Hot night in the city streets
Old papers blowin' 'round my feet
Some dude's got his eyes on you
Better walk quickly down the avenue
Somewhere somebody's baby cries
A new heart beats as another one dies

It ain't easy but you live and learn
If you don't get what you want
You might get what you deserve

It's a rough town
You give it all just to live in fear
No refuge no place to run
Talkin' 'bout a rough town
Gotta find a way to get outta here
Ain't no way around it
It's a rough town

Cold dawn comes with the break of day
Morning sky turns gun metal grey
From an upstairs window there's a woman scream
A nightmare vision from some junkies dream
An angry fist beatin' on an old steel door
Tell me why you here
Who are you lookin' for?

It ain't easy but it ain't for long
This place is crazy
Tell me, hey, where did things go wrong?

It's a rough town
Middle of the night and the street's alive
It's a gamble it's a chance you take
Talkin' 'bout a rough town
Gonna turn your world inside out
Call it what you want but
It's a rough town

2 a.m. I can't get to sleep
I bin lyin' here on these sweat-stained sheets
Beneath my window the city crawls
It's a rat race outside these walls, Oh Yeah!

It's a rough town
You give it all just to live in fear
No refuge no place to run
Gotta find a way to get outta here
Ain't no way around it
It's a rough town

It's a rough town
Middle of the night and the street's alive
It's a gamble it's a chance you take
Talkin' 'bout a rough town
Gonna turn your world inside out
Call it what you want but
It's a rough town