**[Verse 1]** Small town in Georgia before the rooster calls 3AM alarm on a cracked phone screen Thermos black, faded Levi's jeans Kissed his babies on the forehead while the house was dark Wife rolled over, cold side of the heart 80 acres and a Deere note, that's all that boy owned Cutting wheat for a rich man who never came home Radio static and a prayer through the dust God, does working hard even matter to us? **** Then the porch light flickered, house too quiet now Dust in his boots, sweat on his brow Letter on the counter in her cursive blue "I'm sorry, I can't do this married to you" Second letter beside it, bank stamp red "30 days son 'til we take your bed" Kids' backpacks hanging by the door And he's on the floor wondering what he bled for[Chorus] But his daddy told him... **** You can leave a good man, you can break a good man Take his house, take his land, take his wedding band Let the storm roll in, try to hold him under But no covered bridges can keep a good man down Let the river rise, let the whole world drown You can dam the water but you can't dam his soul He was born in the dirt and the dirt don't let go[Hook] **[Verse 2]** He didn't go to the bar like the old him woulda done Poured the bottle out, stared down that gun Then he heard his little girl's voice saying "Daddy" Something broke, something else came back steady Saw his momma's Bible open to Psalm 40 "Waited patient for the Lord, He heard me when I called" Woke up next morning at 3AM anyway Even when there's nothing left to save you still work, you still pray **** You can leave a good man, you can shame a good man Call him failure, call him fool, say he'll never be that man Let the hammer drop, let the gavel thunder But no covered bridges can keep a good man down Let that wood creak, let that water roar loud You can hide a river but you can't hide how A man like that was built to break through somehow[Hook] **** Covered bridge, that's where we carved our names You and me before the drought and the pain You can cover a lot of things babe with pretty paint But you can't cover the man that God already made And I ain't done[Bridge] **[Verse 3 - The Kids Come Home]** Sold five head, got a job wrenching at the co-op in town Banker called said "Boy you got 30 more days now" Mowed the yard, fixed the porch light that burned out Two little bikes came flying down his old dirt route They jumped off running, tears in their eyes "Mama left us at school, can we stay tonight?" He picked 'em up, dirt and all, held 'em in his work shirt Said "This house might be gone but you got a home in this hurt" **[Final Hook - big, choir, redemption]** So take the house, take the land, take the ring Take it all, you can't take everything Cause I still got these two hands and these kids need fed Still got a little blood pumping red No covered bridges can keep a good man down Let 'em foreclose, let 'em talk all over town I'm still standing in this field with my boots in the ground No woman, no bank, no river in this county gonna drown A good man, yeah a good man No covered bridges can keep a good man down **** 3AM alarm... He gets up again. With two little shadows asleep down the hall.[Outro]
