Bannered Elk

04:12
2026-05-18 13:53
2
Americana, Folk, Storytelling, Male, Acoustic Guitar
1
[Intro]
[Chorus]
0:09
The little High Country town of Elk,
0:09
Hangs a banner once a year,
0:14
To give everybody welcome,
0:19
Be they from far or near.
0:24
But this year there’s a fellow.
0:28
Tryin’ to make sense out of himself,
0:33
And before the day is over,
0:38
There’ll be more than just a banner…
0:41
Hangin’ in the town of Elk.
0:44
[Verses]
0:48
Now just why did it take her so long,
0:48
To tell him why her pants didn’t fit?
0:53
He’s living his own “Billie Joe” song,
0:58
Too bad he’s never heard of it.
1:03
He understands why she was worried,
1:08
The mayor would sure have a fit.
1:13
But right now this boy is harried.
1:17
‘Bout how she could misunderstand,
1:20
The werds, “I’ll take care of it.”
1:27
The dean at the local college,
1:32
Told her it’s her body and her choice,
1:37
And armed with that knowledge,
1:42
She chose to snuff her baby’s voice.
1:46
If only she hadn’t told him
1:52
To meet her at eight on Friday,
1:56
When Thursday she was down in Ashville,
2:01
Making it all just go away.
2:06
But from that he couldn’t stop her.
2:11
And he doubts her mayor father would.
2:16
This ain’t how he envisioned being a daddy,
2:21
But given the chance, he’d have done all he could.
2:25
Now in the town of Banner,
2:31
There’s no Tallahatchee Bridge,
2:35
But there’s a rundown hospital,
2:40
Sitting at the city’s edge.
2:45
With lots of busted windows,
2:50
and plenty of old bed sheets.
2:55
And while he jumped from three stories,
2:59
He only fell about six feet.
3:03
[Chorus]
3:09
The little High Country town of Elk,
3:09
Hangs a banner once a year,
3:14
To celebrate renewal,
3:19
And to say that Spring is near..
3:24
But this year there’s a fellow.
3:28
Tryin’ to make sense out of himself,
3:33
And before the day is over,
3:38
There’ll be more than just a banner…
3:41
Hangin’ in the town of Elk.I don’t know if in this world there’s justice,
3:44
Or if God understands that boy’s fall.
3:53
But I know it's on my prayer list, that
3:58
He meets his son in Heaven after all.
4:02