Brooklyn Roads

If I close my eyes
I can almost hear my mother
Callin', «Neil, go find your brother
Daddy’s home, and it’s time for supper
Hurry on»
And I see two boys
Racin' up two flights of staircase
Squirmin' into Papa’s embrace
And his whiskers warm on their face
Where’s it gone
Oh, where’s it gone
Two floors above the butcher
First door on the right
Life filled to the brim
As I stood by my window
And I looked out of those
Brooklyn roads
I can still recall
The smells of cookin' in the hallways
Rubbers drying in the doorways
And report cards I was always
Afraid to show
Mama’d come to school
And as I’d sit there softly crying
Teacher’d say, «He's just not trying
He’s got a good head if he’d apply it»
But you know yourself
It’s always somewhere else
I built me a castle