Song Description

SNAKE PIT Intended originally as a purging of experiences at Cleopatra?s Needle, a jazz spot on New York?s upper west side, the bossa nova groove of SNAKE PIT (a punning reference to the fatal asp) has turned out to be an accurate expose of the club scene in Manhattan. From the opening line ?Hey Joe, set ?em up again?, one hears the echo of classic noir ballads like ONE FOR MY BABY, ANGEL EYES, and LUSH LIFE. The soulful, serpentine flute of David ?Fathead? Newman undulates throughout the song and a wild group-solo finale serves to conjure the sounds and sights of the sleepless city.

Lyrics

SNAKE PIT (5:13)
Hey Joe, set 'em up again
Merlot, for my lady friend
Used to go, you remember when
Up to the Snake Pit

Somewhere, on the street of fate
Unfair, but the jazz was great
Step in there, until twilight's break
Up at the Snake Pit

Venue, for the lonely one
So blue, maybe under the gun
Nothin's new, under midnight sun
Up at the Snake Pit

(CHORUS)
Lush lives beneath the crush that
Booze hides the blues that rush to
Unwind through tears 'n toil
Our darkest fears, our mortal coil

Boss man, beatin' up his wife
She'd jam, while she drugged her life
Tension ran, too thick for a knife
Up at the Snake Pit

Cat's knew, 'bout the price you paid
Devil's due, so that jazz was played
Gigs are few, dirty deals were made
Up at the Snake Pit

(CHORUS)

My scene, every Wednesday night
Still green, but my heart was right
Made me keen, made me tight
Up at the Snake Pit

Too close, so the dance would end
Let's toast, to the past my friend
Every ghost, that we knew back then
Up at the Snake Pit

(CHORUS)

It goes on and on and on and on
You know it don't stop
Every night, in the city