I was born in Oklahoma in 1969
My daddy played the honky tonks out on the county line
One night he took me with him through those swingin' doors
And I heard that country music, saw that crowded dance floor

Dad made fifty dollars
And I stayed up 'til three
And I thought this is the life for me

By the time I turned fourteen, I was pickin' lead guitar
Everyday I went to school and at night I played the bars
Two or three years later I noticed something strange
All the looks that I was getting' from the girls began to change

I knew right then and there
What I was gonna be
This is the life for me

This is the life
The only one I want to know
Everyday another town and every night another show

Ever since I was a boy, I've had this crazy dream
Now I know it was meant to be
This is the life, this is the life for me

Well, I tried to go to college, just to see if I was wrong
But that ain't the kind of knowledge that helps you write a country song
I got my education on the wild side of life
Through a cloud of smoke so thick that you could cut it with a knife

There was no doubt about it
As far as I could see
This is the life for me

This is the life
The only one I want to know
Everyday another town and every night another show

Ever since I was a boy, I've had this crazy dream
Now I know it was meant to be
This is the life, this is the life for me
Yeah, this is the life, this is the life for me