I think much like another song “Anti-Matter” (that's also on the same album as this song), this one is also is inspired by a horrifying van crash the band experienced on Nov 3, 2022. This, much like the other track, sounds like it's an extension what they shared while huddled in the wreckage, as they helped frontman Garrett Russell stem the bleeding from his head wound while he was under the temporary effects of a concussion. The track speaks of where the mind goes at the most desperate & desolate of times, when it just about slips away to all but disconnect itself, and the aftermath.
Now, I grew up down an old dirt road in a town you wouldn't know
My pop's picked the place up for fifteen hundred bucks back in 1964
My grandfather was a drinker, back in the day, he put him down
But a war is known to change a man and the whiskey's known to change a man, but
That's not me
I rarely drink from the bottle but I'll smoke a little weed
I still live in the sticks where you wouldn't go
In a town of twelve hundred off an old dirt road
And a country boy is all I'll ever be
Now, its been twelve years since I sold my soul to the devil in L.A.
He said sign your name here on the dotted line and your songs, they all will play
He set up shop on Sunset, he put me up at the Marquee
He said "you want to sell a million records boy, you better listen to me"
He said "change your style, whiten your smile, you can lose a couple of pounds
If you want to live this life, you better lose that wife, do you need your friends around?"
And I said, no, that's not me
Cause the biggest things in life are your friends and family
And I like my jeans and my old t-shirts
And a couple extra pounds never really hurt
'Cause a country boy is all I'll ever be
'Cause Hank taught me just how to stay alive
You'll never catch me out the house without my .9 or .45
I got a big orange tractor and a diesel truck
And my idea of heaven is chasing whitetail bucks
And as a country boy, I know I can survive
Now, two flags fly above my land that really sum up how I feel
One is the colors that fly high and proud, the red, the white, the blue
The other one's got a rattlesnake with a simple statement made
"Don't Tread On Me" is what is says and I'll take that to my grave
Because this is me
I'm proud to be American and strong in my beliefs
And I've said it before but I'll say it again
'Cause I've never needed government to hold my hand
And I've said it before but I'll say it again
'Cause my family's always fought and died to save this land
And a country boy is all I'll ever be
My pop's picked the place up for fifteen hundred bucks back in 1964
My grandfather was a drinker, back in the day, he put him down
But a war is known to change a man and the whiskey's known to change a man, but
That's not me
I rarely drink from the bottle but I'll smoke a little weed
I still live in the sticks where you wouldn't go
In a town of twelve hundred off an old dirt road
And a country boy is all I'll ever be
Now, its been twelve years since I sold my soul to the devil in L.A.
He said sign your name here on the dotted line and your songs, they all will play
He set up shop on Sunset, he put me up at the Marquee
He said "you want to sell a million records boy, you better listen to me"
He said "change your style, whiten your smile, you can lose a couple of pounds
If you want to live this life, you better lose that wife, do you need your friends around?"
And I said, no, that's not me
Cause the biggest things in life are your friends and family
And I like my jeans and my old t-shirts
And a couple extra pounds never really hurt
'Cause a country boy is all I'll ever be
'Cause Hank taught me just how to stay alive
You'll never catch me out the house without my .9 or .45
I got a big orange tractor and a diesel truck
And my idea of heaven is chasing whitetail bucks
And as a country boy, I know I can survive
Now, two flags fly above my land that really sum up how I feel
One is the colors that fly high and proud, the red, the white, the blue
The other one's got a rattlesnake with a simple statement made
"Don't Tread On Me" is what is says and I'll take that to my grave
Because this is me
I'm proud to be American and strong in my beliefs
And I've said it before but I'll say it again
'Cause I've never needed government to hold my hand
And I've said it before but I'll say it again
'Cause my family's always fought and died to save this land
And a country boy is all I'll ever be
Lyrics submitted by MusicFREAK20
Country Boy Lyrics as written by Paul Jay Lewis Donald Gallacher
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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This sums up what it means to be a country boy, and really a true American. We aint perfect, but it's the way we are. We can stand on our own two feet.
That's not me I rarely drink from the bottle but I'll smoke a little weed
This shows we all have our faults and vices, but we shouldn't be to ashamed to admit our shortcomings.
I agree that he may be talking about selling his soul, so to speak, to the record company, but it can also mean listening to those around us we think are our friends, but are just another part of society.
And I said... No, that's not me Cause the biggest things in life are your friends and family And I like my jeans and my old t-shirts And a couple extra pounds never really hurt Cause a country boy is all I'll ever be Cause Hank taught me just how to stay alive You'll never catch me out the house without my .9 or .45 I got a big orange tractor and a diesel truck And my idea of heaven is chasing whitetail bucks And as a country boy, I know I can survive
This shows he's true to who he really is and how he sees what is really important in life and shouldn't have to change. He is proud of who and what he is.
And as for the two flags, it goes the first is a no brainer, loyalty to his country and the true ideals of the founding fathers. The second goes with teh famous statememnt "Speak soflty and carry a big stick."
And of course Charlie Daniels statement at the end of the official music video sums it up perfectly.