One more man gone One more man gone One more man is gone
The good son walks into the field He is a tiller, he has a tiller's hands But deep down in his heart now He's a-laid down queer plans Against his brother and against his family Yet he worships his brother And he worships his mother But it's his father, he says, is an unfair man The good son The good son The good son
The good son has sat and often wept Beneath a malign star by which the good son's kept And the night-time in which he's wrapped Speaks of good now and it speaks of evil And he calls to his mother And he calls to his father But they are deaf in the shadows Of his brother's truancy The good son The good son The good son The good son
And he curses his mother And he curses his father And he curses his virtue like an unclean thing The good son The good son The good son
One more man gone One more man gone One more man One more man gone One more man is gone One more man (he's gone) One more man is gone One more man is gone One more man
One more man gone One more man gone One more man is gone One more man One more man gone One more man gone One more man is gone One more man (he's gone)
One more man gone One more man gone One more man gone
The good son (one more man gone) The good son (one more man gone) The good son now is gone (one more man)
The good son (one more man gone) The good son (one more man gone) The good son now is gone (one more man)
One more man gone One more man gone The good son The good son The good son
Sorrow's child sits by the river Sorrow's child hears not the water Sorrow's child sits by the river Sorrow's child hears not the water And just when you feel as though You've got strength enough to stand (Sorrow's child) sorrow's child all weak and strange Stands waiting at your hand
Sorrow's child steps in the water Sorrow's child you follow after Sorrow's child wades in deeper Sorrow's child invites you under And just when you thought as though All your tears were wept and done (Sorrow's child) sorrow's child grieves not what has passed But all the past still yet to come
Sorrow's child sits by the water Sorrow's child your arms enfold her Sorrow's child you're loathe to befriend her Sorrow's child but in sorrow surrender And just when is seems as though All your tears were at an end (Sorrow's child) sorrow's child lifts up her hand And she brings it down again
Go son, go down to the water And see the women weeping there Then go up into the mountains The men, they are all weeping too
Father, why are all the women weeping? They are all weeping for their men Then why are all the men there weeping? They are weeping back at them
This is a weeping song A song in which to weep While all the men and women sleep This is a weeping song But I won't be weeping long
Father, why are all the children weeping? Oh, they are merely crying son Oh, are they merely crying, father? Yes, true weeping is yet to come
This is a weeping song A song in which to weep While all the little children sleep This is a weeping song But I won't be weeping long
Oh, father tell me, are you weeping? Your face it seems wet to touch Oh, then I'm so sorry, father I never thought I hurt you so much
This is a weeping song A song in which to weep While we rock ourselves to sleep This is a weeping song But I won't be weeping long No, I won't be weeping long No, I won't be weeping long No, I won't be weeping long
I've seen your fairground hair, your seaside eyes Your vampire tooth, your little truth and your tiny lies And I know your trembling hand, your guilty prize Your sleeping limbs, your foreign hymns and your midnight cries
So dry your eyes And turn your head away Now there's nothing more to say Now you're gone away
I know your trail of tears, your slip of hand Your monkey claw, your monkey paw and your monkey hand And I've seen your trick of blood, your trap of fire Your ancient wound, your scarlet moon, your jail house smile
So dry your eyes And turn your head away Now there's nothing more to say Now you're gone away
So dry your eyes And turn your head away Now there's nothing more to say Now you're gone away
I'll miss your urchin smile, your orphan tears Your shining prize, your tiny cries, your little fears And I'll miss your fairground hair, your seaside eyes Your little truth, and your vampire tooth, and your tiny lies
So dry your eyes And turn your head away Now there's nothing more to say Now you're gone away
So dry your eyes And turn your head away Now there's nothing more to say Now you're gone away
So dry your eyes And turn your head away Now there's nothing more to say Now you've gone away
Oh yeah, yeah Yes well, well, well Yes well, well, well Yes well, well, well
I took a walk down to the port Where strangers meet and do consort All blinkered with desire And a winter fog moved thickly on A winter fog moved thickly on A winter fog moved thickly on
Now, who will be the witness? Who will be the witness? Who will be the witness? When the fog's too thick to see
And I saw a friend beside a wall Her hands were raised in supplication And her face I could not see at all And I raised my hands in rage
And I brought them down again And we entered through the eastern door I entered through the eastern door She entered through the eastern door
And now, who will be the witness? Who will be the witness? Who will be the witness? When you're all too blind to see
Mmm And time gets somewhat muddled here But no matter, no matter Here come the events all tumbling down
Now, beyond the wall was a great garden Into which we passed 'cause of me and my friend And the place was all overgrown with weeds And behold from its center there rose a great fountain
A fountain with the healin' waters Yes, a fountain with the healin' waters And we knelt down by the rim And I dipped my hand in and she dipped her hand in too
And I said, "Are you healed?" And she said, "Well are you healed?" And I said, "Yes, I'm healed" And she said, "Oh, yes I'm healed then too"
And I said, "Babe, you are a liar" "Babe, you are a liar" "Babe, you are a liar" "Babe, you are a liar" "Babe, you are a liar, too"
Now, who will be the witness? Who will be the witness? Who will be the witness? When you're all too healed to see
And I kissed her once, I kissed her twice And made my way to leave her And she raised her hand up to her face And brought it down again
I said, "That gesture, it will haunt me" That gesture, it will haunt me And I left there by the eastern door She left there by the western door
Now, who will be the witness? Who will be the witness there? When you're blind and you can't see Who will be the witness, baby? Who will be the witness there? When you're all so clean you cannot see Who will be the witness? Who will be the witness?
Who will be the witness? Who will be the witness? Who will be the witness, baby? Who will be the witness there?
Oh, when your friends are everywhere Who will be the witness? Who will be the witness there? And your enemies have ceased to care
Who will be the witness? Who will be the witness? Yeah, who will be the witness? Who will be the witness?
Who will be the witness, baby? Who will be the witness there? Yeah, who will be the witness? Who will be the witness?
Who will be the witness? Who will be the witness? Who will be the witness? Yeah, who will be the witness? Yeah, who will be the witness? Who will be the witness? Who will be the witness?
Last night I lay trembling The moon it was low It was the end of love Of misery and woe
Then suddenly above me Her face buried in light Came a vision of beauty All covered in white
Now the bell-tower is ringing And the night has stole past Oh Lucy, can you hear me? Wherever you rest
I'll love her forever I'll love her for all time I'll love her 'til the stars Fall down from the sky Now the bell-tower is ringing And I shake on the floor Oh Lucy, can you hear me? When I call and call
Now the bell-tower is ringing And the moon it is high Oh Lucy, can you hear me When I cry and cry and cry
The Good Son is the sixth studio album by Australian rock band Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, released in 1990.
After two dark and harrowing albums with Your Funeral... My Trial (1986) and Tender Prey (1988), The Good Son was a substantial departure with a lighter and generally more uplifting sound. The change of mood was greatly inspired by singer Nick Cave falling in love with Brazilian journalist Viviane Carneiro, and an apparently salutary spell in rehab which purged much of the despair and squalor reflected in the previous two albums.
Cave later said, "I guess The Good Son is some kind of reflection of the way I felt early on in Brazil. I was quite happy there. I was in love and the first year or two was good. The problem I found was ... in order to survive you have to adopt their attitudes towards everything, which are kind of blinkered."