Shawn Mullins Follow

I met him on the cliffs
Of twin rocks, Oregon
He was sittin' on his bedroll
Lookin' just like Richard Brautigan
I thought he was an old man
He wasn't but thirty seven

He said he'd been ridin' trains
For fifteen years
Drawin' portraits
To keep his belly full of the beer
And looked to me like he'd died
And missed the plane to Heaven

But he was a nice old guy
For a younger man
He had a bottle of Mad Dog
He held in his hand
Waved around a lot
To make his point

And I listened as he told his tales
Wine and women and county jails
We finished off that bottle
And smoked a half a joint

He said "I came here to watch the sun
Disappear into the ocean
Is this been years
Since I smelled this salty sea"

He turned his bottle up and down
I saw him lost and I saw him found
He said "I don't know what I've been
Lookin' for, maybe me"

Well, I told him I too had been
Travelin' around
Livin' out of my van from town to town
Playin' for tips and whatever records
I could move

I said "I don't reckon I'll be makin it big
You know it's hard to get rich
Off a tout of coffee house gigs
And he said "Yeah, but ain't it a blessin'
To do what you wanna do"

And I told him "Yeah, I pulled off here"
To watch the sun disappear into the ocean
'Cause it's been years
Since I smelled this salty sea"

He turned his bottle up and down
He saw me lost and he saw me found
He said "I don't know what I've
Been lookin' for, maybe me"

I said "It's kinda late
Better be headin' down the interstate
Can I give you a lift
To San Francisco bay?"

He said "Nope, I think I'm just
Going to sit here and rest
And maybe wait on the
Tokyo Montana express

I might just lay here
And dream my life away
I'm gonna to sit right here
I'm gonna to watch the sun
Disappear into the ocean
'Cause it's been years, it's been years

I'm gonna turn my bottle up and down
You can see me lost
And you can see me found

Well I met him on the cliffs
Of twin rocks, Oregon
He was sitting on his bedroll looking
Just like Richard Brautigan
Just like him