Aimee Mann

one is the loneliest number that you'll ever do
two can be as bad as one
it's the loneliest number since the number one

"no" is the saddest experience you'll ever know
yes, it's the saddest experience you'll ever know
because one is the loneliest number that you'll ever do
one is the loneliest number that you'll ever know

it's just no good anymore since you went away
now i spend my time just making rhymes of yesterday
because one is the loneliest number that you'll ever do
one is the loneliest number that you'll ever know
one is the loneliest number
one is the loneliest number
one is the loneliest number
one is the loneliest number that you'll ever do
one is the loneliest number much, much worse than two
one is a number divided by two

Oh, for the sake of momentum
I've allowed my fears to get larger than life
And it's brought me to my current agendum
Whereupon I deny fulfillment has yet to arrive

And I know life is getting shorter
I can't bring myself to set the scene
Even when it's approaching torture
I've got my routine

Oh, for the sake of momentum
Even though I agree with that stuff about seizing the day
But I hate to think of effort expended
All those minutes and days and hours
I have frittered away.

And I know life is getting shorter
I can't bring myself to set the scene
Even when it's approaching torture
I've got my routine

But I can't confront the doubts I have
I can't admit that maybe the past was bad
And so, for the sake of momentum
I'm condemning the future to death
So it can match the past.

when I can't confront the doubts I have
I can't admit that maybe the past was bad
And so, for the sake of momentum
I'm condemning the future to death
So it can match the past.

She's been a long time on the phone Courting disaster in an undertone She's feeling nostalgic and feeling that fall How could anyone ever fight it Who could ever expect to fight it when she Builds that Wall Maybe it's one where time will tell Maybe it's one where it's just fare-thee-well I hear her coming As she walks down the hall How could anyone ever fight it Who could ever expect to fight it when she Builds that Wall I know the choice is made I can tell, I said By your guilty face And I never was one to fight it How does anyone ever fight it  You couldn't pin this one on me You knew my thoughts so far as I could see Well, I'd say it's hopeless But you make the call 'Cause I never was one to fight it And if given the chance I guess I'll learn to Build that wall Ahhhhhh Ahhhhhh Build that Wall Ahhhhhh Build that Wall Ahhhhhh Build that Wall Ahhhhhh Build that Wall Ahhhhhh Oooooooooo Build that Wall Ahhhhhh Build That Wall

Now that I've met you
would you object to
never seeing each other again
cause I can't afford to
climb aboard you
no one's got that much ego to spend

So don't work your stuff
because I've got troubles enough
no, don't pick on me
when one act of kindness could be
deathly
deathly
definitely

Cause I'm just a problem
for you to solve and
watch dissolve in the heat of your charm
but what will you do when
you run it through and
you can't get me back on the farm

So don't work your stuff
because I've got troubles enough
no, don't pick on me
when one act of kindness could be
deathly
deathly
definitely

You're on your honor
cause I'm a goner
and you haven't even begun
so do me a favor
if I should waver
be my savior
and get out the gun

Just don't work your stuff
because I've got troubles enough
no, don't pick on me
when one act of kindness could be
deathly
deathly
definitely

At least you know
you were taken by a pro
I know just how you feel
She talked a perfect game
deflecting all the blame
you took the jack
and changed the flat
and got behind the wheel--
now you're
Driving sideways
taken in by the scenery
as you're propelled along
And your companion
will not help you to navigate
for fear she may be wrong

And you will say
that you're making headway
and put it in overdrive
but you're mistaking speed
for getting what you need
and never even noticing
you never do arrive
cause you're
Driving sideways
if you roll down the window you'll see
you're where you don't belong
And your companion
will not help you to navigate
for fear she may be wrong

And you're powered by
the hopeful lie
that it's just around the bend
and when this, by default
comes screeching to a halt
let's hope that you
know what to do
to start it up again

Driving sideways
hitting scan on the radio
so she can sing along
and she'll sit
thinking you're going to handle it
until she's proven wrong
until she's proven wrong
until you prove her wrong

You stay the night at his house
with no ride to work
and I'm the one who tells you
he's another jerk
but you're the one who can succeed
you've only got to prove your need--
and you do
you really do

The sex you're trading up for
what you hope is love
is just another thing that
he'll be careless of
but though there are caveats galore
you've only got to love him more--
and you do
you really do
even when it's all too clear

You write a little note that
you leave on the bed
and spend some time dissecting
every word he said
and if he seemed a little strange
well, baby--anyone can change
and you do
you do
you really do

Once upon a time is how it always goes
but I'll make it brief
what was started out with such excitement
now I'd gladly end end with relief
in what now has become a familiar motif:

That nothing is good enough
for people like you
who have to have someone take the fall
and something to sabotage--
determined to lose it all

Critics at their worst could never criticize
the way that you do
no, there's no one else, I find,
to undermine or dash a hope
quite like you
and you do it so casually, too

Cause nothing is good enough
for people like you
who have to have someone take the fall
and something to sabotage--
determined to lose it all

Ladies and gentlemen--
here's exhibit A
didn't I try again?
And did the effort pay?
Wouldn't a smarter man
simply walk away?

It doesn't really help that you can never say
what you're looking for
but you'll know it when you hear it,
know it when you see it walk through the door
So you say--
so you've said many times before

But nothing is good enough
for people like you
who have to have someone take the fall
and something to sabotage--
determined to lose it all

It's not what you thought
When you first began it
You got what you want
Now you can hardly stand it though
By now you know it's not
Going to stop
It's not going to stop
It's not going to stop
'Til you wise up

you're sure there's a cure
And you have finally found it
You think one drink
will shrink you 'til
you're underground and living down
But it's not going to stop
It's not going to stop
It's not going to stop
'Til you wise up

Prepare a list of what you need
Before you sign away the deed
'Cause it's not going to stop
It's not going to stop
It's not going to stop
'Til you wise up

No it's not going to stop
'Til you wise up

Now it's not going to stop
So just give up

You look like a perfect fit
For a girl in need of a tourniquet

But can you save me
Come on and save me
If you could save me
From the ranks of the freaks
Who suspect they could never love anyone

'Cause I can tell
You know what it's like
The long farewell of the hunger strike

But can you save me
Come on and save me
If you could save me
From the ranks of the freaks
Who suspect they could never love anyone

You struck me dumb like radium
Like Peter Pan or Superman

You will come to save me
C'mon and save me
If you could save me
From the ranks of the freaks
Who suspect they could never love anyone
'Cept the freaks
Who suspect they could never love anyone
But the freaks
Who suspect they could never love anyone

C'mon and save me
Why don't you save me
If you could save me
From the ranks of the freaks
Who suspect they could never love anyone

Except the freaks
Who suspect they could never love anyone
Except the freaks who could never love anyone

He's a serious Mister shake his hand and he'll twist your arm with monopoly money we'll be buying the funny farm So I'll do flips, and get paid in chips from a diamond as big as the Ritz-- then I'm calling it quits Eyes the color of candy lies to cover the handicap though your slippers are ruby you'll be led to the booby trap And there's no prize, just a smaller size so I'm wearing the shoe til it fits-- then I'm calling it quits Now he's numbering himself among the masterminds cause he's hit upon the leverage of valentines lifting dialogue from Judy Garland storylines where get-tough girls turn into goldmines But oh, those polaroid babies taking chances with rabies happy to tear me to bits-- well, I'm calling it quits Yes, I'm calling it quits.

Two of us riding nowhere
Spending someone's
Hard earned pay
you and me Sunday driving
Not arriving
On our way back home
We're on our way home
We're on our way home
We're going home

Two of us sending postcards
Writing letters
On my wall
You and me burning matches
Lifting latches
On our way back home
We're on our way home
We're on our way home
We're going home

You and I have memories
Longer than the road that stretches out ahead

Two of us wearing raincoats
Standing so low
In the sun
You and me chasing paper
Getting nowhere
On our way back home
We're on our way home
We're on our way home
We're going home

You and I have memories
Longer than the road that stretches out ahead

Two of us wearing raincoats
Standing so low
In the sun
You and me chasing paper
Getting nowhere
On our way back home
We're on our way home
We're on our way home
We're going home

We're going home
Better believe it

Picture yourself in a boat on a river
With tangerine trees and marmalade skies
Somebody calls you, you answer quite slowly,
A girl with kaleidoscope eyes
Cellophane flowers of yellow and green,
Towering over your head
Look for the girl with the sun in her eyes,
And she's gone

Lucy in the sky with diamonds
Lucy in the sky with diamonds
Lucy in the sky with diamonds

Follow her down to a bridge by a fountain
Where rocking horse people eat marshmallow pies,
Everyone smiles as you drift past the flowers
That grow so incredibly high.

Newspaper taxis appear on the shore
Waiting to take you away
Climb in the back with your head in the clouds
And you're gone

Lucy in the sky with diamonds
Lucy in the sky with diamonds
Lucy in the sky with diamonds

Picture yourself on a train in a station
With plasticine porters with looking glass ties
Suddenly someone is there at the turnstile
The girl with the kaleidoscope eyes

Lucy in the sky with diamonds
Lucy in the sky with diamonds
Lucy in the sky with diamonds....................

It's not what you thought
when you first began It
You got what you want now
You can hardly stand It, though by now you know
It's not going to stop It's not going to stop
It's not going to stop 'til you wise up
You're sure there's a cure and
You have finally found it you think one drink

Will shrink you til you're underground
And living down but it's not going to stop
It's not going to stop it's not going to stop
'til you wise up prepare a list of what you need
Before you sign away and do the deed
Cause it's not going to stop

It's not going to stop no, it's not going to stop
'til you wise up no, it's not going to stop
'til you wise up no, it's not going to stop
So just give up

There is nothing that competes with habit
And I know it's neither deep nor tragic
Simply that you have to have it

So you can make a killing
So you can make a killing
So you can make a killing

I wish I was both young and stupid
Then I too could have the fun that you did
Till it was time to pony up what you bid

So you can make a killing
So you can make a killing
So you can make a killing

I could follow you and search the rubble
Stay right here and save myself some trouble
I try to keep myself from seeing double

Or I could make a killing
Or I could make a killing
Or I could make a killing

I'm told the case is now closed
So I can come to my senses
But when the question is posed
I'll have this meager defense

I was hoping that you'd know better than that
I was hoping but you're an amateur
I was hoping that you'd know better
But I've been wrong before

Despite conclusions I drew
There was a chance you'd surprise me
And you'd be better than you
'Cause I'd have left otherwise

I was hoping that you'd know better than that
I was hoping but you're an amateur
I was hoping that you'd know better
But I've been wrong before

So I wasn't thinking clearly
So you didn't think at all
I thought that was protocol

-piano/guitar solo-

I was hoping that you'd know better than that
I was hoping but you're an amateur
I was hoping that you'd know better
But I've been wrong before
I was hoping that
I was hoping but you're an amateur
I was hoping that you'd know better
But I've been wrong before

Nobody does it better
Makes me feel sad for the rest
Nobody does it half as good as you
Baby, you're the best

I wasn't looking, but somehow you found me
I tried to hide from your love light
But like heaven above me, the spy who loved me
Is keeping all my secrets safe tonight

Nobody does it better
Sometimes I wish someone could
Nobody does it quite the way you do
Do you have to be so good

The way that you hold me whenever you hold me
There's some kind of magic inside you
That keeps me from runnning but just keep it coming
How'd you learn to do the things you do

Nobody does it better
Makes me feel sad for the rest
Nobody does it half as good as you
Baby baby, oh baby, you're the best
Baby, you're the best

Baby, you're the best (Baby, you're the best)
Baby, you're the best (Baby, you're the best)
Baby, you're the best (Baby, you're the best)
Baby, you're the best (Baby, you're the best)

Whatever happened to Christmas? It's gone and left no traces,
Whatever happened to the faces or the glow.
Whatever happened to Christmas, to Christmas way of living?
Whatever happened to the giving, the magic in the snow?
Remember the sights and the smells and the sounds,
And remember how love was all around, whatever happened to it all?
Whatever happened to Christmas, bells in the streets are ringing,
Whatever happened to the singing, the songs we used to know.
Where was I, and whatever happened to you?
Whatever happened to Christmas and you?

Chestnuts roasting on an open fire,
Jack Frost nipping on your nose,
Yuletide carols being sung by a choir,
And folks dressed up like Eskimos.

Everybody knows a turkey and some mistletoe,
Can help to make the season bright.
Tiny tots with their eyes all aglow,
Will find it hard to sleep tonight.

They know that Santa's on his way;
He's loaded lots of toys and goodies on his sleigh.
And every mother's child is going to spy,
To see if reindeer really know how to fly.

And so I'm offering this simple phrase,
To kids from one to ninety-two,
Although its been said many times, many ways,

I'm dreaming tonight
Of a place I love
Even more than I usually do.
And although I know
It's a long road back
I promise you

I'll be home for Christmas.
You can count on me.
Please have snow and mistletoe
And presents under the tree.
Christmas Eve will find me
Where the love-light gleams.
I'll be home for Christmas
If only in my dreams.

Oh oh ah I'll be home for Christmas.
You can count on me.
Please have snow and mistletoe
And presents under the tree.
Oh Christmas Eve will find me
Where the love-light gleams.
I'll be home for Christmas
If only in my dreams.

If only yeah
Well now, if only, only, only, only
If only in my dreams.
If only
Well, well, well Lord
If only oh

Sleigh bells ring, are you listening,

in the lane, snow is glistening

A beautiful sight,

we're happy tonight,

walking in a winter wonderland.

Gone away is the bluebird,

here to stay is a new bird

He sings a love song,

as we go along,

walking in a winter wonderland.

In the meadow we can build a snowman,

Then pretend that he is Parson Brown

He'll say: Are you married?

we'll say: No man,

But you can do the job

when you're in town.

Later on, we'll conspire,

as we dream by the fire

To face unafraid,

the plans that we've made,

walking in a winter wonderland.

Have yourself a merry little Christmas,
Let your heart be light
From now on,
our troubles will be out of sight

Have yourself a merry little Christmas,
Make the Yule-tide gay,
From now on,
our troubles will be miles away.

Here we are as in olden days,
Happy golden days of yore.
Faithful friends who are dear to us
Gather near to us once more.

Through the years
We all will be together,
If the Fates allow
Hang a shining star upon the highest bough.

God rest ye merry, gentlemen
Let nothing you dismay
Remember, Christ, our Saviour
Was born on Christmas day
To save us all from Satan's power
When we were gone astray
O tidings of comfort and joy,
Comfort and joy
O tidings of comfort and joy

In Bethlehem, in Israel,
This blessed Babe was born
And laid within a manger
Upon this blessed morn
The which His Mother Mary
Did nothing take in scorn
O tidings of comfort and joy,
Comfort and joy
O tidings of comfort and joy

From God our Heavenly Father
A blessed Angel came;
And unto certain Shepherds
Brought tidings of the same:
How that in Bethlehem was born
The Son of God by Name.
O tidings of comfort and joy,
Comfort and joy
O tidings of comfort and joy

"Fear not then," said the Angel,
"Let nothing you affright,
This day is born a Saviour
Of a pure Virgin bright,
To free all those who trust in Him
From Satan's power and might."
O tidings of comfort and joy,
Comfort and joy
O tidings of comfort and joy

The shepherds at those tidings
Rejoiced much in mind,
And left their flocks a-feeding
In tempest, storm and wind:
And went to Bethlehem straightway
The Son of God to find.
O tidings of comfort and joy,
Comfort and joy
O tidings of comfort and joy

And when they came to Bethlehem
Where our dear Saviour lay,
They found Him in a manger,
Where oxen feed on hay;
His Mother Mary kneeling down,
Unto the Lord did pray.
O tidings of comfort and joy,
Comfort and joy
O tidings of comfort and joy

Now to the Lord sing praises,
All you within this place,
And with true love and brotherhood
Each other now embrace;
This holy tide of Christmas
All other doth deface.
O tidings of comfort and joy,
Comfort and joy

I'm dreaming of a white Christmas
Just like the ones I used to know
Where the treetops glisten,
and children listen
To hear sleigh bells in the snow

I'm dreaming of a white Christmas
With every Christmas card I write
May your days be merry and bright
And may all your Christmases be white

I'm dreaming of a white Christmas
With every Christmas card I write
May your days be merry and bright

I heard the sidewalk Santa say
Merry Christmas, merry Christmas
Salvation's coming cheap today
Merry Christmas, merry Christmas

I searched the skyline for a star
Merry Christmas, merry Christmas
And, baby, I wondered where you are
Merry Christmas, merry Christmas

'Cause comfort's not possible when
You look past the joy to the end

Calling on Mary is voluntary
Unless you're alone like me
If there's a star above, then it can look like love
When they light up the Christmas tree

When I was young, I couldn't see
Merry Christmas, merry Christmas
All that my true love gave to me
Merry Christmas, merry Christmas

She offered sight to the blind
But I'm not the miracle kind

Calling on Mary is voluntary
Unless you're alone like me
If there's a star above, then it can look like love
When they light up the Christmas tree

And to all the lost souls down below
Merry Christmas, merry Christmas
What's one more drifter in the snow?
Merry Christmas, merry Christmas
Merry Christmas, merry Christmas

If there's a star above, then it can look like love
When they light up the Christmas tree
If there's a star above, then it can look like love
When they light up the Christmas tree

You've got a lot of money but you can't afford the freeway
The road to Orange Country leaves an awful lot of leeway
Where everyone's a doctor or a specialist in retail
They'll sell you all the speed you want if you can take the blackmail

You know it
I know it
Why don't you
Just show it
You got a lot of money but you can't afford the freeway
You got a lot of money but you can't afford the freeway

You've got a lot of money but you cannot keep your bills paid
The sacrifice is worth it just to hang around the arcade
You found yourself a prophet but you left him on the boardwalk
Another chocolate Easter bunny, hollowed out by your talk

You know it
I know it
Why don't you
Just show it
You got a lot of money but you can't afford the freeway
You got a lot of money but you can't afford the freeway

And everything I do is wrong
But at least I'm hanging on
You got a lot of money that you can't afford
You got a lot of money that you can't afford
You got a lot of money but you can't afford the freeway
You got a lot of money but you can't afford the freeway
You got a lot of money but you can't afford
You got a lot of money but you can't afford

I turned Stranger into Starman
In the Sunday New York Times
Like Anne Sexton with her star rats
Working backwards till it rhymes

For the love of God you can't tell me again
For the love of God you can't tell me again

With a pencil and eraser I've rewritten all your crimes
I turned Stranger into Starman
In the Sunday New York Times

Macka wants to ride on the Mouse and the Tilt-A-Whirl
Canada is looking for a smile from a pin-up girl
But I ain't looking for nothing
Just spend the money I made
I ain't gotta do nothing today

Everybody's waiting for their thing just to come along
They all got something they can pin all their feelings on
But I ain't looking for nothing
Just spend the money I made
I ain't looking for nothing today

I got high on the Ferris Wheel
Didn't like how it made me feel
So alone
Another cog in the loading zone

Macka went on home when the fireworks and rides were done
Canada got busted with a girl who was way too young
But I wasn't looking for nothing
Not trouble, money or thrills
‘Cause when you're looking for nothing
Babe, it's not the speed that kills

Oh, I'm not looking for nothing
Just spend my money and go
I'm not looking for nothing
To put me in the rodeo

Got out of Phoenix, just in time
A box of kleenex, for the ride
The tumbleweeds said, their goodbyes
To javelinas and DUIs

I don't want to abandon you but baby I've had my fill
You love me like a dollar bill
You roll me up and trade me in
And if you had the chance you will
And if you get the chance again

It's hard to know when to cut and run
You balance heartache with your fun
And when the scales tip, you know you're done

I don't want to abandon you but baby I've had my fill
You love me like a dollar bill
You roll me up and trade me in
And if you had the chance you will
And if you get the chance again

Cos I know love doesn't change anything at all
I know love doesn't change a thing

I wanted to believe in you and baby I believe it still
Baby I've just had my fill
You love me like a dollar bill
You roll me up and trade me in
And if you have the chance you will
And if you get the chance again
I know you'll do the best you can

But baby love doesn't change anything at all
I know love doesn't change a thing

Get up, the needle has pricked a little finger.
She wants the beautiful child the blood will bring her.
You ask a question in the mirror.
Alas, no answer could be clearer.
Get up, get up, you're borrowing time.
Get up, get up, you're borrowing time.

Get up, a substitute artist just reprieved you
Beware the flattery ruses have deceived you.
The kings of yesterday falling,
But you'll come when destiny's calling.
Get up, get up, you're borrowing time.
Get up, get up, you're borrowing time.

I don't want anything anyway.
I was happy with what I had yesterday.
Who wants the whole weight of the world
When it'll drag you down…
Underground?

Today she's singing a song called Hallelujah
You stay, she's bringin' the poison apple to ya.
Sun's up and reveille's playing
You know what everyone's saying.
Get up, get up, you're borrowing time.
Get up, get up, you're borrowing time.
Get up, get up, you're borrowing time.
Get up, get up, you're borrowing time.

Everything's beautiful
Every day's a holiday
The day you live without it
Everything changes up
Everything shifts and falls
Unless you care about it

But you sit there in the darkness
And you make plans but they're hopeless
And you blame God when you're lonely
And you'll call it fate
When you show up too late and it's over

Here on the boulevard
You were the golden boy
A mix of brains and muscle
That was a lucky break
Luck is a thing you make
Not just another hustle

But you sit there in the darkness
And you make plans but they're hopeless
And you blame God when you're lonely
And you'll call it fate
When you show up too late and it's over

'Cause nothing can wait forever
They don't give unlimited chances in life
They hand you the knife
And tell you to cut it or run

So baby let's fly
Baby let's run
Baby let's run

'Cause everything's beautiful
Every day's a holiday
But days are getting shorter
The moon and the stars report
The boulevard's last resort
And now your last supporter

But you sit there in the darkness
And you make plans but they're hopeless
And you blame God when you're lonely
And you'll call it fate
When you show up too late and it's over

Thirty-one today
What a thing to say
Drinking Guinness in the afternoon
Taking shelter in the black cocoon

I thought my life would be different somehow
I thought my life would be better by now
I thought my life would be different somehow
I thought my life would be better by now
But it's not, and I don't know where to turn

Called some guy I knew
Had a drink or two
And we fumbled as the day grew dark
I pretended that I felt a spark

I thought my life would be different somehow
I thought my life would be better by now
I thought my life would be different somehow
I thought my life would be better by now
But it's not, and I don't know where to turn
No, it's not, and I don't know where to turn
No, it's not, and I don't know where to turn

Easter comes and goes
Maybe Jesus knows
So you roll on with the best you can
Getting loaded, watching CNN

I thought my life would be different somehow
I thought my life would be better by now
I thought my life would be different somehow
I thought my life would be better by now
But it's not, and I don't know where to turn
No, it's not, and I don't know where to turn
No, it's not, and I don't know where to turn
No, it's not, and I don't know

Go, honey go -
Into the ocean
Go, honey go -
Into the great beyond
Til you're good and gone
And you can hide away for
When everything goes wrong
Honey - go

Go, honey go -
If I were you I would
Leave this neighborhood
Away from people who never
Treat you like they should
Honey - go
Go

In the woods or in the ice and snow

Where there is
No one else you know
You've really nowhere
Else to go
So honey go

Go, honey go
Cause it's a dead end street
And it's a street in a town
Where winning isn't sweet
And every win
Is the beginning of defeat
So honey - go
Go

The day you left and you called me bitch
I called you selfish, better pull that switch
Put my son on amphetamines
He came home crying and there's your proof
Crying 'bout nothing but a missing tooth
I did the right thing.

You shade the truth almost everyday
Phone calls at night “it's going to be ok”
Are you saddened, baby, under the bridge?
Are you saddened, baby, on Lake Street?

Black marker on cardboard
Little drawing of a medicine wheel
But everything that's good you steal
Everything that's good you steal

Maybe you'll wake up in jail alone
And hold the handle of the one pay phone
And do the right thing
Like I once tried but I bent the truth
A five dollar dent for a little lost tooth
There's a payback in front of me
Because once you were like a walking high
Breaking in motion through the parking lot

Are you saddened, baby, under the bridge?
Are you saddened, baby, on Lake Street?

Black marker on cardboard
Little drawing of a medicine wheel
Everything that's good you steal
Everything that's good you steal

Words of encouragement are just as real
Saving my faith does have a smooth group appeal

Are you saddened, baby, under the bridge?
Are you saddened, baby, on Lake Street?

Black Marker on cardboard
Little drawing of a medicine wheel
Everything that's good you steal
Everything that's good you steal
Everything that's good you steal
From me

Storefront, streetcars rattle
One more losing battle
What is Columbus Avenue to you now?

Last call tattoo parlor
Deathbed sword swallower
What is Columbus Avenue to you now?

The place where you failed
To make your story go over
The place where you bailed
And let the bottom drag you under
Drag you under

Cheap shot paranoia
Exiled from Victoria
What is Columbus Avenue to you now?

The place where you failed
To make your story go over
The place where you bailed
And let the bottom drag you under
Drag you under

Where you moved with a ghastly precision
To the echoes of bones in the air
Finding hope in an X-ray division
Of a world that's not there

Cafe sinners bother you
Empty pockets follow you
What is Columbus Avenue to you now?

The place where you failed
To make your story go over
The place where you bailed
And let the bottom drag you under
Drag you under

What is Columbus Avenue to you now?

Little tornado
Bane of the trailer park
Lifting houses
To leave your mark

Little tornado
Noah can build his ark
But he will never
Disembark

Make it go faster
Baby, go faster
Make it go twice the speed
Of you and me

Little tornado
You and the hurricane
Close your eyes and
Go campaign

Make it go faster
Baby, go faster
Make it go twice the speed
Of you and me

Oh, no, no, we don't, no, we don't know
(We don't know, we don't know)
No, no, no, we don't, no, we don't know
(We don't know, we don't know)
No, no, no, we don't, no, we don't know

Little tornado
Blew out the windowpane
Left the inside
To the rain

Make it go faster
Baby, go faster
Make it go twice the speed
Of you and me

Oh, no, no, we don't, no, we don't know
(We don't know, we don't know)
No, no, no, we don't, no, we don't know
(We don't know, we don't know)
Oh, no, no, we don't, no, we don't know

Nightly you retrace your steps again to return to the scene of the crime
It's uncanny how you hover in the air over the wreckage that you left behind

I want you but you're a poltergeist
I want you but, baby, the price is high
I want you and now I've said it twice so Mary dim the lights

Really, when you come into the room it's not helping me, seeing you now
It's not easy, in this phosphorescent gloom, telling waking dreams apart anyhow

I want you but you're a poltergeist
I want you but, baby, the price is high
I want you and now I've said it twice so Mary dim the lights

Cups and saucers crashing in but Houdini blows the gag again
Then no one's a true believer

I want you but you're a poltergeist
I want you but, baby, the price is high
I want you and now I've said it twice so Mary dim the lights

Cups and saucers crashing in but Houdini blows the gag again

It must be hard ringing the bells
Of doors that don't swing wide anymore
It must be hard hearing the sound
Of voices just inside of the door

A man who couldn't hold your coat
Once hung on every anecdote
So it must be hard watching the fellows gloat
Ballantines

It must be hard seeing the same old crowd
Just pass you by in the street
It must be tough knowing your stuff
Could only horrify the elite

You cut off everyone you know
Boy you told 'em all where to go
Now it must be hard getting the same heave-ho
Ballantines

Well, patrons at the bar in Lexington, Kentucky
Once sprung for every drink you downed
With things the way they are it's not that kind of party
If what you've got just might be going around

The fat cats won't be getting thin
Seeing the kind of jam you're in
Though the angels dance on the head of another pin

Ballantines
Ballantines
Ballantines

(Five six seven fifty)

You fucked it up
You should've quit
Till circumstances
Had changed a bit

You fucked it up
You jumped the gun
I swore you off but
You climbed back on

And when you said
Of course you know
Could I be blamed
If I'd wished it so
I don't think so

You fucked it up
Or was it you
'Cause when you said it
I said it too
What of it

And all that stuff
I knew before
Just turned into
Please love me more
Please love me more
Please love me more
Please love me more
Please love me more
Please love me more
Please love me

Skip the cloak and dagger bit
Don't you know we're sick of it?
As much as I would like to stay
The message light just blinks away
And while I'm here you won't push play

So you leave me no choice in the matter
You leave me no choice in the matter
You leave me no choice in the matter

You leave me no option to indulge in this
Exercise in cowardice
Ignorance without the bliss

'Cause you leave me no choice in the matter
You leave me no choice in the matter
You leave me no choice in the matter

You leave me no ...

'Cause I know where this boat will go
Pulled down by the undertow
It's lucky I know how to row

(so row, row, row your boat gently down the stream. i hope you drown and
never come back.)

'Cause you leave me no choice in the matter
You leave me no choice in the matter
You leave me no choice in the matter

You leave me no

You looked the part of
The poor brave martyr
And guess who broke your heart
Whoever has it

Sugarcoated
When they wrote it
I would've believed it too
I would've believed it too
I would believe it

I'm so relentless
And you're defenseless
Until the pencil stops
You'll be the one who's

Sugarcoated
Overloaded
Do you believe it's true
Do you believe it's true
Do you believe it

And out of your mouth
Comes a stream of cliches
Now I have given you so much rope
You should have been hanging for days
But you keep spinning it out
Spinning it out
Spinning it out
Spinning it out
Spinning it out
Spinning it out

It wasn't nice though
I came back twice so
Now I'm the antichrist
If I had been as

Sugarcoated
Self-promoted
They would've believed me too
They would've believed me too
Would you believe me too
Would you believe it too

There is nothing that competes with habit
And I know it's neither deep nor tragic
Simply that you have to have it

So you can make a killing
So you can make a killing
So you can make a killing

I wish I was both young and stupid
Then I too could have the fun that you did
Till it was time to pony up what you bid

So you can make a killing
So you can make a killing
So you can make a killing

I could follow you and search the rubble
Stay right here and save myself some trouble
I try to keep myself from seeing double

Or I could make a killing
Or I could make a killing
Or I could make a killing

I'm a superball
You can bounce me once and I ricochet
Around the room
I'm a superball
If I pick up speed get out of my way
I'm a sonic boom

And I warn you now
The velocity I'm gathering
Will knock you down
Send the chairs and lamps all scattering

'Cause I'm a superball
If you think there'll be no aftershocks
Well I'm a superball
Read the fine print on the back of the box
Stick to slinkies, hot wheels, alphabet blocks

And I warn you now
The velocity I'm gathering
Will knock you down
Send the chairs and lamps all scattering

I'm told the case is now closed
So I can come to my senses
But when the question is posed
I'll have this meager defense

I was hoping that you'd know better than that
I was hoping, but you're an amateur
I was hoping that you'd know better
But I've been wrong before

Despite conclusions I drew
There was a chance you'd surprise me
And you'd be better than new
'Cause I'd have left otherwise

I was hoping that you'd know better than that
I was hoping, but you're an amateur
I was hoping that you'd know better
But I've been wrong before

So I wasn't thinking clearly
So you didn't think at all
I thought that was protocol

I was hoping that you'd know better than that
I was hoping, but you're an amateur
I was hoping that you'd know better
But I've been wrong before

I was hoping that
I was hoping, but you're an amateur
I was hoping that you'd know better
But I've been wrong before

Though I let you steer
You, a cavalier
Inch became a light year
It was pathetic

Well, you can write the play
At every word I say
But I don't have to stay
To see the credits

'Cause it's all over now (All over now)
Yes, it's all over now (All over now)
And I'm free

I was one of few
Who'd stick up for you
And so you never knew
You were a punch line

I could not convince or trust you
To pick up on my hints, must you
Leave your fingerprints
On everything I call mine?

Well, that's all over now (All over now)
Yes, it's all over now (All over now)
And I'm free
Yes, I'm free

From your interference
Which had the appearance
Of making it clear that
It's got nothing to do with me

It's got nothing to do with me

(It's got nothing)
It's got nothing to do with me

It's got nothing to do with me

And I warn you now
The velocity I'm gathering

It's par for the course
You bet the wrong horse
You put down the phone and cried
For yourself
And for what
You couldn't have

A plea
That won't do
Now that she
Serves it to you

And I don't even know you
I don't even know you anymore
I don't even know you
I don't even know you

It's all you deserve
The loss of the nerve
The grade of the curve
Has brought you to this
By the boat that you missed
You clung to the raft
So she swerved out of your path

And I don't even know you
I don't even know you anymore
I don't even know you anymore

You loved her a lot
But she lost the plot
And timing is everything
In this game
So let's have
A moment of blame

Think how
It could have been
Well you should
Have said it all then

And I don't even know you
I don't even know you anymore
I don't even know you anymore

I don't even know you anymore
I don't even know you anymore

(I still have the shake in my voice
And I'm going to sing you this song)

I don't know you from Adam, it could make my day
If you leave me a message I'll give it away
'Cause the most perfect strangers that you can talk to
Are the ones who pretend that you're not really you

Are with any attempts here to play Frankenstein
Come with plenty of chances for changing your mind
When you're building your own creation
Nothing's better than real than a real
Imitation

I won't find it fantastic or think it absurd
When the gun in the first act goes off in the third
'Cause it's rare that you ever know what to expect
From a guy made of corpses with bolts in his neck

If the creature is limping the parts are in place
With a mind of its own and a fist for a face
Say hello to your new creation
Now it's better than real
It's a real imitation

You may wonder what the catch is
As we batten down the hatches

And when later we find that the thing we devised
Has the villagers clamouring for it's demise
We will have to admit the futility of
Trying to make something more of this jerry-built love

And you'll notice it bears a resemblance to
Everything I imagined I wanted from you
But at least it's my own creation
And it's better than real
It's a real imitation

Ray, as of today, I can't say things will ever be the same
And that could be a shame.
'Cos though I think I know another lonely exile when I see one
And you appear to be one.

Still...

I'm playing it down 'cos I could really be found if you've got it to spare.
I'm playing it cool but it's terribly cruel 'cos I oughta be there.

Ray, what can I say?
You don't know me, it's just wishful thinking to kep myself from sinking.
And hence, no evidence to support any theory I have founded
If you could understand.

And so...

I'm playing it down 'cos I could really be found if you've got it to spare.
I'm playing it cool but it's terribly cruel 'cos I oughta be there.

'Cos you're as bad off as me...

Ray, can we repay ourselves for days that we've lost through indecision
With one of recoginition?
If so, then here I go, 'cos some things you know...
And some you just believe in and hope it comes out even.

I...

I'm playing it down 'cos I could really be found if you've got it to spare.
I'm playing it cool but it's terribly cruel 'cos I oughta be there.

I oughta be there
I oughta be there
I...

Fifty years after the fair
The picture I have is so clear
Underneath the clouds in the air
Rose the Trylon and the Perisphere

And that for me was the finest of scenes
The perfect world across the river in Queens

Fifty years after the fair
I drink from a different cup
But it does no good to compare
Cause nothing ever measures up

I guess just for a second we thought
That all good things would rise to the top

And how beautiful it was, tomorrow
We'll never have a day of sorrow
We got through the '30s but our belts were tight
We conceived of a future with no hope in sight
We've got decades ahead of us to get it right, I swear
Fifty years after the fair

Fifty years after the fair
I live in tomorrow town
Even on a wing and a prayer
The future never came around
It hurts to even think of those days
The damage we do by the hopes that we raise

But how beautiful it was, tomorrow
We'll never have a day of sorrow
We got through the '30's but our belts were tight
We conceived of a future with no hope in sight
We've got decades ahead of us to get it right, I swear
Fifty years after the fair

Today's the fourth of July
Another June has gone by
And when they light up our town
I just think what a waste of gunpowder and sky

I'm certain I am alone
In harbouring thoughts of our home
It's one of my faults that I can't quell my past
I ought to have gotten it gone

Oh, baby
I wonder if when you are older
Someday
You'll wake up and say
"My God, I should have told her
What would it take?
But now here I am and the world's gotten colder
And she's got the river down which I sold her"

So that's today's memory lane
With all the pathos and pain
Another chapter in a book where the chapters are endless
And they're always the same
A verse, then a verse, and refrain

Oh, baby
I wonder if when you are older
Someday
You'll wake up and say
"My God, I should have told her
What would it take?
But now here I am and the world's gotten colder
And she's got the river down which I sold her..."

I should be knocking on the door of the pearly gates
Why keep a poor man alive in a job he hates
I've heard that good things will come to he who waits

I should be riding on a float in the hit parade
Instead of standing on the curb behind the barricade
Another verse in the doormat serenade

Won't you put me on top (oooh, put me on top)
Won't you put me on top or change the odds
Won't you put me on top (oooh, put me on top)
Or at least put some hope in the bottom of the box
Oh, at least put some hope in the box for me

Cause it's only black and white and not a lot of each
There's a remote on the shelf, but it's out of reach

Won't you put me on top (oooh, put me on top)
Won't you put me on top or change the odds
Won't you put me on top (oooh, put me on top)
Or at least put some hope in the bottom of the box
Put some hope in the bottom of the box for me
I need it

(Oooh, put me on top)

Won't you put me on top (oooh, put me on top)
Won't you put me on top or change the odds
Won't you put me on top (oooh, put me on top)
Or at least put some hope in the bottom of the box

Put me on (oooh, put me on top)
Won't you put me on top again (change the odds)
Or at least put some hope (oooh, put me on top)
Put some home in the bottom of the box
Oh, at least put some hope in the bottom of the box

Nothing was saving our day
There was nothing to say
But you said something anyway
Claiming I stepped out of line
Which forced you to leave me
As if that idea was mine

Oh, you stupid thing
Speaking of course as your dear departed
Oh, you stupid thing
It wasn't me that you outsmarted
Oh, you stupid thing
Stopping it all
Before it even started

I bet you knew it would come
That's just like you to sit back
And just play it dumb
One word of warning would help
But that sacrifice was made
Trying to save yourself

Oh, you stupid thing
Speaking of course as your dear departed
Oh, you stupid thing
It wasn't me that you outsmarted
Oh, you stupid thing
Stopping it all
Before it even started

Maybe that's just how I am
To fall where I stand
Or I'm weak for that kind of man
One who looks helpless and brave
But you turned into a coward
I don't care for the parts you saved

Oh, you stupid thing
Speaking of course as your dear departed
Oh, you stupid thing
It wasn't me that you outsmarted

Oh, you stupid thing...

You see me as a judge
Though I deny it
And hold me like a grudge
Then justify it

But when you take such pains
In searching for something that explains
Please, take a good look at our remains

Cause if you were everything you say
Things would be different today
And maybe there's room for compromise
But signs that I get say otherwise
Say anything, cause I've heard everything

As hopeless as it seems
I wouldn't worry
You'll get your chance to tell
Your side of the story

While you're raising your right hand
Whatever defenses you had planned
Remember that when you take the stand

If you were everything you say
Things would be different today
And though I'd be happy to believe
I'd have to be much more naive

Say anything, I've heard everything...

Now I've heard everything...

So why do I refuse
The truth, when I clearly cannot use
The comfort of one more lame excuse

Cause if you were everything you say
Things would be different today
And if you were everything you swear
We wouldn't be beyond repair
If you were everything you say
Things would be different today
And if there has got to be an if
Get it over with

Say anything, 'cause I've heard everything...

Now I've heard everything...

So he's retired
Lives with his sister in a furnished flat
He's got this suit that
He'll never wear outside without a hat
His hair is white but he looks half his age
He looks like Jimmy Stewart in his younger days

And honestly
I might be stupid to think
Love is love, but I do
And you've waited so long
And I've waited long enough for you

My mother's calling
From where she's living up in Troy, Vermont
She tries to tell me
A father figure must be what I want
I've always thought age made no difference
Am I the only one to whom that's making sense?

And honestly
I might be stupid to think
Love is love, but I do
And you've waited so long
And I've waited long enough for you

The day I met him he was raking leaves
In his tiny yard

Of course I know that
We've only got ten years or twenty left
But to be honest
I'm happy with whatever time we get
Depending on whichever book you read
Sometimes it takes a lifetime to get what you need

And honestly
I might be stupid to think
Love is love, but I do
And you've waited so long
And I've waited long enough for you

Well, I guess that this is now the end
Who'd have thought, my old friend
We signed the papers and we capped the pen

But I remember you from way back when
Good evening, ladies and gentlemen
Welcome David-what's-his-name-again

Things change, the old cliche
If we knew now what we knew yesterday
Oh, we couldn't give it away

I was working at a record store
I knew you, you knew the score
Some kind of deal is what we're looking for

Time came, and disappeared
No one steered and it got weirder
Help was needed, no one volunteered

Things change, you got to wait a bit
What made me think that I could weather it?
You're down before you even know that
You've been hit

And through it all I wondered
Where the bus was taking you
Who knew?
Cause even though my one and one
Was always making two
I never thought that I was breaking you

We were victims of the old taboo
But people change, we changed too
Just make it count before they get to you

Cause things change, baby, hold the phone
They'll shoot you down like you was Al Capone
Oh, you better go it alone

Well, I guess that this is now the end
Paper signed, forget the pen
Wonder if we'll ever meet again?

Say you were split, you were split in fragments
And none of the pieces would talk to you
Wouldn't you want to be who you had been
Well, baby I want that too

So better take the keys and drive forever
Staying won't put these futures back together
All the perfect drugs and superheroes
Wouldn't be enough to bring me up to zero

Baby, you're great, you've been more than patient
Saying it's not a catastrophe
But I'm not the girl you once put your faith in
Just someone who looks like me

So better take the keys and drive forever
Staying won't put these futures back together
All the perfect drugs and superheroes
Wouldn't be enough to bring me up to zero

So get out while you can
Get out while you can
Baby I'm pouring quicksand
And sinking is all I had planned
So better just go

Oh better take the keys and drive forever
Staying won't put these futures back together
All the perfect drugs and superheroes
Wouldn't be enough to bring me up to zero

All the king's horses and all the king's men
Couldn't put baby together again
All the king's horses and all the king's men
Couldn't put baby together again

The monkey knows how you'll react
Creating want by holding back
Like some reverse pyromaniac
Let me try, baby, try

I propped my window up and then
I turned my back to lure you in
To rifle through what I might have been
Let me try, baby, try

Baby please, let me begin
Let me be your heroin
Hate the sinner but love the sin
Let me be your heroin

We have crossed the Rubicon
Our ship awash, our rudder gone
The rats have fled but I'm hanging on
Let me try, baby, try

Baby please, let me begin
Let me be your heroin
Hate the sinner but love the sin
Let me be your heroin

Lost in space
A bubble drifting
Into a place
Where planets shift and
The moon's erased
Its features lift in the glare

But I'm the stuff
Of happy endings
Though mostly bluff
Belief suspending
But close enough
For just pretending to care

And I'm pretending to care
When I'm not even there
Gone, but I don't know where

Well, she's the face
And I'm the double
Who keeps the pace
And clears the rubble
And, lost in space
Fills up the bubble with air

By just pretending to care
Like I'm not even there
Gone, but I don't know where

You split like a cell
And then cannot tell
The line from its parallel

So baby, beware
I'm just pretending to care
Like I'm not even there
Gone, but I don't know where
Gone, but I don't know where
Gone, but I don't know where

This is how it goes
You'll get angry at yourself
And think you can think of something else
And I'll hear the clanging of the bells
'Cause I can't stop you baby...

'Cause I don't have the bribery in place
No bright shiny surface to my face
So I won't go near the market place
With what I'm selling lately
'Cause this is how it goes

'Cause it's all about drugs
It's all about shame
And whatever they want
Don't tell 'em your name

This is how it goes:
One more failure to connect
With so many how could I object?
And you, what on earth did you expect?
Well, I can't tell you, baby
When this is how it goes

'Cause it's all about drugs
It's all about shame
And whatever they want
Don't tell 'em your name

So I'll try to hold on
While you try to let go
You won't tell me it's gone
But, baby, I'll know
Baby, I'll know
Baby, I'll know

Guys like me
We don't know how it feels
Absentee
Even closing the deal
With every player there's a payoff in the final reel
But never with guys like me

Cause guys like me
We look good at the gate
But you'll agree
With the odds on the slate
And put your money on a bona-fide heavyweight
And take it off guys like me
Take off guys like me

They'll pull you close but never really
Looking warm but feeling chilly
You'll describe us as "impassioned"
When it's just a front we've fashion

Cause guys like me
We all vow to become
Clear and free of the fife and the drum
And block the circulation till we're all completely numb
Let's hear it for guys like me
Let's hear it for guys like me
Let's hear it for guys
Guys like me

Oh Mario, sit here by the window
Stay here 'til we reach Idaho
And when we go
Hold my hand on take-off
Tell me what I already know
That we can't talk about it
No, we can't talk about it

Because nobody knows
That's how I nearly fell
Trading clothes
And ringing Pavlov's Bell
History shows
There's not a chance in hell, but

Oh Mario. we're only to Ohio
It's kinda getting harder to breathe
I won't let it show
I'm all about denial
But can't denial let me believe?
That we could talk about it
But we can't talk about it

Because nobody knows
That's how I nearly fell
Trading clothes
And ringing Pavlov's Bell
History shows but rarely shows it well
Well, well, well

Oh Mario, why if this is nothing
I'm finding it so hard to dismiss
If you're what I need,
Then only you can save me
So come on baby. give me the fix
And let's just talk about it
I've got to talk about it

Because nobody knows
That's how I nearly fell
Trading clothes
And ringing Pavlov's Bell
History shows
Like it was show and tell
So tell me
That's how I nearly fell
By ringing Pavlov's Bell
So, baby, show and tell
Oh Mario, Mario

You don't know, so don't say you do--
You don't
You might think that things will change,
But take my word--
They won't
You paint a lovely picture,
But reality intrudes
With a message for you
And it's real bad news

I was undecided like you
At first
But I could not stem the tide of overwhelm
And thirst
You try to keep it going, but a lot of avenues
Just aren't open to you
When you're real bad news

I've got love and anger
They come as a pair
You can take your chances
But buyer beware
And I won't
Make you feel bad
When I show you
This big ball of sad isn't
Worth even filling with air

And baby, let me tell you
You can get some things confused
Like whose secrets are whose
And that's real bad news
Real bad news
Real bad news

There comes a time when you swim or sink
So I jumped in the drink
'Cause I couldn't make myself clear

Maybe I wrote in invisible ink
Oh, I've tried to think
How I could have made it appear

But another illustration is wasted
'Cause the results are the same
I feel like a ghost who's trying to move your hands
Over some Ouija board in the hopes I can spell out my name

What some take for magic at first glance
Is just sleight-of-hand depending on what you believe
Something gets lost when you translate
It's hard to keep straight
Perspective is everything

And I know now which is which and what angle I oughta look at it from
I suppose I should be happy to be misread
Better be that than some of the other things I have become

But nobody wants to hear this tale
The plot is cliched, the jokes are stale
And baby we've all heard it all before
Oh, I could get specific but
Nobody needs a catalog
With details of love I can't sell anymore

And aside from that, this chain of reaction,
Baby, is losing a link
Though I'd hope you'd know what I tried to tell you
And if you don't I could draw you a picture in invisible ink

But nobody wants to hear this tale
The plot is cliched, the jokes are stale
And baby we've all heard it all before
Oh, I could get specific but
Nobody needs a catalog
With details of love I can't sell anymore

Better pack your bags and run
Or stay until the job is done
Or maybe you can sit and hope
That providence will fray the rope
And sink like a stone
Or go it alone

And isn't it enough - for you?
Isn't it enough?

So better pack your bags and run
And send it to oblivion
Where you don't look like anyone
That anyone would care about
And do what you do
'Til it buries you

And isn't it enough - for you?
Isn't it enough?

And baby - isn't it enough?
Like Major Reno at the bluff
Wondering aloud if help is on the way
And baby, isn't this your chance
To make a break with circumstance
Isn't it enough to prove today's the day?
Isn't it enough to prove today's the day?

The moth don't care when he sees the flame
he might get burned but he's in the game
and once he's in he can't go back, and
beat his wings 'til he burns them black
no the moth don't care when he sees the flame
no the moth don't care when he sees the flame

the moth don't care if the flame is real
cuz flame and moth got a sweetheart deal
and nothing fuels a good flirtation
like need and anger and desperation
no the moth don't care if the flame is real
no the moth don't care if the flame is real

So come on let's go ready or not
cuz there's a flame I know hotter than hot
and with a fuse that's so thoroughly shot
away

the moth don't care if the flame burns low
cuz moth believes in an afterglow
and flames are never douzed completely
all you really need is a love of heat
no, the moth don't care if the flame burns low
no, the moth don't care if the flame burns low

So come on let's go ready or not
cuz there's a flame I know hotter than hot
and with a fuse that's so thoroughly shot
away

I keep going round and round on the same old circuit
A wire travels underground to a vacant lot
Where something I can't see interupts the current
And shrinks the picture down to a tiny dot
And from behind the screen, it can look so perfect
But it's not

So here I'm sitting in my car at the same old stop light
I keep waiting for a change, but I don't know what
So red turns into green turning into yellow
But I'm just frozen here on the same old spot
And all I have to do is to press the pedal
But I'm not
No, I'm not

People are tricky, you can't afford to show
Anything risky, anything they don't know
The moment you try, well, kiss it goodbye

So baby kiss me like a drug, like a respirator
And let me fall into the dream of the astronaut
Where I get lost in space that goes on forever
And you make all the rest just an afterthought
And I believe it's you who could make it better
though it's not
No, it's not
No, it's not

I can't do it
I can't conceive
You're everything you're
Trying to make me believe

'Cause this show is
Too well designed
Too well to be held
With only me in mind

Chorus:
And how - how am I different?
How - how am I different?
How - how am I different?

Verse 2:

I can't do it
So move along
Do you really want to wait until I
Prove you wrong?
And don't tell me -
Let me guess
I could change it all around if I
Would just say yes

Chorus:
But how am I different?
How am I different?
How am I different?

Bridge:
And just one question
Before I pack -
When you fuck it up later
Do I get my money back?

Verse 3:

I can't do it
And as for you -
Can you in good conscience
Even ask me to?
'Cause what do you care
About the great divide
As long as you come down
On the winner's side

Chorus:
And how am I different?
How am I different?
How am I different?

Coda:
Different, different, different, different
Different, different

(3x)
And just one question
Before I pack -
When you fuck it up later
Do I get my money back?

Oh Susan, you were clued-in
You knew just how this thing would go
A prognosis that was hopeless
From the very first domino
I guess I see it all in hindsight
I tried to keep perspective despite
The flash of the fuse, the smell of cordite

Now I'm in that place again
And I know he can't come in to get me
And someday he will live to regret me
Susan I can see it now

Oh Suzie, they get to me
They can really be wearying
So he threw me rope and bouey
Let me use his decoding ring
There must have been some kind of parade
We kissed for a while to see how it fades
And pulled the pin on another grenade

But I'm in that place again
And I know he can't come in to get me
And someday he will live to regret me
Suzy I can see it now

Oh Susan, the hope of fusion
Is that the halo will reappear
It may be pure illusion
But it's beautiful while it's here
I had some trouble with the goodbye
I checked my roman candle supply
And watched the vapor-trail in the sky

But I'm in that place again
And I know he can't come in to get me
And someday he will live to regret me
Susan I can see it now
Susan I can see it now
Susan I can... see... it... now

Once upon a time
Is how it always goes
But I'll make it brief
What was started out
With such excitement
Now I gladly end with relief
In what now has become a familiar motif

That nothing is good enough
For people like you
Who have to have someone take the fall
And something to sabotage
Determined to lose it all

Critics at their worst
Could never criticize
The way that you do
No, there's no one else I find
To undermine or dash a hope
Quite like you
And you do it so casually, too

'Cause nothing is good enough
For people like you
Who have to have someone take the fall
And something to sabotage
Determined to lose it all

It doesn't really help
That you can never say
What you're looking for
But you'll know it when you hear it
Know it when you see it
Walk through the door
So you say, so you've said
Many times before

But nothing is good enough
For people like you
Who have to have someone take the fall
And something to sabotage
Determined to lose it all

Nothing is good enough....

They're all still on their honeymoon
just read the dialogue balloon
everyone loves you--why should they not?
And I'm the only one who knows
that Disneyland's about to close
I don't suppose you'd give it a shot
knowing all that you've got

are cigarettes and Red Vines
just close your eyes, cause, baby--
you never do know
and I'll be on the sidelines,
with my hands tied,
watching the show

Well, it's always fun and games until
it's clear you haven't got the skill
in keeping the gag from going too far
So you're running 'round the parking lot
til every lightning bug is caught
punching some pinholes in the lid of a jar
while we wait in the car

With cigarettes and Red Vines
just close your eyes, cause, baby--
you never do know
and I'll be on the sidelines,
with my hands tied,
watching the show

And tell me, would it kill you
would it really spoil everything
if you didn't blame yourself
do you know what I mean?

Cigarettes and Red Vines
just close your eyes, cause, baby--
you never do know
and I'll be on the sidelines,
with my hands tied,
watching the show
watching the show

Let's assume you were right
And play the game of charm and strange and satellite
And when we've all had our fun
Deflate the stars and put away the sun
And so, we can call it a day

'Cause I'll never prove that my motives were pure
So let's remove any question of cure
'Cause even though you've made it pretty obscure
Baby, it's clear
From here
You're losing your atmosphere
From here
You're losing it

So let's assume it was true
'Cause baby can't lift up a hand to swear to you
And what's the use of defense
The hangers-on are too far gone for evidence
And that one was lost from the first

'Cause I'll never prove that my motives were pure
So let's remove any question of cure
'Cause even though you've made it pretty obscure
Baby, it's clear
From here
You're losing your atmosphere
From here
You're losing it

So have it your way
Shatever makes the best resume
Whatever you can throw in
Wash, rinse and spin til it's spun away
Okay
But I won't be sticking around

'Cause I'll never prove that my motives were pure
So let's remove any question of cure
'Cause even though you've made it pretty obscure
Baby, it's clear
From here
You're losing your atmosphere
From here
You're losing it

Now that I've met you
Would you object to
Never seeing each other again
'Cause I can't afford to
Climb aboard you
No one's got that much ego to spend

So don't work your stuff
Because I've got troubles enough
No, don't pick on me
When one act of kindness could be
Deathly
Deathly
Definately

'Cause I'm just a problem
For you to solve and
Watch dissolve in the heat of your charm
But what will you do when
You run it through and
You can't get me back on the farm

So don't work your stuff
Because I've got troubles enough
No, don't pick on me
When one act of kindness could be
Deathly
Deathly
Definately

You're on your honor
'Cause I'm a goner
And you haven't even begun
So do me a favor
If I should waver
Be my savior
And get out the gun

So don't work your stuff
Because I've got troubles enough
No, don't pick on me
When one act of kindness could be
Deathly
Deathly
Definately

Finals blew, I barely knew
my graduation speech
and with college out of reach
if I can't find a job I'm left with Dad and Myrtle Beach
So, I'm bailing this town--or
tearing it down--or
probably more like hanging around

Everyone I know is acting weird
or way too cool
they hang out by the pool
so I just read a lot and ride my bike around the school
Yeah, I'm bailing this town--or
tearing it down--or
probably more like hanging around

And all that I need now
is someone with the brains and the know-how
to tell me what I want..
anyhow

12th of June, a gibbous moon
is this the longest day?
I walked down to the bay
and jumped off of the dock and watched the summer waste away
Yeah, I'm bailing this town--or
tearing it down--or
probably more like hanging around

He's a serious mister
Shake his hand and he'll twist your arm.
With Monopoly money
We'll be buying the funny farm.

So I'll do flips, and get paid in chips
From a diamond as big as the Ritz--
Then I'm calling it quits.
(Calling it quits)

Eyes the color of candy,
Lies to cover the handicap.
Though your slippers are ruby,
You'll be led to the booby trap.

And there's no prize,
Just a smaller size,
So I'm wearing the shoe 'til it fits,
Then I'm calling it quits.
Yes, I'm calling it quits.
Yes, I'm calling it quits.

Now he's numbering himself among the masterminds
(Calling it quits)
'Cause he's hit upon the leverage of valentines.
(Calling it quits)
Lifting dialogue from Judy Garland storylines
...Where get-tough girls turn into gold mines.

All those Polaroid babies,
Taking chances with rabies,
Happy to tear me to bits--
Well, I'm calling it quits.
Yes I'm calling it quits.
Yes I'm calling it quits.
Yes I'm calling it quits.
Yes I'm calling it...

At least you know
You were taken by a pro
I know just how you feel
She talked a perfect game
Deflecting all the blame
You took the jack
And changed the flat
And got behind the wheel

Now you're
Driving sideways
Taken in by the scenery
As you're propelled along
And your companion
Will not help you to navigate
For fear she may be wrong
For fear she may be wrong

And you will say
That you're making headway
And put it in overdrive
But you're mistaking speed
For getting what you need
And never even noticing
You never do arrive

'Cause you're
Driving sideways
If you roll down the window, you'll see
You're where you don't belong
And your companion
Will not help you to navigate
For fear she may be wrong
For fear she may be wrong

And you're powered by
The hopeful lie
That it's just around the bend
And when this, by default
Comes screeching to a halt
Let's hope that you
Know what to do
To start it up again

Driving sideways
Hitting scan on the radio
So she can sing along
And she'll sit
Thinking you're gonna handle it
Until she's proven wrong
Until she's proven wrong
Until you prove her wrong
(Driving sideways)

I've got some cookies from our junk food run
And here's a couple beers so
Let's go create some fun
Supplies are limited and I'm all out
Of any explanation
Of what I'm on about

I'm tired
Of having to try
To convince you if I
Go along with you it all will
Backfire
I know you had plans
Your intentions were grand
But it's out of my hands
And it isn't the way I pictured it
Either

Well things felt weird but you said that's alright
That it was not a problem
And we could just sit tight
And when you said that I was sure I cringed
'Cause you had no suspicion
That I had come unhinged

Or just tired--
I cannot say which
But there's always a hitch
That will cause the whole thing to
Backfire
I know you had plans
Your intentions were grand
But it's out of my hands now

It's out of my hands now

I know you'd like to be the St. Bernard
Who rushes to the rescue
When there's an avalanche
But in my panic I may pull too hard
And the novice lifeguard
Gets rushed off in the ambulance

I'm tired
I cannot seem to
Get a message to you
That the rescue you planned has just
Backfired
I know you had plans
Your intentions were grand
But it's out of my hands now

It's out of my hands now

And it isn't the way I pictured it
Either...

As we were speaking of the devil
You walked right in
Wearing hubris like a medal
You revel in
But it's me at whom you'll level
Your javelin'

Wasn't that just our dear friend Ron?
Throwing your weight around the sun
Happier now that you've become
What you hated

I'm surprised I even thought I
Had half a chance
I was just one in a million
Of also-rans
Who was sure to be your victim
Of circumstance

Once you were just our dear friend Ron
Selling the soul you swore upon
Spreading the word that you've become
What you hated

And if I don't understand...
Well, I guess it takes all kinds

I would like to keep this vision
Of you intact
When we'd hang around and listen
To Bacharach
And you loved the world you lived in
And it loved you back

Once you were just our dear friend Ron
Now you look out for number one
Who would've guessed that you'd become
What you hated

And I guess it takes all kinds

You look like - a perfect fit
For a girl in need of a tourniquet

But can you - save me
Come on and - save me
If you could - save me
From the ranks of the freaks
Who suspect they could never love anyone

'Cause I can tell
You know what it's like
The long farewell
Of the hunger strike

But can you save me
Come on and save me
If you could save me
From the ranks of the freaks
Who suspect they could never love anyone

You struck me dumb like radium
Like Peter Pan or Superman

You will come to save me
C'mon and save me
If you could save me
From the ranks of the freaks
Who suspect they could never love anyone
'Cept the freaks
Who suspect they could never love anyone
But the freaks
Who suspect they could never love anyone

C'mon and save me
Why don't you save me
If you could save me
From the ranks of the freaks
Who suspect they could never love anyone

Except the freaks
Who suspect they could never love anyone
Except the freaks who could never love anyone

So maybe I wasn't
That good a friend
But you were one of us
And I will wonder
Just like anyone
If there was something
Else I could've done

So maybe it's true that
Your cry for help
Was oh, so very faint
But still I heard
And knew something was wrong
Just nothing you could put your finger on
And I will wonder
Just like anyone
Just like anyone

You stay the night at his house
With no ride to work
And I'm the one who tells you
He's another jerk
But you're the one who can succeed
You've only got to prove your need
And you do
You really do

The sex you're trading up for
What you hope is love
Is just another thing that
He'll be careless of
But though there are caveats galore
You've only got to love him more
And you do
You really do
Even when it's all too clear

You write a little note that
You leave on the bed
And spend some time dissecting
Every word he said
And if he seemed a little strange
Well, baby, anyone can change
And you do
You do
You really do

You look like - a perfect fit
For a girl in need of a tourniquet

But can you - save me
Come on and - save me
If you could - save me
From the ranks of the freaks
Who suspect they could never love anyone

'Cause I can tell
You know what it's like
The long farewell
Of the hunger strike

But can you save me
Come on and save me
If you could save me
From the ranks of the freaks
Who suspect they could never love anyone

You struck me dumb like radium
Like Peter Pan or Superman

You will come to save me
C'mon and save me
If you could save me
From the ranks of the freaks
Who suspect they could never love anyone
'Cept the freaks
Who suspect they could never love anyone
But the freaks
Who suspect they could never love anyone

C'mon and save me
Why don't you save me
If you could save me
From the ranks of the freaks
Who suspect they could never love anyone

Except the freaks
Who suspect they could never love anyone
Except the freaks who could never love anyone