Last, Lonely, and Wretched


(Words and Music by Joan Baez)

You're tired and you're poor,
you long to be free,
but in this Godforsaken land
you find no home, no family
on the many roads that you've wandered
since the day of your birth
You've become one of the last,
lonely and wretched

Your hair is matted,
your face and hands are dirty,
and the years that you've toiled
must number somewhere near thirty
The deepening of a sadness
broke finally into madness
You are truly one of the last,
lonely and wretched

Your eyes are wild and frightening
at the same time they are blessed
and I wonder if God died,
turned his back or only just rested
And you walked out on the seventh day
through the big gates and on your way
to become one of the last,
lonely and wretched

For once you were a child
Your cheeks were red,
you were well fed
You laughed and played
till you got teary,
ran to your mother
when you were weary

But somewhere you were forsaken
alone I'll not bear the blame
and somehow all was taken,
your mind, your body, your name
Forgive us our unkindness,
our desertion and our blindness,
with you, all the last,
lonely and wretched
Forgive us, all the last,
lonely and wretched

?© 1970, 1971 Chandos Music (ASCAP)







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