Song :
D#
Intro :
B
B F#
It was painted red, the stripe was white
E
It was eighteen feet from the bow to the stern light
B F#
Second hand from a dealer in Atlanta
E
I rode up with daddy when he went there to get 'er
B F#
Put on a shine, put on a motor
E
Built out of love and made for the water
B F#
Ran her for years 'til the transom got rotten
E E
A piece of my childhood that'll never be forgotten
Chorus :
B F#
It was just an old plywood boat
E
With a seventy-five Johnson with electric choke
B F#
A young boy, two hands on the wheel
E
I can't replace the way it made me feel
B F#
And I would turn her sharp and I'd make it whine
E
He'd say you can't beat the way an old wood boat rides
G#m C#
Just a little lake 'cross the Alabama line
E F# B F# E F#
But I was king of the ocean when daddy let me drive
B F#
Just an old half-ton short bed Ford
E
My uncle bought new in sixty-four
B F#
Daddy got it right 'cause the engine was smokin'
E
A couple of burnt valves and he had it goin'
B F#
He'd let me drive her and we'd haul off a load
E
Down a dirt strip where we'd dump trash off of Thigpen road
B F#
I'd sit up in the seat and stretch my feet out to the pedals
E E
Smilin' like a hero that just received his medal
Chorus :
B F#
It was just an old hand-me-down Ford
E
With a three speed on the column and a dent in the door
B F#
A young boy, two hands on the wheel
E
I can't replace the way it made me feel
B F#
I would press that clutch and I'd keep it right
E
He'd say a little slower son, you're doin' just fine
G#m C#
Just a dirt road with trash on each side
E
but I was Mario Andretti
F# B
When daddy let me drive
Interlude :
B F# E F#
B F# E F#
F#
Bridge :
B F#
I'm grown up now, three daughters of my own
E
I let 'em drive my old jeep 'cross the pasture at our home
B F#
Maybe one day they'll reach back in their file
E E
And pull out that old mem'ry and think of me and smile
Chorus :
B F#
And say it was just an old worn out jeep
E
Rusty old floorboards, hot on my feet
B F#
A young girl, two hands on the wheel
E
I can't replace the way it made me feel
B F#
And he'd say turn it left and steer it right
E
Straighten up girl now, you're doin' just fine
G#m C#
Just a little valley by the river where we'd ride
E F# B
But I was high on a mountain when daddy let me drive
F# E F#
Daddy let me drive
B F# E F# F#
Oh, he let me drive
Outro :
B F#
She's just an old plywood boat
E B
With a seventy-five Johnson with electric choke
