Nica

Calm down Nica
You don't have to wait outside of the Stanhope
For the doctor
Charlie Parker woke up in your apartment
On the sofa
And he'll be fine, once he's walked it off
And he'll meet you
In the front row of the Five Spot around midnight
So load up the Bentley
And bring the hollowed out bible with the whiskey
52nd Street
No phone calls from the cops or from your family
Can reach you
They all know you, you're famous in your fur coat
With Thelonius
The high priest and the baroness

The cats, all called you a butterfly
But that's not quite right
Pannonica is a moth
Known to come alive in the dark of night
She might flutter by your table
She might whisper something secret in your ear
"You only need to hear one piece of advice
Each of us only gets one life"

So calm down Nica
You don't have to drive on down to Baltimore
Anymore
The Cabaret Card's waiting in the morning mail
Your mercy missions for musicians didn't fail
The unyears, they are over
You're forever black, brown, beige
The bebop baroness

The cats, they called you a butterfly
But that's not quite right
Pannonica is a moth
Known to come alive in the dark of night
She might flutter by your table
She might whisper something secret in your ear
"You only need to hear one piece of advice
Each of us only gets one life"
Nica spent hers flying
She was freer than the French
She always said
"Just listen to the music, man
And throw your heart over the fence
And the rest will follow"