First Snowfall

The Christmas decorations
 Look ragged and rusty
 A little sooty with coal dust
 Santa's missing an eye
 The neon sign flickers
 On the cinder block tavern
 By the Salvation Army
 And the plumbers supply
 The old downtown mission
 Has John 3: 16 painted
 In all capital letters
 Above cans full of trash
 But the paint is all peeling
 Broken glass on the sidewalk
 Glitters like chandeliers
 Somebody smashed
 And my soul feels as empty
 As a brown paper bag
 The drained bottle inside it
 Bought with bummed change
 40 ounces of liquor
 For 30 pieces of silver
 And your temporary suicide
 Has all been arranged
 It's like an angel starts singing
 An old gospel song
 In that part of town where
 No angel belongs
 But what is this music
 That falls on my ear
 It's the very first snowfall
 Of a very long year
 I'm so far from home
 And all that's familiar
 Every prodigal knows
 How this story goes
 Was I just runnin' from what's
 Too dark to mention
 Or were angels escorting me
 God only knows
 So help me Maria
 We heard the same call
 Our hearts felt as free
 As a dove newly flown
 When a big city beckons
 Ah you just can't imagine
 You're left with no choice
 Yeah, you just have to go
 It's like an angel starts singing
 An old gospel song
 In that part of town where
 No angel belongs
 But what is this music
 That falls on deaf ears
 It's the very first snowfall
 Of a very long year
 ♪
 There's two stray dogs runnin'
 In Newport, Kentucky
 They've got a secret
 No one else knows
 This old dirty city
 Is cleansed of its sin
 We're all light-hearted lovers
 We're all beautiful beggars
 We're all innocent children
 As soon as it snows
 It's like an angel starts singing
 An old gospel song
 In that part of town where
 No angel belongs
 But what is this music
 Are these God's silent tears?
 It's the very first snowfall
 Of a very long year