Odes to Poncey-Highland · Track 1 · opener
Terminus: The Line East
Opener / CITY FRAME (the OTJ "Terminus" convention every Atlanta album opens with) — Atlanta was born in 1837 as Terminus, the end of the Western & Atlantic Railroad, marked by the Zero Mile Post; Terminus became Marthasville became Atlanta, the city that always rebuilds from its own ashes. Open on the iron heart of the rail and the engines, then follow the line and the old road EAST out Ponce de Leon Avenue toward the springs and the eastside neighborhood this album celebrates. Proud, big, celebratory city-frame that sets the whole city, then lands us in Poncey-Highland.
Lyrics
[Intro] We start at the stake in the dirt. [Verse 1] Drive the iron down in 1837 Sparks flying up toward a dogwood heaven Right where the Western & Atlantic hit the dirt Building up a skyline from the red clay earth Zero Mile Post standing quiet in the center Welcoming the dreamers and the builders who enter They called it Terminus, the absolute end of the line But it was just the first spark of a grand design [Chorus] Oh, Terminus, Marthasville, the city in the pines Rising from the ashes every single time We got an iron heart and a golden crest But today we’re leaving the middle and we’re heading east Yeah, we’re following the road out east [Verse 2] Catch the rhythm of the city as it stretches and breathes Rolling out past the grid to a canopy of leaves Turn down Ponce de Leon Avenue, the old dirt trail Where the water from the springs used to cure what ails You can feel the heavy pulse of the locomotive fade As we cross over the highway and into the shade We’re trading the train for the neighborhood streets Where the cracked pavement and the magnolias meet [Chorus] Oh, Terminus, Marthasville, the city in the pines Rising from the ashes every single time We got an iron heart and a golden crest But today we’re leaving the middle and we’re heading east Yeah, we’re following the road out east [Bridge] Every town needs a center to hold it together A spike in the ground through the fire and weather But the soul spills out where the neon will glow And the folks on the porches sit and watch the show I see the lights from here. [Outro] So here’s to the track that brought us all in Here’s to the city where the stories begin Roll down the glass, let the evening wind catch you We made it to Poncey-Highland And the night is just opening its hand.