

Prompt / Lyrics
[Verse 1] Gravel road Dust on my tongue Your name carved In the stock of this gun Boot prints fading In the blood and the sand Every mile Feels like the devil's land [Chorus] Live by the gun Die by the gun That's what my father Told his broken son Got a choice in the dark When the killing's done Revenge and death Or forgiveness and life Live by the gun Or lay it down tonight [Verse 2] I found you shaking Outside that burned-out store Your hands were empty But I'd seen them before Pull back the hammer Hear my heartbeat roar Your eyes said "please" Like I'd heard at my door [Chorus] Live by the gun Die by the gun Every loaded word Weighs a thousand tons Got a choice in the dark When the killing's done Revenge and death Or forgiveness and life Live by the gun Or lay it down tonight [Bridge] Your kid on the porch Bare feet in the dirt Two small hands On a torn-up shirt If I pull this trigger I become you If I walk away Do I die too? (oh) [Chorus] Live by the gun Die by the gun I dropped the steel Like it burned through my thumb Walked off shaking As the red sun bled Let the ghosts crowd in Let mercy spread Revenge and death Or forgiveness and life I lived by the gun But I lay it down tonight
Tags
country, Stormy dark-country ballad. Male vocals with a rough, weary edge over twangy baritone guitar, brushed snare, and moaning lap steel. First verse rides low and intimate; chorus opens with gang-style harmonies and floor-tom hits. Second half adds organ swells and a distant church-choir pad, building toward a big, gravelly final chorus, then ending on a lone, bent guitar note and a dry vocal whisper.
3:08
No
1/30/2026