From the corners of the country, from the cities and the farms
With years and years of livin' tucked up underneath their arms
They walked away from everything, just to see a dream come true
So God bless the boys that make the noise on 16th Avenue

With a million dollar spirit and an old flattop guitar
They drive to town with all they own in a hundred dollar car
'Cause one time someone told them about a friend of a friend they knew
Who owns, you know, a studio on 16th Avenue

Some were born to money, never had to survive
And others swing a nine pound hammer just to stay alive
There's cowboys drunks and Christians, mostly white and black and blue
They've all dialed the phone collect to home from 16th Avenue

But one night in some empty room, where no curtains ever hung
Like a miracle some golden words rolled off of someone's tongue
And after years of being nothin', they're singin' right to you
And for a while they ride in style on 16th Avenue

It looked so uneventful, so quiet and discreet
There's a lot of lives been changed down on those little one way streets
'Cause they walk away from everything, just to see a dream come true
So God bless the boys who make the noise on 16th Avenue
God bless the boy and girls who make the noise on 16th, 16th Avenue