A 'circle of life' song.
acoustic folk
carter family
folk duo
Creative Commons license
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Story behind the song
This is a true story, about a gentleman I met in Jellico, Tennessee several years ago.
Lyrics
I pulled into a diner in East Tennessee
Inside was a waitress, an old man, and me
His body was bent, and broken with age
The book of his life, was on it's last page.
I pulled up a chair, sat down beside him.
He looked up and gave me a grin
A beer for him, a burger for me...
I listened closely as he told his story
Chorus/Bridge
He'd been a clown in a circus,
A teacher in Maine
A rodeo cowboy,
And ridden the range
He'd been a husband, a father,
A brother, a friend....
He'd paid all his debts,
No fences to mend.
Lost the woman he'd loved
Back in seventy four
And his only son
Lost in the Iraq war
The pain was too much
To stay in one place
He sold what he had left
Not leaving a trace
He took to a life
of riding the rails
Needing the sound of the train
To feel the wind in his sails
He felt a strong need
To let God carry his load
Longing to find
The peace of the road
Br.
We sat and we talked,
well into the night
I needed to go,
But to stay felt so right..
Closing time came, I paid for his beer
Got into my truck, drove off in the night...
Wishing I could
Chorus/
Be a clown in a circus,
Be a teacher in Maine
A rodeo cowboy,
And ride the range
Be a better husband, a father,
A brother, a friend....
Pay all my debts,
And leave this world
With No fences to mend.