Brings Him Back

He loved cigarettes, Doral lights in the soft pack
8 'clock coffee, no sugar, just bitter and black
He liked them gambling machines, at the Texaco off 85
And I think about him, every time, every time that I drive by
Anytime, I hear the man in black
Or see an old blue, beat up Pontiac
Red Wing boots covered up in dirt
An old faded glory, flannel shirt
I can hear his two pack smoker laugh
See that joker smile under an old ball cap
And just like that… it takes me there
And brings him back
He had a semper fi tattoo, but never talked about the war
Kept it hidden in a cigar box, with his medals from his second tour
Toughest man I ever knew, full of gravel, grit and beer
Yeah, I know he’s gone, I know he’s gone, but I swear sometimes he’s here
Anytime, I hear the man in black
Or see an old blue, beat up Pontiac
Red Wing boots covered up in dirt
An old faded glory, flannel shirt
I can hear his two pack smoker laugh
See that joker smile under an old ball cap
And just like that… it takes me there
And brings him back
So southern, so stubborn, the last of a dying breed
And when I think about him, I think about the kind of man I wanna be
Anytime, I hear the man in black
Or see an old blue, beat up Pontiac
Red Wing boots covered up in dirt
An old faded glory, flannel shirt
I can hear his two pack smoker laugh
See that joker smile under an old ball cap
And just like that… it takes me there
And brings him back
To the bank where we went fishing
Just like that
He’s holding a pole and a pabst blue ribbon
It brings him back
Lord knows, how much I miss him
It brings him back