I think Tom is mourning the loss of traditional values, boys being raised in to good men who know how to function well in relationships rather than winding up alone and sad, like the Mackie Debiasi in his toll takers booth, or dead in the morgue like Gunplay Maxwell and his two friends. He's saying it takes a good man to keep a good woman (a "Happy Hen"), and that the love of a good woman can in turn be the salvation of a man.
I think Tom is mourning the loss of traditional values, boys being raised in to good men who know how to function well in relationships rather than winding up alone and sad, like the Mackie Debiasi in his toll takers booth, or dead in the morgue like Gunplay Maxwell and his two friends. He's saying it takes a good man to keep a good woman (a "Happy Hen"), and that the love of a good woman can in turn be the salvation of a man.