Think I was born a little late From my discriminating taste I will be happier today If I have a chance to swing I wanna land my time machine Down in the days of [?] Back when the Cotton Club was king And they all knew how to swing
Where the boys lit cigarettes with a sneer And the girls wore jasmine behind their ears And the noise tasted like smoke and bad gin Oh I wish I could be drinking it in
And those harlem nights never had to end So the harlem guys can strut their stuff again In their two-toned shoes, shade of Langston Hughes In those harlem nights, I'll be there tonight
Doo doo doo
I'd add some polish in my hair A sense of cool and savoir-faire A dash of danger and a flair When I get the chance to swing They had the magic in their feet A hundred forty-second street
The gals were sugar, she was sweet Yeah, the cat knew how to swing
Where the boys lit cigarettes with a sneer And the girls wore jasmine behind their ears And the noise tasted like smoke and bad gin Oh I wish I could be drinking it in
And those harlem nights never had to end So the harlem guys can strut their stuff again In their two-toned shoes, shade of Langston Hughes Give me harlem nights, I'll be there tonight
Where the boys lit cigarettes with a sneer
And the girls wore jasmine behind their ears And the noise tasted like smoke and bad gin Oh I wish I could be drinking it in, in, in, in!
And those harlem nights never had to end So the harlem guys can strut their stuff again In their two-toned shoes, shade of Langston Hughes Give me harlem nights, I'll be there tonight
Harlem nights, harlem nights
And those harlem nights never had to end So the harlem guys can strut their stuff again In their two-toned shoes, shade of Langston Hughes Give me harlem nights, I'll be there tonight!