[Intro] (Rhodes and brushed snare fade up, pedal steel sighs once — like house lights coming up slow) Well. That's about the whole record. Stick around. Got one more in me. [Verse 1] [Bridge] (band pulls back to Rhodes and upright bass, steel hums low) (spoken, flat and fond) Alright. Credits. Gears: turned by me. Leaves: mostly turned themselves. I just watered. Coat: velvet, brass, one button missing since the co-op auction. Not looking for it. Truck: still running. Don't ask what year. Corn: consulted on every track. Had notes. The nine-sixteenths: never found. Presumed happy somewhere. And you — for listening all the way to the end. That's more than the corn did. (sung, lifting, harmonies bloom in) So if the record's done and the porch light's on And you're wondering what all that was for It was a fella between two things he loves Trying not to keep score [Chorus] (muted trumpet and strings enter, widest harmony stack, steel soaring) Between the rows and the ratchet That's where I set up, that's where I stay One hand on the throttle, one hand in the topsoil And a truck that's parked halfway Between the Shop light's off, the bell's gone quiet Coat's on the nail where the coat belongs Wiped the bench down, counted the sockets Nine-sixteenths — yep. Still gone. Walked out back where the sweet corn's leaning Said goodnight, and it leaned some more Same as me at the end of a long one Don't say much, just tip toward the door [Pre-Chorus] I never picked a side, I just picked a spot Where the drip pan meets the dew [Chorus] Between the rows and the ratchet That's where I set up, that's where I stay One hand on the throttle, one hand in the topsoil And a truck that's parked halfway Between the rows and the ratchet Where the tin roof ends and the tassels start When the credits roll, don't bill me twice It's one fella. Two parts. [Verse 2] Sold it soft and I built it hard Wired a cob like a circuit board Got grease on a petiole, called it a feature Ledger says it sold, so the ledger's the word Two shadows walked out on the one field Coat and the bare hands, side by side Neighbor quit asking which one's the real one I quit answering. Nothing to hide. [Pre-Chorus] I never split the difference, I just stood on it Where the drip pan meets the dew [Chorus] Between the rows and the ratchet That's where I set up, that's where I stay One hand on the throttle, one hand in the topsoil And a truck that's parked halfway Between the rows and the ratchet Where the tin roof ends and the tassels start When the credits roll, don't bill me twice It's one fella. Two parts. [Instrumental] (pedal steel takes the melody, nylon-string answers, Rhodes comps warm underneath, eight bars, faint ratchet click on the two)
