Track 4 of the album Last Call, Low Light · 2007
Lipstick on the Last Set List
“The most private thing I've ever admitted on a record, a kiss pressed to a set list. We got it on the first take and never tried again.”
jazz ballad · torch song · cabaret · 4:38
Lyrics
There's a smudge of red on the set list Where I pressed my lips to the page Thirty years of Saturdays, darling And I still get nervous on the stage The room goes soft, the glasses glitter The pianist gives me a knowing glance I fold the paper into my palm And take one more tender chance Lipstick on the last set list A kiss for the song I never missed Every ballad was a letter Every lamp was a friend Lipstick on the last set list Let me sing it once more to the end I've sung to lovers and to strangers To a widower in the corner chair To a girl who came in crying And left with the quiet there They never knew my name, my darling But they knew the way I held the note Like a coat for a cold evening Like a hand on a sleeping throat Lipstick on the last set list A kiss for the song I never missed Every ballad was a letter Every lamp was a friend Lipstick on the last set list Let me sing it once more to the end And if the night should ever stop calling If the piano should close its lid I'll keep the paper in my pocket With the little red kiss I hid So here's the last one, soft and slow For whoever needs it, here tonight I'll leave a mark on the song, my dear And the room will keep the light Lipstick on the last set list A kiss for the song I never missed Every ballad was a letter Every lamp was a friend Lipstick on the last set list Let me sing it once more to the end One more kiss, one more song Goodnight, goodnight