[Verse 1: Cossack folk male lead, heavy and stamping over galloping live drums and plucked domra] New Year's Eve they called me in, a coffee and a folder Twenty years of weldin' and a cold hand on my shoulder Restructuring, says the man with a suntan in the winter Signs it with a gold pen, and my year goes up in cinders But the party's still tonight, the hall is paid, the ticket's mine So I go in my good jacket and I'm standin' in the line And the whole firm sees me comin', and they murmur and they stare Look, it's Bohdan, down and out, and I can feel it in the air Then the band kicks up the hopak, and the domra starts to run And my knees say hey, my boots say hey, and somethin' says it's on [Hook: Cossack folk male lead, full band, whooping Cossack folk calls] Down and out, hey, down and out Hit the bottom, hop, and kick it, that's what it's about Call me broke and call me finished, call me down for the count I'm down and out, hey, down and out [Breakdown: Cossack folk male lead, squat-kick, every kick-out lands on a big floor hit and a whoop] Down, hop, and out, hey Down, hop, and out, hey Lower than the payroll, lower than the floor Kick it out, davai, and kick it out some more Down where nobody can fire me, down where it's all mine Every kick a pink slip flyin' back across the line [Verse 2: Cossack folk male lead, harder, stamping boots] See, the hopak isn't somethin' you can do from up on high You gotta sit down on your heels, as low as you can ride You gotta sit there like a man who's got nothing at all left Then you throw your boots out sideways like you're kickin' out the rest So I'm down there on the parquet and I'm kickin' out the year Twenty years of maybe, kick, and every not this year, kick, here And the forks stop at the tables, and the waiters stop and stare And the band leans into it, and there's sawdust in the air [Hook: Cossack folk male lead, full band, whooping Cossack folk calls] Down and out, hey, down and out Hit the bottom, hop, and kick it, that's what it's about Call me broke and call me finished, call me down for the count I'm down and out, hey, down and out [Verse 3: Cossack folk male lead, full band, whooping] Then the man with the suntan steps out, takes his jacket off Says I'll show you how it's done, and half the room begins to cough And he bends, and he bends, and his knees go pop like corks And he's stuck there halfway down like a man between two floors Twenty years up on the top floor, and he can't get to the ground And I'm down there kickin' circles, davai, and I'm stayin' down 'Cause the hopak only works from the bottom, that's the deal And a man who lives on the top floor's got no bottom left to feel [Hook: Cossack folk male lead, full band, whooping Cossack folk calls] Down and out, hey, down and out Hit the bottom, hop, and kick it, that's what it's about Call me broke and call me finished, call me down for the count I'm down and out, hey, down and out [End]
