Phantom - Live

Well I was out on the West Coast one time
Just tryna make a buck
And things, things didn't work out my way
I was down on my luck
Well I got tired of roamin' and bummin' around

So I figured I'd head back east towards my hometown
You know I made a lot of miles the first few days
And I figured if my luck held out then
I'd be home in a week or so
But on the third day I got stranded on a cold, lonely cross road
The rain was pourin' down

I was hungry and freezing and done caught a chill
When the lights of a big semi on top the hill
Lord I sure was glad to here them merry brakes come on
And I climbed on into that cab where I'd knew it'd be warm

At the wheel sat a big man who weighed about 210
He stuck out his hand and said with a grin, "Big Joe is the name"
I told him mine
And he said the name of my rick is Phantom 309

Well I asked him why he called his rick such a name
He said, "Son, this ol' mack can put 'em all to shame"
Well, I'd hang a driver or rick running any line
And see nothing but tail lights from Phantom 309

Well we rode, we rode and we talked for the better part of the night
Until the lights of the truck stop came into sight
He said, "I'm sorry son but this is as far as you go
'Cause I gotta make a turn just on up the road"
Well I thanked him and as I hopped on out of the cab
He threw me a dime
He said, "Here, have a cup on ol' big Joe"

You know, as he pulled that rig out into the night, no time flies
He was clean and out of sight
Well I went on into that restaurant and ordered me up a cup
Dead big Joe was settin' me up
Aww, you could've heard a pin drop

It got deadly quiet, the waiters face turned kind of pale
"Well did I say something wrong?" I said with a halfway grin
"No," said the waiter, "Every driver in here knows big Joe
But let me tell you what happened out at them crossroads
Not just ten years ago"

"There was a bus load of kids comin' through town
And they were right in the middle when big Joe topped the hill
He could've been slaughtered but he turned his wheels
Went into a skid, and gave his life to save that bunch of kids"

"And there at that crossroads was the end of the line
For Big Joe and Phantom 309
But every now and then a hiker will come along
And like you big Joe give 'em a lift
Here, have another cup of coffee
And forget about the dime, keep it as a souvenir
Of Big Joe and Phantom 309"

Oh yeah, Phantom 309, thank you right
Watch out for that, thank you
Yes sirree, you get out there
You get out there one night and you meet him
Big Joe, tell him I said hi

We gonna do some switchin' around right here
And bring Chris up to sing a tune right now
And I think you gon' like it, here's a tune that me and Leroy
And uh, and uh, me I'm Ray
Right if you can't see me write

Uh, me and Leroy and Kevin Fowler
Wrote this tune a while back, put it on our record
And Chris is gonna sing it for us
Are you ready over there Chris?

This is a, this is a tune for all those of you who
Know somebody out there
Who uh, who in the last few years that you've known them in
In that time has moved up town, you know what I mean
Yeah, you know what I mean
Moved up town, well this is a little story about it
And it's simply called, "Your down home is up town"