THE GREAT SMOKE OFF
(Shel Silverstein)
Shel Silverstein - 1972

Now in the laid back California, 
town of sunny San Rafael.
Lived a girl named Pearly Sweetcake,
you probably knew her well.
She was stoned fifteen, 
of her eighteen years.
And her story was widely told,
That she could smoke em faster,
than anyone could roll.

Well her legend finally reached New York,
that grove street walk up flat.
Where dwelt the Calistoga Kid,
a beatnik from the past.
He'd been rolling dope since time began,
Now took a cultured poke ,
and said Jim I can roll em faster,
than any chick can smoke.

So a note gets sent to San Rafael,
for the championship of the world.
The kid demands a smoke off,
Well bring him on says Pearl.
I'll grind his fingers of his hands,
He'll roll until he drops.
Says Calistoga I'll smoke that chick,
till blows up and pops.

So they rent out Yankee Stadium,
and the word is quickly [bad word] one come all who walk or crawl,
Tickets just two lids a head.
And from every town and hamlet,
Over land and sea they speed.
The worlds greatest dopers,
with the worlds greatest weed.

Hasishes from Marocco, hemp smokers from [bad word] 
And the Schasnicks from Bagon,
Who smoke the deadly [bad word] 
And those who call it light of life,
And those that call it boo.

See the dealers and their ladies,
Wearing turquoise lace and leather.
See the narcos and the closet smokers,
puffin all together.
From the teenies who smoke legal,
to the ones who've done some time.
To the old man who smoked reefer,
back before it was a crime.

And the grand old house [bad word] built,
is filled with the smokes and cries, 
of fifty screaming heads, 
all stoned out of their minds.
And they play the national anthem,
and the crowd lets out a roar, 
as the spotlight hits the Kid and pearl,
ready for their smoking war.

At a table piled high with grass,
as high as a mountain peak.
just top and buds of the rarest flowers,
not one stem branch or seed.
I mean a mowie a wowie a Panama red,
Acapulco gold, keef from east Afghanistan,
and that rare Alaska cold.
and there's sticks from Thiland,games from the island.
and Bangkok's blooming best and some of that wet imported [bad word] that capsized of Key west.
There's wahokin pops and Kenya burn, and Reverie flors
and that rare Manhattan silver ,
that grows down the New York sewers.

And there's bubbling ice cold lemonade,
and sweet grapes by the bunches.
and there's Hershey bars and Orios,
in case anybody gets the munches.
And the calastoga kid he smiles,
and Pearly she just grins.
And the [bad word] roll low ,and the
crowd yells go go go
and the worlds first smoke off begins.

Well the kid he flicks his fingers once,
sot that first joint's rolled.
Pearl takes one poke with her famous lungs,
and whoosh that roach is cold.
Then the kid he rolls his super bomb,
that would paralyze a moose.
and Pearl takes one mighty hip, that bombs defused.
And then he rolls three in just ten seconds,
and she smokes them up in nine.
And everybody sits back and says hey
this just might take some time.

See the blur of fling fingers,
see the red coal burning bright.
As the night turns into morning,
and the morning fades to night.
And the autumn turns to summer
and a whole [bad word] year is gone
and the two still sit on that roach filled stage
smoking and Rollin.
with trembling hands he rolls his jays,
with fingers blue and stiff.
she coughs, and stares with blood shot gaze
and puffs through blistered lips.

And as she reaches out her hand
for another stick of gold
The Kid he gasps,  [bad word] it, [bad word] 
there's nothing' left to roll"
"Nothin' left to roll?" screams Pearl,
"Is this some twisted joke?"
"I [bad word]