Johnny's trapping stars in his car
With the radio on
In the parking lot

Lily heard a sound
While they were going down
Someone on El Camino had been shot

Carmelita stared
She really cared for that boy
He meant a lot

Carmelita, she came over the border
Immigration man saw her
She wouldn't take a short order
But it was so far behind her
She had her heart on the wire
She became a low rider

Immigration's full of strange language strains
Rules Carmelita never learned in school
Not in school
But in the streets of Mexico
She came to know
That borderlines were made to walk through
Her daddy said you're fine
You're not the water, you're the wine
You can take and make it all new
So make it new

Carmelita, she came over the border
Immigration man saw her
'Cause she refused to take a short order
But it was easy to find her
She joined the boulevard choir
When he became a low rider

Sometimes in the dark
Some things just go wrong
And it peels into the night just like a knife
Like a knife

They stab you so cold
The blood is bottled and sold
All she wanted was a radio to hold
But she said dying makes her feel so old

Carmelita, she came over the border
Immigration man snagged her
'Cause she wouldn't take a short order
But it was easy to find her
She joined the boulevard choir
When she became a low rider