Sooner or later when the dawn was breaking

The joint was jumping and the walls were shaking

Joey sneaked in the backdoor way

Pretending he was with the band, he never used to pay

He was no great draw at pulling the chicks

He used to lie against the wall like he was holding up the bricks

And all the things that guy used to do to get his kicks

He was a legand in his lifetime with the neighborhood kids



They said "Joey did this" and "Joey did that"

Oh that guy was crazy, what a crazy cat

Then something strange would happen, there's trouble on the way

And trouble only means one thing....

Joey's on the street again.



Joey grew older, older without a cause

Got married, had some kids and had his brushes with the law

Settled down and got a job, then said "I'm leaving" one day

"I've gotta hang loose a while, take care while I'm away."

People said they'd seen him, they were nearly always wrong

'Cause no one knew how much he had, where he'd gone or for how long

'Til one day there came a rumor, floating from the docks

Saying a crazy stranger had been found lying among the rocks.



The said "Joey was this" and "Joey was that"

Oh that guy was crazy, what a crazy cat

But no one quite believed it, all rumors are the same

And now if something happens they say....

Joey's on the street again.



When Joey moved away

A lot of the kids said "I can't stay around here"

They said "I'm moving out, going away

They said "I'm leaving, getting out

"I'm gonna go somewhere where it doesn't stink

Away from the alleys, somewhere I can think

Wash the dirt from my hands, watch it wash down the sink

It's a strain on the brain living close to the brink



Look at the brickwall gravestone where some kid was sprayed

Saying nobody could be bothered here to rule O.K.

Don't believe it, don't believe it what they say on TV

There's no romance, no romance

For Joey in this city.