Mark Kozelek and Jimmy LaValle

Gustavo
I wrote a check and I bought an old houseI got a TV and a worn-out couchHired a guy named Gustavo and his friendsTo fix it up from the foundationOh god, those motherfuckers drove me nutsWith their electrical saws and mariachi musicBut they really stepped it up manAnd put their backs into it But they lived pretty far awayThey wanted to stay for a couple of months'Til the work got done and I said sureMade ‘em a key and got ‘em a microwave Gustavo was an illegal immigrantHe took the money that I gave himAnd he went and spent it on strippers and casinosAnd every once in a while with them I’d goIt gets boring out in the mountains, you knowChopping wood, falling asleep to the TV snowMaking ground beef tacosOn the top of a potbellied stove Eating noodles from a Styrofoam cupWaiting for a ride that never shows upWalking into town, browsing the windowsLooking at rifles, looking at ammoAt night when everything’s closedLetras de cancionesIn my wet boots, in my winter clothes One night they were headed for TahoeThey asked me along but I said fuck no'Cause I was tired and my money was tightAnd they just laughed and said alrightAnd on the way back they got stoppedBy a redneck sunnyside highway copGustavo was drunk and had an ounce of potAnd spent the night on a jailhouse cot They deported him back to Mexico He called me collect from a Tijuana pay phone Asking man, could you wire me money? 2500 for a border coyoteHe needed work and he missed his family But I hung up and I said I’m sorryBut I hung up and I felt uneasyI hung up and my heart was heavyI hung up and my back was achingPicking up the work they’d left in front of meThe demoed walls and the pulled up floors The busted up cabinets and the broken drawersThe kitchen sink was laying in the backyardAnd I looked down and my hands were trembling And I looked up and my roof was leaking Now I still sleep on my beat-up old couch In the living room of my unfinished houseI got a licensed contractorBut he quit cause his wife was dying of cancer But what the hell, I’m just here trying to find answersTo find peace of mind, to get a piece of the rock A place to put my mental clockAnd my old guitars and gently rockBack and forth in my front porch chairWithout a worry, without a care I’m doing alright but I’m still not thereMy house ain’t done, but it’s alright Floors ain’t level, but I ain’t some suburbanWho cares about bathroom tilesStraight lines and building codes and Chinese wind chimesMy house ain’t done, but it’s fineCome out here from time to timeIn December for the snowAnd in July to watch the rosesMy gardener asks had I seen Gustavo? I just laughed and I said fuck noNot since that night he leftHis hair combed back, headed for Tahoe My girlfriend asked had I heard from that guy from Mexico?I said you mean Gustavo?And I just laughed and I said noNot since he called from the Tijuana pay phoneReally I don’t give much thought to GustavoI love to go out to the mountains, thoughAnd in the fall, feel the breeze blowAnd in the winter, watch the falling snowAnd in the spring, love the rainbows And in the summer smell the rosesWhite and red and yellow From Letras Mania