[Intro] [slow, heavy blues shuffle riff, distant piano note hanging in the air, drums lock into the groove] [Verse 1] [full riff groove, swaggering shuffle, sultry and menacing delivery] Thirty-somethin' bullet holes Still countin' in the wall The band don't need an audience The band don't stop at all Dancers spin in borrowed dresses Gamblers deal a borrowed hand Every ghost still owes a debt here Every ghost still makes a stand [Pre-Chorus] [drums tighten, groove deepens] Hear the piano playin' slower Hear the chandelier still sway Ain't nobody closed this house down Ain't nobody swept away [Chorus] [full weight, doom-heavy shuffle, gang vocals on last line] Down on Birdcage Row The lamps don't ever go low Every hand's still bein' dealt Every shot's still bein' felt Down on Birdcage Row Nobody ever lets it go [Verse 2] [same shuffle groove, delivery low and knowing] There's a girl who dances lonesome In a dress the color of wine Shot down for lovin' the wrong man Died right there on the line Now she twirls through every showtune Waits for a partner who won't come Piano man plays her favorite number Long after the dance is done [Pre-Chorus] [drums tighten, groove deepens] Hear the piano playin' slower Hear the chandelier still sway Ain't nobody closed this house down Ain't nobody swept away [Chorus] [full weight, doom-heavy shuffle, gang vocals on last line] Down on Birdcage Row The lamps don't ever go low Every hand's still bein' dealt Every shot's still bein' felt Down on Birdcage Row Nobody ever lets it go [Guitar Solo] [slow, bending, blues-drenched, dripping with menace rather than speed] [Bridge] [half-time breakdown, doom-heavy, vocals lower and hollow] They boarded up the balcony They swept the broken glass away But the lamps still flicker green at midnight And the band still wants to play [building back up toward the final chorus, groove widening] Some houses die when the crowd goes home This one just changed its guest list Every ghost still holds a full house Every hand's still in the fist [Chorus - Final] [heaviest version of the shuffle, full weight, shouted final line] Down on Birdcage Row The lamps don't ever go low Every hand's still bein' dealt Every shot's still bein' felt Down on Birdcage Row NOBODY EVER LETS IT GO
