[Intro: Venetian-accented male MC, harpsichord riff, low] Ecco. Signore, signora. The clock is close. Masks off at twelve. [Verse 1: Venetian-accented male MC, low and slow over heavy half-time drums and a harpsichord riff] My palazzo's sinkin' by an inch a year, I throw the party anyway Candles on the stairway, every guest in feathers, gold and grey One rule in my house, signore, and the rule is very old When the clock hits twelve you show your face or you walk out in the cold Ten o'clock, the countess leaves, she's pale and doesn't say goodbye Half past ten the banker goes, he's holdin' something by his eye Eleven and the cellist and the bishop, both of them are gone And the one in the plain white mask has never touched a glass, not one [Verse 2: Venetian-accented male MC, harpsichord darker, sub bass rising] He never eats the oysters and he never sips the wine He never dances, only bows, and every bow is right on time He leans in close to every guest and murmurs in an ear Then the guest says I should go, and nobody sees them leave from here Twelve o'clock, I clap my hands, and every mask comes off the room Every face is in the candlelight but his, a plain white moon Basta, I tell him, house rules, signore, show your face And he bows, and lifts his chin to me, and says, you first, it is your place [Hook: Venetian-accented male MC, full weight, harpsichord and sub bass] Take it at face value, everybody pays at the door Take it at face value, every face is worth a little more You can keep your gold and keep your silver, keep your wine He only takes it at face value, and the face he takes is mine [Verse 3: Venetian-accented male MC, peel stabs, a harpsichord stab and a kick land on every peeled mask] So I peel it, and there's another, it's the countess, pale as chalk And I peel it, it's the banker, with his mouth too stiff to talk And I peel it, it's the cellist, and the bishop, and the singer from the stairs Every guest who left me early, every face, and they are there Then the last one's only smooth, no eyes, no lips, no nose, no name And he reaches up and lifts my mask, and underneath it's just the same I was first, I let him in at eight o'clock, I took his hand I've been hostin' all night long without a face, and now I understand [Hook: Venetian-accented male MC, full weight, harpsichord and sub bass] Take it at face value, everybody pays at the door Take it at face value, every face is worth a little more You can keep your gold and keep your silver, keep your wine He only takes it at face value, and the face he takes is mine [Outro: Venetian-accented male MC, low, harpsichord] Ecco. Basta. Face value, signore. Next guest. Midnight. [End]
