Dress of Laces - Nanci Griffith

And she has a dress of laces

It’s worn in many places

The shoulder hangs upon her by a thread

And she has a need for sharin'

With someone warm and carin'

And no one sees a heart that’s underfed

Young girl in love, young girl in tears

She hasn’t seen the man she loves in years

And her mother is a waitress

At the harbor bar, good graces

Where the seamen come from fishin' with their lines

And it was one of them that caught her

And left her with a daughter

Who lives with hate and loving him in mind

Young girl in love, young girl in tears

She hasn’t seen the man she loves in years

So the young girl goes to the water

And she calls out for her father

But she ain’t seen the old man in some time

Yes, and he was always boastin'

Just a drinkin' and a toastin'

And one day he left his family far behind

Young girl in love, young girl in tears

She hasn’t seen the man she loves in years

So her mother comes home a drinkin'

With some sailor who’s a thinkin' out loud

That he might stay with them awhile

So she loads her mother’s pistol

And she shoots him as he whistles

A song about a sailor’s life in style

Young girl in love, young girl in tears

She kills the only man she’s loved in years

And with him dies her hopes, her dreams, her fears

And she has a dress of laces

It’s worn in many places

The shoulder hangs upon her by a thread

And she has a need for sharin'

With someone warm and carin'

But no one sees a heart that’s underfed

No one sees a heart that’s underfed