Midnight shift on Wacker Drive
Checker cab keeps me alive
Brass watch sits on velvet red
Listening to what the horn said
Chicago breathes a lowdown tune
Basement smoke beneath the moon
Saxophone cries gold and blue
Brass watch hears the whole night through
Fare dropped off at Division Street
Left a tip and worn-out seat
Watch ticks loud in waistcoat pocket
Hears the bass drum beat a rocket
Chicago breathes a lowdown tune
Basement smoke beneath the moon
Saxophone cries gold and blue
Brass watch hears the whole night through
Snow falls heavy on the Lake
Engine coughs for heaven's sake
Brass face gleams in dashboard glow
Hears a piano playing low
Years of fares and frozen hands
Know the rhythm of these lands
Time don't wait for red light green
Sweetest music stays unseen
South Side club door swings wide
Music spills on winter tide
Watch jumps hours in a trance
Caught inside the sax's dance
Chicago breathes a lowdown tune
Basement smoke beneath the moon
Saxophone cries gold and blue
Brass watch hears the whole night through
Dawn cracks gray on Michigan
Shift is done the watch gives in
Tuck it close to driver's chest
Blue notes put the night to rest
Chicago breathes a lowdown tune
Basement smoke beneath the moon
Saxophone cries gold and blue
Brass watch hears the whole night through
Tick tock goes the driver's friend
Blue note drifting on the wind