I was runnin' thru the summer rain,

Waiting for the evenin' train

To kill that old familiar pain

Weavin' thru my tangled brain

When i tipped my bottle back and

Smacked into a cop i didn't see

That policeman said "mister cool,

If you ain't drunk, then you're a fool"

I said "if that's against the law,

Then tell me why i never saw

No man locked in this jail of yours

Who wasn't just as low down poor as me?"

And that was when someone turned out the lights

Yes and i wound up in jail to spend the night

And dream of all the wine and lonely girls

In this best of all possible worlds

Next mornin' i woke up feelin' like my head was really gone

And like my thick old tongue was lickin' something sick and wrong

I said "i'd sell my soul for something about as wet and cold as this old cell"

That kindly jailer looked at me, all eaten up with sympathy

Then poured himself another beer and came and whispered in my ear

"if booze was just a dime a bottle boy, you couldn't even buy the smell"

I said "i knew there was something i liked about this town"

Oh but it takes more than that to bring me down

'cause there's still a lot of wine and lonely girls

In this best of all possible worlds

Well they finally came and told me they was a gonna set me free

And i'd be leavin' town if i knew what was good for me

I said "it's nice to learn that everybody's so concerned about my health"

But i won't be leavin' no more quicker than i can

'cause i've enjoyed about as much of this as i can stand

And i don't need this town of yours no more than i never needed nothin' else"

'cause there's still a lot of drinks that i ain't drunk

Yes and lots of pretty thoughts that i ain't thunk

Oh yes there's still a lot of wine and lonely girls

In this best of all possible worlds

In this best of all possible world