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On the Courthouse Steps

from Too Much of a Good Thing by Sam Steffen

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lyrics

Danny and Julia were dressed in their Sunday best
Though it was a Tuesday and already snowing
The cabbie who drove agreed to be their one wedding-guest
On the condition that they let him leave his meter going
The procedure was quick, the presider had seen to it
Some words of intent and the optional kiss
Life lay ahead, and he carried her into it
Down through the snow on the courthouse steps

On the courthouse steps—where agreements are sanctified
promises notarized, futures foretold—
punishments doled out—arguments justified
slow gears rotated and fast ones pulled

Frankie the Fist had seen plenty of things, I’m sure,
He’d worked for a gang that had moved contraband
One night, the police – raided their weapons store
Frankie got out with a slap on the hand—
The boss went to jail for holding and questioning
When the trial date came, Frankie showed with the Feds
There was the sound of a gun, unmistakable, deafening—
and Frankie fell dead on the courthouse steps

On the courthouse steps—where what goes around comes around
Where you’re made to speak up while you’re fighting to breathe
Where a man can be beat and kicked when he’s fallen down
And Lady Luck’s always got one more card up her sleeve

John Henry’s case had unfortunate precedence:
A black man accused of a white homicide
the all-white jury was presented with evidence
it took them all of about ten minutes to decide—
A TV news crew sent to report on it
Caught the moment the defense began the protest:
crying: “If justice ain’t served in the halls that were built for it—
Then let it be done on the courthouse steps!”

On the courthouse steps—where the shadow of justice falls
On weeping and wailing and the gnashing of teeth
On the eyes of the pained, their backs up against the walls
Their hearts more inflamed by Time and by Grief

Oil & Coal were the wealthiest trades, by far—
Til the disposal of waste caused the profits to tank
Sure, they took on some risk making trips to the reservoir
til it all trickled back to the water they drank—
First people got sick, and then they began to die
And slowly the pieces began to connect—
By the time of the trial, thousands agreed to testify,
The whole town in line on the courthouse steps

On the courthouse steps—where the end of the tale is set
Where eventually all of the odds become even
The defense lawyer yawns and puts out his cigarette
Sayin a prayer to the God he can’t bring himself to believe in

John Fontleroy was arrested for battery
He’d been charged years before with killing his wife
The Not Guilty verdict came from some technicality
About how they’d never been able to turn up the knife—
But now there was proof; and he was in custody
He called his lawyer to tell him he was under arrest
His lawyer just laughed and said “Man, double jeopardy—
You’ll be free fore you get to the courthouse steps.”

The courthouse steps—where fortunes are overturned
Where right and wrong change with a roll of the dice
Where the innocent—can be tied to the stake and burned—
But you can’t charge the guilty for the same crime twice

Danny and Julia, dressed in their Sunday best
With two kids between them, and their lawyers beside
The divorce was prepared, but there was still all the rest—
the house, finances, custody to decide
The procedure cost more than either one could afford to pay
But they still hadn’t reached any agreement yet—
And so they emerged—each going their separate way,
Down through the snow on the courthouse steps

credits

from Too Much of a Good Thing, released October 8, 2023

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Sam Steffen Boise, Idaho

Sam Steffen is a Pennsylvania-bred, Boise-based singer-songwriter whose songs are the torch-wood for a new generation of folk music that has learned from the best stuff in the tradition and aims in spite of everything to keep the human spirit alive and kicking. A versatile musician and skilled finger-picker, Sam is at heart a story-teller, and a prolific one. ... more

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