# HELL ON A DIRT ROAD Cairn · Original lyrics · Eight songs from the county line after dark ## 1. Hell on a Dirt Road ### Intro Leave the gate wide open. ### Verse County line sign got a hole through the O, I came back rich in the things I owe. Two bald tires and a dashboard saint, Whole town betting on the brakes I ain't. Mama said son keep your name out of smoke, I said mine only shows when the daylight broke. Boot heel sparks on a tailgate throne, If the night needs trouble tell it I am home. ### Hook Hell on a dirt road, heaven in the dust, Bass in the bed making gold out of rust. Let the whole field shake, let the fence lean low, We got nowhere to be but everywhere to go. ### Verse Sheriff rolled slow with his window halfway, Said that thing loud enough to wake yesterday. I said yesterday owes me a whole damn year, Turned up the low end till it disappeared. Jenny brought ice in a feed store sack, Roy got paid and he bought the ice back. No red rope at the edge of this crowd, If your heart still knocks you can come get loud. ### Bridge Cut those lights and hear that ground, Every lost name coming round. One more kick and the stars fall down, This old field is a brand new town. ### Hook Hell on a dirt road, heaven in the dust, Bass in the bed making gold out of rust. Let the whole field shake, let the fence lean low, We got nowhere to be but everywhere to go. ### Outro Leave the gate wide open. ## 2. Chrome Plated Heartache ### Intro She kept the spare key. ### Verse You left a ring on the dashboard dust, Round little ghost where the sunlight was. Shop rag moon in a windshield crack, I can fix this truck but I cannot fix that. New belt sings where your perfume rode, Radio preacher says release that load. Got a silver grille and a busted grin, Wax the outside, rain gets in. ### Hook Chrome plated heartache, shine it till it hurts, Roll it past your house like nothing got worse. Every red light knows what I cannot say, Looking brand new while I fall away. ### Verse Your blue hair tie on the four wheel stick, Smallest damn thing and it hits like a brick. I drove three towns for a tank of gas, So the girl at the counter would not have to ask. Buddy says trade it, start again clean, But you fell asleep in this passenger seat. I can sell the wheels, I can change the plates, Who buys the quiet that a person makes? ### Bridge Under all that polished steel, Something soft I cannot seal. Let it rust and let it rain, I am more than what remains. ### Hook Chrome plated heartache, shine it till it hurts, Roll it past your house like nothing got worse. Every red light knows what I cannot say, Looking brand new while I fall away. ### Outro I put the spare key down. ## 3. Broke Horse Millionaire ### Intro Check my balance. Count these stars. ### Verse Hat cost five at a yard sale church, Boots got holes but the spurs still work. Bank app laughing when I touch that screen, Horse got a limp and a pedigree dream. Got a stock portfolio out in the pen, Three mean hens and a goat called Ben. Gold on my tooth is a corn bread crumb, Still pull up like the king of something. ### Hook Broke horse millionaire, money in the air, None of it is mine but I wave like I care. Big belt buckle and a small town crown, I am cash poor baby but I throw down. ### Verse Date said take me somewhere real exclusive, Back pasture gate got a chain, that will do it. Table for two on a cable spool, Moon doing diamonds in a plastic pool. She said boy you are a first class mess, I said first class costs more, yes. Then she laughed so hard that the horses stared, Tell me that ain't rich, I will wait right here. ### Bridge If the good life had a price, They would sell the summer twice. Keep your receipt, keep your chair, We got room and midnight air. ### Hook Broke horse millionaire, money in the air, None of it is mine but I wave like I care. Big belt buckle and a small town crown, I am cash poor baby but I throw down. ### Outro Tell Ben he made the album. ## 4. Last Call at the Feed Store ### Intro Push those bags against the wall. ### Verse Closed sign swinging since the mill shut down, Dust laid claim to the best dance floor in town. Miss June came with a big brass key, Said nobody locks up a memory. We swept ten years through a screen door frame, Found our heights where we carved our names. Cord through the window, lights on a string, Old scale shaking when the low notes sing. ### Hook Last call at the feed store, everybody lean, Two step left where the seed bags been. Boots go knock and the roof says more, We still got a town if we got this floor. ### Verse Foreman dances with a waitress grin, Kid on his shoulders keeps the high hats in. June counts nothing at the empty till, Says tonight the house has paid the bill. A boy too shy at the opening song, Takes one hand when the hook comes on. Floorboard gives but it does not break, Old things learn how to hold new weight. ### Bridge No one asks what you do for pay, No one minds if you miss a day. Bring your tired and your turned down dreams, We got room between these beams. ### Hook Last call at the feed store, everybody lean, Two step left where the seed bags been. Boots go knock and the roof says more, We still got a town if we got this floor. ### Outro June leaves the sign turned round. ## 5. Your Name in the Tail Lights ### Intro Keep driving. I mean it. ### Verse You had your whole life packed below the glass, I had a speech but the words went past. Cattle guard rattled like a nervous laugh, Two lane road split a photograph. You said the city had a room for you, I said the sky here had a better view. Truth is I feared what the dawn might show, If somebody loved me and could still go. ### Hook Your name in the tail lights, red across the rain, I will not turn your freedom into blame. Go where you are going, let that engine sing, Love can be an open gate, not a string. ### Verse First week I kept all the porch lights on, Second week I heard how the creek moved on. Third week I drove to the county fair, Bought two peaches and a folding chair. Your letter came with a coffee stain, Said your tiny window caught the morning train. I read it twice and I smiled for real, Some good things leave and are good things still. ### Bridge I do not need a promise back, Or your shadow on this gravel track. Make a home that fits your name, Mine can change and stay a home the same. ### Hook Your name in the tail lights, red across the rain, I will not turn your freedom into blame. Go where you are going, let that engine sing, Love can be an open gate, not a string. ### Outro Keep driving. I mean it. ## 6. Scarecrow With a Gold Chain ### Intro Who put a price on the rain? ### Verse Scarecrow woke with a mouth full of wheat, Boss said stand but he found two feet. Crows on his shoulder like a black silk coat, Stole one link from a broken gate rope. Painted it gold with a hardware can, First day off and he felt like a man. Walked into town with a corn stalk cane, Said I worked for the weather, never got paid. ### Hook Scarecrow with a gold chain, straw in his soul, Spent his whole life standing out in the cold. Now the field got rhythm and the crows got names, You cannot buy thunder, you cannot own rain. ### Verse Mayor said son you are blocking the street, He said funny how you notice when I move my feet. Banker said your collateral is thin, He shook one sleeve and the summer fell in. Kids took pictures by the courthouse steps, Old men nodded like they knew that debt. Come harvest moon every field stood bare, All the scarecrows dancing in the square. ### Bridge Pull that post up from the ground, You were never just what held you down. Thread and dust can learn to sway, Nobody made us just to stay. ### Hook Scarecrow with a gold chain, straw in his soul, Spent his whole life standing out in the cold. Now the field got rhythm and the crows got names, You cannot buy thunder, you cannot own rain. ### Outro All the crows sang his name. ## 7. Mud on the Wedding Dress ### Intro Let it rain. We already said yes. ### Verse Forecast lied and the tent went flat, Uncle held the cake in a fishing hat. Preacher lost a page to the southwest wind, Bride said skip to the part we are in. Groom stood there in his granddad suit, Water running straight through his rented boots. She hitched that hem, took his shaking hand, Said baby we can make a mess and make a plan. ### Hook Mud on the wedding dress, gold in the sky, Nothing went perfect but you still said mine. Let the bass hit hard, let the white turn brown, Love ain't a picture, it is sticking around. ### Verse Somebody backed up a truck to the trees, Little blue speaker by the sweet iced tea. Grandma two stepped with her oxygen line, Said I did not come this far to stay dry. We cut that cake with a pocket knife, Every crooked slice like a piece of life. First dance tracks in the flooded lawn, Two people choosing what to build upon. ### Bridge When the photographs all fade, Keep the promise that the weather made. Any roof can blow away, Take my hand and choose to stay. ### Hook Mud on the wedding dress, gold in the sky, Nothing went perfect but you still said mine. Let the bass hit hard, let the white turn brown, Love ain't a picture, it is sticking around. ### Outro Best damn day of our lives. ## 8. Sunrise Owes Us Nothing ### Intro One more before we go. ### Verse Ash in the grill and a pink east sky, June folds chairs while the moths clock out. Roy finds a boot by the fence post wire, Somebody hums where we banked the fire. All night long we were louder than doubt, Morning arrives and we work it out. Pick up the cans, put the gate back straight, Good times mean you help with the weight. ### Hook Sunrise owes us nothing, look what we got, Warm hands passing round a coffee pot. Take a little fire when you leave this place, Keep it for the cold in somebody else's day. ### Verse Jenny drives east with the window low, Bride got her flowers in a mason jar. Boy from the feed store calls that girl, Scarecrow sleeps where the wild grass curls. I got a truck and a ways to mend, One new dent and a few more friends. No big ending, no golden road, Just a heart that carries more than it owed. ### Bridge When that quiet comes back round, You can build a welcome out of sound. Strike one note and leave some space, Let somebody else come take their place. ### Hook Sunrise owes us nothing, look what we got, Warm hands passing round a coffee pot. Take a little fire when you leave this place, Keep it for the cold in somebody else's day. ### Outro Leave the gate wide open.