More Than a Dog Loves His Tail

[Intro – hazy jangly twin guitars, ukulele, steel drum shimmer, congas, loose groove] [Verse 1 – hushed, reedy laid-back tenor, lazy slide guitar answers] Had a dog in my life since the day I could crawl But the year I met you, I didn't own one at all I was splittin' rent with my sister and her canine friends Lenny and Foster, and they took me in Lord, they'd hear your car and go plumb out of their minds Lenny's tail just a-whippin', side to side And Foster's nub went wigglin', heart and soul Never knew it wasn't whole [Chorus – bright jangly lift, rap-sung rhythmic cadence, doubled lead, three-part stacked harmonies] Every dog we ever loved Knew the sound of your car Spun circles in the kitchen Like you hung the moon and stars Twenty-five years, and I'm still the same Still wag a little when you say my name Girl, it's the one thing that never fails I love you more than a dog loves his tail [Verse 2 – hushed again, ukulele and congas, call-and-response backing voices] Then we said "I do" and got a place of our own And a dog that was ours, not borrowed or loaned Boomer had an underbite, and them bottom teeth would show Lookin' like he knew somethin' we didn't know He'd meet you at the door with that crooked little grin And I'd be right behind him, grinnin' just like him [Chorus – bigger lift, rap-sung cadence, four-part stacked harmonies, steel drums] Every dog we ever loved Knew the sound of your car Spun circles in the kitchen Like you hung the moon and stars Twenty-five years, and I'm still the same Still wag a little when you say my name Girl, it's the one thing that never fails I love you more than a dog loves his tail [Verse 3 – laid-back groove, slide guitar, eases down by the last two lines] Then came Poppy, our little bob-tailed boy Just a nub there to love and a whole lot of joy He'd hear your car, and Lord, that back end would go Wigglin' like a worm on a fishin' pole Grayed around the muzzle, slowed down in his stride But that nub still wiggled every time you came inside [Bridge – stripped, wind, crackly radio-filtered lead vocal, single soft harmony, tender] We were both right there when his body started to fail seventeen years but he still managed to wag that tail Your hand on him, darlin', and my hand on him too And he wagged it for me, and he wagged it for you [Final Chorus – builds into swirling full-band jam, four-part stacked harmonies, gang vocals, doubled lead] Every dog we ever loved Knew the sound of your car Now I'm the one that hears it And come runnin' from the yard Twenty-five years, and I'm still the same Still wag a little when you say my name We ain't perfect, Lord, bless our souls Like a nub that never knew it wasn't whole Every mile down this old dirt trail I love you more than a dog loves his tail [Outro – jam fades to ukulele, wind, and voices, full harmony stack swells on the last word] More than Poppy loved his nub More than a dog loves his taaaail