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What's he building in there?
What the hell is he building
In there?
He has subscriptions to those
Magazines... He never
Waves when he goes by
He's hiding something from
The rest of us... He's all
To himself... I think I know
Why... He took down the
Tire swing from the Peppertree
He has no children of his
Own you see... He has no dog
And he has no friends and
His lawn is dying... and
What about all those packages
He sends. What's he building in there?
With that hook light
On the stairs. What's he building
In there... I'll tell you one thing
He's not building a playhouse for
The children what's he building
In there?
Now what's that sound from under the door?
He's pounding nails into a
Hardwood floor... and I
Swear to god I heard someone
Moaning low... and I keep
Seeing the blue light of a
T.V. show...
He has a router
And a table saw... and you
Won't believe what Mr. Sticha saw
There's poison underneath the sink
Of course... But there's also
Enough formaldehyde to choke
A horse... What's he building
In there. What the hell is he
Building in there? I heard he
Has an ex-wife in some place
Called Mayors Income, Tennessee
And he used to have a
consulting business in Indonesia...
but what is he building in there?
What the hell is building in there?
He has no friends
But he gets a lot of mail
I'll bet he spent a little
Time in jail...
I heard he was up on the
Roof last night
Signaling with a flashlight
And what's that tune he's
Always whistling...
What's he building in there?
What's he building in there?
We have a right to know...
What the hell is he building
In there?
He has subscriptions to those
Magazines... He never
Waves when he goes by
He's hiding something from
The rest of us... He's all
To himself... I think I know
Why... He took down the
Tire swing from the Peppertree
He has no children of his
Own you see... He has no dog
And he has no friends and
His lawn is dying... and
What about all those packages
He sends. What's he building in there?
With that hook light
On the stairs. What's he building
In there... I'll tell you one thing
He's not building a playhouse for
The children what's he building
In there?
Now what's that sound from under the door?
He's pounding nails into a
Hardwood floor... and I
Swear to god I heard someone
Moaning low... and I keep
Seeing the blue light of a
T.V. show...
He has a router
And a table saw... and you
Won't believe what Mr. Sticha saw
There's poison underneath the sink
Of course... But there's also
Enough formaldehyde to choke
A horse... What's he building
In there. What the hell is he
Building in there? I heard he
Has an ex-wife in some place
Called Mayors Income, Tennessee
And he used to have a
consulting business in Indonesia...
but what is he building in there?
What the hell is building in there?
He has no friends
But he gets a lot of mail
I'll bet he spent a little
Time in jail...
I heard he was up on the
Roof last night
Signaling with a flashlight
And what's that tune he's
Always whistling...
What's he building in there?
What's he building in there?
We have a right to know...
Lyrics submitted by archmastermind, edited by Mellow_Harsher
Track duration: 03:20
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I also think it's about Tom Waits, himself. People want to know every little detail about him. He's a very private person and his level of success, and cult following draws a lot of attention.
But, what if someone subscribed to 'those' magazines, stole the tire swing from the cherry tree, USED TO have a consulting firm in IN-DO-NE-SAAA and always whistling that tune.. not to mention all of those packages he sends out.. It really makes you think..
What IS he building in there?
Besides it's like JUST the stranger is imagining it-- because you won't believe what Mr. Stitches saw either!!
I agree with the idea that we should be looking more at the townsfolk than 'he'. All of the information that we're given is either heresay from the reliable 'Mr Stiches' (or 'I heard he was up on the roof last night signaling with a flashlight') or not particularly incriminating ("oh shit his lawn is dying").
But Waits never gives us a clear answer. There is always an ambiguity. And noone can deny that, although the actions of the man have been recorded to a ridiculous extent, the guy's still pretty sinister. His distance from the other townsfolk and that chilling whistling that closes the song can confirm that his actions are justifiably suspect.
Of course, the line "what's he building in there?" has turned into a bit of an inside joke. Tends to cause weird looks from the uninitiated though.