The Gilded Line

[Intro]
[Verse]
Thirty-eight years on a rusted frame
Forgot the boy with the heavy name
Eighty-seven van with a steady hum
Beating the wheel like a wooden drum
The Blue Ridge curves in a velvet green
The prettiest sight I have ever seen
I’m moving slow through the mountain mist
With a heavy heart I finally un-kissed
[Pre-Chorus]
I used to chase the gold and glass
Watching the seasons slowly pass
But the map I drew was a hollow lie
Underneath this open sky
[Chorus]
So I paint a sign for a lonely soul
To make a broken spirit whole
Leave a little light on the canyon wall
Catch the ones who start to fall
Yeah we’re singing out loud
In the dust and the cloud
Finding our way
To a brighter day
[Post-Chorus]
Oh let the spirit fly
Under the Appalachian sky
Keep the motor running
Keep the colors coming
[Verse]
Sable brushes and a tin of white
Catching the glow of the morning light
“Keep On Going” in a cursive swirl
A message sent to a spinning world
The Telecaster twang on the radio
Telling me all that I need to know
I’m a ghost in the gears of the big machine
Painting the hope that goes unseen
[Pre-Chorus]
I burned the plan and I broke the seal
To find the grace that’s actually real
It’s a quiet life in a noisy land
With a little varnish on my hand
[Chorus]
So I paint a sign for a lonely soul
To make a broken spirit whole
Leave a little light on the canyon wall
Catch the ones who start to fall
Yeah we’re singing out loud
In the dust and the cloud
Finding our way
To a brighter day
[Bridge]
I traded the suit for a coat of dust
Traded the iron for a little trust
The road is a choir of a thousand miles
Hidden in the shadows of stranger’s smiles
It’s a long way home
But I’m not alone
No I’m not alone
[Breakdown]
Stomp the floor
Open the door
Let the banjo roll
For the wandering soul
[Verse]
Nailed a board to a crooked pine
“You’re Doing Fine” in a gilded line
Saw a woman stop in the rear-view glass
Saw her smile as the shadows pass
That’s the only pay that I’ll ever need
Planting a tiny hopeful seed
In the red clay dirt and the gravel track
I’m never ever looking back
[Chorus]
So I paint a sign for a lonely soul
To make a broken spirit whole
Leave a little light on the canyon wall
Catch the ones who start to fall
Yeah we’re singing out loud
In the dust and the cloud
Finding our way
To a brighter day
[Post-Chorus]
Oh let the spirit fly
Under the Appalachian sky
Keep the motor running
Keep the colors coming
[Outro]