Night Patrol
Robert Cray Band Lyrics

See him cuddled in the shadows
Observing a homeless man sleeping in the dark alley

Sleepin' on his cardboard bed
The homeless man is sleeping on a makeshift bed made up of cardboard

Using rags for a pillow
The man is so poor that he is using rags as a pillow

Where he lays his unwashed head
The man's head is unwashed, indicating his lack of access to basic hygiene necessities

His blanket's old newspaper
The only thing the man has to cover himself is an old newspaper

Not much good against the snow
The newspaper is not enough to keep the man warm in the cold weather

See so many like him out there
The singer has seen many people like the homeless man on the streets

When you walk the night patrol
The artist is on a night patrol and encountering these situations

Oh, you wonder where he came from
The artist wonders about the man's background and how he ended up on the streets

Where he's gonna go
The artist is curious about the man's future and where he will end up

Was it a woman or a bottle?
The singer speculates what caused the man's downfall - a woman or alcohol

That's brought him down so low
The artist is aware that something must have caused the man to reach a rock-bottom state

What's happened to his family?
The singer wonders if the man has a family and if they are aware of his current situation

Do they know he's out here in the cold?
The singer is concerned if the man's family knows about his rough life on the streets

He's just a nameless soldier
The man on the streets is just one of the anonymous many struggling for survival

Marching on the night patrol
The artist is continuing his night patrol rounds

Like that girl on the corner
The artist notices a young girl on the street corner

She can't be more than seventeen
The singer believes that the girl is under eighteen

She's run away from somewhere
The singer assumes that the girl has fled from her home or a difficult situation

Taking nothing but her dreams
The girl has no possession except for her dreams or aspirations

Now those dreams are lying shattered
The girl's dreams have been destroyed by the harsh reality of the streets

As the street exacts its toll
The street life has taken its toll on the girl

And she's just another victim
The girl has become a victim of the harsh street life

Lost out on the night patrol
The artist pities the girl who is lost and alone on the streets

Oh, you could ask me why I'm out here
The singer questions his own motives and why he is patrolling the streets

Where do I fit into the scene?
The singer is uncertain about his role in the bigger picture of the street life

Now I'm drawing unemployment
The singer is currently unemployed

Got replaced by a machine
The artist's job was replaced by a machine, leading to his unemployment

And I'm tortured by my bad habits
The artist is struggling with his own bad habits which he cannot seem to control

Sometimes, I lose this struggle to control
The singer admits that he is often defeated by his own habits and shortcomings

And the street has its attractions
The singer is attracted to the street life and its hardships in some way

When you walk the night patrol
The artist's job requires him to walk the streets at night