Eric Michael Jones I'm Not Country
© Eric Michael Jones [ASCAP]
I was born in New England
Lived here all my life
Got a three bedroom house in the suburbs
With my two kids and my first wife
Went to USC, got a degree
I must have learned a thing or three
But I never learned the right way
To hang a tire swing from the old oak tree
I’m not country
I never owned a pickup truck
Don’t drink too much or get in fights
Never been down on my luck
I never rode a painted pony
Across a meadow fresh with dew
But if I’m ever born again my friend
That’s the first thing that I’ll do
Got a picture of the Smokey Mountains
Taped to my office wall
Down at the local pub
I pretend a southern drawl
And put Johnny Cash on the jukebox
‘Cause he makes my heart ache
Staring out the window at the taxicabs
I think God must have made some cruel mistake
‘Cause I’m not country
Never plowed a field of corn
I never rode in an eighteen-wheeler
Or even blew the horn
Never made love to my sweetheart
Underneath the sky so blue
But if I’m ever born again my friend
Gonna do that too
I’ve been to London
Paris, Beijing and Bangkok too
Sip martinis with the jet set in New York City
So why am I blue?
Because I’d rather be alone on an old dirt road
Just kickin’ stones
I’ve never been to West Virginia
But to me that sounds like home
But I’m not country
That’s just songs on the radio
And I ain’t goin’ down to Nashville
To some Grand ol’ Opry show
Never wore a cowboy hat or boots
Or chug-a-lugged a brew
But you’d better believe in my next life
That’s the third, fourth and fifth thing I’m gonna do
I’ll never own a pickup truck
I don’t drink too much or get in fights
Never been down on my luck
I never rode a painted pony
Across a meadow fresh with dew
But if I’m ever born again my friend
That’s the first thing that I’ll do
