The Farmer's Hotel
Read The Farmer's Hotel lyrics by The Silver Jews on LyroVerse, with linked artist context and related song paths.
The page facts to cite before the commentary
Use this page for the lyric text, linked artist context, and any LyroVerse editor's note attached to the song. Listener comments remain user-generated and should not be treated as the primary source.
The Farmer's Hotel
The lyric stays readable and compact here; the note and related paths sit nearby so you do not lose the song while looking for context.
The lights went out in New York
Then they went out in Goshen
I got stuck in Goshen and that was sad.
The townsolf stared hard
Like their minds had been marred
By life in a district so downtrodden and drab.
I flagged down a stranger
In a worn wooden wheelchair
And when I asked if he knew of a hotel
He said "if I get your meaning
Then I'm definitely leaning
Towards recommending the Farmer's Hotel."
As I left to find the place
A mother loooked me in the face
And whispered "please sir, not the Farmer's Hotel."
Once where I was headed
She swore I would regret it
Though what might happen she wouldn't foretell.
The old place it was vicious
Wicked and pernicious
"Please stay clean of that rank abbatoir"
Though her words alarmed me
I was stuck until morning
And in the end we must be who we are.
With no light on the door
I wasn't quite sure
If a night clerk was working within
From behind a red curtain
Limped a perilous person
He appeared to have some egg on his chin.
This old yankee warlock
Brushed back a gray forelock
And bid me to sign in the book
With no bonhomie
He proffered the key
Never once did he give me a look.
I thanked the old codger
And in my role as the lodger
I headed upstairs for to sleep
There was no air of slumber
The doors, they had no numbers
Which room was intended for me?
The passage kept on going
Like the carpet was flowing
Towards that thing at the end of the hall
My own eyed had adjusted
This account can be trusted
Because I know that I saw what I saw.
I heard animal noises
And tangled up voices
Chanting more and of rumors of more
There's no natural law
That can explain what I saw
Spread out on that straw-covered floor.
Now I've put an ocean
Between myself and Goshen
To get away from the Farmer's Hotel
If you get a nation
To travel to Goshen
Please stay away from the Farmer's Hotel
The lights went out in Goshen
Just like poetry in motion
And I checked into the Farmer's Hotel
Things to unclean
Are better left unseen
Please keep away from the Farmer's Hotel
What this page can answer fast
Who performs "The Farmer's Hotel"?
The Silver Jews performs "The Farmer's Hotel", and this lyric page sits inside the The Silver Jews catalog on LyroVerse.
Are there related songs to explore after "The Farmer's Hotel"?
Yes. The related section below points to Advice To The Graduate and Aloysius, Bluegrass Drummer with a short reason for opening each page next.
Where can I find more songs by The Silver Jews?
Use the artist link near the top of the page or the related paths section below to keep moving through The Silver Jews's lyric pages.
Interpretations, questions, and corrections for this song
Interpretations, questions, memories, and correction notes live together here. The room stays noindex while the best insights are reviewed.
What people are saying
No listener comments on The Farmer's Hotel yet.
A strong comment here is specific: the phrase you keep hearing, the mood you come back for, or the reason this song stays in rotation.
Sign in to post the first listener note. Reporting stays open to everyone.