[Verse 1] The rain writes silver on the street In a language I can almost read A taxi waits beneath a sign Like it knows I’ll change my mind There’s a woman in a window With a cigarette and pearls There’s a man outside the club door Selling dreams to lonely girls I came here looking for a life With my name up in the lights Now every bulb above the avenue Is staring back tonight [Pre-Chorus] And the elevator hums Like a secret going up I put my face on in the mirror But it never feels like enough [Chorus] City after dark You took me by the hand You made me feel like someone Then you made me understand City after dark You know my name by now I wanted all your bright lights And I can’t turn them down I got what I wanted I got close to the flame City after dark Now you know my name [Verse 2] There’s a train across the river With its windows flashing gold Every stranger has a story That they almost never told There’s a doorway full of music There’s a stairwell full of rain There’s a girl with midnight eyes Who doesn’t answer to her name I learned the price of being seen In a room that never sleeps The city gives you everything Then asks you what to keep [Pre-Chorus] And the hallway smells like roses And the lobby smells like smoke Everybody’s making promises Like money isn’t broke [Chorus] City after dark You took me by the hand You made me feel like someone Then you made me understand City after dark You know my name by now I wanted all your bright lights And I can’t turn them down I got what I wanted I got close to the flame City after dark Now you know my name [Post-Chorus] Red light, green light Tell me when to go Blue night, street light Tell me what I owe Red light, green light I can hear you call I was only passing through Now I’m written on your walls [Bridge] I thought freedom would be open air A suitcase and a song But freedom is a hotel room Where the telephone rings too long I thought love would be a rescue I thought fame would be a door But every room I walk into Only asks me for more So I dance beneath the chandelier I smile until it starts The city keeps a ledger Of the lonely human heart [Final Chorus] City after dark You took me by the hand You made me feel like someone Then you made me understand City after dark You know my name by now I wanted all your bright lights And I can’t turn them down I got what I wanted I got close to the flame City after dark Now you know my name [Outro] City after dark Keep your windows bright City after dark Don’t leave me alone tonight City after dark I came here on a train I got what I wanted Now you know my name
