Track 8 of the album Midnight Mallets · 2016
Three A.M., Chairs in a Row
“Chairs in a row, a clock ticking slow, and nobody to talk to. The loneliest hour, sung as gently as I could manage.”
jazz · hushed jazz · torch jazz · 4:57
Lyrics
Three in the morning, chairs in a row The clock on the wall ticks slow A vending machine hums a lonely tune Coffee gone cold in a paper cup Somebody's name gets called out soft And every head looks up Chairs in a row, and we all wait Holding the hours, holding the weight Nobody speaks, but we understand The kindness of a stranger's hand Chairs in a row, and the night is long Somewhere a door, somewhere a song Wait with me, wait with me Till the morning comes in gently A woman beside me folds her coat Then folds it once again A boy in a tie from a long day's work Counts the tiles to pass the time I pass the sugar, she nods her thanks That is a conversation here We speak in the small things When the big things are too near Chairs in a row, and we all wait Holding the hours, holding the weight Nobody speaks, but we understand The kindness of a stranger's hand Chairs in a row, and the night is long Somewhere a door, somewhere a song Wait with me, wait with me Till the morning comes in gently Then the door swings wide And a tired nurse smiles Not for me, but for the woman with the coat And her whole face opens up like a window And we all breathe out, a hundred miles The sky outside is turning grey Then pearl, then softest gold I did not know I could be glad For someone I'd never known Chairs in a row, and the light comes in It lays its hand on all of us Chairs in a row, and we all wait Holding the hours, holding the weight Nobody speaks, but we understand The kindness of a stranger's hand Chairs in a row, and the night is long Somewhere a door, somewhere a song Wait with me, wait with me Till the morning comes in gently Till the morning comes in gently