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Lillian, Egypt Lyrics
I remember back in Illinois I found her
The lily of the valley
The lily of the West was a rose
The daughter of the biggest big town banker
He kept her like a princess
I stole her like the Fort Knox gold
She used to pour Four Roses like it was going down the chimney
Like the bottle was on fire or the boiler was about to blow
She was up on the table when we hit Missouri
Dancing with a movie man he was holding her a little too close
La didi da da da da da da da
La didi da da da da da da da
He made her the star of the silent movies
But all she did was mouth the words
All she did was mouth the words, oh no
And he cast me as the villain
As the sheriff's worst enemy
I practiced falling off of buildings and out windows
La didi da da da da da da da
La didi da da da da da da da
The last time I saw she was tied to the train tracks
I was up there with the extras riding on a tiger roan
The villain on the left with the studio mustache
Winking at Lillian blowing kisses from the second row
La didi da da da da da da da!
The lily of the valley
The lily of the West was a rose
The daughter of the biggest big town banker
He kept her like a princess
I stole her like the Fort Knox gold
Like the bottle was on fire or the boiler was about to blow
She was up on the table when we hit Missouri
Dancing with a movie man he was holding her a little too close
La didi da da da da da da da
But all she did was mouth the words
All she did was mouth the words, oh no
And he cast me as the villain
As the sheriff's worst enemy
I practiced falling off of buildings and out windows
La didi da da da da da da da
I was up there with the extras riding on a tiger roan
The villain on the left with the studio mustache
Winking at Lillian blowing kisses from the second row
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Lillian Gish was one of the most famous silent movie actresses of all time. For instance, she was in Birth of a Nation and was rumored to be having an affair with the legendary D.W. Griffith. The details of the song don't match her life-- she was born in Ohio, not Illinois, and her father abandoned the family. So it's more likely that Josh uses her as a silent movie actress as a symbol for a woman who pretends to love him but is really just "mouthing the words." I love this song, especially the piano solo in the middle.
Another thought... Lily of the West- an old folk song where a man travels to Louisville and falls in love with Flora- the "Lily of the West"... and even after she is unfaithful, he is still in love with her...