Track Insight / Lyrics
After midnight, grease stains my thumb
I flip six patties, hear the engine hum
A dancer leaves her roses on the sill
I saw her wedding ring, so one more refill
Her fare was crumpled, marked with blue ink
She cried, Just take me where the lights bend pink
Two in the morning, coffee on the sill
Four breakfast plates are stacked beside the grill
A salesman asks if laughter helps him pay
His wife had called their number from the bay
He leaves a twenty folded in his hand
Says, Sometimes getting home is all the plan
I remember every fare
Coins and paper, places everywhere
I know the shortcuts through the dashboard glare
I know which church bells tremble in the square
One fare was laughter, one was an empty chair
Still, I know the road that brought us there
I remember every fare
Three gray windows, frost across the frame
A nurse in blue requests a ride by name
She leaves her bracelet on the vinyl chair
I mark the time beneath the meter glare
Her fare was silence, but her eyes were loud
I crossed the bridge with all the city wrapped in cloud
Four-thirty shadows cross the yellow line
Two kids in leather huddle close to mine
Their mother pays in quarters, coin by coin
Grandma called from windows framed in pine
One boy asks if taxi drivers know the road
The other says, They guide you back to where you go
I remember every fare
Coins and paper, places everywhere
I know the shortcuts through the dashboard glare
I know which church bells tremble in the square
One fare was laughter, one was an empty chair
Still, I know the road that brought us there
I remember every fare
At five, the griddle cools beneath my hand
The regulars stack their chairs where they had planned
Blue dawn touches silver, apron, coffee can
A final order wakes the lonely counter man
My cab idles, patient as a hound
All these small lives turn my tired wheels round
The morning bus arrives with crumbs and rain
A baker swings his tin, then checks the lane
A wedding party crowds around the stand
White rice, old vows, and one determined hand
They ask if I would drive the bridal train
I laugh and say, Tonight, the fares all feel the same
I remember every fare
Coins and paper, worn and everywhere
I know the shortcut by the dashboard glare
I know which church bells tremble in the square
One fare was laughter, one was an empty chair
Now every road I drove still leads me there
I remember every fare
Yes, I remember every fare
Morning light comes silver through the pane
I rinse the pans and wipe the counter clean
The meter's dark, the coffee can is still
The taxi rests beneath the window sill
My hands remember every turn and lane
The fare may end, but I will know the way
