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Busted flat in Baton Rouge, waitin' for a train
And I's feelin' near as faded as my jeans
Bobby thumbed a diesel down, just before it rained
It rode us all the way to New Orleans
I pulled my harpoon out of my dirty red bandanna
I was playin' soft while Bobby sang the blues, yeah
Windshield wipers slappin' time, I was holdin' Bobby's hand in mine
We sang every song that driver knew
Freedom's just another word for nothin' left to lose
Nothin', don't mean nothin' hon' if it ain't free, no no
And, feelin' good was easy, Lord, when he sang the blues
You know, feelin' good was good enough for me
Good enough for me and my Bobby McGhee
From the Kentucky coal mine to the California sun
There Bobby shared the secrets of my soul
Through all kinds of weather, through everything we done
Yeah, Bobby baby kept me from the cold
One day up near Salinas, Lord, I let him slip away
He's lookin' for that home, and I hope he finds it
But, I'd trade all of my tomorrows, for a single yesterday
To be holdin' Bobby's body next to mine
Freedom's just another word for nothin' left to lose
Nothin', that's all that Bobby left me, yeah
But, feelin' good was easy, Lord, when he sang the blues
Hey, feelin' good was good enough for me, mm-hmm
Good enough for me and my Bobby McGhee
La da da
La da da da
La da da da da da da da
La da da da da da da da
Bobby McGhee, yeah
La da da da da da da
La da da da da da da
La da da da da da da
Bobby McGhee, yeah
La da La la da da la da da la da da
La da da da da da da da da
Hey, my Bobby
Oh, my Bobby McGhee, yeah
La la la la la la la la
La la la la la la la la la la la la la la la
Hey, my Bobby
Oh, my Bobby McGhee, yeah
Well, I call him my lover, call him my man
I said, I call him my lover did the best I can, c'mon
Hey now, Bobby now
Hey now, Bobby McGhee, yeah
Woo
La da, la da, la da, la da, la da, la da, la da, la la
Hey, hey, hey Bobby McGhee, yeah
La da, la da, la da, la da, la da, la da, la da, la
Hey, hey, hey, Bobby McGhee, yeah
And I's feelin' near as faded as my jeans
Bobby thumbed a diesel down, just before it rained
It rode us all the way to New Orleans
I pulled my harpoon out of my dirty red bandanna
I was playin' soft while Bobby sang the blues, yeah
Windshield wipers slappin' time, I was holdin' Bobby's hand in mine
We sang every song that driver knew
Freedom's just another word for nothin' left to lose
Nothin', don't mean nothin' hon' if it ain't free, no no
And, feelin' good was easy, Lord, when he sang the blues
You know, feelin' good was good enough for me
Good enough for me and my Bobby McGhee
From the Kentucky coal mine to the California sun
There Bobby shared the secrets of my soul
Through all kinds of weather, through everything we done
Yeah, Bobby baby kept me from the cold
One day up near Salinas, Lord, I let him slip away
He's lookin' for that home, and I hope he finds it
But, I'd trade all of my tomorrows, for a single yesterday
To be holdin' Bobby's body next to mine
Freedom's just another word for nothin' left to lose
Nothin', that's all that Bobby left me, yeah
But, feelin' good was easy, Lord, when he sang the blues
Hey, feelin' good was good enough for me, mm-hmm
Good enough for me and my Bobby McGhee
La da da
La da da da
La da da da da da da da
La da da da da da da da
Bobby McGhee, yeah
La da da da da da da
La da da da da da da
La da da da da da da
Bobby McGhee, yeah
La da La la da da la da da la da da
La da da da da da da da da
Hey, my Bobby
Oh, my Bobby McGhee, yeah
La la la la la la la la
La la la la la la la la la la la la la la la
Hey, my Bobby
Oh, my Bobby McGhee, yeah
Well, I call him my lover, call him my man
I said, I call him my lover did the best I can, c'mon
Hey now, Bobby now
Hey now, Bobby McGhee, yeah
Woo
La da, la da, la da, la da, la da, la da, la da, la la
Hey, hey, hey Bobby McGhee, yeah
La da, la da, la da, la da, la da, la da, la da, la
Hey, hey, hey, Bobby McGhee, yeah
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But, I'd trade all of my tomorrows, for a single yesterday
To be holdin' Bobby's body next to mine"
It's like she was saying goodbye to herself or mourning the loss of herself
I think it's important to note the subtle changes in lyrics (besides pronoun use) between Janis's version and the original by kris. maybe it's because of how she died, but to me, her version seems to involve drugs as part of the story, but kris's doesn't.
"And I's feelin' near as faded as my jeans
Bobby thumbed a diesel down, just before it rained"
feeling faded: out of it/ strung out
thumbed a diesel down: sure, it sounds like hitching a ride on a truck, but diesel is also another word for heroin, and the thumb part could imply shooting heroin, since people use their thumbs to inject
"I pulled my harpoon out of my dirty red bandanna"
once again, yes a harpoon could be a harmonica i suppose, as someone else suggested, and i am positive that in kris's version, it really did mean just that because he plays the harmonica all throughout it. BUT i have known drug users who refer to their needles as harpoons, and the way she sings it makes me think that's what she means.
freedom's just another word for nothing left to lose
nothing don't mean nothing if it ain't free.. (changed from "nothing ain't worth nothing, but it's free" in the original) now this is purely my opinion but many drug users have lost everything to their addictions.. it costs everything in their lives that they care about so they might have nothing left to lose, but that nothing certainly wasn't free- they paid a terrible price for it. I think she's singing about freedom as something she doesn't have.
read the book 'Pearl' by Ellis Amburn.
youll learn alot.
I heard Roger's version first and still love Janis's better. It's usually the first you hear that you
like most.
The Harpoon refers to a cigarette, more or not likely a joint, as he knew they would kill him one day. He's 72 now, but he had a tripple by-pass in '99 which didnt surprise him in the least. He gave up smoking afterward, which the last of a long list of his vices he needed to quit.
The songs 99% based around a girl he loved, wether bobby was her name i dont know. But it made background references to reminiscing the days he knew her, one in particular he held her hand.
I remember my dad, who brought me up on a lot of good music that, sadly my generation seems to be incapable of producing, playe this for me first as a little kid. He said "Don't be put off by by all the screaming, just listen to the emotion in her voice." My grandma used to play Joplin around the house when my dad was growing up, and at first, he didn't understand why his mom would listen to that kind of thing. But in his teens, he too felt the passion she put into her music, and when dad played it for me the first time, I was completely blown away. I think it was one of my first recollections of differentiating between a great voice and a great singer. This song will, for me, always carry the memories of being stranded on the side of the road in the middle of nowhere, with all these trucks going past, with the dust and sun or rain in my clothes - and the wind pulling at my hair.