Levelland Lyrics - James Mcmurtry

Flatter than a table top 

Makes you wonder why they stopped here 

Wagon must have lost a wheel 

Or they lacked ambition one 

In the great migration west 

Separated from the rest 

Though they might have tried their best 

They never caught the sun 

So they sunk some roots down in this dirt 

To keep from blowin' off the earth 

Built a town right here 

When the dust had all but cleared 

They called it Levelland 

Levelland 

Levelland 

Grand dad grew the dry land wheat 

Stood on his own two feet 

His mind got incomplete 

And they put him in a home 

Daddy's cotton grows so high 

Sucks the water table dry 

His rolling sprinklers circle back 

Bleeding it to the bone 

And I won't be here when it comes the day 

It all dries up and blows away 

I'd hang around just to see 

But they never had much use for me 

In Levelland 

They don't understand me 

In Levelland 

Well I watch those ships trails comin' out that big blue sky 

Coast to coasters, watch 'em go 

And I don't blame 'em one damn bit 

If they never look down on this 

Ain't much down here they'd want to know 

Just Levelland 

You could wash your hands 

In nothin' but Levelland 

Mama used to roll her hair 

Back before the central air 

We'd sit outside and watch the stars at night 

She tell me to make a wish 

I'd wish we both could fly 

I don't think she's seen the sky 

Since we got the satellite dish 

I can hear the marching band 

Doing the best they can to play 

Smoke on the water 

And joy to the world 

I payed up all my debts 

Got some change left over yet 

I'm getting on a whisper jet 

Going to fly as far as I can get 

From Levelland 

Done the best I can 

In Levelland