-- OR -- 
I was raised off of old Route 3 .. out past where the blacktop ends
We'd walked to church on Sunday morning race barefoot back to the Johnson's fence
That's where I first saw Mary ... on that roadside pickin' blackberries
That summer I turned a corner in my soul down that red dirt road
It's where I drank my first beer ... it's where I found Jesus
Where I wrecked my first car I tore it all to pieces
I learned the path to heaven .. is full of sinners and believers
Learned that happiness on earth ain't just for high achievers
I've learned ... I've come to know ... there's life at both ends
Of that red dirt road
Her daddy didn't like me much ... with my shackled up GTO
I'd sneak out in the middle of the night throw rocks at her bedroom window
We'd turn out the headlights ... drive by the moonlight
Talk about what the future might hold ... down a red dirt road
It's where I drank my first beer ... it's where I found Jesus
Where I wrecked my first car I tore it all to pieces
I learned the path to heaven .. is full of sinners and believers
Learned that happiness on earth ain't just for high achievers
I've learned ... I've come to know ... there's life at both ends
Of that red dirt road
BREAK
I went out into the world ... and I came back in
I lost Mary ... oh I got her back again
And driving home tonight ... feels like I've found a long lost friend
It's where I drank my first beer ... it's where I found Jesus
Where I wrecked my first car I tore it all to pieces
I learned the path to heaven .. is full of sinners and believers
Learned that happiness on earth ain't just for high achievers
I've learned ... I've come to know ... there's life at both ends
Of that red dirt road