She was a young Missouri girl
From a small Missouri town
Tired of feeling out
Tired of being down
Gonna see some stars
And live some life
Find a place to play
Without fields or firefly lights
No more church no more school
Not gonna hear daddy’s ridicule
Pack a bag
catch a bus
blow a seventeen hundred mile
kiss good bye to us
tear the ribbons out of your hair
forget you ever heard them warn you
and head for life
in California

big country eyes
see big city lights
stepping off a bus
into a big city night
where it’s anything you want
everything you need
everything has a price
just agree to feed the greed
the neon sky glows bright
and the stars grow dim
as they reach out their hand
to invite you in
close your eyes
and open your mouth
party and pay the bill
blowing kisses to the south
forget the words you heard
when they warned you
and swallow the taste of the price
of life in California

downtown parties
and uptown pubs
store bought bodies
and movie star clubs
red carpet dreams
and camera flashes
disco scene queens
shaking their *****
everybody’s famous
everyone’s a model
everyone washes down the taste
with the bottom of a bottle
dance all night
and drink all day
******* bullets
with bent knee ricochets
the ferris wheel
in this towns carnival
up and down the ride
life in California