Never had enough to be the favorite son
And so I never had enough to disappoint no one
Everything I ever done, I never gave too much
Maybe then I coulda said that I was just washed up

Oh my brother was a soldier, he was strong and true
Mama said he was a member of the chosen few
Well I guess he never felt he ever got his due
He wrote a note and pulled a rope around his neck last June

Let them burn and shine, let them burn and shine
Let that last long dance just be yours and mine

Let them spin their wheels, turn their pages
Break their backs on a rock of ages
Baby, we'll be fine
Let them burn, burn and shine

Well no one ever whistled when you walked by
Because you never caught the corner of the public eye
You left town, you got one goodbye
From the sign at the front of the county line

Oh yer sister was a looker, she was tall and wild
She had a star-crossed lover on a moonlit mile
Then she met a politician and she had his child
It takes the bottom of a bottle just to make her smile
Let them burn and shine, let them burn and shine
Let that last long dance just be yours and mine

Let them spin their wheels, turn their pages
Break their backs on a rock of ages
Baby, we'll be fine
Let them burn, burn and shine

God, the wind is blowin' hard through the backyard pines
We're in the kitchen playin' cards, havin' us a time
Well we never had each other and that's just fine
Well we never seem to mention what we left behind

Let them burn and shine, let them burn and shine
Let that last long dance just be yours and mine

Let them spin their wheels, turn their pages
Break their backs on a rock of ages
Baby, we'll be fine
Let them burn, burn and shine