McKenna, Lori - The Bird & The Rifle Lyrics






There's a bird making coffee in the kitchen
And there's a rifle out back smoking cigarettes
He don't ever really feel like talking
It don't matter what she says

And the bird is always dreaming out the window
Looking at that big wide open sky
And the rifle, he used to be a dreamer
But he wasn't meant to fly

Something down on the ground
Won't let her out, it holds her in
And he's afraid if she flies
She'll never come home again
Something about the bird
And her spreading those wings
Always brings the rifle out in him

But the rifle loves the bird when she's singing
And he knows every word to every song
And the bird, she loves the rifle
Cause he's dangerous, stubborn and strong

Something down on the ground
Won't let her out, it holds her in
And he's afraid if she flies
She'll never come home again
Something about the bird
And her spreading those wings
Always brings the rifle out in him

One night when the autumn wind was perfect
The rifle drank his whiskey and went to bed
And he never even heard the window open
And she ain't come back in





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McKenna, Lori The Bird & The Rifle Comments
  1. E.... M....

    Devastating, uplifting, beautiful

  2. l.... w....

    Did you put those "new string" bird chirps in the song on purpose? I love it!!

  3. l.... w....

    Wow that's great writing and a strong melody!! quite memorable! Thanks Lori

  4. J.... B....

    My favorite musical discovery in 2019...thank God for Spotify! Her voice is do distinctive and her songwriting is heartbreaking and uplifting at the same time. I hope she comes on tour in my area soon...

  5. M.... S....

    Zzzzzz.......

  6. S.... ....

    i wonder when she's gonna finish writing this song, the middle block(s) are clearly missing- it cant go from her liking him cuz he's dangerous to just splitting out the window?- its such a great piece, brilliant lyrics artfully delivered. it must have been one of those, i can't think of anything as good as the bird rifle lyrics that came before so I'll just leave as is and end it. anyways it is excellent, big fan

  7. T.... P....

    Peter Hern with IQ Productions in Kingston, Ontario Canada Looking for Great Songs for Our Artists

  8. C.... R....

    Beautiful 👏🏻👏🏼👏🏽👏🏾👏🏻👏🏼👏🏽👏🏾👏🏻👏🏼👏🏽👏🏾👏🏻👏🏼👏🏽👏🏾👏🏻👏🏼👏🏽👏🏾👏🏻👏🏼👏🏽👏🏾👏🏻👏🏼👏🏽👏🏾👏🏻👏🏼👏🏽👏🏾👏🏻👏🏼👏🏽👏🏾👏🏻👏🏼👏🏽👏🏾👏🏻👏🏼👏🏽👏🏾👏🏻

  9. c.... ....

    She's the muse of emotions ! I love her !

  10. l.... ....

    Wonderful!

  11. I.... ....

    Something about these bird songs... "Meadowlark" (from "The Baker's Wife") affects me the same way. It's all I can do to get up off the floor.

  12. J.... ....

    love tis, makes sense

  13. B.... P....

    You can feel every note and each syllable slice through a veil of melancholy with a painful longing for change...

  14. G.... B....

    Feel sad I didn't know about you until today Lori but now I'm a fan...beautiful song & vocals!!!

  15. B.... K....

    This woman is a complete delight to listen to from the head to the heart. I can't put down the guitar a second before I want to learn the next song I've heard from her. Again, what a delight.

  16. S.... R....

    Is this open D tuning?

    S.... R....

    Bill Kerr, thanks. I had a feeling it was.

  17. J.... C....

    this song slays me

  18. C.... T....

    There's a bird making coffee in the kitchen
    And there's a rifle out back smoking cigarettes
    He don't ever really feel like talking
    It don't matter what she says

    [Verse 2]
    And the bird is always dreaming out the window
    Looking at that big wide open sky
    And the rifle, he used to be a dreamer
    But he wasn't meant to fly

    [Chorus]
    Something down on the ground
    Won't let her out, it holds her in
    And he's afraid if she flies
    She'll never come home again
    Something about the bird
    And her spreading those wings
    Always brings the rifle out in him

    [Verse 3]
    But the rifle loves the bird when she's singing
    And he knows every word to every song
    And the bird, she loves the rifle
    Cause he's dangerous, stubborn and strong

    [Chorus]
    Something down on the ground
    Won't let her out, it holds her in
    And he's afraid if she flies
    She'll never come home again
    Something about the bird
    And her spreading those wings
    Always brings the rifle out in him

    [Verse 4]
    One night when the autumn wind was perfect
    The rifle drank his whiskey and went to bed
    And he never even heard the window open
    And she ain't come back in

  19. G.... S....

    This is what country music should sound like. Honest songwriting, raw instrumentation and a brilliant voice. The crap on “country radio” doesn’t make for good music no matter what genre you put it in.

  20. B.... H....

    hard to write a better song than this

  21. s.... ....

    Another wonderful song from this lady.

  22. L.... G....

    I just love how this was recorded with crickets singing in the background.

    L.... G....

    Crickets don't sing, they chirp.

  23. S.... C....

    Suoni in modo meraviglioso e armonioso perché la tua musica proviene dal tuo cuore e dall'anima che c'è in te. Dalle tue dita magiche crei una melodia fantastica che incanta tutti noi. Grazie ciao

  24. t.... k....

    I had the pleasure of hearing Lori McKenna live at the Stone Mountain Arts Center in Brownfield Maine and she was awesome. What an amazing talent.

  25. S.... ....

    This song is so damn powerful.

  26. W.... Z....

    talent won

  27. J.... R....

    PLEASE COME TO LIVERPOOL, UNITED KINGDOM! I would love to see you live! Lori, you are a truly amazing singer and you are an overwhelmingly powerful songwriter, I am so thankful for your music and I am inspired by you each and every day. Thank you!

  28. J.... L....

    Very beautiful very beautiful well done and well perform hope to see more on this beautiful woman that makes beautiful music yours truly countryman Jr

  29. D.... C....

    lori has 585 subs.. tim has 500 million. funny how that works
    fyi I'm number 585 and proud to be

    D.... C....

    Chad Barnes # 616 for me. Love your voice and songwriting Lori. What a beautiful talent.

    D.... C....

    Chad Barnes it is like clothing line.... same dress made same way but one has a fancy tag on it and sells for 10 times as much. Tim McGraw is a label.... for me hearing a song right from the writer.... that's where the feels come in. She truly means every word where as a big Name country star can act as if truly do. I love this whole CD!!!

  30. E.... H....

    Just brilliant! I hope you don't mind covers of your songs - 'cos this is such a powerful thing to play. If you ever tour in england we'll be there!

  31. G.... V....

    Love love love 💗

  32. A.... C....

    I just love the song!!!! It's so haunting and beautiful. Makes me wonder though does she fly or fall?

    A.... C....

    A Voice To Die For

  33. C.... G....

    Gorgeous song I'm not a country fan but this is huge exception what a talent

  34. c.... ....

    So much better than the disco , hip hop country artists that sell out for awards and money. It's like night and day

  35. N.... D....

    Just discovered her. What a songwriter. What an album. So sad I missed her live.

  36. m.... ....

    Beautiful!

  37. J.... L....

    This song is the story of my life.... You have such an incredible gift, Lori.

  38. L.... M....

    LOVE LOVE LOVE!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Please add more from your new album!! You are AMAZING!!!!!!!

    L.... M....

    Laurel McClellan hai scritto una frase meravigliosa che proviene dal tuo cuore e dall'anima che c'è in te. Grazie ciao

  39. H.... C....

    Lori, thank you for sharing your soul and your talent with us! Truly amazing!!