(Kirsty MacColl/Johnny Marr)
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Walking down Madison - I swear I never had a gun
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No I never shot no-one - I was only having fun
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Walking down Madison - swear I never had a gun
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I was philosophizing some
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Checking out the bums
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See you give 'em your nickels, your pennies and dimes
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But you can't give 'em hope in these mercenary times, oh no
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And you feel real guilty about the coat on your back
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And the sandwich you had, oh no
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From an uptown apartment to a knife on the A train
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It's not that far
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From the sharks in the penthouse to the rats in the basement
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It's not that far
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To the bag lady frozen asleep in the park
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Oh no it's not that far
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Would you like to see some more?
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I can show you if you'd like to
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Walking down Madison - I swear I never had a gun
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No I never shot no-one - wouldn't do it just for fun
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Walking down Madison - trying to keep my head screwed on
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I was philosophizing some
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Checking out the nuns
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When you get to the corner don't look at those freaks
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Keep your head down low and stay quick on your feet, oh yeah
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The beaming boy from Harlem with the airforce coat
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The ones who died
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The ones who tried
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The ones that sit and gloat
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From an uptown apartment to a knife on the A train
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It's not that far
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From the sharks in the penthouse to the rats in the basement
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It's not that far
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To the bag lady frozen asleep on the church steps
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It's not that far
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Would you like to see some more?
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I can show you if you'd like to
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Within every city and town there's a Madison
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Frozen lives for whom nothing's happening
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Hungry children is a mother's dilemma
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Dumpster diving to feed her baby Emma
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So you walk on by like it doesn't affect you
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The held out hand that you pay no respect to
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Nickels and dimes won't even buy your guilt
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Another wino burnt to death in his quilt
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It's a cardboard city, newspaper metropolis
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The system can't cope or keep on top of this
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The authorities come as you're not for display
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Do they solve the problem no they move him away
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They're in a vicious circle of no fixed abode
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The social won't pay 'em the money they're owed
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When you've got no money you can't pay rent
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Hypothermia kills 'cos the system is bent
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From an uptown apartment to a knife on the A train
|
It's not that far
|
From the sharks in the penthouse to the rats in the basement
|
It's not that far
|
To the bag lady frozen asleep in the park
|
Oh no it's not that far
|
Would you like to see some more?
|
I can show you if you'd like to
|
|
From an uptown apartment to a knife on the A train
|
It's not that far
|
From the sharks in the penthouse to the rats in the basement
|
It's not that far
|
To the bag lady frozen asleep on the church steps
|
It's not that far
|
Would you like to see some more?
|
I can show you if you'd like to
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In the subway sits a vacuous man
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His grip on life is a bent tin can
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It's a holy shrine where he burns his light
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It makes things easy and removes his plight
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For an hour or two but he can't escape
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They're all penned in with government tape
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There are good samaritans who bring the soup
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The sally army with their bibles and boots
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You can see yourself as it's not too far
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One short trip you don't who they are
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Till the night comes then it all comes back
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Like the smell of patchouli and the armies of rats
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It's a shame to be human it's a human shame
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It seems we've forgotten we're one and the same
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Walking Down Madison
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Kirsty MacColl |