Mark Knopfler - The Ragpicker’s Dream (Remastered 2021)

When Jack Frost came for Christmas With a brass monkey date The rail king and the scarecrow Hopped a Florida freight And they blew on their paper cups And stared through the steam Then they drank half a bottle Of Ragpicker's Dream Where the whiskey keeps following Cold pitchers of beer Me and my associate Like the clientele here Get the onions and the 'tatoes Ribeyes on the grill Toothpicks and Luckies And a coffee refill As the rail king lay a-rocking He was leaving the ground Then he was flying like Santa Claus Over the town Where he came to the window Of a house by a stream Was a family Christmas In a Ragpicker's Dream There were kids at the table All aglow in the light Music in the wintertime Sure carries at night There was turkey and gravy Pie and ice cream And gifts for each and everyone In a Ragpicker's Dream Where the red eye keeps tumbling In our glasses of beer Me and my associate Like the service in here There's a ten for your trouble You have beautiful hair Make the last one two doubles It's a cold one out there Where the scarecrow and the rail king Have started to dance But a nightstick and a billy club Won't give peace a chance Here, I think they went thataways Your song and dance team Heading home for the holidays With a Ragpicker's Dream On his knees like a fighter The rail-riding king Like a sack of potatoes Like a bull in the ring Where the scarecrow falls over With a tear in the seam Home for the rover In a Ragpicker's Dream Where the red eye keeps tumbling Like tears in our beer Me and my associate Like the ambience here Where they cornered two castaways In a white flashlight beam Merry Christmas and happy days In a Ragpicker's Dream