Name Tags Off

Turn the low end on

Apron rolled in a canvas bag
Flour on the cuff of a borrowed coat
He hangs his radio out of sight
She wipes the last milk from her sleeve
Checkered trousers beside the decks
Work shoes planted under red light
Tomorrow's clear; the shift is done
The city doesn't need us tonight

No bell, no ticket, no table three
The next thing moving belongs to me

Name tags off, turn the low end on
Nobody needs a thing till the morning's gone
Not what we carry, not what we cost
Look at us now with our name tags off

Off the clock
Into the pocket

She says, "I'm Mina," not, "What can I get?"
He says, "I'm Daniel," not, "Mind the step"
Someone brings her water for a change
She takes a seat and learns his name
The chef taps time on his own two knees
The porter laughs with his whole head back
No one is waiting for a plate
No one is waving us over for that

Name tags off, turn the low end on
Nobody needs a thing till the morning's gone
Not what we carry, not what we cost
Look at us now with our name tags off

Nobody calls my name to ask for something
You call it just to pull me in
I forgot how different it could sound
When all you want is me beside you

Name tags off, turn the low end on
Everybody knows who's been here all along
Not just the jobs that we do so well
Name tags off, let the real names show

Name tags off
That's Mina. That's Daniel. That's us