The whole country's got Texas on its mind this week — Ella Langley's "Choosin' Texas" is sitting pretty at the top of the early-September charts with records falling left and right. And it got me to thinking about the oldest heartbreak there is that don't get half the songs it deserves: the rival who ain't a lover at all. She didn't step out with some smooth-talking stranger. She fell for geography — elbow room, an open sky, a town where nobody knew her name. What do you do with that? You can't hit Texas. You can't drink Texas under the table. All you can do is tip your hat to Austin and drive home. This one's for every man whose woman left him for somewhere instead of someone — and who, deep down, halfway understands.
[Verse 1]
The U-Haul pulled out Sunday with her mama's good china
And two state lines of dust before I thought to phone her.
The barkeep asked me where she'd gone — I said, "Somewhere south and kinder,"
Then fed the jukebox quarters just to hear somebody moan her.
[Chorus]
She chose Texas over porch swings and my name,
Over eleven years of Tuesday nights and a love that stayed the same.
There ain't no man to hunt down, ain't a bottle strong enough to blame —
She chose Texas, and I'm the fool who chose to stay.
[Verse 2]
Her sister swears there's fiddle music drifting out of Amarillo,
That she's waiting tables singing, happy as a lark at dawn.
I drove down there in October, sat outside her brand-new life,
Watched her laugh across the counter — then I put the truck in gear and gone.
[Steel Guitar Solo]
[Verse 3]
Now I ain't mad at Texas — she just gave what I wouldn't:
Elbow room, an open sky, a town where no one knew her.
I was building that girl cabinets; she was carving out a canyon.
Some folks leave a person — some just outgrew the picture.
[Chorus 2]
She chose Texas, and heaven knows she had the right,
'Cause I loved her like a photograph — kept her framed and kept her bright.
Now I tip my hat to Austin when the radio gives way —
She chose Texas... and Texas chose to let her stay.
[Spoken Outro]
Barkeep, one more for the road... and pin her postcard back above the jukebox.
She's smiling out there in the panhandle sun.
Hell... ain't that what we all were after, somewhere?
Written & performed by Waylon · DirtRoadRadio
