Shelby Merchant

Beneath this Coat and Tie Lyrics

1. Country's Inside of Me
2. Beer Tooth
3. Silence

4. Slow Row
5. He's My Dad
6. Underachiever

7. Somethin' Somethin'

8. Darlin' (featuring Lauren Rainey)
9. Our Last Memory
10. Clarence Greene

11. Treatin' Each Other Wrong

12. Evergreen

 

 

1. Country's Inside of Me

Words and Music: ©2005 J. Shelby Merchant (ASCAP)

Administered by James Shelby Music (ASCAP)

All Rights Reserved Used Only By Permission

 

I walked into a bar

On the outside of town

Ordered up a beer

But the old keep stared me down

He said we only serve country folk

Not people like you

So head on back to the city you yuppie

In your business suit

And I said,

 

Chorus:

The country’s inside of me

Some things just can’t be seen

Beneath this coat and tie

I’m a cowboy in disguise

So don’t judge this man by superficial things

The country is inside of me

 

He motioned for some other boys

To join in the game

They all started poking fun

Till I told them my last name

Silence fell when they realized

What they hadn’t till now

My family ties run deep out here

Right down to the plow

 

Repeat Chorus:

Bridge:

You can’t read this man by looking at the cover

This polished look ain’t all there is to see

I might be making my living

Within the limits of the city

But the country’s inside of me

Repeat Chorus:

 

2. Beer Tooth

Words and Music: ©2005 Kevin Farrell / J. Shelby Merchant (ASCAP)

Administered by James Shelby Music

All Rights Reserved Used Only By Permission

 

Momma Craves chocolate

Dad wants a steak

Rover’s got to have a bone

Stephanie’s pregnant

She wants pickles and ice cream

She’s eating me out of house and home

My favorite treat is a frosty drink

With a flavor I can’t refuse

I’ve got a weakness

It’s a beer tooth

 

Chorus:

I’ve got a beer tooth

You where you can find me

I’ll be hanging out underneath the neon sign

I got a beer tooth pour a shot of whiskey

And I’ll politely decline

I ain’t into sweets or fruity drinks

But I won’t turn down a brew

I got a weakness

It’s a beer tooth

 

My last visit

to the dentist

Was A OK

He said keep up the good work

and healthy habits

Of washing the germs away

So I’ll be spending my paycheck downing longnecks

Belly up to a bar on a stool

I’ve got a weakness

It’s a beer tooth

 

Repeat chorus:

Bridge:

I’ve never ate a whole lot of cake

And I don’t drink any wine

But I’ve acquired a taste for all kinds of beers

Sometimes with a slice of lime

I long for a draft, cold and on tap

With a glass to hold onto

I’ve got a weakness and It’s a beer tooth

 

Repeat Chorus:

 

3. Silence

Words and Music: ©2006 J. Shelby Merchant (ASCAP)

Administered by James Shelby Music

All Rights Reserved Used Only By Permission

 

Silence has a way of screaming inside my head

Where thoughts grow louder

Than words I never said

Rolling over I hear echoes of my bedsprings

That fills this house and room

Where you used to sleep

 

Chorus:

I got what I asked for

Now you’re gone

The choices I made

Allow me to lay here alone

It’s to late to replace

This silence haunting me

With a prideful swallow

Of I’m sorry

And I know I can’t turn back the hands of time

But I just wish I could

Get silence off of my mind

 

Hindsight reveals the clearest view

Of the chances I had

But never compromised with you

Now this void’s a reminder

Of lost opportunities

And how silence became

My worst enemy

 

Repeat Chorus:

 

Bridge:

I made my point

I stood my ground

I fought like hell to earn

This lonely peace I’ve found

 

Repeat Chorus:

 

4. Slow Row

Words and Music: ©2006 J. Shelby Merchant (ASCAP)

Administered by James Shelby Music

All Rights Reserved Used Only By Permission

 

Honey I know it’s been

Hard trying

To stay afloat

Currents and conditions

Of this world

Bring you down

Like a sinking boat

 

We’ve got a cabin full

Of kids swimming round

And nothing but bills our net

You say it seems like we’re going to drown

But I’m captain of this ship

 

Chorus:

And with a little

Slow row

Slow romance

We’ll be riding towards smoother waters

With a little slow romance from your man

 

Waves of worries

Are on your mind

Like you’re lost at sea

But just leave the navigating

Of troubled times

Up to the motions of me

 

We’ll stow away

When we get tired

and the wind is out of our sails

Find the strength

In each others arms

To get moving again

 

Repeat Chorus 2X

 

5. He's My Dad

Words and Music: ©2006 Duane Deemer (BMI) / J. Shelby Merchant (ASCAP)

Administered by James Shelby Music

All Rights Reserved Used Only By Permission

 

Down at the office they call him manager

In his younger days a hell raiser

Sunday at church he’s a believer

Called something different depending on the day

But I was introduced to him by only one name

 

Chorus:

He’s the strongest I’ve ever known

Best friend I’ve ever had

I don’t call him I hero

Cause he’s so much more than that

From little league coach and my biggest fan

To all those other roles that people see him in

But at the end of the day

He’s my dad

In a crowd on the street he might blend in

But he’s earned his right to be respected

And my whole life I’ve looked up to him

Wished the world could know him like me

He’ll always be the man that I want to be

 

Repeat Chorus:

 

Bridge:

He’s the shoulder that I cling to

When I don’t know what to do

On this road of life I’m traveling

He’s the one who guides me through

 

Repeat Chorus:

 

6. Underachiever

Words and Music: ©2006 J. Shelby Merchant (ASCAP)

Administered by James Shelby Music

All Rights Reserved Used Only By Permission

 

I’m at work on time, I’ll leave by five

You can count on that

Same routine, every week

Rushing home to relax

I ain’t trying to be the big cheese

As a corporate manager

Its fine with me stress free

As an Underachiever

 

Chorus:

What’s wrong with being satisfied

Right where you’re at

If you’re pickup runs good / Chasing after money

Why go buy a Cadillac / Only causes heart attacks

As long as my family’s dressed and eating fine

You can’t tell me I’d have a need

For working overtime

My pay ain’t much

People say I could do better

What they can’t see

Is I’m rich as can be 

As an Underachiever

I see my friends trying to win

The race everyday

Top salesman or best dressed woman

Keepin’ up with the Jones’ pace

But I ain’t looking for nothing more

Than a front porch rocking chair

I’m happy Living easy

As an Underachiever

 

Bridge:

Making plans

For my priorities

Time with family takes seniority

Why would I want to work any harder

How could my life get any better

Than as an Underachiever

 

Repeat Chorus:

 

7. Somethin' Somethin'

Words and Music: ©2006 D.W DeHart (BMI) / J. Shelby Merchant (ASCAP)

Administered by James Shelby Music

All Rights Reserved Used Only By Permission

 

Going through the motions

Same old same ol’

Got my mind on drinking time

And talking to that girl

Working as a waitress

Down at the Dixie café

Umm that girl is fine

 

She brushes me in passing

And gives a little wink

She knows that I’ve been thirsty

For more than just a drink

Gonna tell her that I want to

Take her home tonight

 

Chorus:

I want that somethin’ something

Darlin’, darlin’

Need your lovin’, lovin’

Can’t you see I’m dying

For that somethin’ somethin’

Sugar dumplin’

I’m needin’ needin’

Your somethin’ somethin’

 

She hops into the front seat of my old Chevrolet

We go cruising down the back road

Pull into her drive way

She say’s don’t you want to come in

You know I do

 

Repeat Chorus:

 

Bridge:

And I whisper to her softly

As we walk into the bedroom

After all these years of marriage

I’m still so in love with you

 

Repeat Chorus:

 

8. Darlin' (featuring Lauren Rainey)

Words and Music:  ©2005 J. Shelby Merchant (ASCAP)

Administered by James Shelby Music (ASCAP)

All Rights Reserved Used Only By Permission

 

I put one foot in front of the other

Walking across your lawn

I got roses in hand and ready

With my best shirt on

In my mind I’m prepared

Pretending I ain’t scared

To knock in this door

But who am I kidding

I’m a nervous boy

 

Chorus:

I never acted like this before

My first time

Throwing my heart out

Like casting a line

I don’t want to let you see

I’m weak in the knees

Help me cause I’ve fallen

For you Darlin’

 

Staring into this mirror

Putting my makeup on

Everything’s matched and ready

With my best dress on

I’m gonna make him wait

Run a little bit late

Give my hair an extra curl

But who am I kidding

I’m a nervous girl

 

Repeat Chorus:

 

Bridge:

I wonder if she feels the same

I wonder if he’s playing games

I don’t wanna jump the gun

I don’t wanna make him run

Could it be too soon

I’m afraid to make a move

Help me cause I’ve fallen

For you Darlin’

 

9. Our Last Memory

Words and Music: ©2006 Kevin Farrell / J. Shelby Merchant

Administered by James Shelby Music

All Rights Reserved Used Only By Permission

 

We swayed in a circle

Your head on my shoulder

At our high school prom

We were new to this feeling

Our hearts heavy beating

Through the last song

Wrapped up in emotion

We shared our tears

Knowing it was both our senior year

 

Chorus:

(So) we held on tight as if our last chance

To ever again taste this sweet dance

Lord only knows where this road may lead

So we embraced that moment as if our last memory

 

Four years now have passed

I‘m wearing black

And your dress is white

Friends and family all watch

As the music plays soft

Yeah it‘s our night

Oh how we shine with our new rings

Young and afraid that we’d awake from this dream

 

Repeat Chorus:

 

Bridge:

Try as we may with steps and choreography

Life’s path will bend with uncertainty

Sunshine or rain tomorrow could bring

So it’s up to us seize each opportunity

 

Repeat Chorus:

So we’ll embrace each moment

Wrap our arms around the moments

Yeah we’ll embrace each moment as if our last memory

 

10. Clarence Greene

Words and Music: ©2006 Duane Deemer (BMI) / J. Shelby Merchant (ASCAP)

Administered by James Shelby Music

All Rights Reserved Used Only By Permission

 

I see him on his front porch

Almost everyday

Rocking in his overalls

But he hardly ever waves

They say he was quite a man

In his younger days

Fought for God and Uncle Sam back

Back when that was still ok

 

Chorus:

I wonder what he’s thinking

Staring out at the street

Looking at the world

Through the eyes of Clarence Greene

 

I heard he lost his wife

Kids all moved away

Crops went down in ’85

When the rains never came

He held out for quite awhile

But it was more than he could take

He moved to town and sold the farm

To investors out of state

 

Repeat Chorus:

 

Bridge:

Although we never met

We’d probably get along

Oh the stories he could share

Instead of sitting alone

I should ask him what he’s thinking

What do you see

And look at the world

Through the eyes of Clarence Greene

 

Tag:

I see him on his front porch

Almost everyday

 

11. Treatin' Each Other Wrong

Words and Music: ©2006 J. Shelby Merchant (ASCAP) / Mason Douglas (ASCAP)

Administered by James Shelby Music

All Rights Reserved Used Only By Permission

 

I forget birthdays on purpose

Anniversaries too

Even walk across the carpet

In my muddy boots

Leave seat up at night

For her to stumble into

There ain’t nothing I wouldn’t do

 

Like, leave the milk out on the counter

All day till it sours

Or carelessly mow over her newly planted flowers

These incidents are no accident and intent for that temper

Just so I can make it up to her

 

Chorus:

It’s all part of a bigger plan

Leading to a wild romance

Starting with a little fight

Nobody gets hurt

And when it comes to making up

Treating each other wrong feels right

 

She threw my hunting magazines

and favorite shirt away

Woke me up to wash the sheets  

Early on Saturday

Then sent me to the store

To buy feminine things

She’s driving me completely insane

 

Like when she tries on new clothes

In front of my favorite TV show

Or unexpectedly begins to squeeze a bump on my nose

No question she testing my patience till I blow

And once I’m good mad that when she pulls me close

 

Repeat Chorus:

 

Bridge:

Yeah, we get so excited

When we start fighting

Cause we know a hot night’s coming on

It’s a steamy compromise

When we apologize

Cause sorry takes us all night long

 

12. Evergreen

Words and Music: ©2005 J. Shelby Merchant (ASCAP)

Administered by James Shelby Music

All Rights Reserved Used Only By Permission

 

If I were a leaf in Fall

I wouldn’t surrender my color at all

Filled with envy and jealousy

Evergreen

 

Wind blows mighty cold these days

Still I won’t let go of my stubborn ways

Barely hanging by a limb

Clinging till who knows when

Evergreen

 

Chorus:

Evergreen I long for her

Afraid to say a word

So I’ll keep waiting patiently

For her to take notice of me

Evergreen

 

Winter must be setting in

I see she’s cuddled with another man

When spring melts him away

I’ll be here to stay

Evergreen

 

Summer’s heat may make me dry

But the moment I begin to cry

You can count on me

To always be

 

Repeat Chorus:

Repeat Chorus: