[Cold Open — spoken over amplifier feedback] Last call—line goes dead Black glass—taillights red [Intro riff — 8 bars] [Verse 1] Quarter moon caught in a chain-link frame Boulevard wearing somebody else’s name Payphone receiver swung on its cord You struck one match on a black car door Taxi meter bled cherry red Chrome saints argued overhead Under VACANCY, blue and mean You said, “If you need daylight, don’t follow me” [Pre-Chorus] The street went thin as a razor line Every window blinked in time One silver heel on the bottom rung Your laugh cracked off like a starter gun [Chorus] Lipstick on the fire escape A red little warning I was born to mistake Whole block humming, every wire awake Lipstick on the fire escape No clean road, no clean getaway You pull me up while the sirens scrape Let morning come and interrogate Your lipstick on the fire escape [Post-Chorus — gang vocals] Red mark! No mistake! Red mark! No mistake! [Verse 2] Rooftop gravel in your silver shoes Police-band static sang the midnight news Three cold diamonds on a motel tray You said, “Don’t count ’em if you plan to stay” Headlights combed up the alley brick The service lift groaned and stopped at six You killed the bulb with a practiced hand Then traced my pulse like a getaway plan [Pre-Chorus 2] Every engine idled below Every green light told us go One silver heel on the window frame You dared the dark to spell your name [Chorus] Lipstick on the fire escape A red little warning I was born to mistake Whole block humming, every wire awake Lipstick on the fire escape No clean road, no clean getaway You pull me up while the sirens scrape Let morning come and interrogate Your lipstick on the fire escape [Bridge — half-time] At 2:17 the power failed The skyline vanished, the moon turned pale For one long second no costumes fit Just your breath and a match unlit You said, “Morning makes witnesses of us all” I said, “Then don’t let the curtain fall” Boot heels measured the iron stairs You smiled once: “They think we’re scared” [Guitar Solo — 24 bars; melodic opening, escalating finish] [Breakdown — call and response] Red on the rail! (Red on the rail!) Heat in the wire! (Heat in the wire!) Six floors over the taxi choir One door shakes! (One door shakes!) One cable sways! (One cable sways!) We leave no names—just one red trace [Final Chorus — full harmony] Lipstick on the fire escape A red little warning no dawn could erase Whole block humming, every wire awake Lipstick on the fire escape No clean road, no clean getaway You pull me up when the deadbolts break Let morning come and interrogate Your lipstick on the fire escape [Final Chorus — repeat, higher ad-libs] Lipstick on the fire escape A red little warning I was born to mistake Whole block humming, every wire awake Lipstick on the fire escape No clean road, no clean getaway You pull me up while the sirens scrape Let morning come and interrogate— That lipstick on the fire escape [Outro] Last call—line goes dead Black glass—taillights red Six floors high where the dawn runs late Lipstick on the fire escape
