Verse 1Born in the dust of a Colorado springWith Pa's old hat hangin' on a nailMa was singin' while the coyotes calledAnd the prairie wind told the only taleVerse 2Learned to walk on a hardwood floorLearned to run on the open plainChased the chickens in my bare feetSlept to the rhythm of the freight trainChorusI was born in the dust where my Pa was bornUnder that same old lonesome sunThis land has raised every man in my bloodAnd it ain't done raisin' this oneIt ain't done raisin' this oneVerse 3Ma would read me the Good Book lowPa would carve me a whistle of pineNothin' we had but the sky and the workAnd I never once felt like I needed more than mineChorusI was born in the dust where my Pa was bornUnder that same old lonesome sunThis land has raised every man in my bloodAnd it ain't done raisin' this oneOutroAin't done raisin' this oneAin't done raisin' this one
2Ride Tall, Ride Proud
Verse 1Pa came home with a spotted mareSaid "Boy, she's yours, but you earn her keep"I was eight years old with a heart on fireAnd I couldn't sleep, I couldn't sleepVerse 2Named her Daisy 'cause Ma loved flowersBrushed her down 'til her coat would shineClimbed up tall on that creaky saddleAnd the world below was finally mineChorusFirst horse, first ride, first time I flewWind in my hair and the sky wide bluePa just laughed when I hollered out loudSaid "That's my boy, ride tall, ride proud"Ride tall, ride proudVerse 3Rode her hard through the summer pasturesRode her slow when the snow came downTalked to her like she understood meAnd I swear sometimes she made no soundChorusFirst horse, first ride, first time I flewWind in my hair and the sky wide bluePa just laughed when I hollered out loudSaid "That's my boy, ride tall, ride proud"Ride tall, ride proudOutroFirst horse, first ridePa just smiled with tears in his eyes
3The Road Brings You Back
Verse 1Sixteen years and a head full of firePa said "Stay" but I wanted the roadSlammed the screen door, I had my own codeVerse 2Town boys laughin' at my hand-me-down hatWhiskey burnin' a hole in my chestGot in a fight just to feel like a manAnd I came home bleedin', I came home a messChorusI was too young to know what Pa was tryin' to sayToo young to see the gold in an honest dayHe just shook his head and poured me coffee blackSaid "Boy, you'll learn, and the road brings you back"The road brings you backVerse 3Ma she cried but she patched up my shirtPa just nodded and handed me a rakeSaid "If you're gonna act like a fool todayThen you'll work like a man for your own dang sake"ChorusI was too young to know what Pa was tryin' to sayToo young to see the gold in an honest dayHe just shook his head and poured me coffee blackSaid "Boy, you'll learn, and the road brings you back"The road brings you backOutroToo young to know, too proud to askThe road brings you back, the road brings you back
4He Once Stood Tall
VerseThe barn's still standing but Pa's hands are weakOnce they tamed the wild now they barely speakHe stares at the saddle like it's miles awayMy old man is fading day by dayChorusHe can’t lift a hay bale like he used toCan’t hold the reins and ride the wind throughThe prairie’s wide but his strength is smallHe once stood tall now he can’t stand at allVerse 2The dust on his boots tells a thousand talesOf broken fences and outlaw trailsBut his eyes are cloudy his grip is goneThe father I knew is moving onPrechorusThe wind still whispers his name at nightBut he can’t chase it he’s lost the fightChorusHe can’t lift a hay bale like he used toCan’t rope the moon or the stars he rode toThe horizon calls but he won’t heed the callHe once stood tall now he can’t stand at allBridgeI'll take the reins where Pa left them lyingBut deep inside his son is cryingHis shadow lingers on this dusty landI hold his legacy in my trembling hand
5A Name and a Field
Verse 1Sarah from the schoolhouse, blue ribbon in her hairShe used to pass me notes; I never knew she caredNow Pa's in the ground and the farm's all mineAnd I saw her at the church and lost track of timeVerse 2Twenty-three and tired, hands rough as the plowDidn't think a girl like that would look at me nowBut she smiled at me slow over coffee and pieSaid "I always wondered when you'd open your eyes"ChorusSarah, Sarah, dance with me slowUnder the porch light where the fireflies glowI ain't got much but a name and a fieldBut I'd give you my whole life and all that it yieldsAll that it yieldsVerse 3Walked her home down a long dirt roadAsked if I could call again, she said "I s'pose"Lord I rode home grinnin' like a fool in the darkShe lit up somethin' in my old tired heartChorusSarah, Sarah, dance with me slowUnder the porch light where the fireflies glowI ain't got much but a name and a fieldBut I'd give you my whole life and all that it yieldsAll that it yieldsOutroSarah from the schoolhouse, blue ribbon in her hairLord I'm a lucky man, lucky just to be there
6My Whole Crooked World
Verse 1Got married under the big oak treeWhere Pa proposed to Ma in '53Sarah wore her grandma's laceAnd the whole damn county came on throughVerse 2Fiddler from the next town overPlayed us reels 'til the moon got highWhiskey jars and weddin' cakeOld men dancin' like they wouldn't dieChorusStomp your boots, raise a glass tonightTwo hearts hitched under the porch lightSarah took my hand and said "I do"And my whole crooked world came trueMy whole crooked world came trueVerse 3Carried her over the threshold of that little white houseWhere she'd raise our kids and tend to the rowsBurned my supper the very first nightAnd we laughed 'til we cried, and we cried 'til we dozedChorusStomp your boots, raise a glass tonightTwo hearts hitched under the porch lightSarah took my hand and said "I do"And my whole crooked world came trueMy whole crooked world came trueOutroStomp your boots, raise a glass tonightSarah took my hand and the world came rightThe world came right, the world came right
7Three Pairs of Boots
Verse 1Three little pairs of boots by the doorCole, Ruth, and Jesse, that's all that I needCole's the oldest, got my stubborn jawRuth's got Sarah's eyes and a hunger to readVerse 2Jesse's the baby, eight years oldRides a paint pony I bought down at the fairClimbs up behind me on the motorbikeWith his arms around my waist and the wind in his hairChorusThree pairs of boots by the screen door at nightSarah's apron on the hook in the lightLord I built this life with my own two handsAnd I'm the richest man that ever worked this landRichest man that ever worked this landVerse 3Sunday mornin' we all squeeze in the truckDrive to church with the windows rolled downCole sneaks gum, Ruth reads her bookJesse names every horse for a mile aroundChorusThree pairs of boots by the screen door at nightSarah's apron on the hook in the lightLord I built this life with my own two handsAnd I'm the richest man that ever worked this landRichest man that ever worked this landOutroThree little pairs of boots by the doorLord I couldn't ask for nothin' moreCouldn't ask for nothin' more
8Same Damn Words
Verse 1Cole came home with a bruise on his cheekSmellin' like beer and cheap perfumeSarah cried but I just sat thereStarin' at a boy I used to beVerse 2Lord I see myself in his angry eyesSame hot blood, same burnin' needPoured him coffee, said "Boy, you'll learnAnd the road brings you back when you're ready to seeChorusSomewhere up above I hear Pa laughin'Same damn words comin' out of my mouthThe ones he said when I came home bleedin'The ones I swore I'd never speak outI swore I'd never speak outVerse 3Pa, I finally get what you meantI finally see what you already knewA father just waits with the coffee hotAnd prays that the road brings his boy back homeChorusSomewhere up above I hear Pa laughin'Same damn words comin' out of my mouthThe ones he said when I came home bleedin'The ones I swore I'd never speak outI swore I'd never speak outOutroPa's up there laughin', I can hear him clear"The road brings 'em back, son, the road brings 'em here"The road brings 'em here
9Little Hands on My Back
Verse 1Dusty black leatherWind in my hair nowEngine roarin' thunderLeaving sorrow far behindHighway lines blur fastLike the tears I criedChorusGhost rider beside meLittle hands on my backLaughing in the windYeah my boy rides with meAlways with me nowVerse 2Sun sets like fireBurning memories brightFelt his tiny gripOn my calloused handUsed to ride that ponyNow he rides the skyChorusGhost rider beside meLittle hands on my backLaughing in the windYeah my boy rides with meAlways with me nowBridgeThey say time heals woundsTime just makes 'em deepEvery mile a prayerEvery engine beat a hymnNever alone neverMy boy's right hereChorusGhost rider beside meLittle hands on my backLaughing in the windYeah my boy rides with meAlways with me now
10Sarah's Hands
VerseSun come up every mornin' same old wayBut her hands keep movin' through the dayLike a river that won't slow downCarryin' what we both can't sayPrechorusHear that quiet in the empty hallMakes my whole heart wanna fallChorusOh her hands, Lord, hold the world for meJust for me, just for meSweet, sweet strength I barely seeLiftin' what's too heavy for meVerse 2Jesse's room still got them pony postersBoots in the corner where he left 'em lastShe won't let me touch a single thingAnd I won't ask, I know what it costsBridgeSome folks chase the silver and the goldBut her love is a story untoldA quiet fire, a diamond brightShinin' out in the fading lightChorusOh her hands, Lord, hold the world for meJust for me, just for meSweet, sweet strength I barely seeLiftin' what's too heavy for meOutroSarah's hands, Lord keep her strongSarah's hands, carry us along
11That's Enough for Now, Amen
Verse 1First time Sarah laughed in a year and a halfNeighbor brought a peach pie to the doorSaid, "Town's been prayin', but you can't eat a prayer"And Sarah laughed like she used to beforeVerse 2Ruth came home from college that weekendBrought her books and her big city talkSat on the porch 'til the stars all roseAnd we stepped around the name like a crack in the walkChorusThe porch light's still burnin', the coffee's still warmSarah's hummin' hymns in the kitchen againLord we ain't healed but we ain't brokenAnd that's enough, that's enough for now, amenThat's enough for now, amenVerse 3Jesse's pony's still out there grazin'Old Daisy's ghost in the south pastureCole sent a letter from somewhere in WyomingAnd Sarah read it twice, and she smiled afterChorusThe porch light's still burnin', the coffee's still warmSarah's hummin' hymns in the kitchen againLord we ain't healed but we ain't brokenAnd that's enough, that's enough for now, amenThat's enough for now, amenOutroThe porch light's still burnin', the door ain't lockedOne of these nights, Cole'll come walkin' backCole'll come walkin' back
12I Still Ride at Dawn
Verse 1I still ride at dawn though my back ain’t rightDaisy’s long gone but the new horse knows the waySarah waves from the kitchen windowSun comin’ up where the river flowsVerse 2Cole’s got a wife and a boy of his ownBrings him out every other weekend or soLittle fella looks just like Jesse used toSame damn grin, same golden hairChorusI still ride at dawn, I still feel the landStill got Sarah’s coffee warming my handStill got grandkids climbin’ on my kneeAnd a long life full of all that I loveFull of all that I loveVerse 3Ruth came home with her doctor diplomaSet up shop right here in townSaved more lives than I could countLord, I wear my old man pride like a crownVerse 4I’ll lay down soon where my Pa lays downWhere Jesse’s little marker stands in the groundBut the land goes on and the boys ride outAnd the cowboy story don’t ever passChorusI still ride at dawn, I still feel the landStill got Sarah’s coffee warming my handStill got grandkids climbin’ on my kneeAnd a long life full of all that I loveFull of all that I loveOutroI still ride at dawn, I still ride at dawnThe sun comes up and the cowboy rides onThe cowboy rides on, the cowboy rides on
