Fifty Cash Dollars

You've seen me at weddings and parties and bars
singing all of the songs the folks want to hear
for fifty cash dollars and a pitcher of beer.

"Fire and Rain"? -- oh you've got it my friend.
"Country Roads", well I did it, but I'll do it again
"Brown Eyed Girl"? -- sure honey, goin' out just for you.
"Friend of the Devil" I can do that one too.

And I'll play all the tunes in my book full of songs,
the one that I know will make folks sing along.
I've got them all tabbed -- I can flip in a second,
to Springsteen, to Neil Young, to Croce, to Dylan.

Well you know it ain't easy to play to a crowd
that's drinkin' and talkin' and laughin' out loud
But I can win 'em right over in the blink of an eye
just by singin' "Bye bye Miss American pie..."
and when that Chevy hits the levy, man, they're all on my side.

It's a real good feeling to make people smile,
but you could feel like a jukebox after a while.
It ain't no good to try to sing 'em a song of your own,
they just start drifting away and checking their phones.

So at night, I go home and take out my guitar --
play songs they don't want to hear in a bar.
I'm taking 'em down to Nashville someday,
to play them on stage at the Bluebird Cafe.

'Cause I got me a dream, yeah, I got me a plan,
to be more that just a rented out music man.
I got me a contact on Music Row.
He's a friend of a friend of a friend that I know.

And he wants me to send all my music along,
and he'll listen for $25 a song.
So I send my money, I send him my tunes,
I ain't heard from him yet, but I know I will soon.

Until then, I'll sing "Moondance" and "Johnny B. Goode"
and Eagles and Elvis and "Norwegian Wood."
And anything else that the folks want to hear,
for fifty cash dollars and a pitcher of beer.
For fifty cash dollars and a pitcher of beer.