Shuffle Children

[Verse 1]

Barefoot on the levee, dust in their eyes
Shuffle children movin’, ‘neath them Southern skies
Mama done gone, daddy never came
Born to the rhythm, never had no name

[Verse 2]

Rusty rail tracks and old cotton rows
Sleepin' in the shade where the kudzu grows
Singin' with the train, moanin’ with the wind
Tryin’ to find a place they ain't never been

[Chorus]

Shuffle, shuffle children, lost in time
Writin’ blues with footsteps in a crooked line
No one knows where they belong
But they carry the beat, and they sing it strong

[Verse 3]

Church bell rings in the dead of night
But the gospel fades with no end in sight
They got hunger dreams and worn-out shoes
A lifetime wrapped in Delta blues

[Chorus]

Shuffle, shuffle children, hearts of flame
Livin’ wild with nothin’ but a shadowed name
The world looked once, then looked away
But their song still walks the break of day

[Bridge]

They don’t cry, they don't plead
Just plant their hope like a stubborn seed
In a land that takes more than it gives
Still they rise, yeah, still they live

[Final Chorus]

Shuffle, shuffle children, hear that sound
The Delta moans, but won’t break ‘em down
They're ghosts and flame, they're bone and soul
Marchin’ on, where the river rolls

©Copyright 2025. Recordable Music Inc
Writer: HL Shields