Curtis & Shepard

Lyrics

[Verse 1] Shepard's where we want him, he's staying off of Cedar He's shacked up with some princess with a fish tank and a fever Her daddy is a doctor, he sends some decent checks He said he's sorry that he didn't have more time [Verse 2] Sometimes when they sail off, she forgets to feed the fish And they float up to the top to drift in the abyss She removes the ones not moving with a sacred slotted spoon Drops them in the ashtray and she sighs and pretty soon she says [Chorus 1] "We should probably make a wish now" And they wish for new inventions To make this life more easy 'Cause lately it's been hard [Verse 3] Curtis moved with purpose, but he wouldn't say what it was He does something with the hubcaps and the Independent trucks Skates some empty warehouse and waits around for lunch When they get in touch, he starts to really hustle [Verse 4] It's a tricky little business, it's hard to thread that needle To build a clear consensus with independent people He's always had the feeling that he'd never see the ocean He'd be more apt to negotiate if the window wasn't closing [Chorus 2] And he dreams of sweeping vistas And machines that clean the streets And he wishes it was easy And he's sorry that he didn't have more time [Verse 5] Shepard's where we left him, Princess got recalled To Phoenix by her father, who's in talks to cut her off Shepard wants to go somewhere with a little better weather But he didn't have time to pull it all together [Verse 6] Curtis is all business as he sits and cleans the pistol A decade spent in limbo, waiting on the whistle All the years they built up prisons from decisions that we made He's coming up on Riverside like he's off to the crusades [Chorus 3] When Curtis kicks the door in Then Shepard's on his knees And Curtis says "I'm sorry That we didn't have more time What went down in '89 And again in '93 You did things in the city The city's still not happy Remember in the garden In 1997?" And Curtis pulls the trigger Now Shepard can't remember