That Song About the Midway

I met you on a midway at a fair last year
And you stood out like a ruby in a black man's ear
You were playin' on the horses
You were playin' on the guitar strings
You were playin' like a devil wearin' wings
Wearin' wings, you looked so grand wearin' wings

Do you tape them to your shoulders just to sing?
Can you fly? I heard you can. Can you fly?
Like an eagle doin' your huntin' from the sky

I followed with the sideshows to another town
And I found you in a trailer on the camping grounds
You were betting on some lover
You were shaking up the dice
And I thought I saw you cheatin' once or twice
Once or twice, I heard your bid once or twice

Were you wonderin', "Was the gamble worth the price?"
Pack it in, I heard you did, pack it in
Was it hard to fold a hand you knew could win?

So lately you've been hidin'
It was somewhere in the news
And I'm still at these races with my ticket stubs and my blues
And a voice calls out the numbers
And it sometimes mentions mine
And I feel like I've been workin' overtime
Overtime, I've lost my fire overtime

Always playin' one more hand for one more dime
Slowin' down, I'm gettin' tired, slowin' down
And I envy you the valley that you've found
'Cause I'm midway down the midway
Slowin' down, down, down, down