[Verse 1]
Yellow line peeling under bald tires
Coffee gone cold, breath tastes like smoke
Got a cracked-frame Bible on the dash, face down
And a warrant in a state I never spoke
Weigh station glow in the rearview mirror
Like a courthouse hanging in the sky
Got a logbook scribbled in a shaky hand
And a fresh oil stain where I learned to lie
[Chorus]
Black dog on I-10, keeping pace with my wheel
Eyes like burning coals, knows every secret I conceal
He runs in the rain, he runs in the steel
Black dog on I-10 (oh)
Tell me which one’s gonna get me first
The past, the D.O.T., or the beast on the shoulder I feel
[Verse 2]
CB hissing out dead men’s laughter
Channel 19 sounds like a wake
Heard a friend call in at mile marker thirteen
Now his rig’s rusting by a brackish lake
Saw that dog first night out of Shreveport
Wet fur dripping in the sodium glow
Tag said “Inspection” ‘round his ragged neck
He grinned like he already knows
[Chorus]
Black dog on I-10, keeping pace with my wheel
Eyes like burning coals, knows every secret I conceal
He runs in the rain, he runs in the steel
Black dog on I-10 (yeah)
Tell me which one’s gonna get me first
The past, the D.O.T., or the beast on the shoulder I feel
[Bridge]
Pulled over where the cypress leans low
Killed the lights, let the engine hum low (mmm)
Heartbeat drumming like a jackknife load
Footsteps crunching in the sugarcane rows
License plate hanging like a death row tag
Tire tracks fading in the swampy sand
Heard him breathing at the trailer doors
Hot breath crawling up my hands (oh Lord)
[Chorus]
Black dog on I-10, keeping pace with my wheel
Eyes like burning coals, knows every secret I conceal
He runs in the rain, he runs in the steel
Black dog on I-10
If I make New Orleans by the break of day
Will that mutt, that badge, or my own bad memory
Be the one that drags me away