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On a marble stair
Tryin' to find the ocean
Lookin' everywhere
Hard times in the city
In a hard town by the sea
Ain't nowhere to run to
There ain't nothin' here for free
Hooker on the corner
Waitin' for a train
Drunk lyin' on the sidewalk
Sleepin' in the rain
And they hide their faces
And they hide their eyes
'Cause the city's dyin'
And they don't know why
Oh, Baltimore
Man, it's hard just to live
Oh, Baltimore
Man, it's hard just to live, just to live
Get my sister Sandy
And my little brother Ray
Buy a big old wagon
Gonna haul us all away
Livin' in the country
Where the mountain's high
Never comin' back here
'Til the day I die
Oh, Baltimore
Man, it's hard just to live
Oh, Baltimore
Man, it's hard just to live, just to live
I accept as your truth that you never could stand him. As if it matters. The only time I saw him perform I guess he was heavily into cocaine. Sniffed a lot. Maybe that would be a reason to dislike him, for some. However, reality is more nuanced. He is a really good song writer. This song says more about an old American city that has suffered from the sort of hollowing out of industry, post-slavery sociological problems (Maryland was indeed a slave state), urban flight, racial discord, poor educational and other opportunities, etc. (and that's a lot of etcs.) than any single song I know. As a society we pretty much pay a modest amount of attention to the degradation of the urban centers, express some periodic concern, then move on to something/anything else. But the problem persists and festers. That is what this song is about, from my perspective.
Same here.
His father however was Hollywood Royalty and a great talent. Scored Wuthering Heights, Hunchback of Notre Dame, Chaplin's City Lights and on and on and on

Meanwhile,outside of Pleasant Valley

I'm just about to finish season 4. Imagine my delight when this song came up on Radio Paradise as a timely volunteer. I love Randy and I love him more when he writes, "And they hide their faces, And they hide their eyes, 'Cause the city's dyin', And they don't know why..." I think Randy knows 'why'.
Reminds of when I was a teenager and the talk show said, "Intelligence isn't something you're born with and if you don't have now you can get it" and "Follow the money". I was in the short line for the draft and the second round gasoline rationing/price hikes landed on us. I didn't read much in those days and I didn't have many informed friends or relatives, but I knew three things for sure; "we are being fucked"; "I am going to find out how" and "by whom". It didn't take long, surety takes a while longer, but it grows like a virus when I commit to knowing and seeing.
Get my sister Sandy, And my little brother Ray, Buy a big old wagon, Gonna haul us all away, Livin' in the country, Where the mountain's high, Never comin' back here, 'Til the day I die.

Noticed that, too. Very similar.
Just living wasn't enough.
Thank you for playing ... brightens my day!
(Odd, given the lyrics.)