Lyrics Avenue A, Shanghai, Hollywood - Jeffrey Lewis

Avenue A, Shanghai, Hollywood

Once upon a time there was a princess man
He had the special powers of the checkout scan
He could price out any product from the UPCs
But he couldn’t see the forest for the symmetries
A perfect paranoia now engulfs my pets
That I’m using them as simple social safety nets
I wish this loneliness upon myself, I’m told
Cause both puppy chow and vengeance aren’t just served cold
Meeting with the neighbor traps you in a chat
The dog is kind of bored until she lays down flat
I just walk out and wander like a floating bag
And a city dog can always get a hearty wag
So face it, you can’t win, who has to try this hard?
I guess the ace that’s in my sleeve is just a pity card
But I know I rode a camel from this camera shot
And I must’ve had some sexy times that I forgot
I wait to fall in love, I wait to see Brazil
I wait to see if plants survive my windowsill
I wait to see the Northern lights I always missed
Like chicken breast, it’s piled in my bucket list
But with laughter and with pain that’s a broken heart
When happy ever after is the way it starts
But if there’s potholes in the rock and roll I tell
At least it’s still a pothole on the road to hell
Avenue A was once enthused I guess
In retrospect compared to all this plywood mess
Like a dog sits in depression touching chin to floor
No one with a job has got the dough no more
Now he’s packing heat and gigging in Shanghai
And no one knows he’s secretly a famous guy
An everlasting fire burns among the cancer smoke
Like a journalist still asking «what is antifolk?»
Anyone can catalogue the reasons here
Any rationale can be a thing I think
Any word of welcome can be sweet and clear
With a hidden scammy virus in the hyperlink
But tell us little stories till we feel more good
Tell us little stories just like Hollywood
Tell us little stories so the hours pass
As we row to reach the island of the middle class