Meet Jack Slim, a decent man
Who'll always do the best he can
An upright guy, he'll always stand
In his home down by the sea

Amongst the groves and tupelos
From boy to man did our Jack grow
He never faltered, sinned, or hoed
Or lived but righteously

He grew up tall and grew up strong
An honest man, knew right from wrong
He tended fields and studied long
How proud we were of he

To but one party he did go
And there's the Devil with seeds to sow
A poisoned soul that didn't know
The bane that was on he

Her eyes were black, as was her hair
And in the light, just standing there
She caught Jack's eye without a care
Jack Slim, the fool to be

Now hear the bells of bronze and steel
Ringing out the coming ills
Of a man I'd rather kill
Than see suffer endlessly

Into the home of Jack she came
Her kith and kin, drunk and insane
The broke just damn near everything
To stay for good was their true aim

Jack's wife's bed always hot
All the town did have their shot
The football team, the team's mascot
All comers came and came a lot

Jack walked round with grinding teeth
To yell or scream or cry beneath
His subtle pride and courtesy
Tested hard and frequently

One foul day, our Jack just snapped
And kicked the sorry bums and that
Out his door without a chat
To the road down by the sea

The wife, she didn't take this well
Told him to go to straight to hell
An evil man with a sulfur smell
Oh hate old Jack did she

She took their boy and ran away
To a slick-haired shark who was the man
To lay the blame and lend and a hand
To the sinners by the sea

Opposite the judge old Jack stood
Staring down, knowing no good
Could come from souls who harbor hate
For an honest man as he

He lost his house. He lost his heart
Lost all he earned or cared about
His boy was gone and he was out
Of luck or love or glee

Now Jack lives inside a tent
No money left for food or rent
The homeless man's already spent
Keeping Johnny Law at bay

One day Jack woke with an aching head
His gums bled; his face was red
He wept a little and then said, “I think this will kill me”

No money for a doctor's trip
Jack took an awl and placed the tip
Against his rotting tooth, his rotting tooth

He hammered once. He hammered twice
Let out a scream that wasn't nice
The tooth was stuck like dirt in ice
And stayed just where it was

So into town stumbled our Jack
He found a gun inside a sack
In the sheriff's car parked way out back
Behind the country club

He took that gun and stole a knife
Intent on taking his own life
To put an end to all his strife
And die just painlessly

He placed the gun against his head
Thinking he would soon be dead
As would his misery

He pulled the gun
But the gun misspoke
The knife shattered and the bullet broke
What a poor and sad unlucky bloke
In his cave down by the sea

So finally Jack made a plan
And took the gun inside his hand
Approached my boat just like a man
Who was going out to sea
Going out to sea

From the dock, concrete and rocks
A few large chains and extra locks
Heavy stuff I've not forgot
And a bucket made of iron

He waved the gun and out we went
“I'll surely die, from this earth sent”
I said to myself
I said to me

“Old man, I mean you no harm”
“Please don't fear, don't be alarmed”
“Your life I'll spare despite my arms”
“Back home you soon will be”

Further out we went and went
Past the buoys and all the scents
Of life and liberty
And liberty

Into the bucket Jack's feet went
The concrete followed and I sensed
That death that day wasn't meant for me

Around his waist he chained the rocks
Secured them tight with all the locks
And then he ordered that I stop
And turned his back to me

“Mother, please invite me home”
“Your son's tired, no wish to roam”
“Any way away from thee”
“Away from thee”

Without another word Jack dived
But soon righted to upward side
From the concrete at his feet

The bubbles, they stopped soon enough
And I could breath when Jack could not
As he sank into the sea
Into the sea

Now he rests far down below
One thousand fathoms deep or so
With fish for company, for company
I looked and saw a storm approach

And aimed my girl for harbor close
But glancing up I saw the coast
And Jack's house by the sea
Jack's house down by the sea