(Intro – slow, minor-key acoustic guitar, low slide guitar)
Verse 1
There’s a crow on the fence and a storm in the air
Boots by the door but nobody cares
Whiskey bottle bleeding dry
Same old lies, same goodbye
Verse 2
Truck won’t start, but my mind won’t rest
Gravel road pounding in my chest
She left town with the morning train
Left me here with the guilt and rain
Chorus
Yeah, these black roads don’t forgive
They remember how you live
Every sin, every lie you told
Carved in dust, carved in stone
I keep driving, but I don’t know where
When the night knows your name, it ain’t fair
⸻
Verse 3
Church bell rings like a warning shot
Praying for peace that I ain’t got
Mama said, “Son, don’t run from truth”
But truth cuts deep when you’ve got nothing to lose
Pre-Chorus
The past don’t sleep, it just waits
By the gate, by the gate
Chorus
Yeah, these black roads don’t forgive
They remember how you live
Every sin, every lie you told
Carved in dust, carved in stone
I keep driving, but I don’t know where
When the night knows your name, it ain’t fair
⸻
Bridge
If I stop, I’ll hear the screams
Of broken vows and dead-end dreams
So I ride this line ‘til the daylight bleeds
Hoping dawn forgets me
(Slide guitar moans)
Final Chorus
Yeah, these black roads don’t forgive
They don’t care how hard you live
Every prayer I never prayed
Every soul I pushed away
If redemption’s real, it’s hard to find
On a road that’s darker than my mind
Outro
(Fade – lone guitar, wind sound)
Black roads behind me… black roads ahead