2 Meanings
Add Yours
Follow
Share
Q&A

Prisoners Lyrics

Josie works the counter at the downtown five and dime
Anything at all to help her pass the time
Her mama keeps the baby and grandpa rambles on
About the good times playing in his mind

It’s a hard life livin’ when you’re lonely
It’s a long night sleepin’ alone
It’s a hard time waitin’ for tomorrow
It’s a long, long way home

Josie spends the evening with the people "on" the pages
Of the paperback she picked up "at" the store
Or sometimes it’s the TV or she’ll try to write a letter
But they don’t come too often anymore

It’s a hard life livin’ when you’re lonely
It’s a long night sleepin’ alone
It’s a hard time waitin’ for tomorrow
It’s a long, long way home

I stare at the gray walls before me
And I see her face in the stone
I try to imagine our baby
I wish they would let me go home
I wish they would let me go home
I wish they would let me go home

It’s a hard life livin’ when you’re lonely
I wish they would let me go home
It’s a long night sleepin’ alone
I wish they would let me go home
It’s a hard time waitin’ for tomorrow
I wish they would let me go home
It’s a long, long way home
I wish they would let me go home
It’s a long, long way home
I wish they would let me go home
Bring me and the other boys home
I wish they would let me go home
Bring me and the other boys home
2 Meanings

Add your song meanings, interpretations, facts, memories & more to the community.

Add your thoughts...
Cover art for Prisoners lyrics by John Denver

Surprised nobody's comment on this song yet. Wonderfully captures a dreary life, wishing for something more, living an incomplete life without that special someone. Kind of anti-war in the end.

Great guitar work by John Denver. Would love to learn how to play it.

It was written about Prisoners of war. The single record was called "Hard Life Hard Times", the way it is on the Rocky Mountain High album it was called Prisoners. By the way the guitar work is quite easy.(Only two chords played in Dropped D tuning. G and D with some triad chords and some 12 fret harmonics

Cover art for Prisoners lyrics by John Denver

If I remember a anecdote I heard about it correctly, it's actually a song about a Vietnam POW and his wife at home.

y'know, now that I read that comment it makes PERFECT sense. For the longest time I thought it was about a teen couple that got into trouble.

Thank you for clearing that up!

 
Questions and Answers

Ask specific questions and get answers to unlock more indepth meanings & facts.

Ask a question...