Tom Waits — Flash Pan Hunter

The flash pan hunter sways with the wind And his rifle is the sound of the morning Each sulfurous bullet must have its own wit And each cartridge comes with a warning Beware of elaborate telescopic meat It will find its way back to the forest For Wilhelm can't wait to be Peg Leg's crown And the briar is strangling the rose back down His back shall be my slender new branch It will bend, it will sway in the breeze As the Devil does his polka with a hatchet in his hand As a sniper in the branches of the trees As the vulture flutters down and the snake sheds his dove Wilhelm's cutting off his fingers, so they'll fit into the glove For Wilhelm can't wait to be Peg Leg's crown And the briar is strangling the rose back down The briar is strangling the rose back down