The sixth and final volume of Bear Family's DAC two-fer series ends on a high note with his final albums for Columbia, the gorgeous Invictus Means Unconquered and the gutsy, rootsy Tennessee Whiskey. Both of these records represent a return to form for DAC, who had hit a career and creative low with his first attempt at a commercial album, I've Got Something to Say, complete with "special guests." No one was really paying attention to DAC when he recorded Invictus; he and producer Billy Sherrill had nothing to lose, so they put together a collection of ten very strong songs that are, for the very first time, comprised entirely of either co-writes or covers. The covers include Gary P. Nunn's "London Home Sick Blues," "Stand by Your Man," and Bobby David and Ray Kennedy's "The Purple Heart," among others. Among the co-writes are two by DAC and Guy and Susanna Clark, "Ain't It Funny the Way Love'll Do Ya" and "I Love Robbing Banks," and the DAC/Shel Silverstein classic "If You Ever Think of Me at All." The album flows from beginning to end and never slacks, even for a moment. It is DAC's most criminally ignored record and may be his very best. Tennessee Whiskey, by contrast, is a record that seeks to expand on the vision created with Invictus. Sherrill's influence in helping to choose material is evident in the title track, Larry Kingston's "Bright Morning Light," and the Shel Silverstein/Fred Koller nugget "Juanita," among others. The rest features new DAC material, songs that are tight, hooky, and downright country -- which might have been a problem in 1981 when Karen Brooks, Janie Fricke, David Frizzell, Eddie Rabbit, Rosanne Cash, and Lacy J. Dalton were topping the charts. The huge surprise is DAC's odd, funky, but very credible reading of "Dock of the Bay." The singing on both of these records is amazing; DAC was never in better voice. Anyone interested in finding out about DAC's work apart from his myth would do well to actually begin with these records.

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...

Tennessee Whiskey Texas Lullaby
By: David Allan Coe and Ann McGowan

SEE THOSE TUMBLEWEEDS A-BLOWING'
LORD, IT MAKES ME WANT TO CRY
IT REMINDS ME OF MY DADDY
AND THAT TEXAS LULLABY

SEE THOSE CACTUS FLOWERS BLOOMING'
LIKE THE TWINKLE IN HIS EYE
EVERY TIME HE STARTED SINGING' THAT OLE TEXAS LULLABY

YIPPEE YI LITTLE DOGGIE ROLL ALONG ROLL ALONG
YIPPEE YI LITTLE DOGGIE TAKE ME HOME, TAKE ME HOME
IT'S SO COLD ON THE DESERT, I'M CHILLED TO THE BONE
YIPPEE YI LITTLE DOGGIE, YIPPEE YI

LOOK YONDER THERE'S A DUST CLOUD PAINTING PICTURES IN THE SKY
DADDY TOLD ME ALL ABOUT IT, IN THAT TEXAS LULLABY
THEM OLE LONGHORNS ARE A BALLWIN', LORD I KNOW I MUST BE HIGH
WISH MY DAD COULD HEAR ME SINGING' THIS OLD TEXAS LULLABY

DADDY LEFT ME THIS OLD GUITAR, THOUGH I NEVER QUITE KNEW WHY
HE SAID SOMEDAY I'D BE FAMOUS LIKE THAT TEXAS LULLABY
BUT IT'S BEEN A MONTH OF SUNDAYS SINCE I SEEN THAT EAGLE FLY
AND NOBODY WANTS TO LISTEN TO A TEXAS LULLABY
I used to spend my nights out
In a bar room
Liquor was the only love I'd known
But you rescued me from reaching for the bottom
Brought me back from being too far gone

You're as smooth as Tennesee whiskey
You're as sweet as strawberry wine
You're as warm as a glass of Brandy
And I stay stoned on your love all the time

I looked for love
In all the same old places
Found the bottom of the bottle's
Always dry
But when you poured out your heart
I didn't waste it
Cause there's nothing like your love
To get me high

You're as smooth as Tennesee whiskey
You're as sweet as strawberry wine
You're as warm as a glass of Brandy
And I stay stoned on your love all the time
I stay stoned on your love all the time

If I Knew
If I knew I could count on you I would love you my whole life through
There is nothing that I would not do if I knew I could count on you

I've been lonely for a long time I've been looking everywhere
I need someone to believe in I need someone that will care

And if I see that your love is true I will gladly put my faith in you
There is nothing I would rather do if I see that your love is true

I've been searching for a true love I've been looking high and low
I've got all this love inside me and it's good nowhere to go
If I knew I could count on you...
And if I see that your love is true...
If I knew I could count on you...

I've Given Bout All I Can Take
I burned all the letters that you never wrote
I broke all the promises you never spoke
I swallowed my pride till I thought I would choke
Given bout all I can take I've given bout all I can take
You want somebody guess we all do you've got a heart that won't let it come true
And I never was one to fake given bout all I can take
I've given bout all I can take

I cried over milk that never was spilled
And I've danced to waltzes and you just stood still
Time is much too precious to kill given bout all I can take
I've given bout all I can take
You want somebody...
Oh I've given bout all I can take

Pledging My Love
Forever my darling our love will be true always and forever I'll love only you
Just promise me darling your love in return
Make this fire in my soul dear forever burn
My heart's at your command dear to keep love and to hold
Making you happy's my desire dear loving you is my goal
I'll forever love you the rest of my days I'll never part from you and your loving ways
[ guitar ]
My heart's at your command...
This is my last letter end of the song my life is so miserable I can't go on

I'll Always Be a Fool for You
You change just like the weather I never know if you'll be hot or cold to me
Can't you see what I've been going through
We belong together even though I know at times it just can't be
Honey can't you see I'll always be a fool for you
I'll always be the first to say I'm sorry I'll always be the last to say we're through
I'll always be the one to take another chance
In this romance I'll always be a fool for you
[ piano ]
I'll always be the first to say...
I'll always be a fool for you

Juanita
Well I'm finally gettin' used to the water the way the tarantulas bite
Those Federales didn't believe I only came here to watch the bulls fight
Tell my mother I need a good lawyer tell my father I'm getting a tan
My sleepy siesta down south of the border is taking more time than I planned
Oh Juanity somebody betrayed me they've given me ten years to life
Juanita I need you to save me I promise I'll make you my wife

I got a big house in Milwaukee with a color TV and a pool
A Naugahyde bar and a Cadillac car Juanita they're waiting for you
Tie the burro up down in the courtyard to keep the guard busy tonight
When you bring my dinner make sure the tortilla is filled with a gun or a knife
Juanity somebody betrayed me...

Juanita you'll love Wisconsin Wisconsin is gonna love you
Yes all of Milwaukee speaks Spanish
Of course you're gonna wear American shoes
Lake Michigan tastes like tequila frijoles why they grow there on trees
You can say adios to the pigs and the goats if you'll just do this one thing for me
But Juanity somebody betrayed me...

Juanita I swear it was all a mistake
You see I was drowning out there in the ocean and I saw this bale coming by
Man so I grabbed it and I climbed up on top of it
And I found this stick and I rowed myself into shore
And when I got there the Border Patrol was waiting for me
At the I didn't know what it was
I promise you if you'll just marry me so I can become a citizen of Mexico
I'll take you to Milwaukee you can meet all my friends
They got these big shiny motorcycles
And you can ride on the back of 'em with 'em really Juanita would I lie to you

We Got a Bad Thing Goin'
You got a one horse ranch in Texas you got a mansion in Spain
You blew in on a Greyhound bus honey you flew in your own plane
You got drunk on whiskey seen you get tipsy on wine
We got a bad thing goin' it's just a bad thing goin'
We got a bad thing goin' but don't it feel fine

You sure are a high class lady you got a blue blood in your veins
You're a rose in the bright sunshine I'm a cowboy in the rain
We ain't got nothin' in common cept for a little time
We got a bad thing goin'...

You're a rodeo rattler and a midnight gambler you ain't never had a job
And I just found out your daddy owns a bank I was fixin' to rob
[ guitar ]
You got a one horse ranch in Texas...

Yeah we ain't got nothin' in common you know that girl you must have missed it
Be like ridin' in them barrel races and like sailin' them boats

D-R-U-N-K
How do you spell relief?
I get D-R-U-N-K
Lately Dave since my baby left me
I do it almost every day
It's the only thing that I've found
That'll take the hurt away

Well how do you spell relief John?

I get D-R-U-N-K
Every night about sundown I get a pain down deep inside
This old broken heart acts up
There's a hurtin' in my pride
Well I've found a sure fire treatment
That'll get me feelin' right
When your memory starts flarin' up
I just head for the neon lights

How do you spell relief David?

I get D-R-U-N-K
Lately since my baby left
I do it almost every day
It's the only thing that I've found John
That'll take the hurt away

Well how do you spell relief?

I just get D-R-U-N-K

John Hartford

I don't need no doctor
Tell me what is wrong
I can fill my own perscriptions
And it lasts me all night long
It's the perfect medication
For an ailment such as mine
I forget about the tears I've cried
When the whiskey hits my mind

How do we spell relief?
We get D-R-U-N-K
Lately since my baby left me
I do it almost every day
Well I tell ya Johnny
Its the only thing I've found
That'll take the pain away

How do we spell relief?
We get D-R-U-N-K

How do we spell relief?
We get D-R-U-N-K

How do we spell relief?
We get D-R-U-N-K

We're havin' fun now ain't we?

Little Orphan Annie
Play your fiddle Little Orphan Annie
Play it for the shrimpers and the pirates out to sea
Play it for the hippies down in Mallory Square
If I'm not there won't you play a song for me

We all called her Little Orphan Annie at the playground
Merry go merry go merry go round
Till she picked her fiddle up we always put her down
When she picked her fiddle up they come for miles around to hear her play
[ fiddle ]
Play your fiddle Little Orphan Annie...
[ fiddle - mandolin ]
Aw Mad Dog Diamond Jim Richmond from the Tennessee Hot Band
John Hartford on the banjo oh Diamond my oldest son Dale
John Hartford playin' the fiddle and the banjo Diamond Jim

Bright Morning Light
She was a waitress in a west Texas dance hall
I was a cowboy with a throat full of sand
I called her Honey when she brought my whiskey
And later I left there holding her hand
Then we walked down the street to a tumble down hotel
Where she had a room on a cold second floor
And that room looked like hell just a bed and a table
A shade on the window and a lock on the door
I said to myself she's cheap and she's easy
But she don't look half bad I'll stay for the night
But I'll leave when it's early cause I've got this feeling
She won't look so good in the bright morning light
[ harmonica ]
I've known some devils and I've known some angels
I once had a woman on the Mexico line
But I've never been touched like that woman touched me
She lay there beside me and crawled in my mind
And we talked and we smoked and made love till mornin'
The sun come a streamin' through a hole in the shade
And it fell like a spotlight on her face and her body
And it hung like a halo round the bed where we lay
I said to myself she's cheap and she's easy
But she don't look half bad I guess I'll stay for the night
But I'll tell you boys that was five years ago and Lord God what a woman
She still looks as good in the bright morning light