All nerve endings shut down
Stiff lipped at the countdown
All systems are go
All systems are gauche
All systems are ghosts
In a can
In a cupboard
In a submarine
There's nothing left inside
In a basket at the bottom of the guillotine
Is where the sailor died
He never said a word
To the jury or the press
And when the ax-blade bit his neck
"Set me free" is all he said
In a pixel
In a portrait
In a T.V. screen
There's nothing left to hide
Stitched each instant by the firing electron beam
Let the camera man decide
And he never said a word
To the jury or the press
When the on-air light turned red
"Cut Away" is all he said
When she opened it up
She dropped her coffee cup
And when the cup hit the ground
The whole damn house came stumbling down
Good by my memory
From this point on I'm unsettling
In Brooklyn we stay home