Thirteen years ago I sat there just like you
Watching someone sing me a song
Tellin' me that freedom was right in my hands
If I just had the strength
And the nerve to take it on
The nerve to take it on
I was 22, married with a nice executive smile
A briefcase and a job I could not stand
A sportscar to take me
Every night to the nearest bar
And I get so damn drunk I could not stand
So drunk I could not stand
Power, the beauty
And the truth in the words
Of a man as yet I'd never talked to
Helped me to face myself
And the life I was living
Get off your a** son
You've got some things to do
You've got some things to do
Well I crossed the line in April 1967
And I left a wife crying in the sunshine
I had always wanted
To fly twice the speed of sound
And I did
And I'll tell you I got off every time
Yes I got off every time
Well I moved on down to Nashville
Sleeping on the floors
Living like a dog
And getting God damned
I was doing what I do
Anytime that I wanted to
And no one every said to me to get up
And get to town
Get up boy - get to town
You see, for a lifetime my father worked a job
He could not stand and he hated every day
And I watched him die slowly
One TV show at a time
And I've sworn that I'll burn
Before I die that way
Before I die that way
And now there's one thing
That I will say unto your soul
And it is to yourself always be true
Yes life isn't easy
Anyway you can make it
And if I can do it, well man so can you
Man, so can you
Eighteen years ago I sat there just like you
Watching someone sing me a song
Tellin' me that freedom was right in my hands
If I just had the strength
And the nerve to take it on
The nerve to take it on