There's a city of lights and ambition 
in the heart of Tennessee 
for every star, there's a second-rate bar 
where the rest of us finish our drinks 
There's a hundred six-string slingers 
just like there were the night before 
any one night, your name's up in lights 
and the next you wipe the floor 

So baby tell me why 
you ended up here 
I know this ain't your scene 
and you know this ain't my year 

There's a place off of 2nd and Broadway 
where fake cowboys go to drink 
we'll play all night, while they try to hide 
their tears while they sing 
There's a girl at the back of the bar 
smiling at me from against the wall 
she's in a song I've written, she's the sweetest little kitten 
but I still ain't seen her claws 
 
So baby tell me why 
you ended up here 
I know this ain't your scene 
and you know this ain't my year 
So baby tell me why 
you still stick around 
you know there ain't a lot left 
for a guy like me in this town 

There's a surplus of neon in Nashville 
where the river hits the street 
let it light, but don't let it hide 
the crime and the concrete 
and that girl at the back of the room 
smiling at me and my guitar 
it gets me by, just to see her eyes 
I'm still her undeserving star