[Verse 1: Dark-cabaret male lead, menacing and theatrical, barrel organ and upright bass] Every autumn down on Ash Street comes a cart with a wheel of stone And a barrel organ playin' some old waltz you've always known He's got a coat down to his ankles and a smile he keeps half-shut Says ladies and gentlemen, bring me anything that's meant to cut So they bring him kitchen knives, and the barber brings his blades And the butcher brings his cleavers and the gardener his spades And he takes 'em all for pennies, says they'll come back keen as frost But I keep 'em overnight, a good edge needs to rest or else it's lost [Hook: Dark-cabaret male lead, full band, marching snare and heavy kick] Everybody on Ash Street is on edge tonight Every blade we own is on his wheel and out of sight He'll bring 'em back tomorrow keen enough to split a hair But tonight there's only one man on this street with something sharp to spare [Verse 2: Dark-cabaret male lead, lower and darker, barrel organ creeping] But I kept my father's folding knife, I couldn't tell you why Put it in the flour tin and left it in the dark to lie Then at dusk I heard the cart come rollin' back along the row Heard the wheel begin to sing and every lamp went out below Not a house on Ash Street had a bread knife, not a pin Not a needle, not a razor, not a thing to cut your skin Then he stopped outside my window, tapped his list against the glass Said there's one I haven't sharpened, good sir, and the wheel won't let me pass [Hook: Dark-cabaret male lead, full band, marching snare and heavy kick] Everybody on Ash Street is on edge tonight Every blade we own is on his wheel and out of sight He'll bring 'em back tomorrow keen enough to split a hair But tonight there's only one man on this street with something sharp to spare [Verse 3: Dark-cabaret male lead, wheel shriek, the grinding wheel whine rises, the whole band hits on the spark] So I took it from the flour tin and I opened up the door And he smiled and set his wheel to spin the way it spun before Then he drew a blade of his own, as long and thin as a vow And he laid it on the stone, and the whole street heard it now I said you can have the street, but you won't have this one here And he looked at me a long time, tipped his hat, and disappeared And at dawn our blades were waitin' on the steps in shinin' rows With a notch cut in each handle, one for every house he knows [Final Hook: Dark-cabaret male lead, full band, marching snare and heavy kick] Everybody on Ash Street is on edge tonight Every blade we own is on his wheel and out of sight He'll bring 'em back tomorrow keen enough to split a hair But tonight there's only one man on this street with something sharp to spare [End]
