Carmichael

Lyrics

Silk scarf and a napkin hidden in a drawer  
Two hundred bucks in an envelope labeled Lenore  
  
"Maybe she shouldn't see this  
She should never know"  
Said the widow's best friend Ann  
"I'll just take it and go  
I'll give it her the money later  
Say it was in his shoe  
That way she'll never find out  
That'll do"  
  
"Carmichael was a credit to the force  
In everything he did  
It's like we've got a big hole in our side  
Where he fit  
If any of you officers would like to say a word  
Now would be the time to be heard"  
"Thank you chief, I sure would  
He was a partner of mine  
He was always very careful  
Played it straight down the line"  
  
One by one the officers spoke  
And the service drew to a close  
He had no living relatives but his wife-who never showed  
She just couldn't face the men--they all understood  
They got in their cars and drove home  
As directly as they could  
  
"Carmichael, you asshole!"  
The new widow sobbed beneath her vale  
"Shot down in the line of duty  
Is this how justice never fails?  
I wish that things were better  
When we said goodbye today  
But we had our share of good times though along the way  
  
Remember 'Hey mister Las Vegas-You used to be so cool!'?  
We met Wayne Newton down on Pebble Beach and you acted like a fool  
But we both just couldn't stop laughing-it seemed so funny to us  
We left our luggage back in the room and almost missed the bus  
That was a great vacation--maybe the best of all  
But goddamn it, Carmichael, you're dead now and I'm talking to the wall"  
  
The force got back to normal  
Carmichael was replaced  
For one year nobody parked a car in Carmichael's space