[Intro] [Instrumental — acoustic guitar, fiddle, warm and open] [Verse 1] The lake is green and cold and wide The pines go all the way down to the shore We drove out here before the sun got high Like we have done a hundred times before Sarah's kids are running through the grass Tom is pulling cold ones from the ice And up above the water on that old oak branch The rope is hanging right where he tied it twice [Pre-Chorus] Nobody took it down Nobody said a word We just let it hang there Like a note we never heard [Chorus] The rope still hangs above the water The sun still finds the middle of the lake We still come here every summer And we still jump in We still jump in For his sake [Verse 2] I remember how he'd climb that branch Like gravity was just a suggestion He'd whoop so loud the whole lake heard Then hit the water like an exclamation He was always first and always loudest Always last to leave when the sun went down And every summer that was just the deal — You followed Danny and the world felt safe somehow [Pre-Chorus] Nobody took it down Nobody said a word We just let it hang there Like a note we never heard [Chorus] The rope still hangs above the water The sun still finds the middle of the lake We still come here every summer And we still jump in We still jump in For his sake [Bridge] [Acoustic guitar alone — warm and unhurried] Sarah's oldest grabbed the rope today First time any of us saw her do it She swung out wide above the green And hit the water like she had done it... a thousand times before... She came up laughing, pushed her hair back Looked just like her mother twenty years ago And I swear I heard him whooping from that oak branch Telling her that's the way to do it! [Final Chorus] The rope still hangs above the water The sun still finds the middle of the lake We still come here every summer And we still jump in We still jump in And he's never really gone When we jump in For his sake [Outro] [Fiddle and guitar fade slowly] The drive home always feels too short The pines go quiet when the light turns gold And somewhere on that old oak branch A rope keeps hanging Like a story being told ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A Grand Country summer song about a group of friends gathered at their lake — green water, pine forest, cold drinks, kids running in the grass. At the center of it all is a rope on an old oak branch that nobody has taken down, tied there years ago by Danny, who was always first to climb it, always loudest when he hit the water, always last to leave. He's gone now, but the rope stays. And every summer they come back, and they still jump in. When Sarah's oldest swings out for the first time, something of Danny comes back with her. Uplifting and bittersweet in equal measure — grief carried lightly, the way country music does it best. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Bingo Board — 2026 [A1] GoGo × Shame [B1] Klezmer × Thirst [C1] Mongolian Throat Singing × Entropy [D1] Instrumental Only × Aerobics [E1] Native American Flute × Democracy [F1] Hopera × Mushroom / Fungi [A2] Rap × Nature [B2] Delta Blues × Dark Ages [C2] Grand Country × Uplifting [D2] Motown × Awakening [E2] Surf Rock × Surrealism [F2] Accordion × Train Hopping [A3] Chap Hop × Muscle Flex [B3] Witch House × Shed Your Burden [C3] Ska × Conflict [D3] Cyberpunk × Transmittable [E3] Groove Metal × Gnomes [F3] Wonky × Ice Cream [A4] Yacht Rock × Love [B4] Screamo × Bubblegum [C4] Fado Phonk × Africa Language [D4] Electronic Dance × 42 [E4] R&B Funk × Banana Split [F4] Skweee × Dating [A5] Lo-fi Indie Pop × Cheating Death [B5] Krautgaze Drone Rock × Heartbreak [C5] Balkan Folk × Transformation [D5] NeoFolk × Hardship [E5] Classical Music × Bird [F5] Alternative Rock × Courage [A6] Harpsichord Symphonic Metal × Faith [B6] Vocal Only / Acapella × Hope [C6] Ballad × Seduction [D6] Psychedelic Newgrass × Philosophy [E6] Yodeling × High Fantasy [F6] Punkrock × Awkward Fathers ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ © 2026 Ande Records Lyrics by Ande All rights reserved. https://ande-records.se/
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