[INTRO — Screen door, birds, coffee pour, little paws on porch boards] [Solo ukulele: signature riff E–G–A–B / B–A–G–E] [Clawhammer banjo repeats it; fiddle answers; pedal steel swells] [Bubba — spoken, low male voice] Strings, keys, a harmonica and a horn. Funny how they all know where home is. [Upright bass walks in; Memphis train-beat drums] [VERSE 1 — Bubba; acoustic fingerpicking, banjo and fiddle] I grew up with a radio and a red-clay road, Lake Lanier in the morning, where the dogwoods grow. One station played a fiddle, another sang blues, Then a piano shook the dust right off my shoes. I heard a steel guitar crying from a far-off town, A banjo chasing daylight up and down. Never knew those roads could meet, Till a porch swing found the beat. [PRE-CHORUS — Darlene, unmistakably female] Let the little strings sparkle, let the big drums roll! [Bubba] Every sound's got a story, every story's got soul! [CHORUS — Bubba and Darlene; full band, horn punches] The Holler has a heartbeat! Can you hear it coming through? Four notes rising from the red clay, A thousand roads singing something new. Let the fiddle fly, let the steel guitar cry, Let the banjo run and the little uke shine! From Chicago down to Memphis, Across the mountains and the pines— One life, many sounds, And the heartbeat's keeping time! [TURNAROUND — Everyone drops out] [Ukulele plays E–G–A–B; harmonica answers B–A–G–E] [Band lands together on E7] [VERSE 2 — Bubba; swamp slide, Chicago harp, funky bass] I've known thunder, I've known rain, Took the long way home through pain. Quit fighting shadows late at night, Sat still and let in the morning light. Now Trigger's on the porch with his ears standing tall, Five-shot coffee and a little room for us all. Can't change the past, but this I know: When the band starts listening, the music flows. [PRE-CHORUS — Female lead, male response] [Darlene] You don't need the same road! [Bubba] You just need the same beat! [Both] Bring that whole wide world into the street! [CHORUS — Both; stronger Southern soul groove] The Holler has a heartbeat! Can you hear it coming through? Four notes rising from the red clay, A thousand roads singing something new. Let the fiddle fly, let the steel guitar cry, Let the banjo run and the little uke shine! From Chicago down to Memphis, Across the mountains and the pines— One life, many sounds, And the heartbeat's keeping time! [INSTRUMENTAL — One groove; instruments trade the hook] [4 bars: uke strum and clawhammer banjo] [4 bars: bluegrass banjo rolls and fiddle] [4 bars: pedal steel and swing fiddle] [4 bars: boogie piano and Hammond B3] [4 bars: harmonica and slide guitar] [4 bars: blues guitar and tenor sax horns] [All instruments pass the SAME E–G–A–B / B–A–G–E riff] [VERSE 3 — Darlene solo, unmistakably female gospel-soul] I heard a quiet little melody beneath a mighty sound, A place for every wanderer who thought they weren't allowed. Sweet notes need the rough ones, slow notes need the fast; You can keep your roots and still grow past your past. So leave a chair beside you, give the next voice room, We'll turn a thousand different strings into one living tune. [BRIDGE — Bass and drums only; restrained country-funk] [Bubba — rhythmic spoken] Four notes, one spark, let 'em carry that flame. New instruments talking, but the song stays the same. [Ukulele and banjo enter] [Darlene — sung] Let the small ones be heard! [Steel and fiddle answer] [Bubba] Let the long notes fly! [Harp, piano and Hammond swell] [Both] Different roads, one rhythm, Under one wide sky! [BREAKDOWN — Acoustic guitar, piano and soft steel] [Bubba — gently sung] I won't outrun the years behind me, Won't keep carrying all that weight. There's peace in hearing someone beside me Find the note I was trying to play. [Darlene — softly] And we can start again today. [FINAL CHORUS — Gospel harmonies, fiddle, steel, banjo, uke, piano, organ, harp, guitars, horns] [Both] THE HOLLER HAS A HEARTBEAT! Hear that sweet sound coming through! Four notes rising from the red clay, A thousand roads singing something new! Let the fiddle fly, let the steel guitar cry, Let the banjo run and the little uke shine! From the Georgia pines to Carolina, Let the whole world fall in time— One life, many sounds, One heartbeat, yours and mine! [OUTRO — Musical signature passes through every lead instrument] [Ukulele: E–G–A–B] [Banjo: B–A–G–E] [Fiddle and pedal steel harmonize the full phrase] [Piano, guitar, harmonica and sax echo; horns hold E7] [Bubba — spoken] Different roads. One Holler. I'm not finished. I'm just getting started. [All instruments: one tight final E7 chord]
