[Verse]
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On his 18th birthday, headed south on a greyhound bus, and it's
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The most scared he's ever been
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His destination, an old island on the Carolina shore, but he's
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Not quite sure what to expect
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He ain't had it easy, most would say he's had it rough, but he
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Don't complain to anyone
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His choice was simple, coal minin' or shootin' a gun, and he
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Hopes it's one he won't regret
[Pre Chorus]
A Cadd9
That greyhound bus stops on a dime
A Cadd9
And he runs out to stand in line
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And he looks down to see
[Chorus]
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Yellow footprints, to teach him how to stand
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Yellow footprints, his first steps to being a man
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Yellow footprints, where so many stood before
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Yellow footprints, are just what, he was lookin' for
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[Verse]
Cadd9 G D Cadd9
He ain't no stranger, to workin' hard or doin' what he's told
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From what he can tell he's fittin' in
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Yes sir, No sir, is all he says, it's all they want to hear
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And he don't give them nothin' more.
[Pre Chorus]
A Cadd9
Reveille sounds at a quarter to five
A Cadd9
He jumps out of his bunk to stand in line
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Just like that night
[Chorus]
Cadd9 G D
On the Yellow footprints, to teach him how to stand
Cadd9 G D
Yellow footprints, his first steps to being a man
Cadd9 G D
Yellow footprints, where so many stood before
Cadd9 G A Cadd9
Yellow footprints, are just what, he was lookin' for
Cadd9 G Cadd9 G Cadd9 G D
[Bridge]
A Cadd9
And 14 weeks can seem so long
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But it's always darkest before dawn
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And he remembers that night
[Chorus]
Cadd9 G D
On the Yellow footprints, to teach him how to stand
Cadd9 G D
Yellow footprints, his first steps to being a man
Cadd9 G D
Yellow footprints, where so many stood before
Cadd9 G A Cadd9
Yellow footprints, are just what, he was lookin' for
Cadd9 G Cadd9 G Cadd9 G D