Gear and Dust

I left home the day I turned eighteen

And mama begged me not to go

I left her crying on the front porch

And then the road became my home

I found a way to make some money fast

A night in a hotel's all I need

I'd read the bible and talk to Jesus

Every night while I cooked speed

Chorus:

Gear and dust turns new to rust

I can't trust the people that I meet

Yeah making gear and dust

I hardly ever get to sleep

Deals were easy in the truck stops

And the dancehalls were the same

Lord I knew it wasn't honest

But I kept on playing Franklin's game

I saved some money and started thinking

That I might head down to the coast

Quit all this over-shoulder looking

And try my luck out on a boat

Chorus

I met a drifter on the highway

I had less cash than he had hate

He left me lying in a bar ditch

Somewhere beside the interstate

When you're dead it's not really over

Some say they've even seen my ghost

At a roadside up in Guthrie

Lord knows that's where I sold the most

Chorus

Making gear and dust

They finally laid me down to sleep