A Vegas Story (Free Drinks and a Dream)

I heard the law came down in Vegas town

They no longer fear the mob

Told my wife and kids, "It's a business trip,

Daddy's only doin' his job"

So I emptied out the savings account

Sure that I could beat the odds

And though you might not rate a desert grave

That town still steals and robs

For free drinks and a dream

I gave them my wallet

I rolled the dice and upped my price

A soul for sale, they bought it

Now a billion lights gleam

They're twinkling 'bove this dead broke alcoholic

And I lost everything

To free drinks and a dream

The day I sold my car

I hit the bar across from my cheap motel room

That's when I thought hard about just gettin' out

Of this bright and lavish tomb

But this place don't sleep on its promise to keep

A light on against the gloom

She says maybe you got one more shot

And that's the lie that's been my ruin

A dream of livin' your years out

With just a little ease

Where a man can afford to be ill

And that extra bill won't bring him to his knees

Now I'm so alone, I can't go home

How could a family understand?

That your love for them can do you in

Make you a desperate man

Though youth is gone still the heart draws you on

To devise foolhardy plans

You set aside your guilt for kingdoms built

On shifting desert sands