[BOOT STOMP — BANJO — IMMEDIATE] I KNOW YOUR HANDS. I KNOW YOUR TELL. I know that little half-smile right before we raise hell. You know my signal. I know your sign. Nobody says your name. You're a partner of mine. [STOMP-STOMP] A PARTNER OF MINE. [RESONATOR HOWLS] [VERSE 1] Six months laying low, still sleeping light, boots by the bed and the window cracked at night. Kept the engine clean. Kept the chamber cold. Kept one empty saddle and I buried the gold. Don't ask where. You know better than that. You taught me: leave no trail when you're covering tracks. But some nights that wind comes hard through the pine— And damn if it don't sound like a partner of mine. [PRE-CHORUS] You knew when to move without hearing me speak. Knew when I meant run by the way that I'd breathe. One look across the room— we were already gone. That's the kind of rhythm you don't teach someone. [CHORUS — HUGE] PARTNER OF MINE— WHERE'D YOU RIDE? I've been keeping one eye on the county line. PARTNER OF MINE— I KEPT YOUR SIDE. Never gave 'em your name. Never told 'em mine. If you're still out there, keep your powder dry. Three fires on the ridge and a moon hanging high. Nobody knows what we left behind— They just know I once rode WITH A PARTNER OF MINE. [POST — LOW FEMALE HARMONY] Mmm... Partner of mine. [VERSE 2 — DEEP POCKET] You were good with locks. I was good with doors. You watched the windows. I watched the floor. You knew when to wait. I knew when to take. You knew exactly how much noise not to make. Funny— Sounds like a robbery if you say it too fast. Sounds like something else when you say it like that. "Stay close." "Not yet." "Easy." "Right there." "Don't move." Lord— We were dangerous when the room went bare. [STOMP / HANDCLAP] I knew your footsteps before they hit the hall. Knew when you were coming without looking at all. That's what I miss. Not roses. Not rings. That split-second knowing before anything begins. [PRE-CHORUS] You knew when to move without hearing me speak. Knew when I meant stay by the bend in my knee. One look across the room— we were already gone. That's the kind of rhythm you don't unlearn alone. [CHORUS] PARTNER OF MINE— WHERE'D YOU RIDE? I've been keeping one eye on the county line. PARTNER OF MINE— I KEPT YOUR SIDE. Never gave 'em your name. Never told 'em mine. If you're still out there, keep your powder dry. Three fires on the ridge and a moon hanging high. Nobody knows what we left behind— They just know I once rode WITH A PARTNER OF MINE. [WATER DRUM ENTERS — LOW, LIQUID HEARTBEAT] [VERSE 3 — RAP / BANJO RUNNING HARD] September put a match to the edge of the map, October drew a line like a route coming back, November sits quiet with its hand on the latch— Three signals don't mean that I spring the trap. I know better. Good thieves wait. Good partners know when not to take bait. Don't chase headlights. Don't force locks. Don't turn one little sign into something it's not. But I'd be lying if I said I don't look. I'd be lying if I said I closed the book. I'd be lying if that western wind doesn't make me turn my head every now and then. Because nobody moved like you moved with me. Nobody knew when to let me lead. Nobody could read that half-inch shift— That little inhale— That— "Now." [ENTIRE BAND HITS] God, I miss that. [INSTRUMENTAL — FIDDLE VS. RESONATOR] [BRIDGE — BAND FALLS TO WATER DRUM + UPRIGHT] I buried the gold. Not because I forgot what we stole it for. Not because I wanted to forget the score. I buried the gold because carrying it alone got heavy. [PAUSE] And because I knew... if you ever rode back— I wouldn't want you coming for the gold. [RESONATOR] I'd want to know you came for your partner. [LONG PAUSE] So the dirt stays flat. The marker stays gone. The map stays folded. And I move on. But there's still one thing I haven't learned how to hide— [WHISPER] I still leave room on my right-hand side. [BOOT STOMP] [FINAL CHORUS — EXPLODES] PARTNER OF MINE— WHERE'D YOU RIDE? I CAN HANDLE THE DARK, I JUST MISS YOUR SIDE! PARTNER OF MINE— NO NEED TO EXPLAIN! I know how to lose. I know how to wait. Keep your own name. Keep your own time. Keep whatever you buried— I'll keep what is mine. Three fires burning way out on the line— And every damn one makes me think PARTNER OF MINE! [ENSEMBLE] PARTNER OF MINE! [FEMALE] You knew when to move! [ENSEMBLE] PARTNER OF MINE! [FEMALE] You knew when to wait! [ENSEMBLE] PARTNER OF MINE! [FEMALE] You knew when to leave— [BREAK — SILENCE] And that's probably why I'd trust you at the gate. [FINAL STOMP] [OUTRO — BANJO + WATER DRUM] If somebody asks who rode with me... I don't tell stories. I don't give names. I just tip my hat toward that empty saddle. [SOFT] A partner of mine. [THREE DISTANT STOMPS] [CUT]
