The Garden of Eden myth meets Guthrie & Steinbeck w/ a touch of Milton and Gerald Manley Hopkins.

Lyrics

And so I leave you, California
Garden of Eden by the sea
The sun is breaking on the mountains
And the highway beckons me.

I’ve seen you forests burned to stubble
And your valleys flooded with rain.
I’ve seen your mansions quaked to rubble
And your ghettos up in flames.

I’ve walked your streets of whores and junkies
Of runaways and megastars
Of jaded angels and trashcan pickers
Neon chapels and tinted cars

I came myself for fame and fortune
For a future that had no toil
I found a land of futile riches
Idle hands and fruits that spoil

I’ll miss your palms and suntanned beaches
That golden sun that brightly shines
I’m miss the warm narcotic breezes
That caress the groves and vines.

I’ll miss the days of easy pleasure
And the nights of revelry
I’ll even miss the street messiah
Who condemned you to the sea.

But farewell California
Garden of Eden by the waves
An angel’s wing lights the mountain
And I must leave you to be saved.