335. The Music Show

Rolling that out back.

Thank you.

Red sun risin' on an endless plain Dust trails burnin' behind my lane Road train thunder on the desert line Freight rollin' hard through the outback spine Diesel hummin' the wild wind calls Big wheels grind where the red dirt falls From cattle stations to the coastal rain I haul this country through the heat and pain Long road stretch Bed by hand Roaming that outback lifeline strong Through the dreamtime miles where I belong Didgeridoo humming the engines cry Road trains thunder beneath white skies Carrying freight where the old songs ride Across burnt earth and the great divide Steel, dust, diesel and sacred ground Stars burn cold in the midnight black No turnaround on this freight line track Clapsticks crack with the engine's tune Moonlight riding this steel monsoon Every mile through this rugged land Carries stories older than man Truck stoppies and a long haul song In this ancient road I rode along No easy miles, no softened way Just steel and spirit, day by day Road in that outback, I climb strong To the dreamtime miles where I belong Did you read you home when the engines cry Road trains thunder beneath white skies Carrying freight where the old songs ride Across burned earth and the great divide Steel, dust, diesel and sacred ground That's the way this road rolls down Some roads fade and some roads die But these red tracks outlive time Ancient echoes beneath my wheels Teach a man what the highway feels like Roamin' that outback, a lifeline strong Through the dreamtime miles where I belong Did you hear you hum in the engines cry? Road trains thundered beneath white skies Carrying freight where the old songs ride Across burnt earth and the great divide From the red dirt west of Rome To the cold lights down Geelong There's a million miles of Australia And truckies keep moving her own Through the cane fields up near Mackay Past the black soil and the rain White lines run like old blood rivers Through the heart of this wild land And every old servo at midnight Still hunts with stories and smoke Where tired hands want cold coffees And drivers laugh like old blokes And I'm proud to be Australian With this highway in my veins From the mountains down to the outback Every mile of this country Reminds me what I love Down at Mooney Crossroads talking dusty

and singing loud about it all

somewhere southbound out of Brisbane Mike's voice crackles through the night talking truth about the hard roads trying to keep the old ways right through the good days and the bad days and everything between there's still a few that carries No novel halls or riches No easy road to ride Just busted knuckles and worn out boots australian and i'll say it while i can cause this country built the drive and the driver built this To rest on the day that the last words spoke to me He loved the road, he loved Australia And the life of being free I still hear them dizzles singing Under endless southern skies I was fresh out of school with a license in hand She's the old yard truck, son, but she'll get you on your path.

There she sat in the morning sun, a white road boss, her glory days done.

Faded paint and a few dents here and there.

But something about her said she still cared.

White road boss, proud and strong Got a million miles and she's still rolling on Every rattle and squeak's got a story to tell Of a different time that she remembers well That first night run somewhere But it wasn't my phone, it was an ancient chatter from truckers unknown We're just calling each other all through the night Keeping each other company till first light The road boss showed me what she'd seen Back when her paint was bright and clean The kind who'd stop before you'd ask for a deal A bloke with a flat on a lonely road Before laundry trucks, it eased their load Toolboxes open, hands got dirty Nobody left stranded, not back in the early days She's the old white road boss Proud and strong, got a million miles in show cassette tapes playing country songs to helping mates when things went No GPS telling you where to go Just maps on the dash and things you know

And if

trouble found you out in the scrub Someone would answer when you called up The morning came and the vision was gone Just me and the road balls rolling But something had changed deep inside Like I'd taken that old journey for a ride Years passed by and bigger trucks came through With screens and gadgets and comforts too The old road boss disappeared I saw an old worn out truck But I saw history and a lifetime of luck So I dragged her home and started again Spanners and paint and weekends spent Slowly the old girl came back to life Just like when she stepped out in 1985 She's the old white road boss From the days of our F's and helping hands To modern roads across the land And every time I turn that key The old girl shares her history Not just a truck, she's family too A rolling piece of

trucking truth The

engine rumbles You should have seen truckin' back in the day Yeah, you should have seen truckin' back

in the day

Phone stays silent but nobody calls Young bloke dreaming of the highway lights Big chrome rigs rolling through the night Got no money but he's got a plan Wants to earn it with his own two hands Watching truckies shifting through the gears Thinking one day maybe That'll be me out there I'm driving with a heart, not just a wheel Chasing down a life that finally feels real From the back streets to the open dark Trying to make a living, driving with a heart Saved every dollar, worked odd jobs too Passed the test, got the license card Thought the hard road couldn't be that hard First run north with the engine sunk Just handed him keys and sent him off He was driving with a heart, not just a wheel Trying hard to prove that dream was real But the rule books hit like a freight train spark Still holding on Driving with a heart Blue lights flashing in the mirror bright Pulled him over on a rainy night Officer said, son, your load's not right Your logbook's wrong and your strap's too light Fine stacked up like a wall of stone Every mistake he'd never been shown Hours, paperwork, axel mass Lessons he was learning way too fast He said, I never wanted trouble, never meant no harm Just want the diesel thunder and a steady arm Nobody taught me all the laws of the land Just said, good luck, mate And shoved me in the cab Still driving with a heart through the shame Trying not to let the finest kill the flame Every hard lesson leaves another scar But he still believes in Now he studies every page at night Learns the rules and gets it right Helping young blokes coming through Teaching them the things nobody knew Cause a dream ain't enough on its own Driving with a heart Hmmm...

I was just a kid out in the yard Splitting up wood, trying to do my part Didn't know much, just wrong and right Trying to do right in a hard old life Life got hard, but I held my ground Didn't need no one else around If you did me wrong, I'd still come through That's just the way I was raised to do Yeah, I was building a life I didn't understand.

Trying to be a boy and a man.

Can you watch me in these minds? Said I'd do before I was ready Young and dumb, but my love was steady Three little souls, yeah, they're part of me But I wasn't who they needed me to be Ran up north just to clear my head Northern territory where I bled Faced myself in that open lane Came back different, came back main Yeah, the fire inside finally woke me up I was driving concrete day by day Just another job, just getting paid You looked at me and said it straight Go chase the road, don't hesitate If you wanna keep me, chase that life Get behind those wheels, go drive those nights Didn't know then what it would be But you saw something inside of me Took the wheel first time in my life It felt real, big road trains in the open sky Felt like freedom rolling by Three back then that still hold my name Three right here that I hold the same Six young hearts that I carry on Every mile till the day I'm gone I thank God for you I know it's true, not loud or proud Just something I do, yeah I'm standing strong for all of y'all, yeah I hope one day they understand Yeah, I've been washed in these miles I drive Every road gave me back my life All my scars, yeah, they testify I'm still here, and I'm still changing Every child in the warm sand I get a bit misty when I look back Thinking how it was as a lad Big rigs running all over this land And I wanted it bad To fly through the night Ride them white lines moving the freight Back then a truck was something to be And one day I swore that I started out down in the yard, loading the trucks and working hard, learning the ropes, learning the trade, old school lessons, the price that gets paid.

I went out with drivers, loading on the side, they watched me close and said, do it right.

I learned from the best.

Learning how they were long ago Headed up the hill in a cold dark night I hit the key on the bike, 903 She rolled once then rolled alive Freezed up from the stacks, time to break free Real drunk to drive my shot finally I'll never forget how I felt that day Young and bulletproof, rolling away Toss on young boats The fearless and bold But I've seen the changes forced on this game Ports and wannabes chasing the fame The crap that they pull out there gives me chills They haven't been taught, they don't have the skills Auto gear boxes and driver assists No trailer handpiece Just in time, bullshit, I'm chasing the clock Oh, waves disappearing mile after mile And when you speak up, they laugh like a joke Can't you do it, you're old bloke Now it's cameras and telltales, trust is all gone No respect anymore, and my mate's moved on He says go, but the law says no Bosses don't care, man Just get up and go So is this the end? Have I made my last run? Can I go home now and rest in the sun? Yeah, maybe I will, but not quite yet, son I've got one last run Before all is done Hey, hey And no one alive is gonna tell me today I'll look over that money one last time Remember all those old school moments And I'll recall through the night With that diesel singing strong Go out like I live This old highway A load of cattle heavy on my back Got this big old road train rollin' With poor draft star cows and calves Well, the three of us rode together And be gentle on the cattle too He's been up front in his western stock Leading the way into the dark Matt's in the middle in his big old Mack He might be young but he makes a crack Then there's me and the boss tagging along Keeping it straight while writing this song Yep, we're truckies and we're truckies' sons, pushing hard to get the job done.

We're hardworking men with big ol' hearts, we love our job and the stock we cart.

When we push through into Norseland town, grab some fuel and a quick feed down.

Then it's out across the Nulliver Plains, talking on the sea, so we stay sane.

We do cattle checks to keep them on their feet, and stretch our legs in the dust and heat.