Lyrics

Whoa, whoa, whoa

Up the river without a raft
You've done your worst with your better half
You better think of something fast
You better; you better make her laugh

Well, it's after hours at the break of dawn
You've made your bed all day long
I must be doing something wrong
Are those tears of joy, or are you just cryin'?

Just when you think you've had enough
And you're tired of tryin' to suck it up
I know you can make her laugh
Like a child on a carnival ride
Laugh the mascara right off her eyes
As she's walkin' away, just give it one more try
I know you can; you can make her laugh

Well, you can leave when you want
But please leave us laughing
Leave us wondering what the fuck just happened
Your ironic cynical sarcastic sense of humor's got me wondering, if I ever had a chance

You know you can't make her love you
But you sure can make her cry
You can't make her make up her mind
Just when you think you've had enough
And you're tired of tryin' to suck it up
I know you can make her laugh

Like a child on a carnival ride
Laugh the mascara right off her eyes
As she's walking away, give it one more try
I know you can; you can make her laugh

I'm bombin' tonight
Crickets fill the sky
I'm dying on the vine
When I see you smile again
Well, I can make her laugh

Now, I'm first in line for the last word now
None of the sadness or madness has yet to die down
There's nothing to do but laugh out loud
It was all just a joke anyhow

So make her laugh
Like a child on a carnival ride
Laugh the mascara right off her eyes
As she's walking away, just give it one more try
I know you can; you can make her laugh

Make her laugh (x3)

I know you can, you can make her laugh

Trivia

• Dave wrote the song when his marriage was coming to an end. "There's nothing more satisfying to me than making someone laugh, even if that someone doesn't seem to like me very much." - Dave Pirner (2020) Loud Fast Words

Appearances

• On the album Hurry Up and Wait.