Emmylou Harris Spanish Johnny Lyrics

Spanish Johnny Lyrics

(Paul Siebel)

Those other years, the dusty years 
We drove the big hers through 
I tried to forget the miles we rode 
And Spanish Johnny too 
He`d sit beside a water ditch when all this herd was in 
And he`d never harm a child but sing to his mandolin 

The old talk, the old ways, and the dealin` of our game 
But Spanish Johnny never spoke, but sing a song of Spain 
And his talk with men was vicious talk 
When he was drunk on gin 
Ah, but those were golden things he said to his mandolin 

We had to stand, we tried to judge, we had to stop him then 
For the hand so gentle to a child had killed so many men 
He died a hard death long ago before the road come in 
And the night before he swung he sung to his mandolin 

Well, we carried him out in the mornin` sun 
A man that done no good 
And we lowered him down in the cold clay 
Stuck in a cross of wood 
And a letter we wrote to his kinfolk 
To tell them where he`d been 
And we shipped it out to Mexico, along with his mandolin