[Verse 1]
Well, the ragman, he draws circles, up and down the block
I'd ask him, what's the matter, but I know he don't talk
And the ladies, they treat me kindly, and they furnish me with tape
But deep inside my heart, I know I can't escape

[Chorus]
Oh, oh, mama, can this really be the end?
To be stuck inside of Mobile with the Memphis blues again

[Verse 2]
Now, Shakespeare he's in the alley
With his pointed shoes and bell
Speaking with some French girl, who says shе knows me well
And I would send a mеssage, oh, to find out if she's talked
But the post office has been stolen, and the mailbox is locked

[Chorus]
And oh mama, can this really be the end?
To be stuck inside of Mobile with the Memphis blues again

[Instrumental break]

[Verse 3]
Mona, she tried to tell me, said, "Stay away from the railroad line"
She says, "All the railroad men, they drink up your blood like wine"
And I said, "Oh, I didn't know that
But then again there's only one I've met
And he just smoked my eyelids, and he punched my cigarette"
[Chorus]
Oh, oh mama, can this really be the end?
To be stuck inside of Mobile with the Memphis blues again

[Verse 4]
Grandpa died last week, and they buried him in the rocks
Now everyone still asks about how badly they are shocked
But me, I expected it to happen, and I knew he'd lost control
When he built a fire on Main Street, yes, and he shot it full of holes

[Chorus]
Oh, oh mama, can this really be, really be the end?
To be stuck inside of Mobile with the Memphis blues again

[Instrumental break]

[Verse 5]
Now the senator, he came down here, showing everyone his gun
And handing out free tickets to the wedding of his son
Me, I nearly got busted, yes, wouldn't it be my luck
To get caught without a ticket and be discovered beneath a truck

[Chorus]
Oh, oh mama, can this really be the end?
To be stuck inside of Mobile with the Memphis blues again
[Verse 6]
Now the preacher, he looks so baffled
When I asked him why he dressed
With twenty pounds of headlines stapled to his chest
But he cursed me when I proved it to him
I said, "See, not even you can hide
You see, you're just like me, and I hope you're satisfied"

[Chorus]
Oh, oh mama, can this really be the end?
To be stuck inside of Mobile with the Memphis blues again

[Verse 7]
The rainman gave me two cures, and he said, "Jump right in"
The first was Texas medicine, the second was just railroad gin
But like a fool I mixed them, and it strangled up my mind
Now people just get uglier, and I have got no sense of time

[Chorus]
Oh, oh mama, can this really be, really be the end?
To be stuck inside of Mobile with the Memphis blues again

[Instrumental break]

[Verse 8]
Ruthie says, "Come see me in a honky-tonk lagoon"
Where I can watch her waltz for free and a Panamanian moon
And I said, "Oh, come on now, you know about my debutante"
And she says, "Your debutante knows what you need
But I know what you want"
[Chorus]
Oh, oh mama, can this really, really be the end?
To be stuck inside of Mobile with the Memphis blues again

[Verse 9]
The bricks, they lay on Grand Street, where the neon madmen climb
They all fall there so perfectly, it all seems so well timed
And me, I sit here so patiently, trying to find out what price
You have to pay to get out of
Going through all of these things twice

[Chorus]
Oh, oh mama, can this really be the end?
To be stuck inside of Mobile with the Memphis blues again

[Outro]
Hey, oh mama, can this really be the end?
To be stuck inside of Mobile with the Memphis blues again