Standin' At The Big Hotel - Joe Ely

I was standin' at a big hotel

Wishin' everybody well

But if anybody paid me, any mind it was hard to tell

A big policeman on his beat

Pulled his pistol and he pointed at me

Lookin' down the barrel I could see the gates of hell

Standin' at a big hotel

So I went walkin' down the avenue

Lookin' for someone who looked like you

But I never saw a face that seemed to ring a bell

I stopped beside the five and dime

Just window shoppin' and wastin' time

When along came a gal who sold me all she had to sell

She left me standin' at a big hotel

I lost my mind in the wilds of Hollywood

And I did some time in the shadows where I stood

I let the cards fall where they fell

And then I found myself standin' at a big hotel

A blind lady with a old tin cup

Had her pencils all sharpened up

She was standin' in the door just to see what she could sell

But nobody bought a thing all night

They just thought she was a pitiful sight

Now the Lord helps the gal who helps herself

Standin' at a big hotel

Oh, but I know what you’re thinkin' today

I can feel it though I’m miles away

Everybody knows I love my southern belle

But from the east to the wild, wild west

They say a bird in the hand is best

Here I am with a bird dog and a bottle of muscatel

Standin' at a big hotel

I lost my mind in the wilds of Hollywood

And then I did some time in the shadows where I stood

I let the cards fall where they fell

And then I found myself standin' at a big hotel

Yeah, I found myself standin' at a big hotel