[INSTRUMENTAL — skipping kick, chopped voice far away] [HOOK — chant, warm and wide] Five a.m., number nine (number nine) Five a.m., number nine Same nod, same seat Five a.m., number nine (number nine) Five a.m., number nine Same nod, same seat [VERSE 1 — clipped, close] I mop the depot canteen He idles at the door "Alright chief," every morning Ten years, nothing more Don't even know his surname Never asked his name But he'd hold the door when I ran late Grin at me all the same [HOOK — chant, warm and wide] Five a.m., number nine (number nine) Five a.m., number nine Same nod, same seat Five a.m., number nine (number nine) Five a.m., number nine Same nod, same seat [VERSE 2 — same clip, voice tighter] Monday there's a young lad Shiny shoes, new badge I ask him where's the usual "Passed away, mate. Sad" It wasn't retirement Heart, at home, in his sleep Ten years of "alright chief" And I never knew his name [INSTRUMENTAL — bass drops out one bar, piano alone, then everything back] [FINAL HOOK — fullest, chops stacked] Five a.m., number nine (number nine) Five a.m., number nine Same nod, same seat Five a.m., number nine (number nine) Five a.m., number nine Same nod, same seat [OUTRO — fragments, soft over the groove] Five a.m., number nine Same nod, same seat [INSTRUMENTAL OUTRO — kick keeps walking, hats dissolve]
