I was fifteen, left home young Tore up the tracks and then sung Me and my dad didn't see eye to eye I never took to him, he never took the time But it proved more than tough Smarter than he ever was I burned those wheels down the highway And I learned what I learned the hard way Do the best you can do, love many trust few Work hard for the money in your hands That's the measure of a man Yeah, the measure of a man Anger burns, love cools it down Pretty young woman turned my head around The world through her eyes looks so different She lives on faith, she looks for forgiveness Foolproof, it ain't easy I need her, she needs me She stole my heart on this highway She taught me to love through the hard days Yeah, she's cool when I'm not She's steady as a rock, she's as solid as a ring on my hand That's the measure of a man Yeah, the measure of a man Last night she handed me a son of my own And it killed me to do it, but I picked up the phone Hey dad, I burned ten years down this highway And I learned what I learned the hard way Truth is I need you, we'll cry if we need to And I'll swallow my pride if you can That's the measure of a man Oh yeah, the measure of a man Yeah, the measure of a man