You’ve got to be cool
When you walk in
And your head spins
And your tongue wriggles
Like a fish out of water
And all the faces
Are doors to strange
Unknown lands
You need a cigarette
In your hands
You’ve got to be cool
When the big man
Calls out your name
You’ve got to be cool
When you sit down
Don’t wear a frown
When you’re in company
When you feel strange
And your knees
Get in the way
Got to find something to say
Order a drink
When you feel the floor sink
A nod’s as good
As a wink
To a blind horse horse
You’ve got to be cool
When you want more
Of what gives you the fear
The thing that you bought
That brought you here
When the noise
Is giving you a heart attack
And your eyes sweat
And it’s cold in your bones
You don’t know the time
You think that things are not good
Your stomach turns
At the thought of food
Your lungs flap like
Heavy velvet curtains
In the smoke-filled room
Somebody’s digging
A hole in your head
They say they smell
Something dead
And they need to bury it

You’ve got to be cool
At all costs
Even when you’ve lost
More than anyone else
At least that makes you special
When the heat burns
And heads turn
The place is filling up
Just when you want to go home
The thought keeps returning
The one that you hate
The one that questions
The hand of fate
You’ve got to be cool
You’ve got to be cool
When the girl there
Keeps running her fingers
Through her hair
When people ask you
What you do
And if the truth be told
You’ve got to be cool