Truckin'

Listen while you read:  Busted!

Truckin', got my chips cashed in
Keep truckin', like the do-dah man
Together, more or less in line
Just keep truckin' on

Arrows of neon and flashing marquees out on Main Street
Chicago, New York, Detroit, and it's all on the same street
Your typical city involved in a typical daydream
Hang it up and see what tomorrow brings

Dallas, got a soft machine
Houston, too close to New Orleans
New York's got the ways and means
But just won't let you be, oh no

Most of the cats that you meet on the streets speak of true love
Most of the time, they're sittin' and cryin' at home
One of these days, they know they better get goin'
Out of the door and down on the streets all alone

Truckin', like the do-dah man
Once told me, "You've got to play your hand"
Sometimes, your cards ain't worth a dime
If you don't lay 'em down

Sometimes the light's all shinin' on me
Other times, I can barely see
Lately, it occurs to me
What a long, strange trip it's been

What in the world ever became of sweet Jane
She lost her sparkle, you know she isn't the same
Livin' on reds, vitamin C and cocaine
All a friend can say is "Ain't it a shame?"

Truckin', up to Buffalo
Been thinkin', you got to mellow slow
Takes time, you pick a place to go
And just keep truckin' on

Sittin' and starin' out of the hotel window
Got a tip they're gonna break the door in again
I'd like to get some sleep before I travel
But if you got a warrant, I guess you're gonna come in

Busted, down on Bourbon Street
Set up, like a bowlin' pin
Knocked down, it gets to wearin' thin
They just won't let you be, oh no

You're sick of hangin' around and you like to travel
Get tired of travelin' and you wanna settle down
I guess they can't revoke your soul for tryin'
Get out of the door and light out and look all around

Sometimes the light's all shinin' on me
Other times, I can barely see
Lately, it occurs to me
What a long, strange trip it's been

Truckin', I'm a goin' home
Whoa, whoa, baby, back where I belong
Back home, sit down and patch my bones
And get back truckin' on

~  Garcia, Lesh, Weir, Hunter (for The Grateful Dead)

Fifty years ago today, eight narcotics agents busted down the door of 710 Ashbury Street in San Francisco and arrested eleven people. They confiscated a pound of marijuana and hashish. Of the eleven, two were members of The Grateful Dead, Bob Weir and Ron (Pigpen) McKernan. Originally charged with felonies, most of the eleven pled guilty to misdemeanors and paid $100 or $200 in fines.

Again, on January 31, 1970, drug enforcement officials arrested Phil Lesh, Bob Weir, and Bill Kreutzmann in New Orleans. Busted, down on Bourbon Street / Set up, like  bowlin' pin / Knocked down, it gets to wearin' thin / They just won't let you be. "Truckin'" first appeared on the classic American Beauty in November 1970.

Fifty years ago! And how many arrests have there been for possession of cannabis since then? Such a waste of time and resources and people's lives! At least in eight states, it is now legal to use recreational marijuana, and there will likely be more states added to the list (unless Jeffrey Beauregard Sessions has his way). It's been a long time coming. And what a long, strange trip it's been.

On a road trip on the West Coast a few years ago, I made a point of visiting 710 Ashbury Street. It just seemed like something one should do when in San Francisco. During the "Summer of Love," I was seventeen years old, but far too timid and frightened of my parents to ever be as adventurous as those many emerging hippies who descended on that city. Sometimes I wish I could go back in time and take those chances I was too afraid to take back then. How would my life be different if I had? I guess it's just another "what if?" question.

710 Ashbury Street