I was the cleaning man
I was the cleaning man
Listened to the radio play 'Cowgirl in the Sand'
When I was the cleaning man

I was the cleaning man
After everyone had come
To talk and drink and dance
I could see the evening scene reflecting in the cans

Now echoes of the empty room return with loneliness
And in the darkness of the night
I take the devil's hand
When I was the cleaning man

I was death's hand
I was heroin
To somebody I shouldn't have been

I was heroin
I was death's hand
I was the thief who stole all those women and men
I stood at the funerals of relatives and friends
And like a Midas eye wishing my greed and curse would end

When I was the cleaning man
When I was the cleaning man
When I was the cleaning man