Just Like Downtown

I grew up on an island
Somewhere near Chicago
Learned how to talk rough
Just like downtown
You could drive to the lake
And it sure seemed to me
It smelled like fresh water
But it felt like the sea

That's right it's so long now
You cannot fight this thing any old how
You can run fast, you can try so hard
But you can't shake the ache or the lake of
Who you are

There was nothing to do
But to shut up and drive
To the water, down the backroads
To the south and east sides
Some girls got through high school
Some never will
Some walked with a hunger
They never would fill

That's right it's so long now
You cannot fight this thing any old how
You can run fast, you can try so hard
But you can't shake the ache or the lake of
Who you are

You can cough out the city
You can change your old clothes
You can soften your accent
So nobody knows
But whenever I'm honest
Something in me
Still looks for fresh water
That feels like the sea

That's right it's so long now
You cannot fight this thing any old how
You can run fast, you can try so hard
But you can't shake the ache or the lake of
Who you are

I close my eyes
And I can still see
That no one forgets
What it's like to be
Who it is to be

If you see me inclining when no one is speaking
If you sense that I'm wandering somewhere in my mind
If you listen real close you might hear the whisper
Or see how the sunsets on the lake could shine and shine

That's right it's so long now
You cannot fight this thing any old how
You can run fast, you can try so hard
But you can't shake the ache or the lake of
Who you are

I grew up on an island somewhere near Chicago
Learned how to talk tough just like downtown