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Loser Lyrics

If I had a gun for every ace I've drawn
I could arm a town the size of Abilene
Don't you push me baby cause I'm moaning low
And you know I'm only in it for the gold

All that I am asking for is ten gold dollars
I could pay you back with one good hand
You can look around about the wide world over
And you'll never find another honest man

Last fair deal in the country, sweet Suzy
Last fair deal in the town
Put your gold money where your love is, baby
Before you let my deal go down

Don't you push me baby
because I'm moaning low
I know a little something
you won't ever know
Don't you touch hard liquor
just a cup of cold coffee
Gonna get up
in the morning
and go

Everybody's bragging and drinking that wine
I can tell the Queen of Diamonds by the way she shine
Come to Daddy on an inside straight
Well I got no chance of losing this time
Well I got no chance of losing this time
Song Info
Submitted by
itsmyownmind On Dec 23, 2001
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Cover art for Loser lyrics by Grateful Dead

We were the aces and they did have a "gun" to arm us with... and we were a town alot bigger than just abilene!!

All Jerry and tour asked for was "Ten gold Dollars, and remember Jerry did have one "good hand".

I'm still looking the wide world over to find another Honest Man

"Last Fair deal in the country" was tour.... So I hope you did put your gold dollar where your love is baby. and got out and experienced the best kept secret in this country!

High and in the moment ( everybody prayin, and drinkin that wine) It did seem like you would connect with the boys ( come to daddy, on an inside straight) Cause Ive got no chance of losing this time!

I can tell the Queen of Diamonds, by the way she shines!!!!!

Cover art for Loser lyrics by Grateful Dead

A couple of corrections:
Don't you push me baby 'cause I'm all alone should read: Don't you push me baby 'cause I'm moaning low

Everybody's praying and drinking that wine should read: Everybody's bragging and drinking that wine

Man, what an AWESOME song... One of my absolute favorite Jerry songs. I used to LOVE to hear him sing this one. It felt real personal to him, like it was autobiographical. Like this was HIS BLUES. The BLUES that he was LIVING.
If you think about the fact that Jerry was a Heroin addict for many many years,.. And the desperation involved in that lifestyle... The joys and SORROWS..., the ups, the downs... The needing to score, the wanting desperately to score and the payoff when you finally DO score...

Anybody that has ever been addicted to drugs KNOWS the desperation of the gambler in this song... Hell, gambling ITSELF is an addiction...

Jerry always sang this song with A LOT of feeling. And I got the feeling from him that it was confessional. Just a singer being HONEST about his jones. Jerry's jones was heroin.
Most people have their own jones... Whatever it happens to be.

Having kicked hard drugs myself, maybe that's why I've always LOVED this song. Boy do I know that FEELING of desperation...

Cover art for Loser lyrics by Grateful Dead

This song is about all those desperate (or seemingly desperate) people in the world who rely wholly on other people for survival. The story is about a gambler on a losing binge that's asking for a loan to win his way out of his debt. He's begging and pleading his lover, as she is probably the last person on earth who trusts him. He's a loser that claims to have some mystical or inside knowlege of the card game (he can tell which card is the queen of diamonds by the way she shines) but in actuality, if he did have an advantage, he wouldn't be indebted to the point of asking his lover for a loan. This song is a warning to the fans, who, while they are renowned for their sense of community, should still seek to be wise enough to avoid being taken advantage by "losers" who care about nothing but self benefit.

I think it's about poker though. And instead of the inside knowledge I think the guy knows how to cheat, at least a little bit. Maybe a mechanic grip but he still loses. He probably plays too drunk too and plays loose and loses money.

Also - he's chasing a straight. That's not good behavior to do that, if you can't bluff and bet properly. Just a guy who doesn't play smart. He chases hands that he doesn't hit and when he doesn't hit them he just loses money and goes back to get more and bet again. Doesn't learn from his mistakes. The girl, I think is someone that he goes to for money.

Last comment he doesn't cheat he's just a poor player. Pretty much agree with this comment.

Cover art for Loser lyrics by Grateful Dead

A loser is someone who thinks they're special. A person who thinks that they will not go down the same road countless others have gone down. A person that thinks they will never become an addict, alcoholic, depraved gambler etc. They believe that they have something special to prevent this outcome.

A winner is someone who knows that they are no better and NO WORSE than anyone else, and acts accordingly.

Cover art for Loser lyrics by Grateful Dead

There's potentially a pretty deep, dark theme in there, once you go fuzzy with the lyrics. 'Ace' is expert. To draw is also to create. Drawing aces could refer to training pros. Mercenary - 'gold'. One good hand is enough to pull the trigger. But is asking to be paid to do a job, or demanding payment -not- to do something the other person wouldn't want? He's no pussy cat. And he's full of secrets. No booze, early start. Then we really fall down the rabbit hole. An event, lots of people drinking wine. But he's interested in the 'queen of diamonds'... think Manchurian Candidate (1962), which features an assassin hypnotically programmed to respond to the queen of diamonds. An 'inside straight' is also called a 'gunshot', and in poker, is a straight with a gap in the middle... resembling a gunsight. 'Come to daddy', etc. Got no chance of losing... Maybe he gets paid if he does it, or gets paid if someone who stands to lose pays him not to do it.

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