Black Wings is a scary song by Tom Waits from the album Bone Machine. It tells a creepy tale about a mysterious man. You never know if the character is good or evil. Are the black wings beneath his coat the wings of an angel or the wings of a demon?
Well take an eye for an eye
A tooth for a tooth
Just like they say in the Bible
Well never leave a trace
Or forget a face
Of any man at the table
Any man at the table
When the moon is a cold chisel dagger
And it’s sharp enough to draw blood from a stone
He rides through your dreams on a coach and horses
And the fence posts in the moonlight
Look like bones
Well they stopped trying to hold him
With mortar, stone and chain
He broke out of every prison
Well the boots mount the staircase
The door is flung back open
He’s not there for he has risen
He’s not there for he has risen
Some say he once killed a man with a guitar string
He’s been seen at the table with kings
Well he once saved a baby from drowning
There are those that say beneath his coat there are wings
Well some say they fear him
Others admire him
Because his steel’s his promise
But one look in his eye
And everyone denies
Ever having met him
He can turn himself into a stranger
Well they broke a lot of canes on his hide
He was born away in a cornfield
A fever beats in his head just like a drum inside
Some say they fear him
Others admire him
Because he steals his promise
One look in his eye
Everyone denies
Ever having met him…
Not that scary…..