You Never Got Me

Forty years i walked the straight line
Kept my word when no one cared
Signed my name beneath the damage
Took the weight that wasn't mine to bear
First the bankers sold me promises
With a handshake and a smile
I believed that words meant something
God, i believed that for a while
I paid the price so no one else would
Stood between them and the fall
They went home and slept like children
I stayed up and took it all
And every time i thought i'd learned
Another trusted face would turn
Another lesson, another scar
Another piece of who we are
You took my money
You took my years
You left me standing
With your debts and tears
You bent the truth
You played your games
You found good people
To carry all your blame
You took damn near everything
You ever thought you'd need
But you never got me
No
You never got me
Then a friend sat at my table,
Looked me straight into the eyes.
Funny how the ones who know you
Know exactly where to place the knife.
And i carried that one quietly
Cause there were others in the way
Sometimes doing what is decent
Means you're the only one who pays
Then came number three in business
Same old story, different suit
Different words and different papers
Same deception underneath
And the bastards kept on walking
While i learned what justice means
Sometimes truth can fill a courtroom
And still get lost between the seats
I watched the clever shake their hands
Watched fools pretend they understand
I watched the guilty walk away
And honest people have to pay
You took my money
You took my years
You left me standing
With your debts and tears
You bent the truth
You played your games
You found good people
To carry all your blame
You took damn near everything
You ever thought you'd need
But you never got me
You never fucking got me
Maybe i was stupid
To believe a word was still a word
Maybe i was foolish
Thinking truth would still be heard
Maybe i should've learned to lie
Maybe i should've played their game
Maybe i'd be richer now
But i couldn't say my name
So let them count their money
Let them polish every lie
Let them toast another victory
And tell themselves they won tonight
I've got scars they never carried
I've got nights they'll never know
But there's one thing in the morning
That they can't buy, steal or own
I look into the mirror
The old man looks at me
Tired eyes.
A crooked smile.
And then
He winks
You took my money!
You took my years!
You gave me anger,
You gave me tears!
You bent the truth,
You bought your time,
You crossed every fucking line!
Take the house
Take the gold
Take the stories never told
Take whatever you believe
Will finally set you free
But you never got me!
Never got me!
Forty years and i'm still here!
Never got me!
I can face that mirror clear!
Never got me!
And if i had to live it all again
I'd still be me
So tomorrow when the morning comes
And that old face looks back at me
I'll smile
I'll wink
And say
“They took a lot, old friend
But they never got me”