She pushed her wedding ring across the counter
And said, "Tell me that it's worth more than I think
There's a bus to Baton Rouge, leaves in an hour
And ninety dollars cash buys me a seat
That quarter-carat picture-perfect dream
Wasn't all it was cracked up to be

"But it ain't stolen, it ain't hot
Someone told me it cost a lot
Man, ain't that the truth
I thought I'd wear it my whole life
It never even crossed my mind
Back when it was new
It'd end up in a pawn shop on Charlotte Avenue"

He walked in with it slung over his shoulder
He said, "Man, you'll never give me a fair price
But this young man's town's just watching me get older
And the song's I sing don't feed my kids and wife
There's a few belt buckle scratches on the back
And the B-string tends to fall a little flat

"But it ain't stolen, it ain't hot
Someone told me it cost a lot
Man, ain't that the truth
I thought I'd play it my whole life
It never even crossed my mind
Back when it was new
It'd end up in a pawn shop on Charlotte Avenue"

Dreams don't die, even when they're broken
Tomorrow, when that sign says open
That guitar, oh, that wedding band
Will start a new dream, second-hand

It ain't stolen, it ain't hot
Someone told me it cost a lot
Man, ain't that the truth
I thought I'd own it my whole life
It never even crossed my mind
Back when it was new
It'd end up in a pawn shop on Charlotte Avenue