In The Rain

Pour one for the ones who stayed

When the county road washed away

They toast my name when the harvest came in

Boots stayed clean,every handshake had a grin

But the creek rose high an the old bridge bent

That’s when I learned what a promise meant

You had a chair by the fire,had a plate by the stove But you vanished when the debt collector drove I kept one match an a half-full jar

Now I know who you are by the scars

Sun makes a crowd,rain makes a line

Truth gets heavy when it’s your turn to shine

They’ll dance with you when your sun is shining

But they won’t stand with you in the rain

I found my family in the mud an mileage

Not in a toast,not in a name

let the false ones scatter

Let the backroad thunder shake the frame

They’ll dance with you when your sun is shining

But they won’t stand with you in the rain

Whiskey in the mason jar,blacktop under tire

Smoke from the burn pile climbing like a wire

I got a blood-red moon an a dog that don’t lie

Two good hands an a reason not to die

Old friend called when the payday hit

Said, “Brother, we should talk,” I said, “Talk ain’t it”

Where was your truck when the roof caved through?Where was your coat when the cold cut blue?I found my family in the mud an mileage

Let the backroad thunder shake the frame

let it pour,let the red clay run

Let every fair-weather friend go numb

I’d rather walk with three true souls

Than rule a room full of borrowed gold

I built this house from loss an flame

Pour it slow, let the jar breathe

Boot marks by the old oak tree

No crown, no crew, no borrowed throne

I learned who stayed when the dust got blown

They came when the porch had a lantern lit

Hands out clean, talking friendship and grit

I kept the last cold bottle underneath the floor

They kept count of favors while they asked for more

Now the barrel's dry and the county's gone quiet

Every friendly face got a price tag beside it

I know that grin, I know that turn

Some folks love the fire, not the hands that burn

let the thunder roll across these pines

I won't beg a soul to cross that line

They will dance with you when your sun is shining

But they won't stand with you in the rain

They'll raise your glass when the good days find you

Then disappear when the hard times came

I got mud on my boots, truth in my veins

A one-eyed moon an a pocketful of pain

Whiskey rebellion, rust on the gate

I made peace with the wolves an quit fearing fate

Got a blacktop heart an a dirt-road code

Carry what I owe, never carry what I'm sold

Mama said, “Watch who claps when you win”

'Cause applause gets thin when the winter rolls in

I watched good men fold for a room an a name

I chose the back fence, the smoke, an the flame

If your word ain't iron, don't lean on mine

I can walk this county with the dark as my guide

They will dance with you when your sun is shining

But they won't stand with you n your rain, you'll know who's true when there standing in the rain with you