I recognize the writing
On the plain white envelope
I've wondered where she'd wind up
Before she called or wrote
The answer's in a circle
Through the word love on a stamp
Postmarked Birmingham
I'd have bet on California
'Cause her sister's in Bel-Aire
Or I could see Seattle
With her mom and dad up there
She never mentioned Alabama
So I don't understand
Postmarked Birmingham
Chorus
A two-page letter written on
Ramada stationary
Dated April twenty-two
She asked me not to hate her
Said she's sorry
But leavin's what she felt she had to do
So the day she left she made it
Two hundred miles south
Did she settle there, did she mail this note
On her way out of town
What chance is there to find her when the
Only clue I have is
Postmarked Birmingham
Chorus
Every day down by the mailbox
Standin' on the curb I check
The upper right hand corner
Of every piece of mail I get
Hopin' there's that certain circle
Through the word 'Love' on a stamp
Postmarked Birmingham
Back to the top
All by myself
I was fine
No one else to remind me
Of all my pain inside
You looked at me
And I knew
You would be
The last thing I needed in my life
Chorus
Oh I need you
Girl I need you
But I know it's gonna hurt
'Cause your love is gonna tear me apart
Oh I need you
Girl I need you
But I know we shouldn't start
'Cause I need you
Like a hole in my heart
Don't smile that smile
Say those words
Knowing I'll wanna touch you
Then it will be too late
Just walk away
Don't look back
Let's just say that we're so much
Better off not temptin' fate
Chorus
I've been in and out of love
And I thought I had enough
But there's nothin' in this world
That I can do 'cause
Oh I need you
Girl I need you
But I know it's gonna hurt
'Cause your love is gonna tear me apart
Oh I need you
Girl I need you
But I know we shouldn't start
'Cause I need you
Like a hole
Like a bullet through my sole
Girl I need you like a hole in my heart.
Back to the top
She hasn't done a thing that really has to mean
She's goin' anywhere
I haven't seen it showin' in her eyes
But I swear it must be there
I dont' know why I feel it so strong
But I feel it just the same
I can't see a single storm cloud in the sky
But I sure can smell the rain
She'd still say I love you if I ask
But she never volunteers
Somehow what she never says means more than all
The other words I hear
Still, she should win an Oscar if she's lying
When she says that nothing's changed
I can't see a single storm cloud in the sky
But I sure can smell the rain
Everyday I brace myself to hear the words
I'm scared she's gonna say
And everynight I thank the Lord
Somehow I dodged the bullet one more day
Sometimes there are things a man just knows
That he really can't explain
I can't see a single storm cloud in the sky
But I sure can smell the rain
I can't see a single storm cloud in the sky
But I sure can smell the rain
Back to the top.
No one dreams in this ol' town, no more
They don't look down that windin' road
Wonderin' where it goes
But when I hold you, I can see
All the places it could lead
They say we're crazy, I don't care
We could make it anywhere
Chorus:
Let's ride the wind
Down this old road tonight
Let's pack our dreams
And leave the rest behind
They say love this hot
Can be a dangerous thing
Come on darlin'...
Let's go down in flames
I don't know or care where this road leads
Just as long as at the end
It's you and me
We can feel our hearts, beggin' us to go
If we don't leave now, we'll never know
and if our love should crach and burn
We'll take that chance, for all it's worth
Chorus
So take my hand, you know we're right
Don't look back, just hold on tight
Chorus
Come on darlin'...Let's go down in flames
Back to the top.
When the moon is bright
On a Saturday night
There's a thousand stars in the sky
On a winding road her memory flows
She'll face the fact
She wants to go back
Chorus:
She opens her heart to an old memory
She closes her eyes and she smiles
Just ask her if she ever still
Thinks about me
She'll say, "Every once in a while,
Every once in a while"
She tries to forget
But she hasn't yet
Not a single day goes by
That feeling again reminds her of when
I held her tight, it felt so right
Chorus
And every once in a while
She calls my name out loud
And when she thinks about us
She'll face the fact
She wants to go back
ChorusBack to the top.
I stayed out late
I didn't call
I saw the light go out as I walked down the hall
Silence begins
Without a where have you been
Chorus:
Love and gravity
Havin' their way with me
Her faith in me
Is in a tailspin
Heart look out below
Hold on 'cause here we go
Free fallin' from her good graces again
Free fallin' from her good graces again
Out on the edge
That's where I fly
I've gotten good at landin'
On her bad side
Words of regret
Haven't bailed me out yet
Chorus
I'm in way deep
Every day of the week
ChorusBack to the top.
We met in a honky tonk with sawdust on the floor
But I'm not supposed to hang out there anymore
You fell in love with a side of me that you called wild and free
Now that's not the way that want me to be
Chorus:
It must be nice to walk the straight and narrow
See in black and white, true as an arrow
But out here on the edge is where I belong
Walkin' that fine line between ragged and wrong
I know you think that you can make somebody out of me
But the good Lord did that job already can't you see
I'm sorry if my rebel ways don't fit into your plan
But I kinda like me fine the way I am
Chorus
I've got my own way of bein' true
I've got my own way of lovin' you
If that ain't enough, it'll have to do
Chorus
Walkin' that fine line between ragged and wrong
Between ragged and wrong
Back to the top.
It's another back door sneakin' in, where you been midnight
Quiet as a Mack Truck lotsa luck thinkin' up an alibi
But every light in the house is on
Everything is gone
Chorus:
She's left me no chance at redemption
No further exemption
Just a big red "Goodbye" in lipstick on the wall
Goodbye says it all
No long explanation
No reconciliation
No let's talk it over number I can call
Goodbye says it all
Goodbye...
She could have thrown a knock-down scream and shout have it out tirade
She could have made it real tough bringing up all the hell that I raised
But no more wasted words on me
No, she kept it short and sweet
Chorus
No more wasted words on me
No, she kept it short and sweet
ChorusBack to the top.
My old friend lives up in the mountains
He flew up there to paint the world
He says, "Even though interpretation's what I count on
This little picture to me seems blurred
Hard lines and the shadows come easy
I see it all just as clear as a bell
I just can't seem to set my easel to please me
I paint my heaven but it looks like hell."
Chorus:
Your blue might be grey, your less might be more
Your window to the world might be your own front door
Your shiniest day might come in the middle of the night
That's just about right
He says, "Man I ain't comin' down until my picture is perfect
And all the wonder is gone from my eyes
Down through my hands and on to the canvas
Still like my vision, but still a surprise"
"Real life," He says, "is the hardest impression
It's always movin' so I let it come through
And that, my friend, I say, is the glory of true independence
Just to do what you do what you do what you do
Chorus
My old friend came down from the mountain
Without even lookin' he found a little truth
You can go through life with the greatest intentions
But you do what you do what you just gotta do
Your blue might be grey, your less might be more
Your window to the world might be your own front door
Your shiniest day might come in the middle of the night
ChorusBack to the top.
The sign says "Do Not Touch" - you're out of bounds
You're forbidden fruit, don't come around
It says don't make plans 'cause on your hand
Is a promise made to another man
'Cause when you're around my defenses go down
Feelings get stronger, looks get longer
The closer you come, the weaker I get
If it ain't happened now just ain't happened yet
Chorus:
So please, please, please go
I'm not strong enough to say no
Please, please don't stay
I'm not man enough to walk away
Please please pass by
I can't resist you even though I try
So please go, I'm not strong enough to say no
The sign says "Slow Down- Slippery Ice"
You've got dangerous curves, don't think twice
It says "Not For Sale", you're spoken for
Just take your heart and walk out the door
'Cause when you're around my defenses go down
Feelings get stronger, looks get longer
The closer you come, the weaker I get
If it ain't happened now just ain't happened yet
Chorus
Don't say I didn't warn you, don't say you didn't know
Don't wait 'til it's too late and then try to go
The closer you come, the weaker I get
If it ain't happened now, just ain't happened yet
I'm beggin' you
ChorusBack to the top.
I've been livin' my life like a man in chains
Ever since she took her love away
But this is now and that was then
And baby all bad things gotta come to an end
Chorus:
So tonight I'm throwing caution into the wind
Getting down to the business of living again
Back in the saddle and I'm holding the reins
Gonna find someone and love her
Like there ain't no yesterday
Now it's dark as a dungeon down where I've been
And there ain't no way I'm going back again
I've got my best foot forward onto greener grass
'Cause there ain't no future living in the past
Chorus
Out of the ashes alive and free
No longer a slave to a memory
Got the rest of my life right out in front of me
ChorusBack to the top.
