Lake Marie Songtext
von John Prine

We were standing
Standing by peaceful waters
Standing by peaceful waters
Whoa, ah-oh, ah-oh

Many years ago
Along the Illinois-Wisconsin border
There was this Indian tribe
They found two babies in the woods
White babies

One of them was named Elizabeth
She was the fairer of the two
While the smaller and more fragile one
Was named Marie

Having never seen white girls before
And living on the two lakes known as the Twin Lakes
They named the larger and more beautiful lake
Lake Elizabeth


And thus the smaller lake
That was hidden from the highway
Became known forever as
Lake Marie

We were standing
Standing by peaceful waters
Standing by peaceful waters
Whoa, ah-oh, ah-oh

Many years later
I found myself talking to this girl
Who was standing there
With her back turned to Lake Marie

The wind was blowing
Especially through her hair
There was four Italian sausages
Cooking on the outdoor grill
And they were sizzlin′

Many years later
We found ourselves in Canada
Trying to save our marriage
And perhaps catch a few fish


Whatever came first
That night she fell asleep in my arms
Humming the tune to, "Louie Louie"
Aah baby, we gotta go now

We were standing
Standing by peaceful waters
Standing by peaceful waters
Whoa, ah-oh, ah-oh
Whoa, ah-oh, ah-oh

The dogs were barking as the cars were parking
The loan sharks were sharking, the narcs were narcing
Practically everyone was there
In the parking lot by the forest preserve

The police had found two bodies in the woods
Nay, naked bodies
Their faces had been horribly disfigured by some sharp object
Saw it on the news, the TV news
In a black and white video

You know what blood looks like in a black and white video?
Shadows, shadows
That's what it looks like
All the love we shared between her and me was slammed
Slammed up against the banks of old Lake Marie
Marie

We were standing
Standing by peaceful waters
Standing by peaceful waters
Whoa, ah-oh, ah-oh
Whoa, ah-oh, ah-oh

Whoa, ah-oh, ah-oh
Peaceful waters
Standing by peaceful waters
Aah, baby
We gotta go now