The Chattanooga Shoot Shoot

I was far from home and lost and lonely
And aimlessly bouncing around
Spent too much time and money
In this little Georgia town
But nothing lights a fire just like
Running out of cash will
I had enough to buy a
One-way ticket back to Nashville
To a bed I know, owned by a friend
Who's learned it the hard way
If you invite me in for coffee
I'll unpack my bag and stay

Just like Paul Blanche Dubois
I've also come to put my faith in
The charity of strangers
And honest transportations
So I find myself aboard
This silver bullet budget bus
With that creepy guy in sunglasses
Down the back looking sus
And that old woman with her belongings
In a busted plastic bag
And all the nicotine devotees
Marking time to take a drag

We'd only just left Chattanooga town
And I thought it prudent
To sit beside this young and wholesome
Graduating college student
She was pondering where best to go
To do her PhD
She said she had two options
Australia or Italy
I said, 'Well, that's a no brainer
'Better come study with us'
And that's about the time
We both heard something hit the bus

I counted six loud popping thuds
That came in quick succession
They went
That's my impression
I innocently thought of kids
Just throwing rocks for fun
But the guy sat up the back yelled
'Them be shots fired from a gun!'
And everyone stopped talking
We all looked at each other
But unknowing if to write ourselves a will
Or duck for cover

Then underneath the small explosion
The engine gave a hellish roar
Like when the stick slips out of gear
And your foot's flat to the floor
But the bus lost all control
And started swerving 'cross the freeway
Just missed the concrete barrier
With about two metres leeway
I was seeing gruesome shots
They'd use for the morning edition
Then someone behind me moaned
And we assumed the crash position

Oh my god, I did not know
That this was how I was meant to go
I said, oh my god, please save my neck
Don't want to die in this burning wreck

But the driver kept her nerve
For she had all our souls to save
She stopped short on the verge
Of what might've been our grave
Now everybody's thrilled as if
They've just been in the movies
They're calling up their family, saying
'Guess what just happened to me'
Within ten minutes flat
Soon as you heard the sirens wail
We're hemmed all around by squad cars
Flashing like Boxing Day sale

Officer Friendly got on board
Took out his pad to take some names
Patting the heads of children
And flirting with the dames
He said, 'Tell me now if any of you've
'Come to any harm'
He had John chapter 3:17
Tattooed along his arm
He said, 'You can go stretch your legs now
'You might be sitting for some time'
So I jumped off with the smokers
And from there surveyed the crime

First shot, it grazed off the flank
Second barely missed the tank
The third shot went right through
And lodged into the toilet door
The fourth shot pierced the luggage lock
The fifth shot struck the engine block
Then the sixth shot popped the tire
And then it shredded to the core

After a while, little bits of
The story filtered through
The shooter had been local
And the cops, they now knew who
He was supposed the join the bus
Back at the Chattanooga station
He was late and tried to wave
The driver down but she's impatient
She's bent to her position
And a timetable to honour
So he tailed us to the freeway
And let the bullets rain upon her

Oh my god, how close we'd come
To marching toward your kingdom drum
I said, oh my god, how close we'd be
To staring down eternity

When the last cop pulled away
We had been stuck out there for hours
It didn't take too long
Till the collective mood, it sours
See my student friend, she's wailing that
She's now gonna be late
She's gonna have to call ahead
And cancel tonight's date
I said, 'Feel lucky you're not dead
'You're really giving me the blues'
And the next day safe in Nashville
It didn't even make the news

In the history of America
It was just another day
Now I made it to that warm bed
And there all day I'll stay
So if you ever find yourself
Riding the bus 'round Chattanooga
Keep your eyes open for pockets
With an outline like a luger
What worries me the most
Is that it's difficult to tell
If you should fear those
Who have missed the bus
Or them who's punctual