Drive (For Daddy Gene) lyrics
by Alan Jackson
It was painted red, the stripe was white,
It was eighteen feet from bow to stern light,
Second-hand from a dealer in Atlanta
I rode up with daddy when he went there to get her.
Put on a shine, put on a motor.
Built out of love, but made for water.
Ran her for years, 'till the transom got rotten
A piece of my childhood that'll never be forgotten.
It was just an old plywood boat,
With a 75 Johnson and electric choke.
A young boy, two hands on the wheel,
I can't replace the way it made me feel,
And I'd turn her sharp,
And I'd make her whine,
And he'd say, "You can't beat the way an old wood boat rides."
Just a little lake 'cross the Alabama line,
But I was king of the ocean
When daddy let me drive.
Just an old half-ton, short-bed Ford
My uncle bought new in '64.
Daddy got it right,'cause the engine was smokin'
A couple of burnt valves. and he had it goin'.
He'd let me drive her and we'd haul off a load.
Down a dirt strip where we'd dump trash off of Thigpen Road
I'd sit up in the seat and stretch my feet out to the pedals,
Smiling like a hero that just received his medal.
It was just an old hand-me-down Ford
With a three-speed on the column and a dent in the door
A young boy two hands on the wheel
I can't replace the way it made me feel
And I would press that clutch
And I would keep it right
And he'd say, "A little slower son you're doing just fine"
Just a dirt road with trash on each side
But I was Mario Andretti
When daddy let me drive
I'm grown up now, three daughters of my own
I let them drive my old Jeep across the pasture at our home
Maybe one day they'll reach back in their file
And pull out that old memory,
And think of me and smile and say
It was just an old worn out Jeep
Rusty old floorboard, hot on my feet
A young girl two hands on the wheel
I can't replace the way it made me feel
And he'd say, "Turn it left and steer it right,
Straighten up girl, you're doing just fine"
Just a little valley by the river where we'd ride
But I was high on a mountain
When daddy let me drive
When daddy let me drive
Oh he let me drive
Daddy let me drive
It was just an old plywood boat
With a '75 Johnson with electric choke
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