The Dry Cleaner From Des Moines Lyrics by Joni Mitchell

The Dry Cleaner From Des Moines Lyrics

    Words by joni mitchell
    Music by charles mingus

    I'm down to a roll of dimes
    I'm stalking the slot that's hot
    I keep hearing bells all around me
    Jingling in the lucky jackpots
    They keep you tantalized
    They keep you reaching for your wallet
    Here in fools' paradise!

    I talked to a cat from des moines
    He said he ran a cleaning plant
    That cat was clanking with coin
    Well, he must have had a genie in a lamp
    'cause every time--i dropped a dime--i blew it
    He kept ringing bells
    Nothing to it!

    He got three oranges
    Three lemons
    Three cherries
    Three plums
    I'm losing my taste for fruit
    Watching the dry cleaner do it
    Like midas in a polyester suit
    It's all luck!
    It's just luck!
    You get a little lucky and you make a little money!

    I followed him down the strip
    He picked out a booth at circus circus
    Where the cowgirls fill the room
    With their big balloons
    The cleaner was pitching with purpose!
    He had dinos and pooh bears
    And lions--pink and blue there
    He couldn't lose there!

    Des moines was stacking the chips
    Raking off the tables
    Ringing the bandit's bells
    This is a story that's a drag to tell
    (in some ways)
    Since i lost every dime
    I laid on the line
    But the cleaner from des moines
    Could put a coin
    In the door of a john
    And get twenty for one
    It's just luck!

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