[Intro: signature four-note muted guitar riff alone, ticking percussion, then bass and drums kick in] [Verse 1: solo voice, talk-singing, low, direct and honest] Absolute ambition's got one catch The thing you chase can't ever be caught The finish line keeps moving on And every win is already gone Every handshake's a step on the stair Every friend's a tool you keep somewhere You call it vision, you call it drive The devil just smiles and lets you sign [Pre-Chorus: band tightens, ticking louder, voice plain] I know that hunger I've seen it in my own eyes [Chorus: band lifts and hits harder, voice stays low and grounded, no belting] Absolute ambition Absolutely takes its toll You can win the whole world over And lose the thing that makes you whole Being first's a way to be last When you climb on everyone you passed Absolute ambition [band stops completely] The fastest way to sell your soul [band returns] [Interlude: signature four-note riff] [Verse 2: band drops back but keeps the pulse, solo voice steady] But love won't live in a heart like that Love don't keep a ledger, love don't keep track Love's the only absolute I know That asks you to kneel and let it go Take without giving and you're left with a hole That no pleasure and no conquest can fill Not even a thrill Can quiet a life unfulfilled [Pre-Chorus: band tightens, ticking louder] I know that hunger I've seen it in my own eyes [Chorus: band lifts and hits harder, voice stays low and grounded, no belting] Absolute ambition Absolutely takes its toll You can win the whole world over And lose the thing that makes you whole Being first's a way to be last When you climb on everyone you passed Absolute ambition [band stops completely] The fastest way to sell your soul [band returns] [Bridge: drums drop out, only ticking and bass pulse, voice close, then the band builds to the reckoning] When the years have had their say And the names on the doors have worn away It's the people that made us whole Not the summit, not the gold So I stop chasing what can't be caught And hold on to the ones I've got [Final Chorus: band at its most urgent, voice steady and certain, no belting] Absolute ambition Absolutely takes its toll I'd rather lose the whole world over Than lose the thing that makes me whole Being first's a way to be last I'm done climbing on the ones I passed Absolute ambition [band stops completely] You can't have my soul [Outro: signature riff alone, ticking slows and stops] I'm letting go [End]
