REASON TO BELIEVE^©

Aimee Mann & Michael Penn's version

Seen a man standin' over a dead dog lyin' by the highway in a ditch
He's lookin' down kinda puzzled pokin' that dog with a stick
Got his car door flung open he's standin' out on Highway 31
Like if he stood there long enough that dog'd get up and run
It struck me kinda funny, seemed kinda funny sir to me
Still at the end of every hard day people find some reason to believe

Now Mary Lou loved Johnny with a love mean and true
She said "Baby I'll work for you every day, bring my money home to you"
One day he up and left her and ever since that
She waits down at the end of that dirt road for young Johnny to come back
Struck me kinda funny, funny yeah to me
How at the end of every hard earned day you can find some reason to believe

Take a baby to the river, Kyle William they called him
Wash the baby in the water, take away little Kyle's sin
In a whitewash shotgun shack an old man passes away
Take his body to the graveyard and over him they pray
Lord won't you tell us, tell us what does it mean
At the end of every hard earned day people find some reason to believe

Congregation gathers down by the riverside
Preacher stands with his Bible, groom stands waitin' for his bride
Congregation gone, the sun sets behind a weepin' willow tree
Groom stands alone and watches the river rush on effortlessly
Wonderin' where can his baby be
Still at the end of every hard earned day people find some reason to believe

The above lyrics refer to Aimee Mann & Michael Penn's cover that was included on the tribute album Badlands - A Tribute To Bruce Springsteen's Nebraska.

Check out the album's version (more details), the live versions (Live/1975-85, 16 Nov 1984, 18 Nov 1984, 19 Nov 1984, 07 Dec 1984, 07 Jan 1985, 16 Nov 1990, 17 Nov 1990, 18 Feb 1996, and 15 May 2005), and the 14 Jun 2006 cover version.