Downtown Train
Tom Waits Lyrics

Outside another yellow moon
The artist describes the presence of a yellow moon

Has punched a hole in the nighttime, yes
The yellow moon has created a hole in the sky at night

I climb through the window and down the street
The artist is sneaking out of a window and walking down the street

I'm shining like a new dime
The artist feels new and vibrant

The downtown trains are full
The trains in the city are crowded

With all those Brooklyn girls
The trains are full of girls from Brooklyn

They try so hard to break out of their little worlds
The girls are attempting to escape their current situations

Well, you wave your hand and they scatter like crows
The artist observes how these girls react to someone they admire

They have nothing that will ever capture your heart
The artist suggests that the girls lack the qualities required to win the heart of his love

They're just thorns without the rose
The artist suggests that, while the girls may be interesting, they lack the attraction of his love interest

Be careful of them in the dark
The artist warns that these girls may be dangerous or deceptive in the dark

Oh if I was the one
The artist wonders what would happen if he were the one his love interest chose

You chose to be your only one
The artist wonders what it would be like if his love interest chose him over the others

Oh baby can't you hear me now, can't you hear me now?
The artist expresses his desire for his love interest to hear him and his love for her

Will I see you tonight
The artist questions whether he will see his love interest tonight

On a downtown train?
The artist references the possibility of seeing his love interest on a train in the city

Every night it's just the same
The artist suggests that every night is a repetition of the same routine

You leave me lonely, now
The artist expresses the loneliness he feels without his love interest

I know your window and I know it's late
The artist knows where his love interest lives and is aware of the time

I know your stairs and your doorway
The artist is familiar with his love interest's home, including the stairs and doorway

I walk down your street and past your gate
The artist walks down his love interest's street and passes by the gate to her home

I stand by the light at the four-way
The artist stands by a streetlight at an intersection

You watch them as the fall
The artist suggests that his love interest watches other men fail to win her over

Oh baby, they all have heart attacks
The artist suggests that these other men become overwhelmed with emotion upon seeing his love interest

They stay at the carnival
The artist suggests that these other men remain captivated by his love interest and never leave

But they'll never win you back
The artist suggests that his love interest will never return to these men once she has moved on

All of my dreams just fall like rain
The artist's dreams about his love interest are unfulfilled and futile

Well, on a downtown train
The artist repeats the title of the song in its final verses, perhaps referencing a final, desperate attempt to see his love interest on a train in the city