[Intro]
Dust on the coat, iron at the hip
No road behind us, no room to slip
[Verse 1]
Bounty posters curl on the mercantile wall
Fresh ink drying while the telegraph calls
We took three horses from a ranch at dawn
Left one silver dollar, then we rode on
The creek ran red where the posse crossed
A wagon wheel broke, but we counted no loss
You held the map by the lantern flame
I heard your brother answer to his name
[Pre-Chorus]
They’re closing the distance, I know that sound
Hooves like thunder when they circle the ground
[Chorus]
Ride, ride, don’t let them take us alive
Through the cedar breaks, keep the horses in line
If the law wants blood, let ’em follow the trail
We were born in the dust, we were raised to prevail
Ride, ride, with the cold wind turning slow
One more town burning, then nowhere to go
[Verse 2]
We robbed the bank beneath a harvest moon
A cracked black safe and a borrowed room
The clerk kept praying, his hands on the floor
While the lookout watched from the courthouse door
A rifle cracked hard from the water tower
We lost young Eli in less than an hour
No grave but a blanket beneath the pine
No time for a sermon, no time to cry
[Pre-Chorus]
They’re closing the distance, I know that sound
Lanterns like fireflies spreading around
[Chorus]
Ride, ride, don’t let them take us alive
Through the cedar breaks, keep the horses in line
If the law wants blood, let ’em follow the trail
We were born in the dust, we were raised to prevail
Ride, ride, with the cold wind turning slow
One more town burning, then nowhere to go
[Bridge]
At the border river, we’ll split in two
You take the north road, I’ll wait for you
If morning finds me with an empty hand
Tell the ones back home I made my stand
[Final Chorus]
Ride, ride, hear the iron behind
Black coats on the ridge and a storm in the sky
If the law wants blood, let ’em follow the trail
We were born in the dust, we were raised to prevail
Ride, ride, let the hard country know
We don’t kneel easy, we don’t die slow
[Outro]
Dust on the coat, iron at the hip
No road behind us, no room to slip