New Amsterdam Songtext
von Elvis Costello & The Attractions

You′re sending me tulips mistaken for lilies
You give me your lip after punching me silly
You turn my head till it roll down the brain-drain
If I had any sense now I wouldn't want it back again

New Amsterdam it′s become much too much
'Til I have the possession of everything she touches
'Til I step on the brake to get out of her clutches
′Til I speak double dutch to a real double duchess

Down on the main spring listen to the tick-tock
Collect all the faces that move in your lot
Twice-shy and dog-tied because you′ve been bitten
Everything you say now sounds like it was ghost-written


New Amsterdam it's become much too much
′Til I have the possession of everything she touches
'Til I step on the brake to get out of her clutches
′Til I speak double dutch to a real double duchess

Back in london they'll take you to heart after a little while
Though I look right at home I still feel like an exile

Somehow I found myself down at the dockside
Thinking about the old days of Liverpool and Rotherhide
Transparent people who live on the other side
Living a life that is almost like suicide

New Amsterdam it′s become much too much
'Til I have the possession of everything she touches
'Til I step on the brake to get out of her clutches
′Til I speak double dutch to a real double duchess