What's He Building? lyrics

Song information

Artist: Tom Waits
Album: Mule Variations

Lyrics

What's he building in there?
What the hell is he building in there?

He has subscriptions to those magazines
He never waves when he goes by
He's hiding something from the rest of us
He's all to himself. I think I know why

He took down the tire swing from the pepper tree
He has no children of his own, you see
He has no dog. he has no friends
His lawn is dying
What are all those packages he sends?

What's he building in there?

That hooklight on the stairs
What's he building in there?

I'll tell you one thing. he's not building a playhouse for the children
What's he building in there?

And what's that sound from underneath the door?
He's pounding nails into a hardwood floor
I swear to god, I heard someone moaning, low
And I keep seeing the blue light of a tv show
He has a router. and a table saw
And you won't believe what mr. stitches saw
There's poison underneath the sink, of course
There's also enough formaldehyde to choke a horse

What's he building in there?
What the hell is he building in there?

I heard he has an ex-wife in someplace called mayor's income, tennessee
And he used to have a consulting business in indonesia

But what's he building in there?

He has no friends. but he gets a lot of mail
I'll bet he spent a little time in jail
I heard he was up on the roof last night, signalling with a flashlight
And what's that tune he's always whistling?

What's he building in there?
What's he building in there?

We have a right to know