Gravel And Gates

[Verse 1]
Boots on the gravel at 5 a.m
Steam from the coffee
Breath in the air
Keys on my hip feel heavy today
Same long hallway
Same busted chair
Names on the clipboard
Eyes on the yard
Faded tattoos
Old scars and new
Some days I’m steel
Some days I’m tired
I see their past
It shows me mine too
[Chorus]
I walk the line
Behind these gates
Between their chances and their mistakes
I ain't a hero
I ain't their judge
I just stand steady when the world won’t budge
Clock in the fear
Clock out the hate
Try to find a little mercy in a place built for blame
Every day
On this gravel and gate
[Verse 2]
Fights start fast over nothing at all
A look
A word
A memory burn
I shout their numbers
Call for the team
Heart beating louder than the siren’s turn
Some call me "boss"
Some call me worse
I answer anyway
Keep my calm
’Cause under the ink and the anger and smoke
There’s someone’s kid with a shaking palm
[Chorus]
I walk the line
Behind these gates
Between their chances and their mistakes
I ain't a hero
I ain't their judge
I just stand steady when the world won’t budge
Clock in the fear
Clock out the hate
Try to find a little mercy in a place built for blame
Every day
On this gravel and gate
[Bridge]
I drive home quiet
Radio low (mm-hmm)
Stare at my hands on the wheel
Leave all the shouting locked in the walls
Still some of that weight
Still some of that weight I feel
[Chorus]
I walk the line
Behind these gates
Between their chances and their mistakes
I ain't a hero
I ain't their judge
I just stand steady when the world won’t budge
Clock in the fear
Clock out the hate
Try to find a little mercy in a place built for blame
Every day
On this gravel and gate

Gritty country-rock band feel; male vocals with weathered tone. Clean telecaster chords over a mid-tempo stomp, brushed snare and upright-style bass. Verses stay lean and story-driven; chorus swells with stacked harmonies and a ringing slide guitar answering the vocal. Subtle organ pad in the bridge to deepen the emotion before a final, tight chorus.