[Verse 1]
The screen door slams, Mary's dress waves
Like a vision she dances across the porch as the radio plays
Roy Orbison singing for the lonely

[Verse 2]
Hey, that's me and I want you to want me
Don't turn me home again, I just can't face myself alone again
Don't you run back inside, darling, darling you know just what I'm here for
So you're scared and you're thinking that maybe we ain't that young anymore
But show a little faith, there's magic in the night
You ain't a beauty but, hey, you're alright
Oh, and that's alright with me

[Verse 3]
You can hide 'neath your covers and study your pain
Make crosses from your lovers, throw roses in the rain
Waste your summer praying and praying
For a savior to rise from these streets
Hey now, I ain't no hero, that's understood
All the redemption I can offer, girl, is beneath this dirty hood
With a chance to make it good somehow
Hey, what else can we do now?
Except roll down the window and let the wind blow back your hair
Well, the night's busting open, these two lanes will take us anywhere
We got one last chance to make it real
To trade in these wings on some wheels
Climb in back, heaven's waiting on down the tracks

[Verse 4]
Oh oh, come take my hand
We'll run across tonight to catch the promised land
Oh oh oh oh, Thunder Road
Oh, Thunder Road, oh, Thunder Road
I'm out here like a killer in the sun
Hey, I know it's late, we can make it if we run
Oh oh oh oh, Thunder Road
Sit tight, take hold, Thunder Road

[Verse 5]
Well, I got this guitar and I learned how to make it talk
And my car's out back if you're ready to take that long walk
From the front porch to my front seat
The door is open, but the ride ain't free
And I know you're lonely for words that I ain't spoken
Tonight we'll be free, all the promises'll be broken

[Verse 6]
When there's ghosts in the eyes of all the boys you sent away
They haunt this dusty beach road; the skeleton frames of burned-out Chevrolets
They scream your name at night in the street
The graduation gown lies in rags at their feet
And the lonely few before dawn
You hear their engines rolling on
But when you get to the porch, they're gone Thunder road
I see Mary, crying
It's a town full of losers, I'm pulling out eager to win