66 was still a narrow two-lane highway
Harry Truman was the man who ran the show
The bad Korean War was just beginning
And I was just three years too young to go
Country music hadn't gone to New York City yet
And a service man was proud of what he'd done
And Hank and Lefty crowded every jukebox
That's the way it was in '51

There's so much about the good old days I'd love to tell
And there's folks around I know, still remember well
Slow dancing close together when a ballad played
'Cause a thing called rock and roll was yet to come
It was a big year for a drive-in restaurant carhop
And that's the way it was in '51

There's so much about the good old days I'd love to tell
And there's folks around I know, still remember well
Slow dancing close together when a ballad played
'Cause a thing called rock and roll was yet to come
A big year for a drive-in restaurant carhop
But that's the way it was in '51

Yeah, Hank and Lefty crowded every jukebox
Oh Lord, that's the way it was in '51