the silver tongued devil and i

Kris Kristofferson finally had a hit on his own with the assured outlaw country and boozy romanticism of his second album. His debut album didn't sell well; but many of his songs proved successful for others. He won Song of the Year from the Academy of Country Music and from the Country Music Association for two different songs in 1970. This created a lot of anticipation for his next album, and his label Monument Records allowed for the expense of strings and a horn section. Even so, the sound of the album is minimalistic and masterful. 'The Silver Tongued Devil and I' went gold, hitting number twenty-one on the pop chart and number four on the country chart.







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"The Silver Tongued Devil and I"

"I took myself down to the Tally-Ho Tavern

to buy me a bottle of beer

I sat me down by a tender young maiden

whose eyes were as dark as her hair

And as I was searchin' from bottle to bottle

for somethin' unfoolish to say

That silver tongued devil just slipped

from the shadows and smilingly stole her away

I said hey little girl don't you know he's the devil

he's everything that I ain't

Hidin' intentions of evil

under the smile of a saint

All he's good for is gettin' in trouble

and shifting his share of the blame

And some people swear he's my double

and some even say we're the same

But the silver tongued devil's got nothing to lose

I'll only live till I die

We take our own chances and pay our own dues

the silver tongued devil and I"

"The Taker" had been a hit for Waylon Jennings. Kristofferson's version features vocals by Rita Coolidge and Joan Baez.

"He's a charmer, and he'll charm her

with money and manners that I never learned

He's a leader, and he'll lead her

across pretty bridges he's planning to burn

He's a talker, he'll talk her

right off of her feet, but he won't talk for long

Cause he's a doer, and he'll do her

the way that I never

And damned if he won't do her wrong

'cause he's a taker, he'll take her

to places and make her fly higher than she's ever dared to

He'll take his time before takin' advantage

takin' her easy and slow

And after he's taken the body and soul

that she gives him, he'll take her for granted

Then he'll take off and leave her

takin' all of her pride as he goes"

In the intro to "The Pilgrim, Chapter 33" Kristofferson says "I started writing this song about Chris Gantry. Ended up writing about Dennis Hopper and Johnny Cash, Jerry Jeff Walker... Ramblin' Jack Elliott...". The song also figures prominently in the film 'Taxi Driver'.

"He's a poet, he's a picker,

He's a prophet, he's a pusher,

He's a pilgrim and a preacher, and a problem when he's stoned.

He's a walking contradiction, partly truth and partly fiction,

Taking every wrong direction on his lonely way back home."

'The Silver Tongued Devil and I' 
full album:



All songs by Kris Kristofferson except as noted

"The Silver Tongued Devil and I" – 4:18
"Jody and the Kid" – 3:06
"Billy Dee" – 2:57
"Good Christian Soldier" (Bobby Bare, Billy Joe Shaver) – 3:22
"Breakdown (A Long Way from Home)" – 2:44
"Lovin' Her Was Easier (Than Anything I'll Ever Do Again)" – 3:47
"The Taker" (Kristofferson, Shel Silverstein) – 3:16
"When I Loved Her" – 3:03
"The Pilgrim, Chapter 33" – 3:12
"Epitaph (Black and Blue)" (Donnie Fritts, Kristofferson) – 3:23