Casey
joins the hollow sound
of silent people
walking down the stairway
to the subway in shad
ows down below
Following their footsteps
in the neon darkened corridors
in si lent desperation
never speaking to a soul
The poison air he's breathing
has the dirty smell of dying
For he's never seen the sunshine
and he's never smelt the rain
But Casey buys the arrows
and ignores the fatal echoes
Of the clicking of the turnstiles
and the rattle of his chains
Oh, she says, Casey,
it's been so long since I've seen you
Here, she says,
just a kiss to make her body smile
See, she says, I've put on new stockings
just to please you
Lord, she says, Casey,
can you only stay a while?
Casey leaves the underground
and stops inside the Golden Crown
For something wet to wipe away
the chills from off his bones
Seeing his reflection
in the lives of all the lonely men
Who reach for anything they can
to keep from going home
Standing on the corner,
Casey drinks his pint of bitter
Never glancing in the mirror
at the people passing by
And he stumbles as he's leaving,
and you wonder if the reason is
The beer that's in his belly,
or the tear that's in his eye
Oh, she says,
I suppose you seldom think about me
Now, she says,
now that you've a family of your own
Still, she says, it's so blessed
good to feel your body
Lord, she says, Casey,
it's a shame to be alone
Oh, she says, Casey,
it's been so long since I've seen you
Here, she says, just a kiss
to make her body smile
See, she says, I've put on new stockings
just to please you
Lord, she says, Casey,
can you only stay a while?
Lord, she says, Casey,
it's a shame to be alone