Losers In The Mud

The screen door’s swinging like a heavy fist

And I’m nursing a burn on my left-hand wrist

From a cigarette I dropped when I heard the sirens hum.

There’s a bottle of Jack by the kitchen sink

And too much time for a man to think

About every single bridge he’s managed to burn.

I got a debt in Tulsa that I can’t pay

And a girl in a dress who looked the other way

When I told her I was headed for the state line.

And it’s a long way down when you’re falling fast

With a heart made of tin and a soul made of glass

And you’re screaming at the moon like it owes you a dime.

I got those crooked thoughts and a restless head

Wishing I was anywhere but here instead

Checking every lock on the driver's side

With nowhere left for a fool to hide.

The floorboards creak like they’re telling on me

In a house full of shadows that I can’t see

But I feel ‘em breathing heavy on the back of my neck.

There’s a letter on the table I’ll never send

To a mother who thinks I’m still on the mend

When I’m really just a total goddamn wreck.

I took the backroads out where the pines grow thick

Because these flashing lights are closing in quick

And the law don't look for losers in the mud.

So tell the boys I’m gone, tell ‘em I’m long gone

Tell ‘em not to wait up for the break of dawn

Because the engine’s smoking and the tires are shot

I’m running against the time I haven’t got!

And it’s a long way down when you’re falling fast

With a heart made of tin and a soul made of glass

And you’re screaming at the moon like it owes you a dime.

I got those crooked thoughts and a restless head

Wishing I was anywhere but here instead

Checking every lock on the driver's side

With nowhere left for a fool to hide