music: John Lombardo/lyric: Natalie Merchant ]







one time

you made me cry

be proud that I

remember



my chin is sore

the bruise is gone

but the spot is tender



gave my hand a sister coy

to Cotton Alley where

you did enjoy

your wicked games

you curious boy



tied my laces up together

when I fell

you laughed

until your belly was sore



in the brick laid aisle behind

the five and dime store



that's how

I made you blush

but doubt if you

remember



were my tears genuine

or those of a skilled

pretender



nothing precious

plain to see

don't make a fuss over me

not loud

not soft

but somewhere in between

say sorry

let it be

the word you mean



I was a little pest who

never took a hint

could never

take a hint



you pinched my fingers

in a door

tossed my coloring book in a

rusty barrel



pulled spiders from my hair

fingers in the door



my favorite blue blouse

stained on the back

running from a berry war



can you hear me scream

in Cotton Alley

scream in Cotton Alley

in Cotton Alley