Washington

it's midnight downtown

it's been raining for days

rain beats down

it covers the streets

with its sparkling skin

in the deli purple light

a woman in a party dress

pays for some milk

yellow cab stops for a light

two men in black hats are running

a messenger on a bike

pile drivers pounding

they've set up some lights

they're digging a hole

it's filling up with black water

rainy days, rainy nights

steam rises, covers the city

Laurie Anderson

Street

pieces of old newspaper

float like paper boats

they slide along the rushing water

in the gutter

rainy days, rainy nights

rain falls down and covers the city

it falls from fabulous heights

covers the streets

with its sparkling skin

and over on jane street

they're shooting that movie again

they just can't seem to get it right

behind a warehouse

in a burned out building

a man is sleeping in a cardboard box

on a pile of salt

rainy days, rainy nights

rain falls down and covers the city

a man on a park bench

he sits in the pouring rain