You love the city When you're knee-deep in confetti One big hazy birthday party On a Sunday I loved you plenty Like I tried to love the city But my favorite's still the glittering From far away Okay, okay, okay I fled the county Headed deep in the Mojave Where the sky is wide and hungry When the sun's high I felt the desert dream Of where an ocean used to be I'm drowning in a memory Of high tide Alright, alright, alright California aches In her tectonic plates She waits to make a break into the sea Crying for a quake Mourning empty lakes Crying without water isn't easy I love the city Like a homemade house of holies Like the sidewalk shrine you only ever pass by And if some summer's eve The tremors bring us to our knees You'll say you saw it coming in our fault lines Alright, alright, alright California coughs The high is wearing off She's trying to get by without the rain And when I'm borne aloft To somewhere green and soft I'll watch the wildfires from an airplane I love you like a hillside up in flame