

Prompt / Lyrics
[Verse 1] Smoke in my sleep again Drums on a distant hill Names I can’t say out loud Blood I remember still Uniform folded tight Buried it deep in a trunk Left it with mother’s Bible Walked till the daylight sunk [Chorus] So I followed the river west Past every burned-out town Laid my ghosts in the dust and grass Let the saddle take me down Where the air runs thin and clear And the pine roots hold the ground I lost my war in the lowland mud But I found my peace in the mountain sound [Verse 2] Night on the prairie road Stars like a thousand eyes Each one a face I knew Flickering out of the sky Ridge line at break of day Purple and gold and gray First time in years I breathed Didn’t taste smoke that way [Chorus] So I followed the river west Past every burned-out town Laid my ghosts in the dust and grass Let the saddle take me down Where the air runs thin and clear And the pine roots hold the ground I lost my war in the lowland mud But I found my peace in the mountain sound [Bridge] I still hear the captain call Sometimes when thunder rolls But it fades in the canyon wind Like a sermon getting old (mmm) Hands in the living earth Planting a simple row Nothing to take but time Nothing to give but grow [Chorus] Still I follow the river west Even when I stand still now Every breath is a wordless hymn Every stone a silent vow Here the air runs thin and clear Here my heart beats slow and sound I lost my war in the lowland mud But I found my peace in the mountain ground
Tags
Dusty folk ballad with male vocals, close mic and intimate. Fingerpicked acoustic guitar, soft upright bass, and brushed snare set a slow, steady sway. Verses stay bare and storytelling-driven; chorus widens with warm harmonies and a distant pedal steel crying in the background. Final chorus pulls the band down to almost a whisper, ending on a lone guitar and breathy held note.
4:05
No
1/30/2026