Lyrics to
Rosie

Released by Tom Waits in 1973
From the Album: Closing Time |

This version of Rosie was released by Tom Waits in 1973.

Our About Tom Waits page at Decade Lyrics includes the lyrics for Rosie from 1973 as well as all of the other lyrics from Tom Waits that we have in our lyrics database.

Here's more interesting things in songs and lyrics tied to Tom Waits or about the 1970s in general.

Well I’m sitting on a windowsill, blowing my horn
Nobody’s up except the moon and me,
And a lazy old tomcat on a midnight spree
All that you left me was a melody.
Rosie, why do you evade? Rosie, how can I persuade? Rosie…

And the moon’s all up, full and big, apricot tips in an indigo sky,
And I’ve been loving you, Rosie, since the day I was born
And I’ll love you, Rosie ’til the day I die.
Rosie, why do you evade? Rosie, how can I persuade? Rosie…

Rosie, why do you evade? Rosie, how can I persuade? Rosie…

And I’m sitting on a windowsill, blowing my horn
Nobody’s up except the moon and me,
And a lazy old tomcat on a midnight spree
All that you left me was a melody.
Rosie, why do you evade? Rosie, how can I persuade? Rosie…


Want more lyrics and songs by Tom Waits?

Tom Waits has released many songs over the years besides Rosie. Tom Waits released songs from 1973 to 2004 spanning across albums like Closing Time, The Heart Of Saturday Night, Nighthawks At The Diner, Small Change, Foreign Affairs, Blue Valentine, Heartattack And Vine, Swordfishtrombones, Rain Dogs, Franks Wild Years, The Early Years Vol. 1, Bone Machine, The Black Rider, The Early Years Vol. 2, Mule Variations, Blood Money, Alice, and Real Gone. Decade Lyrics has over lyrics & songs by Tom Waits.

If you're a fan of popular 1970s songs looking for more songs from 1973 or the 1970s overall, you've come to the right place!

About Lyrics and Rosie by Tom Waits

The lyrics for Rosie are defined as the words making up the song released by Tom Waits in 1973. It also includes the verses and words used by the background chorus in the song. Like many hit songs, the lyrics to Rosie have different meanings to different people. While it is clear in some of the lyrics what the artist is trying to really say, only Tom Waits and those working with them know all of the meanings behind all of the lyrics to their songs.

Some folks are interested in word and phrase etymology. It is easy to understand the lyrics to Rosie by Tom Waits if you think through it. The word "lyric" itself derives from the Latin word lyricus, with the actual English word lyrics applied to the definition "words set to music" listed in Stainer and Barrett's 1876 Dictionary of Musical Terms. Continuing the chain, the Latin word lyricus derives from the Greek word λυρικός or lyrikós. This somewhat means "poetry accompanied by the lyre" or "words set to music." You can easily see that by looking at the background of the word lyric, that the "lyrics to Rosie" means the words set to the music of Rosie, or poetry accompanied by the lyre played by Tom Waits. The singular form "lyric" is still used to mean the complete words to a song. However, the singular form lyric is also commonly used to refer to a specific line (or phrase) within a song's lyrics. Hence, by this analysis of word structure, you could say that the lyric to Rosie and the lyrics to Rosie are both one and the same thing. None of this talk about the word Lyrics is really relevant to fans of Tom Waits who came here looking just for the lyrics to Rosie, but we feel it is still fun to learn what's behind commonly used words and lyrics in songs.

See also  Mama Nature Said

More Songs & Lyrics by Tom Waits

Show More Lyrics

Visit our Tom Waits profile for more Tom Waits songs, lyrics & info!

See also  Here With You Tonight

Show More

See also  When Someone Wants To Leave
)