Sweet songs never last too long on broken radios

Then the coal company came with the world's largest shovel And they tortured the timber and stripped all the land Well, they dug for their coal till the land was forsaken Then they wrote it all down as the progress of man. John Prine - Paradise.

The ides of March is Summer's End here in Australia. Just after that date came the news that John Prine had tested positive to the Covid-19. He died on the 7th of April 2020. Vale John Prine. Just come on home...

John Prine was one of my favorite singer-songwriters. If you haven't heard of him, you should listen to John Prine if you want songs with meaning and a message that resonates.

If you're out walking down the streets of town/ And spot some hollow ancient eyesWell please just don't pass them by and stare/ As if you didn't careSay hello in there, hello.

Here's a playlist of some of my favorite John Prine songs. 

Or to listen to a particular song, click on the song title below:

Illegal Smile.
Ah, but fortunately I have the key to escape reality.
And you may see me tonight with an illegal smile

It don't cost very much, but it lasts a long while.

Spanish Pipedream.
She was a level-headed dancer on the road to alcohol

And I was just a soldier on my way to Montreal.

Hello in There.

You know that old trees just grow stronger/ And old rivers grow wider everyday

Old people just grow lonesome/ Waiting for someone to say, 
"Hello in there, hello".

Sam Stone.
Sam Stone was alone

When he popped his last balloon,
Climbing walls while sitting in a chair.

Paradise.
And daddy won't you take me back to Muhlenberg County

Down by the Green River where Paradise lay
Well, I'm sorry my son, but you're too late in asking
Mister Peabody's coal train has hauled it away.

Far from Me.
And the sky is black and still now

On the hill where the angels sing
Ain't it funny how an old broken bottle
Looks just like a diamond ring
But it's far, far from me.

Donald and Lydia.
But dreaming just comes natural

Like the first breath from a baby,
Like sunshine feeding daisies,
Like the love hidden deep in your heart.

Six O'Clock News.
Sneaking in the closet and through the diary

Now, don't you know all he saw was all there was to see The whole town saw Jimmy on the six o'clock news His brains were on the sidewalk and blood was on his shoes C'mon, baby, spend the night with me...

The Late John Garfield Blues.
Midnight fell on Franklin Street

And the lamppost bulbs were broke For the life of me, I could not see But I heard a brand new joke.

The Great Compromise.
I used to sleep at the foot of old glory

And awake in the dawn's early light
But much to my surprise when I opened my eyes
I was a victim of the great compromise.

Clocks and Spoons.
Runnin' through sky of blue rollin' in the sun

Every day has a way of overflowing one
Shoot the moon right between the eyes
I'm keeping most of me in sunny country side.

Please Don't Bury Me 
But, please don't bury me
Down in that cold, cold ground
I'd rather have 'em cut me up
And pass me all around
Throw my brain in a hurricane
And the blind can have my eyes
And the deaf can take both of my ears
If they don't mind the size, that's right.

Christmas in Prison.
Wait awhile eternity

Old mother nature's got nothing on me
Come to me Run to me
Come to me, now

Blue Umbrella.

Well, my feet are wet
From thinking this thing over
And it's been so long
Since I felt the warm sunshine

Just give me one good reason
And I promise I won't ask you any more
Just give me one extra season
So I can figure out the other four.

Come Back to Us Barbara Lewis Hare Krishna Beauregard.
Selling bibles at the airports

Buying Quaaludes on the phone
Hey, you talk about, a paper route
She's a shut in without a home

Fish and Whistle.
On my very first job I said thank-you and please
They made me scrub a parking lot down on my knees
Then I got fired for being scared of bees
And they only give me fifty cents an hour.

That's the Way That the World Goes 'Round.
That's the way that the world goes 'round.

You're up one day and the next you're down.
It's half an inch of water and you think you're gonna drown.
That's the way that the world goes 'round.

Sabu Visits the Twin Cities Alone.
Sabu was sad the whole tour stunk

The airlines lost the elephant's trunk
The roadie got the rabies and the scabies and the flu
They was low on morale but they was high on.

The Hobo Song.
Down through the years

many men have yearned
for freedom
some found it
only on the open road
so many tears of blood
have fell around us
'cause you can't always do what you are told.

People Puttin' People Down.
People that are glad - sometimes they wear a smile

And people without dreams they walk the extra mile
But all the people who don't fit
Get the only fun they get
From people puttin' people down.

Unwed Fathers.
While unwed fathers, they can't be bothered

They run like water, through a mountain stream

Linda Goes to Mars. Oh my stars! my linda's gone to mars

Well, I wonder if she'd bring me something home.

It's a Big Old Goofy World.
Up in the morning

Work like a dog
Is better than sitting
Like a bump on a log
Mind all your manners
Be quiet as a mouse
Some day you'll own a home
That's as big as a house.

Lake Marie.

You know what blood looks like in a black and white?
Shadows…

Slammed up against the banks of Old Lake Marie.

We were standing

Standing by peaceful waters.

Some Humans Ain't Human.
Some humans ain't human

Some people ain't kind
They lie through their teeth
With their head up their behind
You open up their hearts
And here's what you'll find
Some humans ain't human
Some people ain't kind.

All the Best.
I wish you love - I wish you happiness

I guess I wish - you all the best

Encore:

Souvenirs (With Steve Goodman)
Broken hearts and dirty windows
Make life difficult to see
That's why last night and this mornin'
Always look the same to me.

Angel from Montgomery (With Bonnie Raitt)
Just give me one thing that I can hold on to

To believe in this living is just a hard way to go.

Speed of the Sound of Loneliness (With Nanci Griffith)
So what in the world's come over you

And what in heaven's name have you done
You've broken the speed of the sound of loneliness
You're out there running just to be on the run.

In Spite Of Ourselves (With Iris DeMent)
In spite of ourselves we'll end up a-sittin' on a rainbow

Against all odds, honey we're the big door-prize
We're gonna spite our noses right off of our faces
There won't be nothin' but big ol' hearts dancin' in our eyes.

Summer's End
Come on home

Come on home
No you don't have to be alone
Just come on home...

You may add the other top 470 John Prine songs in any order.
And that's the way that the world goes 'round...