This Bar Saves Lives

(Vibe: “I Love This Bar” — community; twist: VFW-style bar where veterans heal together)Tone: Warm, humorous, heartfelt*
Verse 1
I love this bar—Not ’cause the beer’s cold or the darts go far.Not ’cause the band plays half in tune,Or the neon flickers like a cheap cartoon.I love it ’cause old boys sit in a row,Talking ’bout things only soldiers know.Where funerals turn into toasts at night,And broken hearts find a little light.
Verse 2
The bartender’s a widow of a sergeant first class,Still wipes the counter like holy glass.There’s a chair with a name on the back of the seat—Empty forever, but the stories repeat.Every Friday we gather like family strong,Laugh too hard, drink too long.This ain’t a bar—it’s a battle-scarred choir,Singing survival like a bonfire.
Pre-Chorus
It ain’t fancy, it ain’t clean—But it’s the safest place I’ve ever been.
Chorus
Yeah, I love this bar,Where every broken man’s a star.Where we heal slow, where we stand tall,Where memories echo through the wall.I love this bar—’Cause it saves lives in the dark.
Bridge
We may stagger sometimes, but never alone—This place is the closest thing to home.

* Instruments: Acoustic, bar piano, fiddle, harmonica, soft drums