When I was a kid Uncle Remus he put me to bed With a picture of Stonewall Jackson above my head Then daddy came in to kiss his little man With gin on his breath and a Bible in his hand He talked about honor and things I should know Then he’d stagger a little as he went out the door
CHORUS: I can still hear the soft Southern winds in the live oak trees And those Williams boys they still mean a lot to me Hank and Tennessee I guess we’re all gonna be what we’re gonna be So what do you do with good ole boys like me
Nothing makes a sound in the night like the wind does But you ain’t afraid if you’re washed in the blood like I was The smell of cape jasmine thru the window screen John R. and the Wolfman kept me company By the light of the radio by my bed With Thomas Wolfe whispering in my head
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When I was in school I ran with kid down the street But I watched him burn himself up on bourbon and speed But I was smarter than most and I could choose Learned to talk like the man on the six o’clock news When I was eighteen, Lord, I hit the road But it really doesn’t matter how far I go