Used To Be A Mountain

(album: Paint This Town - 2022)

If you're thumbing down a dog-town road
With your tongue back, dragging ass, hotter than a train track
Harlan up to Middlesboro
With your coal seam, jimson weed, wildcat, wind speed
Big Sandy to the Big O
On an overdrive mainline, try to clear Kentucky alive
My, my, such a lost tribe

Don't you know
Don't you know
Don't you know
Don't you know, you know, you know

There used to be a mountain here
There used to be a river so clear, we could swim to the bottom
There was heart, there was soul, but I guess that we forgot 'em
'Cause there ain't nothing standing out the window but a sign on a slag pile
It says, it said there used to be a mountain here

If you're thumbing down a drag-mine road
And your quickset toothache needs a little opiate
Looking for a pot a-gold
With a go-devil, Honda rebel, OxyContin coal shovel
Climb on up the tipple and go
Straight to a gunnysack, polecat
Mitch'll have a heart attack, you know

Don't you know
Don't you know
Don't you know, you know, you know

There used to be a mountain here
There used to be a river so clear, we could swim to the bottom
There was heart, there was soul, but I guess that we forgot 'em
'Cause there ain't nothing standing out the window but a sign on a slag pile
It says, it said there used to be a mountain here

There used to be a house on the edge of town
There used to be a job and a roller rink
Church on Sunday, passing the plate around
There used to be a river full of catfish
We'd catch, just to let 'em go
Ah, we used to let it flow
But now, we've let ourselves go
Hey

So, if you're thumbing down a coal town road
And you're all jacked, smoke-stacked, sucking on a thumb tack
Swinging at the end of ya rope
From a shoelace, total waste, sign your whole life away
Don't forget the debt that you're owed
From the fat cats, race rats, big Pharma, tall stacks
They're the ones a-digging the hole
All the way down to Guangzhou

Don't you know
Don't you know
Don't you know
Don't you know, you know, you know

There used to be a mountain here
There used to be a river so clear, we could swim to the bottom
There was heart, there was soul, but I guess that we forgot 'em
'Cause there ain't nothing standing out the window but a sign on a slag pile
It says, it said there used to be a mountain here (Hey, hey, hey)
There used to be a mountain here (Hey, hey, hey, hey)
There used to be a mountain here (Hey, hey, hey, hey)
There used to be a mountain