INTRO: Em  A  D  G  D 
 
       D                      Em           A                     D 
On the old Rio Grande around midnight, the young boy had fallen asleep 
    G                  D                                             A 
The old yeller dog he found on the trail lay curled in a ball at his feet 
                               D           G                       D 
The cowpokes was all drunk and wasted in a town right close to the herd 
       G               D                                                 A 
When a hurricane wind come blowin' in, there weren't time to give 'em no word 
                D                G                            D 
St. Elmo's fire lit up the herd, turned 'em and turned 'em to one 
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When they plowed thru the town with the eeriest sound, not a single soul there was spared 
                     Em     A  D  G 
Not a soul there was spared 
 

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The young boy went whippin' and ridin' into the darkness of night 
    G                          D                                                 A 
The cookie's young steed was a hell of a ride and the saddle bags bulged on each side 
                             D            G                        D 
He rode northeast toward the sunrise that came when the wind died away 
    G                        D                                              A 
The saddle bags held all the cookie had come by, beef jerky, a gun, and his pay 
                       Em   A  D  G 
It was the kid's lucky day 
 

D                    Em     A                         D 
Evan McGuire was a gambler, cheater of cards was his trade 
  G                       D                                           A 
A horseless carriage that ran out of gas last night was a part of his wage 
                                  D       G                  D 
The trail was right lonesome that mornin, nary a soul was in sight 
         G                     D                                            A 
When the young boy rode up the gambler took aim , figurin' to take the kid's ride 
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His bullet went strange like the life he had led, it just wasn't his lucky day 
                     Em   A  D  G 
With his life he did pay 
 

    D                     Em        A                       D 
The kid rifled thru his belongin's, never had killed him no man 
    G                     D                                                    A 
The cookie's pistol was weathered and worn but it brought down a hard one that day 
              Em   A  D  G 
The kid rode away 

 
D                          Em         A                         D 
Aunt Jessie's Chicken Farm waited, on those seekin' comfort and play 
     G                      D                                                 A 
The young boy was older and wiser by then, but somethin' just pulled him that way 
                          D                       G                       D 
He'd taken the money, the gun, and the watch, the gambler had need for no more 
        G                          D                                                  A 
Then he tipped back his hat and he crawled off his horse and headed for Aunt Jessie's door 
                        Em    A  D  G 
This would be his first whore 

 
D                   Em         A                          D 
Women all gathered around him , marveled how young he must be 
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The kid picked him one, went for her room , when she gracefully led him away 
                   Em   A  D  G 
It was his turn to play 
 

  D                         Em           A                            D 
A month's worth of wages he spent there, that's where he figured he'd stay 
    G                         D                                     A 
The woman he'd picked was the best of the lot, older and wiser than he 
                   D                   G                       D 
Try as she may she still fell in love, started to lay back her pay 
                      Em   A  D  G 
They would marry some day 
 

D                            Em              A                        D 
One night while dustin' his clothes off, she noticed the watch by her bed 
    G                  D                                             A 
She knew the man who belonged to that watch, somehow she knew he was dead 
                                D            G                     D 
She was barely fifteen when she met him , and bore him a son on the trail 
    G                    D                                                 A 
The baby got left in the fork of a tree and he dragged her off sicker than hell 
                    Em  A  D  G  D 
She escaped him somehow 
 

D                                 Em             A                        D 
When she asked the kid 'bout his birthplace, she teared up and started to cry 
    G                           D                                          A 
She held him and hugged him and kissed him , and told him to leave her that night 
                               D      G                      D 
The kid pulled himself into manhood, saved him a measure of pride 
G                        D                                          A 
Mother and son bid each other goodbye, she waved as he rode out of sight 
               Em  A  D  G  D 
She raised the kid