The Years That Raised Me

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[Intro] I still keep that old game case With the cracked-up lid and the faded name Funny how a little plastic box Can bring a whole summer back again [Verse 1] Born in eighty-something, learning how to ride With a scraped-up knee and a Saturday outside Mom had the radio humming through the kitchen Dad came home tired, but he still joined in We traded cards by the chain-link fence Spent loose change at the corner store again A dial-up tone, then the phone went dead While we waited for the pictures to load instead [Pre-Chorus] We didn't have much, but we had our crew A pair of worn-out shoes and a sky-wide view Every little day felt bigger than it seems We were growing up inside our favorite dreams [Chorus] Take me back to the years that raised me To the songs on the radio that saved me We were young, we were loud, we were finding our way Making something out of every ordinary day From the first slow dance to the last school bell Those are the stories that I know so well If I could hold one moment, I know what I'd choose The good old days of the nineties and early two-thousands blues [Verse 2] Friday nights at the shopping mall Saving up for a movie, hoping friends would call Baggy jeans, fresh shoes, and a borrowed ride Trying to look fearless with a heart full of pride Burned a mix CD, wrote your name across it Passed it through the car like a secret in a pocket We watched our heroes make the whole world sing Then dreamed of being something, anything Summer heat rising from the blacktop court One more game, though the daylight warned us to abort We'd walk home talking like the night was ours Counting every window, every porch, every hour [Pre-Chorus] We didn't know how fast the years would move Or how much we'd miss the things we thought we'd outgrow But every cracked screen, every hand-me-down Built the man who's standing here right now [Chorus] Take me back to the years that raised me To the songs on the radio that saved me We were young, we were loud, we were finding our way Making something out of every ordinary day From the first slow dance to the last school bell Those are the stories that I know so well If I could hold one moment, I know what I'd choose The good old days of the nineties and early two-thousands blues [Bridge] Now the faces in those pictures have changed Some are far away, some can't be named But I hear that old refrain when the hard days come And I remember where my strength was from We had a little, but we gave a lot Found a little grace in the things we got And when tomorrow feels too heavy to choose I put on those memories and walk in those shoes [Final Chorus] Take me back to the years that raised me To the songs on the radio that saved me We were young, we were loud, we were finding our way Making something out of every ordinary day From the first slow dance to the last school bell Those are the stories that I know so well I can't hold the moment, but I still carry the truth The good old days of the nineties and early two-thousands youth [Outro] Born in eighty-something, still learning to grow With a heart full of places that I used to know And when I look ahead, I have nothing to lose I'm taking the best of the nineties with me too