Eight Second Ride (8 Miles to Memphis)

My friend Travis said, "Hear this truth loud and new
A song ain't the same just 'cause it shares a title with Ledoux
From vibrant blues to country gold, each tune should stand alone
Not like a Roadhouse movie scene
Stripped of its fighting, poorly cloned
Just 'cause they call it '8 Second Ride,'
Don't mean it's worth the play
Quality's not given in the title, it's in what the lyrics say

Drenched in clichés like a honky-tonk on Friday night
Cold beers tipping back, under neon lights just right
A dusty old dog asleep in the bed of a beat-up truck
Heartbreak rolling in like a freight train, just my luck
Mama's praying hard in the pew, as I sing of freedom and fight
Beneath the Southern stars, where my family's roots grip tight

Where the Delta breezes blow, hearts heavy in our chest
Memories of 812 Arlington, where life put us to the test
Rob and Tonna laughed it off, with our "Collie" dog by our feet
But behind those smiles, we all knew, we'd hardly enough to eat

Cruising down Missouri Street, with Travis in his old Ford ride
We're chasing dreams and Blue Devils, on an 8-second life
8 miles from Memphis, where our secrets can't hide
Our hearts ignite, our souls alight, embracing the night
By the bends of the Mississippi, where old tales abide
In the Wonder City's heart, we're determined to ride with pride

Past the house at 8-1-2, now just memories and ash
Where we once grew tall, before it fell in a fiery flash
That porch no longer creaks, silenced by flames that night
Yet here, our simple lives, still shine beneath the Arkansas light
Though we're scattered like seeds, the wind knows our tales
It's here, 8 miles from Memphis, where our heart never fails

Cruising down Missouri Street, with Travis in his old Ford ride
We're chasing dreams, once mere Blue Imps, in an 8 second ride
8 miles from Memphis, where our childhoods can't hide
Our hearts ablaze, like that old house, our spirits take flight
Mississippi's call resonates, in the once gentle night
In the Wonder City's story, we resolve to fight with might

Now, as the sun dips low on the Broadway we once roamed
Gun, Rob, Kerley, Byrd, our hearts where they called home
Past the old dog track, Swindler, Timmy G, and Lisa know
In this truckstop capital, where fleeting shadows grow
A teaching icon left us, too soon beneath the moon
In the Delta's embrace, where memories still bloom

Cruising down Missouri Street, with Travis in his old Ford ride
Chasing dreams beyond the Blue Devils, where our fates collide
Just 8 miles from Memphis, where we yearned for something more
Our hearts seek new horizons, escaping poverty's shore
By the bends of the Mississippi, where our roots run deep
In Wonder City's shadow, we sowed, so now we reap