She was a woman of mystery
And what she wanted I could not see
A three-year trip on the dragon
Until the clinic had to get me clean

We were a party and always drunk
Before I knew it the wreckage sunk
Shake, trip, shimmy and we'd do the bump
Everybody swingin' to the brown derby jump

The beautiful life is always damned
You gotta fall into the quicksand
A deadly kiss from a temptress can serve
To make a truly wayward man

She's not a talker her teeth are fixed
But she's a looker that lives for kicks
A nightmare straight from an otto dix
Everybody swingin' with the brown derby chicks

I've come a long way and now I'm me
The darkest river that meets the sea
And all those lights on the harbor seem
To be sparklin' in bittersweet

I'm a survivor my heart is tough
I'm hangin' in there and that's enough
Shake, trip, shimmy and we'd do the bump
Everybody swingin' to the brown derby jump