[Verse] Hands stained with grease and the weight of years Built his world on sweat and quiet tears A dollar and a dime Turned to a dream A life carved out of rock Or so it seems [Chorus] He's the toughest man I've ever known A backbone of steel Right down to the bone No mountain too high No fight too long He's the fire that keeps this world strong [Verse 2] Fought in wars His boots kissed foreign sand Came back to work the mill with calloused hands Fixed the neighbor's fence Though his back was sore They don't make men like that anymore [Prechorus] A whistle blows He'd rise at dawn Even when the world seemed all but gone [Chorus] He's the toughest man I've ever known A backbone of steel Right down to the bone No mountain too high No fight too long He's the fire that keeps this world strong [Bridge] Taught me to fish To stand To try Told me real men don't need to cry But when Mom passed I saw his tears Proof that strength can outlast fears
