Lyrics
Words in sequence
Shoes in your handDon’t wake the stairsMeet me where the white lights end
Run, baby, runBefore the rooster tellsRun, baby, runBefore the church bell sellsLove don’t need a paperWhen the paper got a smellRun, baby, runBefore the rooster tells
I shaved by the pump, moon broke in the panCracked little mirror tryna fix this manOne clean shirt, one stain on the cuffGood shoes whispering, “Don’t scuff us up”
Ring in a tin where the tobacco sleptTwo coins sweating, one promise keptYou came from lace, pearl throat, soft roomI came from smoke, cotton fields, broom
Your name opened doors with a silver keyMine made the doorknob disagreeYou climbed down quiet, silk caught on a nailLooked like a bride escaping her veil
Run, baby, runBefore the rooster tellsRun, baby, runBefore the church bell sellsLove don’t need a paperWhen the paper got a stainRun, baby, runBefore the rooster tells
Clerk slid the license back clean as a knifeLooked at your glove, then looked at my lifeDidn’t say no, but his pen played dead“Boy” .... hit the floor with a rope in its head
You squeezed my wrist, don’t feed that flameI swallowed thunder and signed no nameSome rooms don’t shout, they just measure your faceLeave your breath outside in a separate place
So we took our vows where the freight yards leanCoal smoke choir, moonlight greenYou laughed, “This veil smell like train track heat”I said, “That’s old chains leaving on beat”
You said, “They’ll say you stole me”I said, “Say you chose”You said, “They’ll come with lanterns”I said, “That’s how night knows”
Run, baby, runBefore the rooster tellsRun, baby, runBefore the church bell sellsLove don’t need a paperWhen the paper got a stainRun, baby, runBefore the rooster tells
Down where the white city powdered its faceBig wheel winked from a borrowed placeStraw hats sold wonder, sweet tea, sinTagged every smile, weighed every skin
Man with a ruler said heaven had chartsMeasured our heads, never measured our heartsPostcards grinned in the gaslight glowWhole world fenced in for a nickel a show
You kissed me soft where the tent seam splitLove struck a match and the night got litNot cheap trouble, not midnight playTrouble like dawn with something to say
What if morning finds usThen morning gon’ seeWhat if they curse usLet curses beWhat if they hunt youThey already doWhat if I lose everythingI came with nothing but you
Run, baby, runBefore the rooster tellsRun, baby, runBefore the church bell sellsLove don’t need a paperWhen the paper got a smellRun, baby, runBefore the rooster tells
Run, baby, runPast the porch, past the flameTwo hearts under one coatAnd the moon forgot our names
By dawn, you had no windowBy noon, I had no townBut your head hit my shoulderWhen the rain came down
They can write me as dangerThey can write you as blindBut the border blinked firstAnd we crossed it in time
