After the bleak, showbiz disappointment of 1980's I've Got Something to Say, David Allan Coe showed his eternal penchant for rebounding by releasing what is arguably the finest album of his career in 1981. Invictus Means Unconquered is a solid collection of originals, co-writes, and a cover or two that is so emotionally riveting, gorgeously played and sung, and tastefully produced it's a shame it was released at the height of urban cowboy-ism and sank without a trace. This time out, Coe really did have something to say, evidenced by the poem "Invictus" that appears as an epigraph for the album. Billy Sherrill took a front production seat and Ron Bledsoe concentrated on the instrumentation and the mix. The opening cut, "Rose Knows," by the seasoned songwriting team of Goodman, Kennedy, and Rose, featured a shimmering B-3, a staccato Telecaster, and a chugging pedal steel just under Coe's effortless vocal. True to form, Coe has always been underrated as a singer, and nowhere is this more evident than on Invictus. His co-write with Guy and Susanna Clark on "Ain't It Funny How Love'll Do Ya" is one of the most convincing vocal performances Coe ever recorded, ranking with "Mona Lisa Lost Her Smile" and "Would You Lay With Me (In a Field of Stone)." As if this weren't enough for a one-two punch, there's also the Coe-Shel Silverstein collaboration with its ethereal backing vocals and echo-plexed pedal steel. The conviction in his voice is so present, it almost cracks, but he never quite allows himself to lose control. These are the words of a man who has stared into the face of broken love's void and lived to tell about it. And yet, Coe just goes deeper with Ray Kennedy and Bobby David's "Purple Heart" ("I should get the Purple Heart for loving you"). Whoever she (referred to as "shortcake" in the previous track) is, Coe is not letting her -- or himself -- off the hook (he dedicates this one to his former alter ego, the Mysterious Rhinestone Cowboy, for keeping David Allan Coe alive). The album movers toward lighter territory with a killer reading of Gary P. Nunn's "London Homesick Blues" that rivals Jerry Jeff Walker's easily, and this writer would argue it is superior. Coe's reading of "Stand by Your Man" is heartfelt and moving, and takes on a new meaning in a man's voice. It's a plea, not a declaration. The band is crack on Invictus; Bledsoe held the reins tight and let Sherrill create an atmosphere that was both immediate and dreamy. While there isn't a weak second on this disc, two other tracks stand out above the rest: Coe's version of Silverstein's "Someplace to Come to When It Rains" and he and Clark's outlaw anthem dedicated to John Dillinger, "I Love Robbin' Banks." From top to bottom, Invictus Means Unconquered towers above most country records not only of the era, but of all time. It's a quintessential example of everything country music can achieve when it is honest, true, and from the center of a broken heart.

Lyrics:

Rose Knows
I told you from the start I couldn't give you my heart it belonged to someone else
I tried like hell but still we fell I guess we could not help ourselves
You sure felt good in my world little girl but it's time to draw the line
Cause there's a lady who's mine and she's not the kind to just die upon the vine
Rose knows something's going on Rose knows she's spending too much time alone
I suppose better get myself back home Rose knows something's going on
[ guitar - steel ]
I'd love to stay here and lay down with you dear and hold you one more time
I wish it could be but unfortunately I've got roses on my mind
Rose knows something's going on...
Rose knows something's going on...

Ain't It Funny Love Can Do Ya
She had good intentions and I had the same
She kept the baby and left me the blame
We both had our reasons but they weren't the same
Ain't it funny the way love can do ya
We made a promise we'd never break up our home
Or ever find reasons for leaving each other alone but we did
Once we were stangers then we were friends
Next we were lovers now we're strangers again
Ain't it funny the way love can do ya but it did

I had good intentions and she had the same
She kept the heartaches and left me the shame
We both have our mem'ries but they're not the same
Ain't it funny the way love can do ya
We made a promise...

If You Ever Think Of Me At All
You said you were loving me you said I could never see
The forest for the trees where you're concerned
Just another game you've lost and just another stream you'll cross
And just another bridge you'll have to burn
So you're on your way to Texas girl you're Amarillo bound
You told me when I picked you up someday you'd let me down
If you ever think to write me if you ever think to call
If you ever think of me at all if you ever think of me at all

But you won't think about me much and you won't even miss my touch
And you won't ever see my face at night
You are so intent on losing that's the kind of life you're choosing
Now you've got me much too weak to fight
So you're on your way to Texas...
If you ever think of me at all

Purple Heart
I should get the purple heart for loving you after all the pain you put me through
When they start passing medals out to fools I will get the purple heart for loving you

There was nothing in the headlines to day you won the war
The one and only casually was me
You put me out of action so many times before
And left me on this battlefield to bleed
And I should get the purple heart...
[ steel ]
No one knows that I'm a hero there's no medals on my chest
All my wounds are hidden deep inside
I volunteered to love you hoping for the best
But all you ever done was cheat and lie
I should get the purple heart...
I should get the purple heart...

London Homesick Blues
Well when you're down on your luck and you ain't got a buck in London you're a goner
Even London Bridge has fallen down and moved to Arizona
Now I know why and I'll substantiate the rumor that the English sense of humor
Is drier than the Texas sand
You can put up your dukes or you can bet your boots but I'm leavin' as fast as I can
I want to go home with the armadillo good country music from Amarillo and Abilene
The friendliest people and the prettiest women you've ever seen

Well it's cold over here Lord I swear I wish they'd turn the heat on
And where in the world is that English girl I promised I would meet on the third floor
And of the whole damn lot the only friend I got is a smoke and a cheal guitar
My mind keeps rollin' and my heart keeps yearnin' to be home in Texas bar
I want to go home with the armadillo...

Well I decided that I'd get my cowboy hat and go down to Marble Arch Station
Cause when a Texas fancies he'll take his chances
Chances will be taken that's for sure
And them Limey eyes they were eyin' the prize some people call manly footwear
And they said you're from down south and when you open your mouth
Son you always seem to put yout foot there
I want to go home with Armadilla...
I want to go home with Armadilla...

Stand By Your Man
Sometimes it's hard to be a woman giving all your love to just one man
You'll have bad times and he'll have good times doin' things that you don't understand
But if you love him you'll forgive him even though he's hard to understand
And if you love him be proud of him cause after all he's just a man
Stand by your man give him two arms to cling to
And something warm to come to when nights're cold and lonely
Stand by your man and tell the world you love him
Keep giving all the love you can stand by your man

Well honey that's the only way that daddy knows how to answer your question
I knew when your mama passed away that someday I have to explain the things to you
That might make me and you both feel unconfortable
So I thought that the best thing to do
Is to sing you this song your mama used to sing
I hope that you will understand cause she did stand by her man
Stand by your man...
Stand by your man...

As Far As This Feeling Will Take Us
You're layin' here with me we're holding each other it feels good so it must be right
You've touched me into thinking this could go on forever
I don't care if forever is just for tonight
Let's go as far as this feeling will take us we've never been there together before
Let's go as far as this feeling will take us
And I've got a feeling we'll come back for more

I'm like a forest and you're like a wildfire that's spreading all over me
Baby come with me let's go to heaven
At moments like this girl that's where we should be
Let's go as far as this feeling...
For that kind of feeling we'll come back for me

Someplace To Come When It Rains
The lady you see me with now and again in this dimly lit hideway place
With eyes deep as midnight and smooth golden skin
And that warm look of love on her face
And you say ain't he lucky just look at those eyes
She's worth any price you can name
And you think that she's mine but you don't realize
I'm just someplace to come when it rains
Someplace to hide when she's tired of the ride just someone to soften my pain
Lord knows where she plays on her warm sunny days
I'm just someplace to come when she can't find the sun
Just someplace to come when it rains

The lady she dances so close in your arms you swear she can float you away
And gives you the feeling you're safe from all harm
Just as long as she holds you that way
And I can't say it's wrong cause I've known all along
That her lovin' is worth all the pain
So whenever she leads I'll be there when she needs someplace to come when it rains
Someplace to hide when she's tired...

I Love Robbin' Banks
Just keep the motor runnin' this won't take very long
By the time the police get here we'll be already gone
We've got to leave 'em hangin' we can't leave 'em no clues
Just take the money and run
Lord I love robbin' banks Lord I love robbin' banks
I always tell the teller thanks Lord I love robbin' banks

I like to holler stick up when I walk through the door
It lets 'em know their safe just isn't safe anymore
I like to see their faces when I show them my gun then take the money and run
Lord I love robbin' banks...
[ guitar ]
Five'll get you ten she'll push the burglar system
Ten'll get you twenty years on some prison farm
The first thing that I do is make 'em lay on the floor then take the money and run
Lord I love robbin' banks...
Lord I love robbin' banks...