[Intro – Soft, nostalgic, Spoken/Sung Over Light Guitar]:

Crack open a beer

Light that fire

Let the night creep in like an old man’s choir

Crickets hum, stories start

And somebody’s already tearin’ up their heart

[Verse 1: Guitar, Down-picked steel-string, half-tuned, Dobro Slide Echoes, Drums Footstomp + thigh slap + snare w/ brush]:

Down in the holler past the rusted gate

Where the creek bends left and time runs late

Mud on our boots, smoke in the trees

We found heaven in ten-dollar whiskey

Ol’ Darryl’s got the coals burnin' right

Grillin’ ribs in a halo of citronella light

Kids on the rope swing, splashin’ pride

We was kings of the river on a Bud Light high

[Chorus: Half-drunk gang harmonies]:

We had mud in our blood

Songs in our soul

Fire on the hill

And beer on ice cold

Throwin’ horseshoes till the moon stood still

And laughin’ 'bout love and the ones that got killed

Tellin’ lies that felt like truth

'Bout the trucks we wrecked and the girls we knew

Yeah these nights don’t come from a store

They come from whiskey

Rope swings

And the holler we swore we'd never leave for more

[Verse 2: Acoustic Guitar: Same rhythm, slightly more aggressive strums. Dobro: Minor shift in scale, use dissonant slides, subtle tambourine shake every 4th beat]:

Tasha played her daddy’s old guitar

Sang sad songs under summer stars

While Ricky swore he'd marry her quick

But he took off runnin’ when she got sick

Me? I stayed

Not ‘cause I had to

But ‘cause the dirt here

Feels like glue

Even when my knuckles bled

I’d do it all again just to hear what Ricky said

[Bridge – Slow & Reflective, Banjo: Light plucks, Acoustic Guitar: Revert to intro fingerpicking but in minor voicings. Dobro: Sustain long, bowed slide notes.]:

Sometimes the fire dims

But the stories don’t fade

They live in that patch of pine by the palmetto shade

Where the moon sits low and the world feels small

And our laughter’s the only truth we recall

[Final Chorus – Half-drunk gang harmonies, Belt It, Percussion: Full stomp/slap + snare shuffle combo. All Guitars In, Double acoustics, strumming fully open, Banjo & Harmonica, Interweave, harmonica rides the downbeats while banjo dances behind., Bass.]:

With mud in our blood

Songs in our soul

Fire on the hill

And hearts half whole

Tossin’ horseshoes like we tossed our pride

And swappin’ regrets by the firelight

Tellin’ lies that we half believed

‘Bout the folks we lost and the ones that leave

These nights don't live in some city lore

They live in whiskey

Rope swings

And the holler

And the holler

That we still fight for

[Outro – Whispered Over, Acoustic Guitar, Fingerpick, Harmonica, Whispering bends,]:

So if you hear frogs singin’

Or smell cedar smoke

That ain’t just the night

That’s the holler

Sayin’ you ain’t broke