The Momma 'n' Daddy Collection 42

I've had bleak and I've had borderline, so it's time to get back into the mainstream. And for mainstream Momma 'n' Daddy Ricky Skaggs is your man. We've heard from him before in this series, and we'll be hearing from him again. Today I bring you the yearning regret of 'Fields Of Home', transcribed for you by my own hand:

I remember how I cussed the taste of that ole hillside dust
And the hot July sun that burned my back
As I walked between the rows, I dreamed of places that I'd go
Far away from the fields of home.

A young man longs to get away, and I told Dad I would some day
And I remember how I laughed at his reply
He said, 'Son, some day you'll long for just this ground you're standing on
When there's miles between you and the fields of home.'

I left before I turned 18, I set out to do big things
I didn't write or call, I thought I knew it all
For a while I lived it up, then I got down on my luck
Started longing for the fields of home.

Now 20 years have slipped away, and I went back the other day
And I found the weeds had taken Daddy's farm
I looked for Gene's old grocery store, the road don't run by there no more
And I didn't recognize the fields of home.

I left before I turned 18, I set out to do big things
I didn't write or call, I thought I knew it all
I can't believe how things have changed, they won't ever be the same
But I wish I'd never left the fields of home
Oh, tonight I long to walk the fields of home.

Remembering the family home is, of course, a key trope of the genre, but here it is exceeded: the singer ends by wishing he'd never left. I feel there is an anti-Hegelian element involved, but I can't vouch for the intentions of the songwriters in this regard.

[The Momma 'n' Daddy Archive, containing all the details of the series, is here.]