Rise-Up Boots Redemption

[Intro — stomp, clap, banjo swell]
Lead:
Well I heard that river calling—

Choir:
Rise up, rise up!

Lead:
Through the smoke and through the morning—

Choir:
Rise up, rise up!

Lead:
If the fire didn’t finish me,
And the mud couldn’t hold me down,
I’m gonna cross that water
With my boots on solid ground.

[Verse 1]
There was iron in the long grass,
There was sorrow in the clay,
There were years of broken weather
Trying hard to wash away.
There were bills on the kitchen table,
There were ghosts out in the yard,
There was a bridge that knew the answer:
“Boy, the lifting part is hard.”

[Pre-Chorus]
But the river keeps on rolling,
And the pines still testify,
You can bury grief in ashes,
But the spark don’t always die.

[Chorus]
Rise from the ashes,
Roll from the rain,
Lift that steel from the valley,
Put the fire in our name.
Sing it from the riverbank,
Shout it from the road,
What they thought was over
Was just learning how to grow.

Choir:
Rise up!

Lead:
From the burden and the bruises—

Choir:
Rise up!

Lead:
From the deals and the excuses—

All:
Rise from the ashes,
Let the whole town know,
The Wasi keeps on rolling
And the good Lord steals the show.

[Verse 2]
There was gravel under silence,
There was thunder in the pit,
There was a man who built with both hands
And never once would quit.
There were keys without a doorway,
There were plans without a crane,
There were mornings I could barely stand
But I still came back again.

[Pre-Chorus]
Now the banjo sounds like sunlight,
And the fiddle sounds like grace,
There’s a choir in the cedar trees
And a grin back on my face.

[Chorus]
Rise from the ashes,
Roll from the rain,
Lift that steel from the valley,
Put the fire in our name.
Sing it from the riverbank,
Shout it from the road,
What they thought was over
Was just learning how to grow.

Choir:
Rise up!

Lead:
From the dust and from the grieving—

Choir:
Rise up!

Lead:
From the long nights barely breathing—

All:
Rise from the ashes,
Let the whole town know,
The Wasi keeps on rolling
And the good Lord steals the show.

[Bridge — gospel breakdown, handclaps]
Lead:
Can I get a witness by the river?

Choir:
We are the witness!

Lead:
Can I get a song from the steel?

Choir:
Steel gonna sing!

Lead:
Can I get a hand for the fallen?

Choir:
We lift the legacy!

Lead:
Can I get a road through the wilderness?

Choir:
Bring that bridge and bring that king!

[Banjo break — 8 bars]
Fiddle:
Woo!

Choir:
Rise up, rise up,
River don’t sleep.
Rise up, rise up,
Promises keep.
Rise up, rise up,
Ashes don’t lie.
What was burned down low
Comes back sky-high.

[Verse 3]
Now the night don’t own the valley,
And the past don’t own my name,
There’s a light across the water
And a spark inside the frame.
If you came here looking sideways,
If you came to doubt the claim,
You can meet me by the river
Where the old bridge rose in flame.

[Final Chorus — bigger, full choir]
Rise from the ashes,
Roll from the rain,
Lift that steel from the valley,
Put the fire in our name.
Sing it from the riverbank,
Shout it from the road,
What they thought was over
Was just learning how to grow.

Choir:
Rise up!

Lead:
From the trouble and the testing—

Choir:
Rise up!

Lead:
From the years that kept us wrestling—

All:
Rise from the ashes,
Let the whole town know,
The Wasi keeps on rolling
And the good Lord steals the show.

[Outro — stomp clap, choir fade]
Lead:
The river keeps on rolling—

Choir:
Rise up, rise up!

Lead:
The bridge is coming home now—

Choir:
Rise up, rise up!

All:
From the ashes,
From the rain,
From the river,
Rise again.