Intro
Verse
G
For the longest time, I guess I thought he didn't give a damn
D Bm A
Hard to read, hard to please, yeah, that was my old man
G
On the day I left for college, it was nothing new
Gm A
We never had that heart-to-heart, he had too much to do
Chorus
Bm G
He checked the air in my tires, the belts and all the spark plug wires
D Em G A
Said, "When the hell's the last time, you had this oil changed"
Bm G
And as I pulled out the drive, he said, "Be sure and call your mom sometime"
D A
And I didn't hear it then, but I hear it now
Em F#m G
He was sayin', "I love you"
A G G G G Gm Gm A A
The only way he knew how | | | | | | | 
G
A hundred twenty thousand miles, six years down the road
D Bm A
A brand new life and a brand new wife, we'd just bought our first home
G
When he finally came to visit, I thought he'd be so proud
Gm A
He never said he liked the place, he just got his tool belt out
Chorus
Bm G
And put new locks on the doors, went back and forth to the hardware store
D Em G A
Said, "Come and hold this flashlight," as he crawled beneath the sink
Bm G
And "These old wires ain't up to code" and "That circuit box is gonna overload"
D A
And I didn't hear it then, but I hear it now
Em F#m G
He was sayin', "I love you"
A D
The only way he knew how
F
Last Sunday, we all gathered for his sixty fifth birthday
C
And I knew he'd stiffen up, but I hugged him anyway
F
When it was finally time to say goodbye, I knew what was next
Em A
Just like he always does, right before we left
Chorus
Bm G
He checked the air in my tires, the belts and all the spark plug wires
D Em G A
Said, "When the hell's the last time, you had this oil changed"
Bm G
And as I pulled out the drive, he said, "Be sure and call your mom sometime"
D A
And I didn't hear it then, but I hear it now
Em F#m G
He was sayin', "I love you"
Tag
Em F#m G
He was sayin', "I love you"
A G
The only way he knew how
Outro
| (G) | (G) | (G) | (Gm) | (Gm) | (A) | (A) | (D) -----
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