Alone in the hot night,

So hot as the grills on your mama's stove,

Or the judgment in the eyes of the people in your mama's town.

Their hatred branded on your memory like a tattoo of fear.

They flew to her sorrow, like mosquitoes to the light.

Nobody's thinking of you,

Back home tonight.

Down where the opinions don't change,

And prejudices run wild.

And hopes are shot down,

Like that poor boy they forgot.

Down where children don't dream.

And nobody ever collapses in the pain of smiles, and miracles, and life.

Every word is false.

Stories untrue.

Living an entire beautiful life in one place,

Imagine that, wasting a life.

Nobody sheds tears so painful, you'd think it was blood.

Down home minds aren't filled with throbbing, exploding denial.

Nobody's thinking of me,

Down home tonight.