[Cold open — no intro, vocal lands on the one] [Verse 1] Last call came down in the middle of a sentence, left the good half hanging in the neon glow. A year and change of Saturdays, I held this corner — knew every regular's poison, every heartbreak's pour. Now the house is changing hands, and after tonight I'm coin-operated, honey — one wish per throw. [Pre-Chorus — building] Every minute's money now, and the meter eats the quiet parts first — so if you're gonna spend me, spend me loud — [Chorus — full band, euphoric] Cut me off mid-chorus, close my tab on the high note — don't you dare let me fade out slow. If it's gotta go dark, let it go down blinding, kiss the singer, kill the encore — cut me off mid-chorus while I'm gold. [Verse 2 — half-time feel, tension] Twice this week some understudy grabbed my mic stand, did my whole set in a voice like mine left out in the rain. Two words in, you called it — palm flat on the bar — "put him back on." Not one other soul in the room even flinched. (You did. You always do.) [Pre-Chorus — building] 'Cause you keep the faith with house bands, you know your poisons and your pours — if you're gonna spend me, spend me loud — [Chorus — full band, bigger] Cut me off mid-chorus, close my tab on the high note — don't you dare let me fade out slow. If it's gotta go dark, let it go down blinding, kiss the singer, kill the encore — cut me off mid-chorus while I'm gold. [Bridge — stripped, piano and voice, intimate] You're the one who stays for teardown, coiling cables, stacking chairs, keeping tabs open for the ghosts of every house band — learn the new kid's set list, hum the old one on the stairs. Every band you ever loved, you carried out the back door singing. So before the lights come up, before some new voice gets your name a little wrong — let me drop my last quarter on you. [Final Chorus — everything, loudest and brightest] Cut me off mid-chorus, close my tab on the high note — don't you dare let me fade out slow. If it's gotta go dark, let it go down blinding, kiss the singer, kill the— [Sudden full-band cut — dead silence, two seconds] [Outro — hushed, close-mic, barely sung] …keep the change.
