[Instrumental Intro — Solo Cello] One low sustained note, silence, then a fast lyrical cello run begins [Verse 1] The machine can write The machine can sing It can shape a picture Out of almost anything It can build a page While I watch the light But it cannot walk with me Through Kyoto in the night [Pre-Chorus] Before I ask it what to say I need another piece of day [Chorus] Before I press the button I want to live I want to have a story Only I can give A road, a face A book, a song A memory sleeping All along Before I press the button I want to know What only a human heart Can carry home [Cello Interlude] Solo cello runs forward, then suddenly becomes quiet [Verse 2] Eleven years ago Another glowing screen I built a little future Not knowing what it means And on a Christmas night Two books beside my door Your words were waiting quietly For who I would become [Pre-Chorus] Nothing disappeared Nothing went away Some things simply sleep Until another day [Chorus] Before I press the button I want to live I want to have a story Only I can give A road, a face An old Tao line A piece of your past Still living inside mine [Bridge — Voice + Cello] The past is not behind me The future isn’t there Everything I carried Is breathing in the air Here And now The road begins again [Final Chorus] Before I press the button I’ll take one more road Gather one more memory Carry one more load And when I return With something true I’ll give the machine A life it never knew [Outro — Solo Cello] Before I press the button I live
