Hundred Dollar Bill

he was practically a stranger
and not particularly drunk
when he took a hundred dollar bill
and put it in my cup
i don't see ben franklin
too often in this place
but george washington
now there's a familiar face
so i took that hundred dollar bill
and put it in my pocket
like a photograph of an old lover
like hair in a locket
it felt so crisp and new
and it crinkled as i's walking
i took it out to show my friends
got everybody talking
about my hundred dollar bill
given by stranger
and everyone was envious
they said "mike, money's gonna change you."
but i could not bare to break it
into twenties, fives and ones
'cause it was something sacred
like the memory of someone
so i kept that hundred dollar bill
safely in my pocket
like a photograph of an old lover
like hair in a locket
but in my heart i knew
it was only a hundred dollar bill
the barman had a stack of them
in the drawer beneath his till
so when it was late and i was out of cash
and wanting one more wine
i took out that big old 'c' note
for the last time
and i paid it to the barman
he gave me twenties, fives and ones
correct change and a glass of wine
but somehow i felt i'd been done
see, i missed that hundred dollar bill
folded in my pocket
like a photograph of an old lover
like hair in a locket
now i'm broke again
but i've got this song i wrote
i turned a hundred dollar bill
into a tune with an anecdote
so i could sit up on this stool
and sing it in this bar
hoping that a stranger
will put something in my jar
like a photograph of an old lover
like hair in a locket
if i get a hundred dollar bill
i'm gonna keep it in my pocket