Noel’s Lament Song Lyrics by Kholby Wardell, Ride the Cyclone World Premiere Cast Recording Ensemble
In my life, I was Noel Gruber who worked at Taco BellIn Uranium City, SaskatchewanBut, in my dreams, I played a different roleI was Monique Gibeau in post-war France
A hooker with a heart of black charcoalI write poems to burn by firelightDrink champagne and guzzle ginGood girls call me “The Town Bicycle”Don’t knock it ’til you’ve tried my life of sin
Oh, Claude, my pimp, knows never mess with meLast prick did that faded quick to blackI have no idea where to find him, officersBut if you do, please mention that I’d like to have returnedThe pretty knife that I stuck ten times in his back
For I sing songs until the break of dawnI embrace a new man every nightMy life’s one never-ending carnivalA whirl of boozy-floozy flashing lightI want to be that fucked-up girl
He said, “I think I am in love with you”I’ve heard that lie a million times beforeOh, tonight I give in to the fantasyTake love when you can, when you’re a whore
For I sing songs until the break of dawnI embrace a new man every nightMy life’s one never-ending carnivalA whirl of boozy-floozy flashing lightI want to be that fucked-up girl
So now I sell my love for opiumIn some rat-infested Chinese diveAt night, I burn myself with cigarettesJust to somehow prove I’m still alive
Eight months later, I catch typhoid fluKicked out, I see the ugly light of dayDying in an alley, a priest kneels down to me
“My child, do you have any final words to the Lord you’d like to say?”“Oui, tell him that, like him, I choose to burn out rather than fade away!”
For I sing songs until the break of dawnI embrace a new man every nightMy life’s one never-ending carnivalA whirl of boozy-floozy flashing light
For I sing songs until the break of dawnI embrace a new man every nightMy life’s one never-ending carnivalA whirl of boozy-floozy flashing lightI want to be that fucked-up girlI wanna be that fucked-up girl
Broken heart, a flask of ginTattooed with a safety pinTeeth all stained with nicotineRunning nylons, shattered dreamsSuper crusty, holy terrorWild eyes and black mascara
Broken heart, a flask of ginTattooed with a safety pinTeeth all stained with nicotineRunning nylons, shattered dreamsSuper crusty, holy terrorWild eyes and black mascara
If I could have just one dream(If he could have just one dream)I’d be that fucked-up girl!Hey!