Coward Of The County Lyrics

Everyone considered him the coward of the county;
He'd never stood one single time to prove the county
wrong.
His mama named him Tommy, but folks just called him
yellow,
Something always told me they were reading Tommy wrong.

He was only ten years old when his daddy died in
prison;
I looked after Tommy, 'cause he was my brother's son.
I still recall the final words my brother said to
Tommy,
"Son my life is over, but yours has just begun".

"Promise me, son, not to do the things I've done;
Walk away from trouble if you can.
It won't mean you're weak if you turn the other cheek
I hope you're old enough to understand,
Son, you don't have to fight to be a man."

There's someone for everyone, and Tommy's love was
Becky.
In her arms he didn't have to prove he was a man.
One day while he was working, the Gatlin boys came
calling;
They took turns at Becky, n'there was three of them).

Tommy opened up the door, and saw his Becky crying.
The torn dress, the shattered look was more than he
could stand.
He reached above the fireplace, and took down his
daddy's picture.
As his tears fell on his daddy's face, he heard these words again:

"Promise me, son, not to do the things I've done...
Walk away from trouble if you can.
It won't mean you're weak if you turn the other cheek
I hope you're old enough to understand,
Son, you don't have to fight to be a man."

The Gatlin boys just laughed at him when he walked into
the barroom;
One of them got up and met him half way cross the
floor.
When Tommy turned around they said, "Hey look! old
yeller's leaving,"
But you could've heard a pin drop when Tommy stopped
and locked the door.

Twenty years of crawling were bottled up inside him.
He wasn't holding nothing back -- he let 'em have it
all.
When Tommy left the bar room, not a Gatlin boy was
standing.
He said, "This one's for Becky, as he watched the last
one fall.
I heard him say...

"I promised you, Dad, not to do the things you've done
I walk away from trouble when I can
Now please don't think I'm weak, I didn't turn the
other cheek,
And papa, I should hope you understand
Sometimes you gotta' fight when you're a man."

Everyone considered him... the coward of the county.

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