| Laurie Anderson hugged me last night and it was a dream
|
| I was in the house where her and Lou lived and I saw some things that he had
|
| seen
|
| Not through his eyes or through his brain or through his years or through his
|
| heart or the blood that ran through his veins
|
| Or his pleasure and pain I saw the Hudson and imagined that maybe the house had
|
| remained
|
| Just as it was until Lou’s last days
|
| We were there and for 3 or 4 hours and it was so unreal that I forgot my name
|
| And Laurie gave me a hug it felt like a dream
|
| I’m not the kind of guy who would reveal the details of what caught my eye
|
| At their house to random girls and guys
|
| With the exception of a birthday gift given to him by Muhammad Ali
|
| That was framed and in that moment I was frozen and it was just I and me
|
| Uninterrupted and I thought oh my God
|
| What two powerful independent minds
|
| If the two of them conversed
|
| It would probably be the greatest conversation ever in the history of the
|
| universe
|
| I thought what two strong brave individual minds
|
| And I am nothing but a speck of sand on the beach but so am I
|
| If you don’t like this song or what I have to say then
|
| Fuck off and listen to Bye Bye Miss American Pie
|
| Because it’s from my heart and so is this next line
|
| I’m a black sheep baby and I’ll eat you alive
|
| And I’m kind and gentle and I’m good listener and I can read people’s eyes
|
| And I’m fun to be around and I’m endearing and can sing songs that make grown
|
| men cry
|
| And if you’re down and out I’m not the type to tense up so spill it baby don’t
|
| be shy
|
| Caroline and Laurie shared a love of Rat Terriers
|
| But I walked to the Muhammad Ali framed photo and I stared at it
|
| At least a few times for it was all too much as Ali had recently died
|
| And I couldn’t help thinking all of our time will come
|
| You, you, and you, and you too, and I
|
| Tonight I walked around New York all on my own
|
| Between Broadway and 5th and 28th and 34th
|
| I’ve always loved 32nd street Korean way
|
| The women’s bodies around there are curvy and wrapped beautifully
|
| They look like walking decorative vases
|
| And all the wonderful tastes of Bulgogi and Kalbi
|
| And the sexy red soup with bean curd and the spicy Kimchi
|
| And Madison Square Garden and Joe Louis Plaza
|
| And Jack’s Dempsey’s and Macy’s and I’m sentimental about many things in this 6
|
| by 2 by block radius
|
| But tonight Lou was still on my mind he had a stunning view of the water as do I
|
| Back in San Francisco I look at small distant cities and I watch the boats pass
|
| It was less than three years ago that I walked on stage in London just as I
|
| heard that Lou had died
|
| I played Caroline Says and The Kids and I talked for a bit and I wanted to cry
|
| 'Cause at the Vancouver Olympics I had briefly met Lou
|
| And what his album Berlin meant to me I’m not even gonna to try to explain it
|
| to you
|
| This year has been a strange motherfucker
|
| People gettin' killed in America and France and two 12 year old girls
|
| Are being tried as adults for attempted murder
|
| Where was their father?
|
| Where was their mother while they were being brain washed by Slenderman,
|
| brother?
|
| And Trump is all over the TV
|
| Let’s face it we asked for this fuck because we’ve been surpassed by technology
|
| We’ve have our heads up our asses sending selfies around the planet
|
| And getting run over by cars while we jerk off to Pokeman
|
| So here’s this motherfucker spouting off
|
| And if you think you took no part in his place in this world then you’re fired
|
| Because you’ve not been paying attention and your apprenticeship expired
|
| I’ve digressed but I keep following my path that lead me from first hearing
|
| Berlin when I was 19
|
| To The Power Of The Heart
|
| Where at Lou’s tribute concert I sung and I was honored to have taken part
|
| And the night was magical and humid and dark
|
| Laurie looked for sun, Lou looked for rain, well she had sun that day and at
|
| night Lou had his rain
|
| And I did what I came here to do and shared the Lincoln Center stage
|
| With all of that talent and those amazing singers
|
| And all of those original brains
|
| And tonight from 32nd I hear siren’s creepin' up and trailin' off
|
| And as a walked I saw Sbarro’s and thought of my very first trip to New York
|
| 1992 all I could afford was Pizza and Dunkin Donuts and I had 20 bucks left over
|
| That I spent on a stripper behind a window who reached down and jerked me off
|
| I had a cassette Walkman back then and knew a girl who lived in The Bronx
|
| We went out one night and saw a movie Glenn Gary Glenn Ross
|
| I remembered that just now in this humidity as I turn and I toss
|
| Thinking about Lou and the beautiful things he had not what he had lost
|
| Friends and poetry the love of his life and his beautiful house
|
| And I’m gonna go to sleep now as in this moment there’s nothing more to write
|
| Thank you Laurie I’m forever grateful for that night |