Lyrics to
Knocking On Joe

This version of Knocking On Joe was released by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds in 1985.

Our Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds Songs profile has Knocking On Joe lyrics from 1985 and most if not all of the lyrics by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds that we have here at Decade Lyrics.

Here's more interesting things in songs and lyrics tied to Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds or about the 1980s in general.

These chains of sorrow, they are heavy, it is true
And these locks cannot be broken,
no, not with one thousand keys
O Jailer, you drag a ball-n-chain you cannot see
You can lay your burden on me
You can lay your burden down on me
You can lay your burden down upon me
But you cannot lay down your memory

Woooo wooo wooo
Woooo wooo wooo
Here I go!
Knockin on Joe!
This square foot of sky will be mine til I die
Knocking on Joe
Woooo wooo wooo
All down the row
Knockin on Joe

O Warden I surrender to you
Your fists can’t hurt me anymore
You know, these hands will never mop
your dirty Death Row floors
O Preacher, come closer, you don’t scare me anymore
Just tell Nancy not to come here
Just tell her not to come here anymore
Tell Nancy not to come
And let me die in the memory of those arms

O woo woo woo
Woo woo woo
All down the row
Knockin on Joe
O you kings of halls and ends of halls
You will die within these walls
And I’ll go, down the row
Knockin on Joe

O Nancy’s body is a coffin,
she wears my tombstone at her head
O Nancy’s body is a coffin,
she wears my tombstone at her head
She wears her body like a coffin
She wears a dress of gold and red
She wears a dress of gold and red
She wears a dress of red and gold
Grave-looters at my coffin
before my body’s even cold

It’s a door for when I go
Knockin on Joe
These hands will never mop
your dirty Death Row floors
No! You can hide! You can run!
O but your trial is yet to come
O you can run! You can hide!
But you have yet to be tried!
You can lay your burdens down here
You can lay your burden down
Knockin on Joe
You can lay your burden upon me
You can lay your burden upon me
Knockin on Joe
You can lay it down here
You can bring your burden down
Knockin on Joe
You can’t hurt me anymore
You can’t hurt me anymore
Knockin on Joe

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Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds has released many songs over the years besides Knocking On Joe. Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds released songs from 1984 to 2004 spanning across albums like From Her To Eternity, The Firstborn Is Dead, Kicking Against The Pricks, Your Funeral My Trial, Tender Prey, The Good Son, Henry's Dream, Let Love In, Murder Ballads, The Boatman's Call, No More Shall We Part, and Abattoir Blues / The Lyre Of Orpheus. Decade Lyrics has over lyrics & songs by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds.

If you're a fan of the music of the 1980s looking for more songs from 1985 or the 1980s overall, you've come to the right place!

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