Papa Won't Leave You, Henry Lyrics - Singles - Nick Cave & The Bad Seed

I went out walking the other day 

The heat hung wet around my neck 

My head it rung with screams and groans 

From the night I spent amongst her bones 

And I passed beside the mission house 

Where that mad old buzzard, the reverend 

Shrieked and flapped 

About life after you're dead 

Well, I thought about my friend, Michel 

How they rolled him in linoleum 

And they shot him in the neck 

A bloody halo, like a think-bubble 

Circling his head and I bellowed at the firmament 

Looks like the rains are hear to stay 

And the rain pissed down upon me 

And washed me all away, saying 

Papa won't leave you, Henry 

Papa won't leave you, boy 

Papa won't leave you, Henry 

Papa won't leave you, boy 

Well, the road is long and the road is hard 

And many fall by the side 

But Papa won't leave you, Henry 

So there ain't no need to cry 

And I went on down the road 

He went on down the road 

And I went on down the road 

He went on down the road 

Well, the moon it looked exhausted 

Like something you should pity 

Spent an age-spotted 

Above the sizzling wires of the city 

Well, it reminded me of her face 

And her bleached and hungry eyes 

Her hair was like a curtain 

Falling open with the laughter 

And closing with the lies 

And the ghost of her still lingers on 

Though she's passed through me 

And is gone 

Well, the slum dogs, they are barking 

The rain children on the streets 

And the tears that we will weep today 

Will all be washed away 

By the tears that we will weep 

We'll weep again tomorrow 

Papa won't leave you, Henry 

Papa won't leave you, boy 

Papa won't leave you, Henry 

Papa won't leave you, boy 

For the road is long and the road is hard 

And many fall by the side, side 

But Papa won't leave you, Henry 

So there ain't no need to cry 

And I went on down the road 

He went on down the road 

Oh, yeah, I went on down the road 

He went on down the road 

And I came upon a little house 

A little house upon a hill 

And I entered through and the curtain hissed 

Into the house with its blood-red bowels 

Where wet-lipped women with greasy fists 

Crawled the ceilings and the walls 

And they filled me full of drink 

And they led me round the rooms 

Naked and cold and grinning 

Until everything went black 

And I came down spinning 

I awoke so drunk and full of rage 

That I could hardly speak 

A fag in a whale-bone corset 

Draping his dick across my cheek 

Well it's into the shame 

And it's into a guilt 

And it's into the fucking fray 

And the walls ran red around me 

A warm arterial spray saying 

Papa won't leave you, Henry 

Papa won't leave you, boy 

Papa won't leave you, Henry 

Papa won't leave you, boy 

Well, the night is dark and the night is deep 

And its jaws are open wide 

Well Papa won't leave you, Henry 

So there ain't no need to cry 

And I went on down the road 

He went on down the road 

Oh, yeah, I went on down the road 

He went on down the road 

It's the rainy season where I'm living 

Death comes leaping out of every doorway 

Wasting you for your money, for your clothes 

And for your nothing 

Entire towns being washed away 

Favelas exploding on inflammable spillways 

And the lynch-mobs, death squads, babies being born without brains 

The mad heat and the relentless rains 

Well, if you stick your arm into that hole 

It comes out sheared off to the bone 

And with her kisses bubbling on my lips 

I swiped the rain and I nearly missed 

And then I went on down the road 

He went on down the road 

Papa won't leave you, Henry 

Papa won't leave you, boy 

Papa won't leave you, Henry 

Papa won't leave you, boy 

Well, the road is long and the road is hard 

And many fall by the side 

But Papa won't leave you, Henry 

So there ain't no need to cry 

And I went on down the road 

He went on down the road 

Oh, yeah, I went on down the road 

He went on down the road 

Bent beneath my heavy load 

Under his heavy load 

Yeah, I went on down that road 

He went on down the road 

And I went on down that road