Never had enough to be the favorite son
And so I never had enough to disappoint no one
Everything I ever done, it never came to much
Maybe then I coulda said that I was just washed up.
Oh my brother was a soldier, he was straight and true.
Mama said he was a member of the chosen few,
But I guess he never felt he ever got his due
He wrote a note and put 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, and turn their pages,
Break their knives on their 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.
When you left town, you got one goodbye
From the sign at the Frederick County line.
Oh, your 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, and turn their pages,
Break their knives on their rock of ages.
Baby, we'll be fine.
Let them burn, burn and shine.
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, and turn their pages,
Break their knives on their rock of ages.
Baby, we'll be fine.
Let them burn, burn and shine.