Rosewood Bitters Lyrics

Lyric discussion by corsair2 

Cover art for Rosewood Bitters lyrics by Joe Walsh

Bitters refers to an alcoholic beverage with herbal essences. While I could find no particular reference to a bitters made with rosewood, bitters is usually used to make cocktails, as it is very strong. Typically, they are flavored with citrus, bark or roots of various kinds.

Rosewood Bitters refers to a Tea made from the seeds of the plant called Hawaiian Baby Wood Rose(Argyreia nervosa) The plant contains an alkaloid that can cause psychedelic effects. The alkaloid present is ergine (LSA) which is a precursor to LSD and is a Schedule III Illegal drug in the USA.

Rosewood Bitters is a term referred to in the title song Rosewood Bitters by Joe Walsh and performed by the Michael Stanley Band. The lyrics say "And the rosewood bitters, wake me with a smile in the morning and help me through the night when I feel blue."

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_rosewood_bitters

@corsair2 Other way around. Rosewood Bitters is a song written by Michael Stanley and released by the MSB before Joe Walsh later covered it. I believe Walsh may have played guitar on the original MSB release though.