Black Diamond Bay
Up on the white verandaShe wears a necktie and a Panama hatHer passport shows a faceFrom another time and placeShe looks nothin’ like thatAnd all the remnants of her recent pastAre scattered in the wild windShe walks across the marble floorWhere a voice from the gambling room is callin’ her to come on inShe smiles, walks the other wayAs the last ship sails and the moon fades awayFrom Black Diamond Bay
As the mornin’ light breaks open, the Greek comes downAnd he asks for a rope and a pen that will write“Pardon, monsieur,” the desk clerk saysCarefully removes his fez“Am I hearin’ you right?”And as the yellow fog is liftin’The Greek is quickly headin’ for the second floorShe passes him on the spiral staircaseThinkin’ he’s the Soviet AmbassadorShe starts to speak, but he walks awayAs the storm clouds rise and the palm branches swayOn Black Diamond Bay
A soldier sits beneath the fanDoin’ business with a tiny man who sells him a ringLightning strikes, the lights blow outThe desk clerk wakes and begins to shout“Can you see anything?”Then the Greek appears on the second floorIn his bare feet with a rope around his neckWhile a loser in the gambling room lights up a candleSays, “Open up another deck”But the dealer says, “Attendez-vous, s’il vous plait”As the rain beats down and the cranes fly awayFrom Black Diamond Bay
The desk clerk heard the woman laughAs he looked around the aftermath and the soldier got toughHe tried to grab the woman’s handSaid, “Here’s a ring, it cost a grand”She said, “That ain’t enough”Then she ran upstairs to pack her bagsWhile a horse-drawn taxi waited at the curbShe passed the door that the Greek had lockedWhere a handwritten sign read, “Do Not Disturb”She knocked upon it anywayAs the sun went down and the music did playOn Black Diamond Bay
“I’ve got to talk to someone quick!”But the Greek said, “Go away,” and he kicked the chair to the floorHe hung there from the chandelierShe cried, “Help, there’s danger nearPlease open up the door!”Then the volcano eruptedAnd the lava flowed down from the mountain high aboveThe soldier and the tiny man were crouched in the cornerThinking of forbidden loveBut the desk clerk said, “It happens every day”As the stars fell down and the fields burned awayOn Black Diamond Bay
As the island slowly sankThe loser finally broke the bank in the gambling roomThe dealer said, “It’s too late nowYou can take your money, but I don’t know howYou’ll spend it in the tomb”The tiny man bit the soldier’s earAs the floor caved in and the boiler in the basement blewWhile she’s out on the balcony, where a stranger tells her“My darling, je vous aime beaucoup”She sheds a tear and then begins to prayAs the fire burns on and the smoke drifts awayFrom Black Diamond Bay
I was sittin’ home alone one night in L.A.Watchin’ old Cronkite on the seven o’clock newsIt seems there was an earthquake thatLeft nothin’ but a Panama hatAnd a pair of old Greek shoesDidn’t seem like much was happenin’,So I turned it off and went to grab another beerSeems like every time you turn aroundThere’s another hard-luck story that you’re gonna hearAnd there’s really nothin’ anyone can sayAnd I never did plan to go anywayTo Black Diamond Bay