I was raised off of old Route 3 Out past where the blacktop ends We'd walked to church on Sunday morning Race barefoot back to the Johnson's fence That's where I first saw Mary On that roadside pickin' blackberries That summer I turned a corner in my soul Down that red dirt road
It's where I drank my first beer It's where I found Jesus Where I wrecked my first car I tore it all to pieces I learned the path to heaven is full of sinners and believers Learned that happiness on earth ain't just for high achievers I've learned I've come to know There's life at both ends Of that red dirt road
Her daddy didn't like me much With my shackled up GTO I'd sneak out in the middle of the night Throw rocks at her bedroom window We'd turn out the headlights Drive by the moonlight Talk about what the future might hold Down a red dirt road
I went out into the world, and I came back in I lost Mary, oh I got her back again And driving home tonight feels like I've found a long lost friend