There was a thick set man with frog eyes
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who was standing by the door
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and a little bald man with wing-nut ears
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was waiting in the car
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Well Robert Moore passed the frog-eyed man
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as he walked into the bar,
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and Betty Coltrane she jumped under her table.
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"What's your pleasure?" asked the barman
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he had a face like boiled meat
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"There's a girl called Betty Coltrane
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that I have come to see"
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"But I ain't seen that girl 'round here
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for more than a week"
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and Betty Coltrane she hid beneath the table.
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Well, then in came a sailior with
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mermaids tattooed on his arms,
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Followed by the man with the wing-nut ears
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who was waitin' in the car
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Well, Robert Moore sensed trouble,
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he'd seen it comin' from afar
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and Betty Coltrain she gasped beneath the table.
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Well, the sailor said "I'm looking for my wife,
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they call her Betty Coltrain!"
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The frog-eyed man said "That can't be;
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that's my wife's maiden name."
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And the man with the wing-nut ears said,
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"Hey, I married her back in Spain!"
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and Betty Coltrain crossed herself beneath the table.
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Well, Robert Moore stepped up and said
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"That woman is my wife."
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and he drew a silver pistol
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and a wicked bowie knife;
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And he shot the man with the wing-nut ears
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straight between the eyes
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and Betty Coltrain, she moaned under the table.
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The frog-eyed man jumped at Robert Moore,
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who stabbed him in the chest
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and as Mister Frog-eyes died he said
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"Betty, your the girl that I loved best!"
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The sailor pulled a razor,
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Robert blasted it to bits
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"And Betty, I know you're under the table."
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"Well have no fear," said Robert Moore,
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"I do not want to hurt you!"
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"Never a woman did'na love me
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half as much as you.
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You are the blessed' sun, girl
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and you are the sacred moon."
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and Betty shot his legs out from under the table!
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Well, Robert Moore went down heavy
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with a crash upon the floor
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and over to his trashin' body
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Betty Coltrain she did crawl.
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She put the gun to the back of head
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and pulled the trigger once more
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and blew his brains out all over the table!
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Well Betty stood up and shook her head
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and waved the smoke away.
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Said, "I'm sorry Mr Barman
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to leave your place this way."
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As she emptied out their wallets she said,
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"I'll collect my severence pay."
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and then she winked and threw a dollar on the table.
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-----------------
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The Ballad of Robert Moore and Betty Coltrane
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| Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds |
