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Hello In There Lyrics
We had an apartment in the city,
Me and Loretta liked living there.
Well, it'd been years since the kids had grown,
A life of their own left us alone.
John and Linda live in Omaha,
And Joe is somewhere on the road.
We lost Davy in the Korean war,
And I still don't know what for, don't matter anymore.
Chorus:
Ya' know that old trees just grow stronger,
And old rivers grow wilder ev'ry day.
Old people just grow lonesome
Waiting for someone to say, "Hello in there, hello."
Me and Loretta, we don't talk much more,
She sits and stares through the back door screen.
And all the news just repeats itself
Like some forgotten dream that we've both seen.
Someday I'll go and call up Rudy,
We worked together at the factory.
But what could I say if asks "What's new?"
"Nothing, what's with you? Nothing much to do."
Repeat Chorus:
So if you're walking down the street sometime
And spot some hollow ancient eyes,
Please don't just pass 'em by and stare
As if you didn't care, say, "Hello in there, hello."
Me and Loretta liked living there.
Well, it'd been years since the kids had grown,
A life of their own left us alone.
John and Linda live in Omaha,
And Joe is somewhere on the road.
We lost Davy in the Korean war,
And I still don't know what for, don't matter anymore.
Ya' know that old trees just grow stronger,
And old rivers grow wilder ev'ry day.
Old people just grow lonesome
Waiting for someone to say, "Hello in there, hello."
She sits and stares through the back door screen.
And all the news just repeats itself
Like some forgotten dream that we've both seen.
Someday I'll go and call up Rudy,
We worked together at the factory.
But what could I say if asks "What's new?"
"Nothing, what's with you? Nothing much to do."
And spot some hollow ancient eyes,
Please don't just pass 'em by and stare
As if you didn't care, say, "Hello in there, hello."
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So beautiful. I was able to see John Prine in concert, and he is just such a fabulous performer. This was the first song of his I ever heard and the song writing was so beautiful that I had to find more.
This would have to be the only song I've ever heard that made me cry. It's about the neglect elderly people feel from others because of their limited abilities and the altogether age difference. Just because you appear different, the person inside doesn't change, and no one likes to be ignored no matter what the age. It's basically saying that older people appreciate being treated like humans, other than children, and appreciate the feeling of equality to others.
John Prine cuts to the soul of humanity like no other. To comfortablynumb, this song tears me every time I hear it.
I lost my father a year ago and while we were close, this song made me realize that there are so very many older people who are just wasting away from loneliness and neglect.
This really is a deeply sad and human song. Not just that people work hard their whole lives and then can't even expect acknowledgement of their existence once their greatest accomplishments are behind them, but that time numbs us to life. Even a cut as deep as losing a son eventually is just worn away by the tides of time...
I work in a public library, and we get a lot of lonely older people who just wander in because they have nothing to do and nowhere else to go. One day a cute and spirited 4-year old girl and one of our regular elderly men were waiting to check out. The man leaned down to talk to her, asking how old she was, what books she was getting, telling her how darling she looked, etc. and told her to "never grow up." He then stood up and repeated to nobody, "Never grow up. Growing up is terrible and growing old is horrible." I will never forget the look he gave and the way he said that as long as I live.
I wish I had a heart as big and good as John Prine
I first heard this song on TV(an interlude) but it wasn't John Prine.. It was a cover. The video was mostly senior citizens in the park looking lonely and bored. One of his best songs.
heard this song and i was hooked. jp is a legend and this song is a reel reflection with gr8 lyrics wicked tune. luvin all his stuff, especially the stuff wiv mindy smith on. they gel like butter on hot toast
You take a walk down any street or go into any supermarket, you'll see the old people John is referring to. These are the people who paid taxes, brought up families and lived through wars only to meet terrible loneliness in old age, and it is up to us to try to change the sickening way we ignore older people.
This song makes me cry too.
Being alone does not mean being lonely, perhaps this song is about the interconnectivity of all living things, more a feeling then a conceptual thought, although we are individuals no one is truly separate…acknowledging someone else’s existence substantiates our own life…