Trans-Island Skyway
TRANS-ISLAND SKYWAY
I was born yesterdayBACK TO THE TOP | BACK TO LYRICS INDEX
When they brought my Kamakiri
When they handed me the keys
It's a steam-power 10
The frame is out of Glasgow
The tech is Balinese
It's not a freeway bullet
Or a bug with monster wheels
It's a total biosphere
The farm in the back
Is hydroponic
Good, fresh things
Every day of the year
Good, fresh things
Every day of the year
With all screens and functions
In sync lock with Tripstar
This cool rolling bubble
Is all set to samba
This route could be trouble
(This route could be trouble)
Chorus:
Steamin' up
That Trans-Island Skyway
Tryin' to make that final deadline
And if the lanes are clear
We're gonna drive a little harder
We'll be deep in the Zone by cryin' time
Say, there's a wreck
On the side of the road
Lots of blood and broken glass
The kid who was driving
I know from somewhere
Some kids just drive too fast
Wait just a minute
There's a beautiful survivor
With dancer's legs and laughing eyes
C'mon snakehips, it's all over now
Strap in tight cause it's a long sweet ride
Relax - put some sounds on
I'll brew up some decaf
C'mon kick off those heels ma'am
Now breathe in and sigh out
Let's get with the program
(Let's talk about the good times)
Chorus
We reach the sprangle
Just at dawn
These little streets I used to know
Is that my father
Mowin' the lawn
(C'mon daddy get in let's go)
C'mon daddy get in let's go
C'mon daddy get in let's go
C'mon daddy get in let's go
C'mon daddy get in let's go
C'mon daddy get in let's go
C'mon daddy get in let's go
We pull into Five Zoos
Past motels and drive-thrus
That noon sun is blinding
The tidepools are boiling
Below plates are grinding
(Let's talk about the good times)
Chorus
COUNTERMOON
On a night like thisBACK TO THE TOP | BACK TO LYRICS INDEX
You look up at your lover
It's like you're in some old cartoon
Then you detect
The scent of faded roses
Up in the sky
There's that cruel countermoon
Could that be murder you see in her eyes
You try a long and desperate kiss
You can't escape it
That beam is sure to find you
Chorus:
On a night like this
The story is told
How the women get restless
And the men grow cold
Gotham shudders
There's a chill in the air
There's a countermoon
Lovers all beware
Hand in hand
You walk along the river
You stop to clutch and caress
A countermoonbeam
Comes sweeping off the water
She says "You're not my Jackie.
My Jackie was the best."
Spitewaves are threatening
The seaside hotels
It's nasty weather for July
Last night you loved her
Tonight you wonder why
Chorus
At every pay phone
There's somebody cryin'
All the streets are slick with tears
When you see that blue ray
There's a heartquake on the way
Chorus
SPRINGTIME
Here at Laughing PinesBACK TO THE TOP | BACK TO LYRICS INDEX
Where the party never ends
There's a spicy new attraction
On the Funway
You can scan yourself
For traces of old heartaches
The details of desire
Shimmering - shimmering
Yowie! - It's Connie Lee
At the wheel of her Shark-de-Ville
We're cruisin' at about a thousand miles an hour
But the car is standin' still
So good to hear that crazy laugh
To hear her whisper hold me tight
To learn to love all over again
On that warm wet April night
Chorus:
Swing out
To Lake Nostalgia
Route 5 to Laughing Pines
Get off at Funway West
Drive into Springtime
Drive into Springtime
Easter Break - '66
A shack on Cape Sincere
Mad Mona bakin' gospel candy
It was a radical year
We get a little silly
And fall into microspace
It's even better this time around
With Coltrane on the K.L.H.
Chorus
It's you and me honey, in a crowded booth
At the Smokehouse in the Sand
I'm dragging out some bad old gag
When you touch my hand
At 4 a.m. we go out of this place
You look absurdly sweet
We hike downtown to Avenue A
Like we own the street
Chorus
SNOWBOUND
At Nervous TimeBACK TO THE TOP | BACK TO LYRICS INDEX
We roll downtown
We've got scenes to crash
We're gonna trick and trash
We're gonna find some fun
We hit the street
With visors down
With our thermasuits
Sealed up tight
We can beat the freeze
And get saved tonight
Let's stop off at the Metroplex
That little dancer's got some style
Yes she's the one I'll be waiting for
At the stage door
Chorus:
Snowbound
Let's sleep in today
Wake me up
When the wolves come out to play
Heat up
These white nights
We're gonna turn this town
Into a city of lights
We take the tube
To Club Hi Ho
It's about deadspace
It's a marketplace
And a party house too
Something new
From Charlie Tokyo
It's a kind of pyramid
With a human heart
Beating in an ion grid
A critic grabs us
And says without a smile
The work seduces us with light
Eviva laughs and we step out
Into the blue-white night
Chorus
We sail our icecats on the frozen river
Some loser fires off a flare, amen
For seven seconds it's like Christmas day
And then it's dark again
And then it's dark again
Chorus
TOMORROW'S GIRLS
Our town is just like any otherBACK TO THE TOP | BACK TO LYRICS INDEX
Good citizens at work and play
Normal folks doin' business in the normal way
This morning was like any other
Mommies kissing daddies goodbye
Then the milkman screamed
And pointed up at the sky
Chorus:
From Sheilus to the reefs of Kizmar
From Stargate and the Outer Worlds
They're speeding towards our sun
They're on a party run
Here come Tomorrow's Girls
Tomorrow's Girls
You see them on the grass at lunch hour
Soaking up the vertical rays
In their summer dresses
A little smile can really make your day
Their kisses feel like real kisses
And when they cry they cry real tears
But what's left in your arms
When the static clears
Chorus:
They're landing on the Jersey beaches
Their engines make the white sand swirl
The heat is so intense
Earth men have no defense
Against Tomorrow's Girls
In the cool of the evening
In the last light of the triple sun
I wait by the go-tree
When the day's busy work is done
Soon the warm night breezes
Start rolling in off the sea
Yes, at lantern time
That's when you come to me
Come to me
Our home is just like any other
We're grillin' burgers on the back lawn
Some time goes by
We fall asleep with the TV on
I dream about a laughing angel
Then the laugh becomes a furious whine
Look out fellas
It's shredding time
Chorus:
They're mixing with the population
A virus wearing pumps and pearls
Lord help the lonely guys
Hooked by those hungry eyes
Here come Tomorrow's Girls
Tomorrow's Girls
Chorus:
From Sheilus to the reefs of Kizmar
From Stargate and the Outer Worlds
They're speeding towards our sun
They're on a party run
Here come Tomorrow's Girls
Tomorrow's Girls
FLORIDA ROOM
Start on Key PlantainBACK TO THE TOP | BACK TO LYRICS INDEX
Walk a tropical mile
You'll see a house
In the Spanish style
There's a room in back
With a view of the sea
Where she sits and dreams
Does she dream of me
When summer's gone
I get ready
To make that Carribee run
I've got to have
Some time in the sun
Chorus:
When the cold wind comes
I go where the dahlias bloom
I keep drifting back
To your Florida room
She's dressed too warm
For this latitude
We go out to lunch
With some Jamaican dude
Then the sunshower breaks
We come in out of the rain
But in her Florida room
There's a hurricane
While the city freezes over
We'll be strollin' down the shore
Can she bring me back
To life once more
Chorus
When summer's gone
I get ready
To make that Carribee run
I've got to have
Some time in the sun
Chorus
ON THE DUNES
Drive along the seaBACK TO THE TOP | BACK TO LYRICS INDEX
Far from the city's twitch and smoke
To a misty beach
That's where my life became a joke
On the dunes
On the dunes
(Became a joke on the dunes)
Where rents are high
And seabirds cry
On the dunes
As you spoke you must have known
It was a kind of homicide
I stood and watched my happiness
Drift outwards with the tide
On the dunes
On the dunes
(Homicide on the dunes)
It wasn't fair
It's brutal there
On the dunes
Pretty boats
Sweeping along the shore
In the faltering light
Pretty women
With their lovers by their side
It's like an awful dream
I have most every night
In the summer all the swells
Join in the search for sun and sand
For me it's just a joyless place
Where this loneliness began
On the dunes
On the dunes
(Loneliness on the dunes)
I'm pretty tough
But the wind is rough
On the dunes
TEAHOUSE ON THE TRACKS
Out on the fringeBACK TO THE TOP | BACK TO LYRICS INDEX
Where the shallows meet the scratchlands
Out where hope and the highway ends
You can park or cruise
Both ways you lose
This is Flytown now my friend
You take a walk on Bleak Street
Tonight could be the night you crash
Then you turn and stop
Start to fingerpop
You think you hear a wailin' combo
You climb a flight of twisted stairs
Some cat says buddy
Chorus:
If you've got eyes
To rhythmatize
Bring your flat hat and your ax
'Cause tonight at ten
We'll be workin' again
At the Teahouse on the Tracks
The Siegel Bros. were slammin' out a baion
So slick it should have been a crime
Irene and Flocko and little Amy Khan
Lead off the big front line
The crowd was bouncin' in sync with the pulse
You get a case of party feet
(Then the room turns bright
And fills up with light)
And then from somewhere deep inside you
Some frozen stuff begins to crack
Better hurry
Chorus:
Take the T-Line to Bleak and Divine
Just above the Good Time Flats
It's your last chance
To learn how to dance
At the Teahouse on the Tracks
On Sunday morning
You're back at the wheel
You're feelng calm and crisp and strong
Chorus:
If it feels right
Just drive for the light
That's the groovessential facts
Someday we'll all meet at the end of the street
At the Teahouse on the Tracks
Songs by Donald Fagen except Snowbound, by Walter Becker and Donald Fagen and Florida Room, music by Donald Fagen; lyrics by Donald Fagen and Libby Titus. Lyrics Reprinted by Permission. All Rights Reserved. All songs © 1993 Freejunket Music ASCAP except "Snowbound" © 1993 Zeon Music/Freejunket Music ASCAP and "Florida Room" © 1993 Freejunket Music/Libby Titus ASCAP