Called her from a pay phone down on Beale Street

On my way to Birmingham

Said she was tired of never seein' me

She needed more than a guitar man

As the lonesome notes filled the midnight sky

I wipe my tears and wish that I was

Chorus:

Anywhere but Memphis

Any other place would have made a difference

The way the blues poor out of the dives and bars

Ain't no place for a broken heart

She could've told me in Baton Rouge or Dallas anywhere but Memphis

Wish she could have worked up her courage

And let me down in Little Rock

Or even as far back as Phoenix

When I stopped to call from that truck stop

And if telling me sooner was just too hard

She could've waited later to break my heart

(Chorus)

Where the blues pour out of the dives and bars

It ain't no place for a broken heart

She could've told me in Baton Rouge or Dallas

Anywhere but Memphis