A Man Like Me

Deal the cards from the deck my dear

The drinks are poured and the time is near.

The frost is melting from your glass of beer,

I've drank mine down and I can't see clear.

  These cards are marked by the passing years

  And the joker's face is stained with tears;

  The room gets dark and you just can't see

When you play the game with a man like me.

You hold your hand in the mirror, I see

The ace you're holding up your sleeve.

With steady eyes, your story's told

In the tarot cards that the gypsy holds.

  The spades and diamonds are your reward

  It's the hearts I want and that I walk toward;

  I'll cast a shadow and you won't see

When you play the game with a man like me.

From the bottom now, you pull the cards

Your hands are swift and your face is hard.

I'll take the gift without a sound

Accept the fate from your lost and found.

  I lay the bet and you raise the stakes

  My throat grows tight, it was my mistake,

  Better keep the coins under lock and key

When you play the game with a man like me.

Ace runs high and the deuce is low,

I smoke and drink and the time moves slow.

It's a potpourri that I hold in hand

Without a pair on which to stand.

  Ain't it funny how the bluff is played

  When the sureness fails and the doubts are weighed;

  Solitaire is the game, you see,

When you're dealin' cards to a man like me.

Deal the cards from the deck, my dear,

The drinks are poured and the time is near.