(Verse 1) The carnival lights were flashin', a blur of dust and dreams, My father's name was glory, the hero of the beams. I watched him coughin' crimson, a debt the doctors couldn't pay, And I cursed the air I breathed for the sun of a brand new day. I said I'd give up everything to keep him safe from harm, Then a shadow in the moonlight offered up his charm. He didn't wear a red suit, just a grin and a cold hand, And offered me a contract written in the desert sand. (Chorus) Oh, I signed it with my blood, now I wear the chain and fire, Traded my soul for a life that was higher. I'm the Ghost Rider, the spirit they unleash, When the sun goes down and the rotten souls reach. Mephisto keeps the deed, and I ride across the black, To burn the wicked down, but I can never turn back. I saved his life, but lost my own, a bargain forged in hell, Now every night I'm damned to ring the penitence bell. (Verse 2) My old flame Roxanne, she looked me in the eye, She asked me where the good man went, and I could only lie. I told her it was the blacktop, the need for speed and air, Couldn't tell her that a skull of flame was tangled in my hair. I ride the cursed iron horse, the beast beneath the seat, And feel the vengeance burning from my head down to my feet. When the wicked stand before me, and the fire begins to crawl, I see the contract burnin' on the canyon wall. (Chorus) Oh, I signed it with my blood, now I wear the chain and fire, Traded my soul for a life that was higher. I'm the Ghost Rider, the spirit they unleash, When the sun goes down and the rotten souls reach. Mephisto keeps the deed, and I ride across the black, To burn the wicked down, but I can never turn back. I saved his life, but lost my own, a bargain forged in hell, Now every night I'm damned to ring the penitence bell. (Bridge) My father lived, then died again, the Devil claimed his due, But the curse remained upon me, a penance fresh and new. The Spirit of Vengeance knows no rest, no friend, no family name, Just an endless, lonely highway, fuelled by sin and endless flame. I look upon the wicked, and the weight of their crime I feel, But my penance is far heavier than the suffering I deal. (Outro) The skull is alight now, the chains begin to rattle... (Whispered): Go ahead, look into the eyes of judgment... The sound of a chain whipping... Gonna ride until the contract tears. No more tears.
