[Verse 1] We grew up behind the schoolhouse, threw our bikes against the fence, spent our summers down by Miller’s, never had a dollar between us then. You were always talking distance, said this town was much too small, I laughed and told you I’d be waiting when you came back from it all. [Verse 2] You left one cold November, your boy was barely turning three, you held him there beside the driveway, then you handed him to me. Said, “Keep an eye on him sometimes, you know how stubborn he can be.” I told you, “Get yourself back home, and quit giving jobs to me.” [Instrumental Turnaround] [clean guitar tremolo] [low fiddle note] [bass holds the root] [Verse 3] The call came on a Tuesday morning. Your mother answered first. Nobody knew what words to use, so everybody used the worst. The church filled up that Friday, folks I hadn’t seen in years, your little boy sat by your mother with both hands between his knees. [Refrain] Now there’s a name on the wall, right beside the schoolhouse hall. They call you one of this town’s own, they say your name and stand up tall. There’s a name on the wall, but a name can’t catch him when he falls. The town got something to remember. Your boy lost it all. [Verse 4] They unveiled it in the springtime, brass letters polished clean, the mayor said a few good sentences, your picture stood between. Everybody shook his little hand, said his daddy made them proud. He nodded like you taught him to, then looked for me inside the crowd. [Bridge] [drums drop out] [voice close] I knelt down there beside him, didn’t know what I could say. So I told him, “When you need me, I’m not going anywhere.” [fiddle enters softly] Not today. Not years from now. Not ever. [Verse 5] He’s taller now than you were when we first learned how to drive. Sometimes he laughs exactly like you, catches me by surprise. I taught him how to change a tire, you would’ve laughed at how long it took. And every now and then he asks me for another story from when we were young. [Final Refrain] There’s still a name on the wall, right beside the schoolhouse hall. Folks pass it every morning, some still stop there when they walk. There’s a name on the wall, and I know why they put it there. But when your boy needs somebody... I’ll be there. [Outro] [clean guitar alone] [fiddle holds one quiet note] I’ll be there. [natural room decay]
