01. Tell Me
02. Make Friends With People At Work
03. Love Me Please
04. I Think Of You When The Night Is Falling
05. Oh Victoria
06. Twenty Minutes
07. She Came On To Me
08. Blame It On The Last Word
09. I Can't Believe I've Left New York Behind
10. Her Love Is True Blue

Tell Me

we passed the cloud factory again
they still had a lot of work to do
there was no sign of rain
and the white was fading into blue

i spoke my heart to her
and she laughed a bit
well, she hadn't heard
the half of it

oh but, darling, you're a child, she said
don't get mixed up
it's going to hurt for a little while, and then
it'll just stop

tell me
why you wanna be with me
tell me
is there more than i can see
tell me
tell me how far
tell me
tell me how sure you are

she switched on the windshield wipers
and to my great surprise
when i took a glance, a minute later
she still had tears in her eyes

Make Friends With People At Work

make friends with people at work
friends are hard to make
make friends with people at work
'cause when you lose your job, it'll be too late

let's meet by the caffeine dispenser
at ten thirty sharp
we'll play the old game: one question, one answer
and i'll show you my pocket harp
i'll have it black, thank you
and skip my date with Freddy Krueger
black, with a spoon or two
people who use their brains need sugar

make friends with people at work
friends are hard to make
make friends with people at work
'cause when you lose your job, it'll be too late

man paid for Adam's sin
with his people's sweat and pain
then he made himself slaves of iron and tin
and got into the garden again
then sub-reality took over
and gave the garden back to the word
men are dumb and sober
they can hardly see the world

make friends with people at work
friends are hard to make
make friends with people at work
'cause when you lose your job, it'll be too late

bars have turned into popcorn stands
factories into rich kid homes
walls into wet sand
there are no more bricks or stones
no-one even cares for clock towers
and the sun won't give you the time
let's have beers and whiskey sours
three spoons, ice and lime

Love Me Please

love me, love me like the rain
love me, take my pain
love me, love me like the wind
love me, and the trouble i'm in
love me, love me like thunder
love me, love me over
love me, love me like the breeze
love me, love me please

you made your way through the night,
the crowd and the drunkenness
you made your way through the night,
through the crowd, through the drunkenness
you made your way through the night,
through the crowd, through the drunkenness
you took away all the fright,
all the pride and the bitterness

you could be a little crazy
you're soaked to the skin
you seem a little bit crazy
you're soaked to the skin
you must be a little bit crazy
you're soaked to the skin
it doesn't matter to me, baby
you just fit right in

I Think Of You When The Night Is Falling

i think of you when the night is fallin'
i believed you when you said you never lied
i think of you when the night is falling
i believed you when you said you never lied
and i'm lazy in the mornin'
'cause all i want is to keep you by my side

i quit readin' and started to drink
got wise to a lot of stuff
i quit readin' and started to drink
i got wise to a lot of stuff
my head hurts when the shadows shrink
but i just can't seem to get enough

i watched the sky till i could paint it
then i went out to look for you
i watched the sky until i could paint it
then i set out to look for you
at first it wasn't love, it was hardly romantic
i just had nothing better to do

now you don't wanna see me anymore
and you call that staying friends
you won't see me anymore
and you call that staying friends
well i've seen that movie before
but i never remember how it ends

I CAN'T BELIEVE I'VE LEFT NEW YORK BEHIND

i can't believe i've left New York behind
i must have gone crazy, i must have lost my mind
i remember talking all night on the roof with Brian
i can't believe i've left New York behind

i can't believe i've left New York behind
the G, the F, the A, the beach, the sunshine
i must be going through a phase, a breakdown
i can't believe i've left New York behind

i can't believe i've left New York behind
she must have lost me somewhere along the line
i left before it happened, i must have seen a sign
i can't believe i've left New York behind

i can't believe i've left New York behind
and what's worse: honestly, it suits me fine
there must have been an apocalypse of some kind
i can't believe i've left New York behind

i can't believe i've left New York behind
when nice big cities are so hard to find
in spirit, and in memories, she's with me all the time
i can't believe i've left New York behind

i can't believe i've left New York behind
just to think she went her way, and i went mine
i remember talking all night on the roof with Brian
i can't believe i've left New York behind

Oh Victoria

i was holding the wall, talking the lingo
and keeping the mystery
with John Attard, John Gallea
and Vicky Spitteri
the boys hopped on the 65
but Vic wasn't done with her cisk
as the bus lurched, they hardly looked back
they seemed unaware of the risk
she hit me below the belt, i backed out
i said, “your john is not gonna like that”
she said, “what john?”, with her pumpkin smile
and she pulled down the rim of my hat
the elders looked down at their tea and pastizzis
we went for a stroll in the Silent City
there was no-one there yet, just the sun,
the wind, me and Vicky

oh Victoria
please hurry up
he's a fool, he's mad, he's a pawn with a heavy crown

oh Victoria
please hurry up
you're on top of your game, now the only way is down

she seemed so happy, we had another drink
at the bar of the Labour Party
i listened to her carefully, i didn't say much
she teased me and she spoke her heart to me
on Friday she had classes, on Saturday we'd chill
and on Sunday we'd go to the beach
i got Key Largo and Fat City confused
she was Slim, and i was Stacy Keach
she danced a little, i caught myself staring
at the diamond in her belly button
she said “what do u want from me?”, i just lit another
my lips already felt like cotton
her teeth like the seeds of an open marrow
her eyes like the ones on fishermen's boats
her mango tongue led me to the depths
of her bottomless throat

i saw her again at Triton Fountain,
with another man
he spoke like me, he smoked like me,
and she smiled the same
in the fading daylight “Help Me Make It Through The Night”
instrumental, with a harmonica
came on by chance, but it clearly made sense
it was all absurdly logical
maybe she noticed me, it was hard for me to see
but i knew the drink on the table
the world is fine as seen through wine
it says so on the label
the upside is i didn't even care
i felt centuries old
the downside is i didn't even care
the moon came up pure gold

Twenty Minutes

i handed you a towel and you smiled, thanks
i felt good and out of place
and, through the holes between the white planks
i didn't wanna see Charlie's face

for twenty minutes of your time
twenty minutes of your smile
i wouldn't kill, i wouldn't die
but i'd tell a lie

four twenty a.m., i walked back to Brooklyn
from the garden in Loisaida
i'm lonely already, i miss you i guess
and there are no women at the diner
just me, two cops, a silent eccentric
and a seemingly sober shamus
maybe the latter is after the former
he could be a gangster or someone famous
i still wanted to talk to you
so i wrote you a letter, in rhymes
but it's very romantic and it gives away a lot
so i'll save it for hard times
if it still sounds OK in a month
i'll read it to you in G or E minor
and i'll read it to myself on lonelier nights
when the smoking ban hits the diner

for twenty minutes of your time
twenty minutes of your smile
i wouldn't kill, i wouldn't die
but i'd tell a lie

i felt out of place and good
you said “thank you” and you smiled
you'd be with me now, if you could
we'd have another smoke outside

She Came On To Me

she pressed her leg against the back of my hand
and no-one saw it
she came on to me

now you ain't gonna hear me say
i didn't enjoy it
she came on to me

she came on to me
she pressed her leg against the back of my hand
and no-one saw it

she came on to me
now you ain't gonna hear me say
i didn't enjoy it

i let my thumb inside my pocket
start to move
she came on to me

through a couple of layers of blue denim,
into the groove
she came on to me

she came on to me
i let my thumb inside my pocket
start to move

she came on to me
through a couple of layers of blue denim,
into the groove

i let my thumb, inside my pocket, start to move
through two layers of blue denim, into the groove
she quickly rolled her eyes, and made a sound
well i've lived a long life, i've been around,...

...when i bump into an angel
it doesn't startle me
she came on to me

and when i talk to God,
i call him Charlie
she came on to me

she came on to me
when i bump into an angel
it doesn't startle me

she came on to me
and when i talk to God,
i call him Charlie

Blame It On The Last Word

no-one knew the time, when you asked you said why
unemployment was high like the sun in the sky
money came to town, and the bar was sold
now we have to stand outside in the cold

all my friends got jobs, some even turned thirty
they clean up their cribs when they're not even dirty
people wanna live forever, that's all they're thinking of
first they settle down, then maybe they fall in love

there's a conservative conspiracy, haven't you seen, haven't you heard
don't blame it on the authority, blame it on the last word
being clean is fitting, being alive is queer
but i'm still sitting on the curb with a bottle of beer

Her Love Is True Blue

we'll meet at dawn, here is my glove
still warm with a young girl's love
we'll meet at dawn, by the west pier
i'll bring the cold, you bring the fear

it's going to be the longest night
it's going to be an endless night
with an eerie, earth-like moon
and stirring shadows in the room

her love is true blue
and, the devil, she loved you
but when i called her, she came
and now she knows my name

i wanted the thrill, i wanted the kiss
but i never wanted this
and you're a stranger to me, but i'll pretend
just for tonight, that you're my friend

if she was free
it would be you or me
but her hands are tied
and she can't hide

where will the devil go
only one of us will know
cause you will shoot to kill
and if you don't, i will

it's going to be the longest night
it's going to be an endless night
with an eerie, earth-like moon
and stirring shadows in the room

we'll meet at dawn, here is my glove
still warm with a young girl's love
we'll meet at dawn, by the west pier
i'll bring the cold, you bring the fear