Lulu’s Lanterns

[Intro — spoken over banjo + low fiddle] They say Lulu’s keeps the lamps on for the ones who lost the trail. And every bottle on the back bar knows a man who swore he’d prevail. ⸻ [Verse 1] Well I came down from the ridge road with the weather in my bones, past the mill yard, past the river, past the places I’d outgrown. There was rain against the window, there was rye behind the glass, there was laughter like a shovel diggin’ graves out of my past. ⸻ [Pre-Chorus] And I heard my own voice whisper, “Just one night won’t make you fall.” But the truth came back like thunder: one night can take it all. ⸻ [Chorus — gang vocal] Heave away, hold the line, tie your soul to the old pine. When the bottle starts to sing, don’t answer when it calls your name. Raise no glass to your undoing, let the dark roll down the drain. I came in thirsty for ruin, but I walked out carrying my name. ⸻ [Verse 2] Lulu leaned across the counter, said, “I know that look too well. Some men come here for shelter, some come bargainin’ with hell.” I could smell the old surrender, I could taste the copper fear, and the boys were singin’ louder like they knew I shouldn’t hear. ⸻ [Call and Response] Lead: Did you come to drown it? Crew: No, brother, let it pass. Lead: Did you come to break it? Crew: No, brother, not for glass. Lead: Did you come to vanish? Crew: No, brother, stand your frame. Lead: Did you come in thirsty? Crew: Walk out with your name. ⸻ [Verse 3] So I ordered something bitter with no poison in the pour, kept my hands around that tumbler like a man holds shut a door. Then I called the one who’d answer, heard the static, heard the rain, said, “I’m scared I’m at the shoreline of becoming him again.” ⸻ [Pre-Chorus 2] And the voice said, “Keep on breathing. You don’t have to win the year. Win the minute. Win the doorway. Win the road that brought you here.” ⸻ [Chorus — bigger] Heave away, hold the line, tie your soul to the old pine. When the bottle starts to sing, don’t answer when it calls your name. Raise no glass to your undoing, let the dark roll down the drain. I came in thirsty for ruin, but I walked out carrying my name. ⸻ [Bridge — fiddle drops, stomps continue] There’s no shame in white-knuckled weather, no disgrace in shaking hands. Every sober mile is holy when you crawl before you stand. And the river don’t run backwards, and the moon don’t make no plea. But a man can leave the tavern with the man he meant to be. ⸻ [Final Verse] Now Lulu’s lights were fading when I stepped into the mist, with a pocket full of tremble and a phone call on my list. I was not cured by morning, I was not made clean by song, but the bottle lost the hour, and the hour kept me strong. ⸻ [Final Chorus — triumphant shanty] Heave away, hold the line, tie your soul to the old pine. When the bottle starts to sing, don’t answer when it calls your name. Raise no glass to your undoing, let the dark roll down the drain. I came in thirsty for ruin, but I walked out carrying my name. I came in scared I was losing, but I walked out still the same. Not untouched, not unbroken — but sober, by God, I remain.