You dreamed he'd shine like the sun Now you son is set Hey dad, grab another cigarette Ashes fall like an unpaid debt Come on everybody place your bets In seventh grade he dug his grave Trying to be cool with the cool kids hey Follow everything they say You might fit in if you misbehave At sixteen he promised he'd be clean You didn't bend, but you sure did lean You do not deserve this Hey Mr. Wilmington Yeah, I heard about your son It's hard enough to hide your scars In smalltown USA
Sweet Mr. Wilmington Yeah I read about your son Don't blame yourself, you raised him right Remember that when you can't sleep at night At twenty-one you found his gun Hey dad, it's just begun The ties that bind, they come undone Come on everybody, just for fun At twenty-four you found him on the floor Decadence was all he wore At the funeral, read his eulogy Insincere apologies You do not deserve this All the papers and press decide Hey, just another suicide You do not deserve this