Coat Check, Ticket 114

Lyrics

I work the coat check at the Blue Parade
Behind a half-door in the hall
I trade a little paper ticket
For a camel coat, a fur, a shawl
I know the weather by the shoulders
I know who's happy by the hat
And by the end of every evening
I know exactly where it's at

Everybody leaves with something
Almost everybody does

Ticket one-one-four, ticket one-one-four
A grey wool coat still hanging by the door
The band packed up, the lights went low
And nobody came back for it, I don't know
Ticket one-one-four

Last winter in the freezing rain
A man in a hurry hung it up
He winked and said I'll be back later
And he took the other half of the ticket, what luck
There's a glove in the left pocket
And a matchbook from a place downtown
And a folded-up programme from a dance hall
With a phone number written upside down

Everybody leaves with something
Almost everybody does

Ticket one-one-four, ticket one-one-four
A grey wool coat still hanging by the door
The band packed up, the lights went low
And nobody came back for it, I don't know
Ticket one-one-four

So I brush the shoulders every Friday
And I keep the collar nice and straight
If he walks in on a Saturday
I won't say a word, I won't make him wait
Maybe he found a better evening
Maybe he found a warmer coat
But a girl who keeps the hanger waiting
Keeps a little music in her throat

And I've been thinking, ticket in my hand
Maybe I'm the one who's left a thing behind
A little hope, a little dancing
Hanging in the cloakroom of my mind

Ticket one-one-four, ticket one-one-four
A grey wool coat still hanging by the door
The band packed up, the lights went low
But tonight I think I'll wear it home, you know
Ticket one-one-four

Ticket one-one-four
Walking out into the rain
Ticket one-one-four