevon
© 1971 Mr. Bones Music Inc. Publishing (BMI)

    Warren Zevon: Piano, String Arrangement
    Charles Veal & Kenneth Yerke: Violins
    Carol Mukogawa: Viola
    Dennis Karmazyn: Cello
    Don Henley: Harmony Vocal

Softly falls the morning rain
Loneliness comes around again
And I sit and sing my song
'Though it never seems to matter
And it never fills the emptiness inside

Frozen notes hang suspended in the autumn air
While someone waits for someone to come somewhere
No one waits for me
'Cause I thought I wanted to be free
Now I'm wondering why I said goodbye
Looking through my window
At the dark and troubled sky
I think I see the ship of the brokenhearted passing by
And I turn away
From today
To where we used to lie
And I cry
Yes, I cry
And I cry
While softly falls the morning rain
Loneliness comes around again



The Gentlemen Boys are: Jackson Browne, Jorge Calderón, Kenny Edwards, John David Souther and Waddy Wachtel