The Streets of Manhattan
(Sing to the tune of “The Streets of Laredo” or the modified melody recorded by Lynette Hensley)

1. One morning while walking the streets of Manhattan,
The season was spring and the weather was fair.
I encountered a woman in a white linen lab coat,
Sweating with fever and gasping for air.

2. “You can see by my outfit that I am a doctor,”
These words she did say with a tear in her eye.
“Please keep your distance but stay here beside me
For I’ve got the virus and I know I will die.”

3. “Please say goodbye to my husband and children,
To my friends and companions, and also my folks.
Tell them that someone - that someone was lying
When he said the virus was only a hoax – yes…”

4. “The President told us we need not be fearful
His advisors stood ‘round him and nodded their heads,
But we ran out of masks for the doctors and nurses,
and we ran out of gowns and we ran out of beds.”

5. “Throughout our country the governors pleaded,
’Please send us supplies, we can’t fight this alone.’”
“The reply from a White House devoid of compassion
was ’I’m not your shipping clerk, you’re on your own.’”

6. “The CDC told us ’reuse your equipment…’”
“They said it was safe, but I didn’t agree.
Still l had to do what I could for each patient,
and the one I could not do the best for was me.”

7. Think of me kindly and comfort my family
And promise you’ll tell them, ‘cause I don’t have long.
That these are the words that I want on my tombstone:
"'She did what was right and she knew what was wrong.’”

8. Keeping my distance, I dialed nine-eleven
But before they could get there – she passed away.
And she wasn’t alone, there were more than eight hundred
Who died in Manhattan from the virus that day.

9. One morning while walking the streets of Manhattan,
The season was spring and the weather was fair.
I encountered a woman in a white linen lab coat,
Sweating with fever and gasping for air.

Lyrics © April 19, 2020 by Jonathan Talbot
www.talbot1.com
jonathan@talbot1.com
Phone: 845-258-4620 (East Coast hours please)