Tom Waits - $29.00 Lyrics

Little black girl in a red dress,
On a hot night with a broken shoe.
Little black girl you shouldn't never left home,
There's probably someone that's still waiting up for you.
It's cold back in Chicago,
But Los Angeles' street's worse,
When all you got is $29.00 and an alligator purse!

You'll see that vulture in the Fleetwood,
With the chartreuse hood!
It's time to get your bearings and say hey baby:
Which way's to the Main Stem?
And where ever you say you're from,
Say you grew up there yourself
Say, come on, you grew up right next door to him:
Take the left on Central
And throw it in reverse:
Cause you only got $29.00 and an alligator purse!

And he'll come on just like a gentleman
And you'll be a little shy!
You say your ex old man was a sax player
He'll say baby I used to play bass with Sly!
And you say you like his Cadillac,
Say honey I got two or three!
He'll say: Sweetheart you're sure fortunate
That you ran into me!
When you've done a dime in the joint!
You figure nothin' could be worse:
And you got $29.00 in an alligator purse!

Well: He got Pharaoh on the eight track
You start smokin' a little boo!
You thinking gettin' out of Chicago was the
Best thing ever happened to you!
He's starting like a dog rhythm
And the cats seem to be cool!
He says: Baby, I know a good ol' jailhouse
In West Hollywood that's just right for you!
But he ain't no good Samaritan,
He'll make sure you're reimbursed!!
A lot more than $29.00 and an alligator purse!

Now when the streets get hungry, baby,
You can almost hear them growl!
Someone's setting a place for you,
When the dogs begin to howl!

Well: The streets are dead they creep. It was left on the pole!
They make that the suckers always make mistakes
When they're far away from home!
Chicken in a pot
Whoever gets their first
Gonna get himself $29.00 and an alligator purse!

Now, for the sirens it's just an epilogue
The cops always get there too late!
They always stop for coffee
On the way to the scene of the crime!
They always try so hard to look like movie stars,
They couldn't catch a cold!
Baby: don't waste your dime
You're lucky to be alive!
The doctor whispered to the nurse:
She only lost a half pint of blood!
$29.00 and an alligator purse!