Houses into decay
'House Where Nobody Lives'
You don't need to drive long distances on Newfoundland to see them: those old wooden houses, fallen into decay and crying out for paint. Since the last residents moved out of it, nothing has been changed to it, beyond mother nature helping to bring it in the present state of disrepair. Every time we see such a house, our mind goes back to the very fitting lyrics of a song by Tom Waits: "House Where Nobody Lives".
Twillingate
Branch
Keels
Round Harbour
Avalon Peninsula
Flower's Cove
Keels
Shoe Cove
House Where Nobody Lives
There's a house on my block that's abandoned and cold
The folks moved out of it a long time ago
And they took all their things and they never came back
It looks like it's haunted with the windows all cracked
Everyone calls it the house
The house where nobody lives
Once it held laughter, once it held dreams
Did they throw it away, did they know what it means?
Did someone's heart break
Or did someone do somebody wrong?
Well, the paint is all cracked, it was peeled off of the wood
The papers were stacked on the porch where I stood
And the weeds had grown up just as high as the door
There were birds in the chimney and an old chest of drawers
Looks like no one will ever come back
To the house where nobody lives
Oh, and once it held laughter, once it held dreams
Did they throw it away, did they know what it means?
Did someone's heart break
Or did someone do somebody wrong?
So if you find someone, someone to have, someone to hold
Don't trade it for silver, oh don't trade it for gold
Cause I have all of life's treasures and they're fine and they're good
They remind me that houses are just made of wood
What makes a house grand, oh it ain't the roof or the doors
If there's love in a house, it's a palace for sure
But without love it ain't nothin' but a house
A house where nobody lives
But without love it ain't nothin' but a house
A house where nobody lives
Written by: Tom Waits
Published by: Jalma Music (ASCAP), © 1999
Official release: Mule Variations, Anti Inc., 1999