A Stranger I Know Well

[Intro]

[Verse 1]
Two A.M., the house is still, the bottle's half way down
Not another single soul awake in this whole sleeping town
I catch a glimpse in the dark glass, that window to the night
And for a second, it's not me there, in the pale and lonely light
It's a kid I used to run with, a punk I used to be
And he's standin' right there in the dark, just smilin' back at me.

[Chorus]
Hello there, stranger, a stranger I know well
You got a thousand crazy stories that you're just dying to tell
You got that fire in your eyes, that trouble in your grin
The ghost of every single mess I ever got myself in
Yeah, you're a stranger I know well, from a lifetime ago.

[Verse 2]
I remember how you drove your truck, one hand upon the wheel
Chasin' down a feelin' that you thought was real
You were breakin' hearts and breakin' laws and breakin' every rule
Just a wild and restless graduate of a hard-knocks kind of school
You thought that you were ten feet tall and made of smokeless fire
Runnin' on cheap whiskey and a dangerous desire.

[Chorus]
Hello there, stranger, a stranger I know well
You got a thousand crazy stories that you're just dying to tell
You got that fire in your eyes, that trouble in your grin
The ghost of every single mess I ever got myself in
Yeah, you're a stranger I know well, from a lifetime ago.

[Bridge]
I used to hate you for the pain and all the hell you put me through
But now I see I wouldn't be me, if it wasn't, son, for you
You had to burn so bright and fast, you had to turn to smoke and ash
So I could learn to build a fire that was quiet and would last.
So I raise my glass to you, my friend, for gettin' me this far.

[Saxophone Solo]

[Outro]
Hello there, stranger...
Yeah, a stranger I know well...
Go on now, get some rest...
We both earned it...
Goodnight...