The Sabre and the Rose

Feet hit the ground', feet leaving town
Quicker than a bullet or a knife
Falling ain't no fun, when you're on the run
Honey we was runnin' for our life

When Stagger Lee had drunk his fill of moonlight
He turned his burnin' eyes upon my soul
"It's time, by God, to spend this night with someone else", he said
"Squeeze a little pleasure from the gold, love and glory"
But we can take it easy when we're old

He said, "We'll take us into town, lay our money down
I'll bring you to the sweetest thing that grows
Because the fairest ones in sight, are bloomin' every night
At a tavern called the Sabre and the Rose"

We swang into the saddle slick as breathing
And slapped 'em once for pleasure with the reins
The horses snorted frosty in the moonlight
Somethin' dark was singing in my veins
Older than the voices in my brain

He said, "This place you're gonna see is where they live and breathe
And sink down a little bit deeper every day
And sometimes at night, when the wind is runnin' right
You can hear it suckin' thirty miles away"

Then the light was crimson
And I found her all naked and eternal and insane
Sacred as the mysteries around her
Like a veil nothin' but her prison was profane
All we had in common was our chains

Ah, burn it down boys, burn it to the ground
Boys, burn it on down

Feet hit the ground, feet leaving town
Quicker than a bullet or a knife
All the way she ran, holdin' to my hand
Runnin' for the river and our life

Slidin' from the moonlight into shadows, silent as the river as it flows
Swimmin' to the place they'll never find us
All we left behind us was our clothes and the stories
Children sing about the sabre and the rose