It's painted red, the stripe was white
It was eighteen feet from the bow to the stern light
Second hand from a dealer in Atlanta
I rode up with Daddy when he went there to get her
Put on a shine, put on a motor
Built out of love, made for the water
Ran her for years, till the transom got rotten
A piece of my childhood will never be forgotten

It was just an old plywood boat
A '75 Johnson with electric choke
A young boy two hands on the wheel
I can't replace the way it make me feel
And I would turn her sharp
And I would make her whine
He'd say, you can't beat the way an old wood boat rides
Just a little lake across the Alabama line
But I was king of the ocean
When Daddy let me drive

Just an old half-ton shortbed Ford
My uncle bought new in '64
Daddy got it right 'cause the engine was smoking
Couple of burned valves and he had it going
He let me drive here when we'd haul off a load
Down a dirt strip where we'd dump trash off of Thigpen Road
Sit up in the seat and stretch my feet out to the pedals
Smiling like a hero that just received his medal

It was just an old hand-me-down Ford
With three-speed on the column and a dent in the door
A young boy two hands on the wheel
I can't replace the way it made me feel
And I would press that clutch
And I would keep it right
And he'd say, a little slower son you're doing just fine
Just a dirt road with trash on each side
But I was Mario Andretti
When Daddy let me drive

I'm grown up now three daughters of my own
To let them drive my old Jeep across a pasture in our home
Maybe one day they'll reach back in their file
And pull out that old memory
And think of me and smile, and say

Just an old worn-out Jeep
Rusty old floorboard, hot on my feet
A young girl two hands on the wheel
I can't replace the way it made me feel
And he'd say, turn it left and steer it right
Straighten up girl now you're doing just fine
Just a little valley by the river where we'd ride
But I was high on a mountain
When Daddy let me drive

When Daddy let me drive
Oh he let me drive
Daddy let me drive

It's just an old plywood boat
With a '75 Johnson with electric choke



Lyrics submitted by Ice

Track duration: 04:03

"Drive (For Daddy Gene)" as written by Alan Eugene Jackson

Lyrics © EMI Music Publishing

Lyrics powered by LyricFind


Drive song meanings
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14 Comments

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  • 0
    Memory:When I first heard it, I instantly thought of all of the things my dad taught me.
    I learned to drive on his ATV
    I learned to drive on his motorcycle
    I learned to drive his boat
    I learned to drive with my dad in our minivan

    Many things that make me who I am are because of my dad.
    Flag swimmerspeon March 20, 2011   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:Man this song really brings back some memories, I remember the coolest thing in the world was when I was a kid, dad would let me drive the truck and the john deere. What a great song.
    Flag PureBSon February 13, 2011   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:Sign if you want real country back: petitionspot.com/petitions/fixcountrymusic/
    Flag shadowkats3on July 06, 2010   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:I love this song and it's my favorite song.

    Obnoxious?? I'm so sure! This song is one of the best!!
    Some just don't have good taste in music. I'm not one of them!
    Flag princess_angela_12on March 27, 2008   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:This song reminds of when my dad took me out to the foresty center where i live and let drive for the first time without having to sit on his lap. It was sweet driving that 94 nissan pathfinder. He gave it to me last year, and I don't ever wanna give it up :)
    Flag greyfinderon January 29, 2008   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:This song is so great because it is so relatable! Alan sings about the memories he had with his father and his daughters, who cannot relate to that? Even though we may not have been driving race cars, the feeling of driving for the first time will never be forgotten. We all can remember the first time that our Daddy let us drive...
    Flag JPettiton November 16, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:This song is great. period. My dad let me drive he's truck down our little dirt road, and I think that this song is one of those 'remeber way back when' songs.
    Flag shyanne_13on June 15, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:it has a sorta special meaning to me for various reasons....but i love the song regardless....
    Flag chasingraindropson November 24, 2004   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:Same here txteacher, except for me it was a Ford, and it was my Grandpap, not my Dad. Either way, this song is so sweet, and I now have 2 daughters and a son (girls are 14 and 13, boy is 11) who sing this sing very loudly in the car when it comes on WKLB. They've already started to pester me about driving the car, and my son wants me to get a boat ^^.
    Flag skorpionon October 20, 2004   Link
  • 0
    General Comment:This song has special meaning to me because it sounds like my dad. My dad is the one who taught all of his daughters (he has three :) to drive. If only Alan mentioned a Chevy instead of a Ford......
    Flag txteacheron October 09, 2004   Link

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