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A Boy Named Sue

In the style of

Johnny Cash

Lyrics

well my daddy left
home when
i was three
and he didn't leave
much for ma and me

just this old guitar
and a empty
bottle of booze

now i don't blame him
'cause he run and hid
but the meanest thing
that he ever did
was before he left
he went and named me
sue

well he must have
thought that it was
quite a joke
and it got a lotta
laughs from
a lot of folks

seems i had to fight
my whole life
through

some gal would
giggle and i'd get red
and some guy'd laugh
and i'd bust his head
i tell ya life ain't easy
for a boy named sue

well i grew up quick
and i grew up mean
my fist got hard and
my wits got keen
roamed from town to
town to hide my shame

but i made me a vow
to the moon and stars
i'd search the
honky-tonks and bars
and kill that man
that give me that
awful name

well it was
gatlinburg in mid-july
and i'd just hit town
and my throat was dry
i thought i'd stop and
have myself a brew

at an old saloon
on a street of mud
there at a table
dealin' stud
sat the dirty
mangy dog
that named me sue

well i knew that
snake was my own
sweet dad
from a worn-out
picture that
my mother had

and i knew that scar
on his cheek
and his evil eye

he was big and bent
and gray and old
and i looked at him
and my blood
ran cold and i said
my name is sue
how do you do

now you're gonna die
yeah that's what
i told him

well i hit him hard
right between
the eyes
and he went down
but to my surprise
he come up with
a knife and cut off
a piece of my ear

but i busted a chair
right across his teeth
and we crashed
through the wall
and into the street
kickin' and gougin'
in the mud the blood
and the beer

i tell ya i've fought
tougher men
but i really can't
remember when
he kicked like a mule
and he bit like
a crocodile

i heard him laugh
and then i heard him
cuss and he went
for his gun
and i pulled mine first
he stood there
lookin' at me
and i saw him smile

he said son this world
is rough and if
a man's gonna make it
he's gotta be tough
and i knew i wouldn't
be there to help you
along

so i give you that name
and i said goodbye
i knew you'd have to
get tough or die
and it's that name
that helped to
make you strong yeah

he said now you just
fought one hell
of a fight and i know
you hate me and
you got the right
to kill me now
and i wouldn't
blame you if you do

but you oughta
thank me before i die
for the gravel
in your guts and
the spit in your eye
'cause i'm the s.o.b.
that named you sue

yeah what could i do
what could i do
i got all choked up
and i threw down
my gun
called him my pa
and he called me
his son

and i come away
with a different
point of view

and i think about him
now and then
every time i try and
every time i win

and if i ever have
a son i think
i'm gonna name him
bill or george
anything but sue
i still hate that name
yeah

Details

• Duration : 3:36
• Key : Bb
• Genre : Country
• Year released : 1969
• Language : English

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