Dire Wolf Lyrics

Lyric discussion by bolete 

Cover art for Dire Wolf lyrics by Grateful Dead

its about the consequences of your actions. hoping it doesnt come back to bite ya in the ass. aka getting what you deserve

I agree. The "dire wolf" (which was a now-extinct species of wolf in the Western Hemisphere) is a metaphor for the consequences of the things you choose in life. He's the ultimate bill collector (he "collects his dues") and in this case from a man whose supper consists of hard liquor. Another way of putting it is to say the "dire wolf" is karma- all actions, good and evil, have consequences, and these will be manifest at some point in the future.