Shawn Colvin - If I Were Brave Lyrics

All the happy couples on their way to New Orleans
Reminding me of when we got along
They're only renting time and space to fill up with their dreams
And dreams are what they'll have when they have gone
How could it be that I was born without a clue to carry on
And still it is the same now I am older
Armed with just a will and then this love for singing songs
And minding less and less if I am colder
But I have this funny ache and it's burning in my chest
And it spreads just like a fire inside my body
Is it something God left out in my spirit or my flesh
Would I be saved if I were brave and had a baby
It was never clear what would come but that's the risk and that's the test
And you were the only one so far to follow
And no one talks about when one might stop and need to rest
Or how long you sit alone before you stop looking back
It's like you're waiting for Godot
And then you pick your sorry ass up off the street and
Go...
And what the hell is this? Who made this bloody mess?
And someone always answers like a martyr
Is it something you should know, did you never do your best
Would you be saved if you were brave and just tried harder
So now I ride the ought one thirty five to New Orleans
I float a mile above life's toil and trouble
A thousand lonely lifetimes I still wait and then go on
A clown to entertain the happy couples

Gosh, the strings at the end.

Shawn Colvin, achingly beautiful... A singer songwriter who can break my heart with such tender melodies, and thought provoking lyrics... Thank you Shawn!

Such an amazing lyricist. All her accolades over the years have been so well deserved. So many great songs to choose from and this is still one of my all-time favorites. And ironically, as great as the lyrics are...it's that little sigh at 2:25 that gets me every time I hear it...it makes the whole song. Beautiful.

davidwinderbinder absolutely. I just recommended the song for the same sigh.

That really is the best part of the whole (terrific) song. Unique and moving, part of the lyrics all by itself.

My favorite Shawn Colvin song, makes driving home at the dusk that much easier.

A clown to entertain the happy couples...

How do you pour your heart out in a song like that? What a great tune! I can barely put two words together and Shawn Colvin spits them out like water from a faucet. Amazing.

Gorgeous.

absolutely beautiful

wicked tune! Awesome album.

Story of my life.

Someday Shabby me too

I love this song-kind of like me. LOL!!