Lyrics
Verse 1
Dust rolls up behind the grandstand fenceSaturday heat and a five-dollar senseYou can hear that chute chain rattle like a warning bellEvery man in the gate knows the price of hellA kid in a vest checks the knot twiceHis mama’s prayer tucked inside his glove like adviceThen the gate kicks wide and the whole place leansEight seconds is a lifetime when the bull’s sixteen
Pre‑Chorus
Hold that breath, boys, count it downSteel-toed courage in a roaring townOne more nod and the world goes blackA cowboy’s got no room to take it back
Chorus
Ride ’em, ride ’em, tough as hellHang on hard when the thunder bellEight seconds, make ’em remember your nameDust on your hat and fire in your frameRide ’em, ride ’em, don’t you fallRaise that rope when they open the stallHey! Hey! Let the whole house yellFor the roughneck kings riding tough as hell
Verse 2
One comes out with a shoulder like a wrecking ballBoot hits dirt, but he’s up before the callAnother draws a bull that nobody wantsStill he swings aboard with a grin in the dustThere’s blood on a knuckle and mud on a kneeA busted-up buckle hanging crooked and freeThey don’t talk big when the arena goes stillThey just nod at the gate like they’re born for the kill
Pre‑Chorus
Hold that breath, boys, count it downSteel-toed courage in a roaring townOne more nod and the world goes blackA cowboy’s got no room to take it back
Chorus
Ride ’em, ride ’em, tough as hellHang on hard when the thunder bellEight seconds, make ’em remember your nameDust on your hat and fire in your frameRide ’em, ride ’em, don’t you fallRaise that rope when they open the stallHey! Hey! Let the whole house yellFor the roughneck kings riding tough as hell
Bridge
When the lights go low and the dust settles downThey’ll limp through the gate to the edge of townBut tomorrow night, when that iron door ringsThey’ll climb right back up like the hard-headed kings
Final Chorus
Ride ’em, ride ’em, tough as hellHang on hard when the thunder bellEight seconds, make ’em remember your nameDust on your hat and fire in your frameRide ’em, ride ’em, don’t you fallRaise that rope when they open the stallHey! Hey! Let the whole house yellFor the roughneck kings riding tough as hell
Outro
Tough as hell, boys, tough as hellHear that crowd and the thunder bellTough as hell, boys, tough as hellRide ’em home when the night winds swell