Lyrics
“There's a Fire Right Next to You"
Running all your days
And you’ve been running all your nights
Looking for an open door
A comeback for some older way of life
There’s a fire right next to you
There’s a fire right next to you
Your history’s no mystery
Your story’s gettin’ old
Walkin’ past the broken glass
The second class is gonna let you know
There’s a fire right next to you
There’s a fire right next to you
And now the fight ain’t over
You’re just down
You’ve got to find your way
You’re crying over
Your old ways
They’re going up in flames
You built up walls, you wrecking balls
It’s time for you to see
Look around, the whole damn town
You burned it down, it’s time to set them free
There’s a fire right next to you
There’s a fire right next to you
And now the fight ain’t over
You’re just down
You’ve got to find your way
You’re crying over
Your old ways
They’re going up in flames
People come and people go
But you just turn away
Digging down into the ground
Until you’ve found a place to hide the pain
There’s a fire right next to you
There’s a fire right next to you
Another day in disarray
It’s time for you to know
You’re gonna find you left behind
Your peace of mind, your feelings start to show
There’s a fire right next to you
There’s a fire right next to you
And now the fight ain’t over
You’re just down
You’ve got to find your way
You’re crying over
Your old ways
They’re going up in flames
© 2026 Andrew J Stenehjem (ASCAP)
Official Video
Background Information
This song is about what happens when you keep looking away from the problems piling up around you. It’s the only song that I’ve ever written on the banjo - though it ended up becoming something very different and the banjo didn’t make it into the recording.