I was born in England Lived here all my life Got a three bedroom house in the suburbs With my two kids and one good life Went to university and got a degree I must have learned a thing or three But I never learned the right way to hang a tire swing From the old oak tree I'm not country I've never owned a pickup truck Don't drink too much or get in fights Never been down on my luck Never rode a painted pony across a meadow fresh with dew But if I'm ever born again my friend That's the first thing that I'll do Got a picture of the Smokey Mountains Taped upon my wall Down at the local pub I pretend a southern drawl Put Johnny Cash on the jukebox 'Cause he makes my heart ache Staring our the window at the taxicabs I think God must have made a cruel mistake I'm not country Never plowed a field of corn Never rode in an eighteen wheeler Or even blew the horn Never made love to my sweetheart Underneath the sky so blue But if I'm ever born again my friend Gonna do that too I've been to London and Paris Beijing and Mexico too Sipped martinis with the jet set in New York City So why am I blue 'Cause I'd rather be alone on an old dirt road Just kicking' stones I've never been to West Virginia To me that sounds like home I'm not country That's just songs on the radio I ain't going down to Nashville To the Grand Ol' Opry show Never wore a cowboy hat or boots Never chug-a-lugged a brew But you better believe in my next life That's the third, fourth, and fifth thing I'm gonna do I'll never own a pickup truck Don't drink too much or get in fights Never been down on my luck Never rode a painted pony across a meadow fresh with dew But if I'm ever born again my friend That's the first thing that I'll do