Coward of the county    (video)    (intro)    (midi)

 

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1.         Ev'ryone considered him the coward of the county,

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    he'd never stood one single time to prove the county wrong.

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    His mama named him Tommy, the folks just called him “Yellow”,

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    but something always told me they were reading Tommy wrong.

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2. He was only ten years old when his daddy died in prison,

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    I looked after Tommy 'cause he was my brother's son.

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    I still recall the final words my brother said to Tommy:

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    "Son, my life is over, but yours has just begun.

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“Promise me, son, not to do the things I've done,

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walk away from trouble if you can.

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It won't mean you're weak if you turn the other cheek,

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I hope you're old enough to understand :

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Son, you don't have to fight to be a man."

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3. There's someone for ev'ryone and Tommy's love was Becky,

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    in her arms he didn't have to prove he was a man.

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    One day while he was workin' the Gatlin boys came callin',

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    they took turns at Becky,       there was three of them!

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4. Tommy opened up the door and saw his Becky cryin',

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   the torn dress, the shattered look was more than he could stand.

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    He reached above the fireplace and took down his daddy's picture,

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    as his tears fell on his daddy's face, he heard these words again :

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“Promise me, son, not to do the things I've done,

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walk away from trouble if you can.

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It won't mean you're weak if you turn the other cheek,

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I hope you're old enough to understand :

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Son, you don't have to fight to be a man."

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5. The Gatlin boys just laughed at him when he walked into the barroom,

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    one of them got up and met him halfway 'cross the floor.

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    When Tommy turned around they said, "Hey look! Ol' Yellow's leavin'."

                                                                                                 

   (spoken : )But you coulda heard a pin drop,

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    when Tommy stopped and blocked the door.

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6. Twenty years of crawlin' was bottled up inside him,

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    he wasn't holdin' nothin' back, he let 'em have it all.

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    When Tommy left the barroom not a Gatlin boy was standin',

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    he said, "This one's for Becky," as he watched the last one fall.

 

    (Spoken : )  And I heard him say :

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"I promised you, Dad, not to do the things you done,

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I walk away from trouble when I can.

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Now please don't think I'm weak, I didn't turn the other cheek,

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and Papa, I sure hope you understand :

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Sometimes you gotta fight when you're a man."

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    Ev'ryone considered him the coward of the county.(Kenny Rogers)