Travis Meadows

first cigarette

SIDEWAYS
by Travis Meadows

If I could buy myself a conscience that wasn’t broken
Mend every fence I drove my hard head through
Re-lock all the doors I wish I never opened
Unlearn the things I wish I never knew
And it came out through the bottle
It came out through my fists
It came out way too early
I wish it never did

Push it down, it comes out sideways
Push it down, it comes out sideways
Bitter roads turn into highways
Push it down it comes out sideways

I have days where it’s just nose above water
Keep it together while I fall apart
I have moments when I act just like my father
The only man that ever broke my heart
And it comes out in my silence
Sometimes unwanted tears
Comes out disguised as anger but it’s really fear

Push it down, it comes out sideways
Push it down, it comes out sideways
Bitter roads turn into highways
Push it down, it comes out sideways

PRAY FOR JUNGLELAND
by Melissa Peirce . Drew Kennedy . Travis Meadows

Eighteen, felt like love
Me and Debbie couldn’t get enough
Something in us was opening up for the first time
I kissed those lips that taste like smoke
At every light on Terry Road
Yes meant yes and no meant no,
But she never said no
I smelled like daddy’s Old Spice
She looked just like paradise

When you’re livin’ on the edge of your seat
And you’re waiting on something,
Anything, to happen
Her in those tight jeans
Wearin’ out the Dairy Queen
Waitin’ on Springsteen, stereo blastin’
Too much magic to understand
It’s all Friday night, world on fire
Desire burnin’ up your hands
(When you’re that young, you do what can, when you can)
And pray for Jungleland

Summer came and summer went
A summer like that’ll leave a dent
You an’t buy back your innocence
If you could, you probably wouldn’t take it
Cuz you learn from where you’ve been
Some songs take you there again

MCDOWELL ROAD
by David Ramirez . Travis Meadows

That road ran like a river
Through the middle of our town
It keeps my memories spinnin’
Just like car wheels on the ground
It’s a fight I never finished
A friend I almost found
Spent my childhood in it
Till it almost pulled me down

All those years I took for granted
When you’re young, you don’t think about gettin’ old
I used to think I’de live forever
Drivin’ up and down McDowell Road

I was smilin’ bright as lightning
Didn’t take time to wave
They all cussed my ass for leaving
I just laughed at those who stayed
I left all that behind me
Let sleeping memories lay
Sometimes they still remind me
I was younger yesterday

All those years I took for granted
When you’re young, you don’t think about gettin’ old
I used to think I’de live forever
Drivin’ up and down McDowell Road

Some roads take nowhere
Some make you walk alone
Some just leave you standin’ there
Cuz you know you can’t go home
The ones you leave behind you
Man, they haunt you like a ghost,
But the ones you never found
Are the ones that’ll kill a man the most

All those years I took for granted
When you’re young, you don’t think about gettin’ old
I used to think I’de live forever
I used to think we all would live forever
Drivin’ up and down McDowell Road

FIRST CIGARETTE
by Jeremy Spillman . Travis Meadows

I’ve been hungry like a stray dog
In an old abandoned town
Went runnin’ just for runnin’ sake
Cuz I couldn’t settle down
I have dined with kings and princes,
Been granted all three wishes,
That just left me wishin’ I had more

I - I keep tryin’ to get high,
But the need for satisfaction
Leaves me so unsatisfied
I - I am a little more content
A little more content with
Who I am then who I was
And I have learned to love the comfort when it comes
Like a first cigarette in the mornin’ buzz

It takes a whole lot of movin’ on
To not be where you’ve been
I’ve got lessons on my shoulders
Where the Devil used to live
And as long as I’m confessin’
I’m more curse than I am blessin’
But I can look at my reflection and see hope

First cigarette in the mornin’ buzz

TRAVELIN' BONE
by Drew Kennedy . Travis Meadows

I got a flesh and blood connection to the future
That made it way across the ocean floor
From the gates of Ellis Island, generations wait behind him
To see what all the travelin’ was for
That spirit of my Granddad, it still lingers
The need to leave it better for my son
I keep reaching out with calloused, hungry fingers
So he don’t have to do the work I’ve done

I got a travelin’ bone
Travelin’ bone
Pushes me outside myself
Keeps me here alone
I gotta believe there’s a reason
For the leavin’ and the gone
Keepin’ me movin’ on
Sendin’ kisses on the telephone
Travelin’ bone
Travelin’ bone

I keep worry in my pocket with the lonesome
The weight can make the stages hard to climb
These folks out on the highway
Seem to like the songs that I play
But my soul stays on the things I leave behind

UNDERDOGS
by Cactus Moser . Travis Meadows

Orphans and renegades
Rednecks and trucker shades
Loners on holidays
Old men chasin’ glory days
Young lovers with broken hearts
Old soldiers missin’ parts
Yeah, we all got battle scars
Maybe that makes us who we are

We are – we are
We are the underdogs
We are – we are
We are the underdogs
We may fall behind,
But we rise, we climb
And we shine like broken stars
We are – we are
We are the underdogs, yeah

We’re just a little outside the gates
Fall down seven, get up eights
Makers of great mistakes
Lovers of what others hate
Big gloves on feather weights
You’ll be surprised at the punch we take
We bend, we bruise, but we never break

We are – we are
We are the underdogs
We are – we are
We are the underdogs
We may fall behind,
But we rise, we climb
And we shine like broken stars
We are – we are
We are the underdogs, yeah

PONTIAC
by Lori McKenna . Jeremy Spillman . Travis Meadows

Pontiacs and daydreams
Cigarettes and magazines
Backseat full of memories
I can’t let go of
Classic rock radio
Polyester winter coat
Crushes that gave up the ghost
Snow is fallin’ school is closed
I still remember I still know

And I hope you get your heart broke
At least once before you fall in love
I hope you wind up flat broke
At least once before you have enough
Hold on to some innocence
Through the almosts and the could have beens
Put an anchor in somethin’ that will bring you back
I hope you keep the Pontiac

Kisses laced in cinnamon
Copper tone on summer skin
Wasted time you can’t unspend
County roads and bumper dents
Nothing’s insignificant

HUNGRY
by Connie Harrington . Travis Meadows

I stay hungry, hungry all the time
There’s always somethin’ outta reach
Another set of stairs these feet just wanna climb
All this yearnin’ and burnin’
Keeps turnin’ this motor of mine
I stay hungry, hungry all the time

I stay hungry, that’s just what you do
When you’re stuck here in the middle
Between what you want and what you don’t wanna lose
I used to say this hunger’s killin’ me,
But baby it’s what’s keepin’ me alive
I stay hungry, hungry all the time

My good intentions never got me much,
But the stubborn part of me that pushes
Things that will not budge, yeah
That’s the me that keeps on dreamin’
When the other stops believin’
And neither one is ever satisfied
I stay hungry all the time

That’s the reacher that keeps reachin’
Life’s a teacher that keeps teachin’
I’ve got at least a million reasons why
I stay hungry all the time

BETTER BOAT
by Liz Rose . Travis Meadows

I ain’t lonely,
But I spend a lot of time alone
More than I’de like too,
But I’m okay just staying home
My how the last few months have changed
I’m smiling more despite the pain

I breathe in
I breathe out
Got friends to call who let me talk about
What ain’t workin’
What’s still hurtin’
And all the things I feel like cussin’ out
Now and then, I let it go
Ride the waves I can’t control
I’m learnin’ how to build a better boat

I hate waitin’
There ain’t no patience in these hands
I ain’t complainin’
Sometimes it’s hard to change a man
I think I’m stronger than I was
I let God do what he does

GUY LIKE ME
by Travis Meadows

I ain’t rich, but I got money in my pocket
Got a little corn in the fridge
A little fire in my slow rollin’ rocket
A few friends I didn’t burn with a bridge

I’m doin’ alright
I’m doin’ alright, far as I can see
I’m doin’ alright
I’m doin’ alright, for a guy like me

Got a beautiful girl that laughs at all my jokes
Hell, I even get along with my ex
Startin’ to get a name from some of those folks
That used to give me no respect

I’m doin’ alright
I’m doin’ alright, far as I can see
I’m doin’ alright
I’m doin’ alright, for a guy like me

That’s my song on the radio
Baby dancin’ with her daddio
Good cigar on my patio
Man, it looks like everywhere I go

I’m doin’ alright
I’m doin’ alright, far as I can see
I’m doin’ alright
I’m doin’ alright, for a guy – like – me

LONG LIVE COOL
by Jeremy Spillman . Travis Meadows

Jerry Lee played mean rock ‘n’ roll
They say Robert Johnson sold his soul
Some fires you just can’t control
Long live cool

Moonshine made a faster car
Muscle came and raised the bar
Some are born to speed like shooting stars
Long live cool

Wayward preachers looking for Devils to fight
Tightrope walkers on the sharp end of the knife
Shinin’ hope to all us broken lights
It’s alright – it’s alright
It’s alright – it’s alright
Long live cool

It’s the moves inside those blue suede shoes
And hurt behind the lovesick blues
A little untamed mixed with attitude
Long live cool

So run a needle through some old forty-five
Grab every gear in whatever car you drive
Do what you got to do to keep that part of you alive
It’s alright – it’s alright
It’s alright – it’s alright…
Long live cool
Long live cool

MINEFIELD
by T. Meadows & H. Little

Bring out the pictures
A drink and a pill
Sharpen the scissors
See how they feel
Cut out the stitches so it never heals
It's time to go play in a minefield

Strike a few matches
Laugh at the fire
Burn a few edges
Put them back in a pile
Swing from the pain that
I don't want to kill
It's time to go play in a minefield

Dance around dance around
Eyes good and closed
I can't see nothing now till it explodes
Foot touches ground flesh touches steel
It's time to go play in a mine field
Do to myself what nobody else will
It's time to go play in a minefield

Put on that sweater
Made out of thorns
Fits like a noose but it's comfortably warm
Scratch where it itches
Till I get my fill
It's time to go play in a minefield

IT AIN'T FUN NO MORE
by T. Meadows & J. Spillman

It ain't fun no more
Trouble all the time
Losin' my mind
Wind up passed out on the floor
Police knocking on my door
It ain't fun no more

It ain't fun no more
Grinding my teeth
Blowin' till it bleeds
Need that thing I don't want no more
Lose my shit like a two-dollar whore
It ain't fun no more
I rode that horse, my ass is sore
That shit ain't fun no more

It ain't fun no more
Can't drink enough
To get a good buzz
Up it comes soon as I pour
Fight it down but lose the war
It ain't fun no more
I rode that horse, my ass is sore
That shit ain't fun no more

It ain't fun no more
Losing my keys
Scraping my knees
It ain't fun no more
Watching my phone
Hoping it rings
It ain't fun no more
Hurtin' like hell
Hurtin' myself
It ain't fun no more
Try to find water
In an empty well

LET IT GO
by T. Meadows

Had an old Ford Cobra with a 302 boss man sittin' under the hood
Pullin' on a cool up and down McDowell Road
Bill Lilly in the back seat rollin' down the window, hittin' every sign he could
Yellin' hurry up boys, I'm runnin' out of thing to throw

I was trouble on legs like a worn-out razor, cuttin' everything I touched
Cut one too many, so I figured I blaze a trail
I ran like the devil in a house on fire, but I didn't run fast enough
You can run all you want, but you can't outrun your self

Let it go, what else can you do, oh
You can't hold what you can't hold, oh no
Can't stay young, gotta get old
It ain't like you ain't never been told
It don't do no good to complain about the pain you can't outgrow
Let it go

Time flies by like an angry girl, ain't thought about home in years
Last thing I heard booty little got drunk and died
So they all got together and they said a few words
And they covered the stones with beer
There's a hole in the ground don't never get satisfied

Let it go, what else can you do, oh
You can't hold what you can't hold, oh no
Can't stay young, gotta get old
It ain't like you ain't never been told
It don't do no good to complain about the pain you can't outgrow
Let it go

Let it go
You only go around once
And it don't go slow like a bullet from a gun
You can't un-live where you come from you know

IT GETS BETTER
by T. Meadows & J. Foster

I keep waiting on the magic
They say it's supposed to happen
If I do what they say I need to do
I ain't too good at waiting
I'm even worse at praying
I'm a hard sell even when I know the truth

They say it gets better
But I don't see no change in the rainy weather
Maybe I just heard wrong all together
Read a book, call a friend, get a day, try again

Three days feels like forever
Last time, I bout made seven
That's enough right there to make want to drink
What in the hell do I think I'm doin'
Who do I think I'm foolin'
That's what I get every time I try to think

They say it gets better
But I don't see no change in the rainy weather
Maybe I just heard wrong all together
Read a book, call a friend, get a day, try again

If I can just get home without stoppin'
Get inside my door and lock it
Read a book, call a friend, go to bed, maybe I'll be better then

WHAT WE AIN'T GOT
by T. Meadows & T. Jerome

We all want what we ain't got
Our favorite doors are always locked
On a higher hill on a taller top
We all want what we ain't got

We ain't happy where we are
There's greener grass in the neighbors yard
With a bigger house and faster car
We ain't happy where we are

All I want is what I had
I'd trade it all just to get it back
She's moving on, but I guess I'm not
We all want what we ain't got

We all wish it didn't hurt
When you try your best, but it doesn't work
Goodbye is a painful word
We all wish it didn't hurt

All I want is what I had
I'd trade it all just to get it back
She's moving on, but I guess I'm not
We all want what we ain't got

I wanted the world till my whole world stopped
Love like that ain't easily forgot
We all want what we we ain't got

GROWN UP CLOTHES
by T. Meadows

My daddy was a boy
All dressed up in grown up clothes
And the bottle my daddy clung to
Would not let my daddy go
At seventeen, he had a baby
He couldn't watch that baby grow
And the baby grew up just like him
A little boy in grown up clothes

And the wind blows hard
And the rain comes down
You don't get far alone
And you hide your scars
And you hate this town
Ain't no such thing as home
I suppose, heaven knows
I'm just a boy in grown up clothes

Now that I'm older, not too much wiser
I think I know how my daddy felt
I'm good at runnin', needin' forgivness
And livin' with the cards I'm dealt
My daddy died when I was younger
I led a stranger inside a hole
He never saw it, but I cried a little
Just like a boy in grown up clothes

And the wind blows hard
And the rain comes down
You don't get far alone
And you hide your scars
And you hate this town
Ain't no such thing as home
I suppose, heaven knows
I'm just a boy in grown up clothes

GOOD INTENTIONS
by T. Meadows & B. Dean

There's a letter on the dresser
Without a postage stamp
Collectin' dust with all that other junk
I've got a list of friends to call
Let'em know I give a damn
Among the other thing I still ain't done
Oh, but I got good intentions

There's a wife I need to thank
For lettin' me leave when I did
And not tellin' all the secrets she could tell
Give her a thousand bucks to help support my kids
She'll probably smile and tell me go to hell
Oh, but I got good intentions

I'm a guilty man excusing my behavior
I crash and burn when I can't find a savior
And saying that I'm sorry ain't gone help this time around
I fall down too many times to mention
With good intentions

There's a baseball in the closet, it's still in the box
I meant to send it off the 23rd
I missed my babies birthday got drunk and just forgot
His mamma said he never said a word
That vodka in the freezer I need pour it out
Gonna take swallow and and pour it down the drain
Gonna call my buddy Roger and ask for his help again
Before I kill my self or go insane
I've broke a lot of promises dodged a lot of stones
I swear I can't find one rock low enough for me to throw
Cus I've got good intentions

GOD SPEAKS
by T. Meadows

Seems like every time I turn around
I'm reaching out for answers I can't find
Just when I think I don't need help
There's two more steps I don't have strength to climb
My prayers just hit the ceiling
Fall down so heavy I can feel 'em

You, can change my world, can change my mind
With just one word when you believe it
Me, I don't know much, but I know love
And that's enough to one who needs it
When God ain't getting through,
God speaks to me, through you

Livin' here is hard enough
Without the crazy stuff I do to me
I know I'm stubborn, hard to tame
Drawn to trouble, half the time insane
This old heart just keeps on beating
I'm still alive, must be a reason

You, can change my world, can change my mind
With just one word when you believe it
Me, I don't know much, but I know love
And that's enough to one who needs it
When God ain't getting through,
God speaks to me, through you

DAVIDSON COUNTY POLICE
by T. Meadows

I came to town to make a difference
I had a story to tell
I told it loud, but my opinion
Didn't go over so well
I waited for offers, but they never came
The Davidson County Police know my name

I played in dive bars, forget-able clubs
I wrote songs that nobody heard
I sold guitars for watered down drugs
I rode all the way to the curb
If dumb makes you famous, then I can't complain
The Davidson County Police know my name

I'm coming to terms with my self
Almost comfortable in my own skin
We all stumble on this side of Hell
Hell, I might just do it again
But I've got no reason to be ashamed
The Davidson County Police know my name

Now I've got more stories
And I've got more music
I got more songs I can sing
And I've got more patience
And faith now to use it
A past in the cracks in between
I'm partially broken, with parts of me sane
The Davidson County Police know my name

I'm coming to terms with my self
Almost comfortable in my own skin
We all stumble on this side of Hell
Hell, I might just do it again
But I've got no reason to be ashamed
The Davidson County Police know my name

I live for the moment, while moments remain
Roll with the punches, I'm numb to the pain
Cry for the prisoners, still tied to their chains
The Davidson County Police know my name

LEARNING HOW TO LIVE ALONE
by T. Meadows & L. Lowrey

I need to clean up this old house
I need to take the garbage out
My boys coming over for the weekend
I can't wait to see him
We'll order out watch cartoons
Build a big 'ole fort in the living room
He's only eight years old
He don't know

I stay home a lot, alone a lot
And I try to turn the lights off around ten o'clock
I read some, hit my knees some
I don't what to do with all this freedom
The TV keeps me company when he's gone
I'm learning how to live alone

My old friends don't come around
We all choose sides when the ship goes down
I outgrew my reputation
I'm on vacation
Ain't had a drink in seven months
To tell the truth, I ain't wanted one
The holidays got pretty rough, though
I came so close

I stay home a lot, alone a lot
And I try to turn the lights off around ten o'clock
I read some, hit my knees some
I don't what to do with all this freedom
I sleep better with the TV on
I'm learning how to live alone

- Every night, might be just what I need
I think this whole thing will wind up being good for me

I sleep good, eatin' pretty good
And I'm doin' better than I thought I ever would
I read some, try to hit my knees some
And I pay my health a little more attention
At this point it don't matter who was wrong
It's time for growin' up and movin' on
And learning how to live alone