John Prine — Jesus the Missing Years
Album: The Missing YearsAvg rating:
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Total ratings: 106
Length: 5:48
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Bodhisattva wrote:
C'mon now, how critical can you be about a song that says, "Jesus was a good guy, he didn't need this shit."
O:)
TRUE O ENLIGHTENED ONE !
rulebritannia wrote:
It's a relief to see I'm not the only one who doesn't get it.
There not much to get. Sometimes you don't have to read into everything. The song, like most folk song is trying to tell a story. It can be that simple, and it is.
ChardRemains wrote:
Hey Jethro, fetch me a stick to hit this John Prine character over the head with.
C'mon now, how critical can you be about a song that says, "Jesus was a good guy, he didn't need this shit."
O:)
sici wrote:
I guess I just don't get this song. I think he's trying to be funny, but it just isn't working.
I think it's hilarious. Different strokes . . .
THIS IS A GREAT SONG. ONE OF MY FAVORITE SINGER/SONGWRITERS
amitishere wrote:
The first verse is basically the Beverly Hillbillies theme song. Gets less interesting after that.
Hey Jethro, fetch me a stick to hit this John Prine character over the head with.
rulebritannia wrote:
It's a relief to see I'm not the only one who doesn't get it.
The first verse is basically the Beverly Hillbillies theme song. Gets less interesting after that.
hmmm....long, boring, convoluted, yet somehow still preachy. perfect for my after-lunch coma.
linlin wrote: 
<-X 
=; 
8O :P 
What are you trying to say....?
<-X =; 8O :P <-X =; 8O :P
Granpa, tell me a story...
masterhead wrote:
This song should come with instructions.. should I laugh..or should I cry??
Here are the instructions: Go get John's Great Days Anthology. Study. Sing. Enjoy.
sems drawn out. i think i need to listen to this when i'm not cranky feeling.
It's a relief to see I'm not the only one who doesn't get it.
GregX59 wrote:
Prine is a national treasure.
Great. Then let's bury him where nobody will find him. :-)
I guess I just don't get this song. I think he's trying to be funny, but it just isn't working.
steeler wrote:
Yes!!!!! I guess you need a healthy dose of cynicism to appreciate the "wisdom" of this song. (Naysayers will next be telling me you don't like Arlo Guthrie's "Alice's Restaurant.")
This song should come with instructions.. should I laugh..or should I cry??
sergeant_x wrote:
We could all stand to see things from such a twisted and accurate viewpoint.
Yes!!!!! I guess you need a healthy dose of cynicism to appreciate the "wisdom" of this song. (Naysayers will next be telling me you don't like Arlo Guthrie's "Alice's Restaurant.")
Mama, they're gonna kill me. Have been a fan of Prine for decades, but had never heard this one. Thanks.
File under: GRATUITOUS
Poets - you might not like 'em, but they keep the wheel turning by producing that good old cosmic lubrication. Thanks, Bill.
Jesus saves?
Can't save this song from being crap.
We could all stand to see things from such a twisted and accurate viewpoint.
zzzzzzzz
This song doesn't do much for me.
This type of song works when the story is interesting or amusing. This one's neither.
Maybe I'm in the minority, but the first few lines made me cringe so badly that I had to turn it off. Perhaps the rest of the song is better, but I'll probably never know. :)
John's lyrics and twisted views always brings a smile. I would like to hear more Prine on RP.
Prine is a national treasure.
I really like the live version of this song much better but it's still a great song. <-X
That link no longer works...
[Intro]
Jesus, the Missing Years
[Verse 1]
It was raining, it was cold
West Bethlehem was no place for a twelve-year old
So he packed his bag and he headed out
To find out what the world's about
He went to France and went to Spain
[Chorus]He found love and he found pain
He found stores, so he started to shop
He had no money, so he got in trouble with a cop
Kids in trouble with the cops from Israel didn't have no home
So he cut his hair and moved to Rome
It was there, he met his Irish bride
And they rented a flat on the lower east side of Rome
Italy, that is
Charlie bought some popcorn, Billy bought a car
Someone almost bought the farm, but they didn't go that far
Things shut down at midnight, at least round here they do
'Cause we all reside down the block inside 23 Skidoo
[Verse 2]
Wine was flowing, so were beers
So Jesus found his missing years
He went to a dance and said, "This don't move me"
He hiked up his pants and he went to a movie
On his thirteenth birthday, he saw Rebel Without A Cause
He went straight on home and invented Santa Claus
Who gave him a gift and he responded in kind
He gave the gift of love and went out of his mind
You see, him and the wife wasn't getting along
So he took out his guitar and he wrote a song
Called 'The Dove Of Love Fell Off The Perch'
But he couldn't get divorced in the Catholic Church
At least not back then, anyhow
Jesus was a good guy
He didn't need this shit
So he took a pill with a Coca-Cola
And he swallowed it
He discovered the Beatles
And he recorded with The Stones
Once he even opened up a three-way package
For old George Jones
[Chorus]
Charlie bought some popcorn, Billy bought a car
Someone almost bought the farm, but they didn't go that far
Things shut down at midnight, at least round here they do
'Cause we all reside down the block inside of 23 Skidoo
[Verse 3]
The years went by like sweet little days
With babies crying pork chops and Beaujolais
When he woke up, he was seventeen
The world was angry, the world was mean
Why, the man down the street and the kid on the stoop
All agreed that life stank, all the world smelled like poop
Baby poop, that is
The worst kind
So he grew his hair long and he threw away his comb
Headed back to Jerusalem to find Mom and Dad and home
But when he got there, the cupboard was bare
Except for an old black man with a fishing rod
He said, "What you gonna be when you grow up?"
Jesus said, "God"
Oh my God, what have I gotten myself into?
I'm a human corkscrew and all my wine is blood
They're gonna kill me, Mama, they don't like me, Bud
So Jesus went to Heaven, he went there awful quick
All them people killed him, he wasn't even sick
So, come and gather around me, my contemporary peers
And I'll tell you all the story of Jesus: The Missing Years
[Chorus]
Charlie bought some popcorn, Billy bought a car
Someone almost bought the farm, but they didn't go that far
Things shut down at midnight, at least round here they do
'Cause we all reside down the block inside at 23 Skidoo
~ John Prine