Johnny Cash Lyrics
Boy Named Sue Lyrics
My daddy left home when I was three And he didn't leave much to ma and
me Just this old guitar and an 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 o' thought that is
quite a joke And it got a lot of laughs from a' lots of folk, It 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, I'd roam from town to town to hide my
shame. But I made a vow to the moon and stars That I'd search the
honky-tonks and bars And kill that man who gave me that awful
name.
Well, it was Gatlinburg in mid-July And I 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, dealing 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'd 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 your gonna die!!"
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 Kicking and a' gouging in the
mud and 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, He went for his
gun and I pulled mine first, He stood there lookin' at me and I saw him
smile.
And 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 ya
along. So I give ya that name and I said goodbye I knew you'd have to get
tough or die And it's the name that helped to make you strong."
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
ya ought to thank me, before I die, For the gravel in ya guts and the spit in
ya eye Cause I'm the son-of-a-bitch that named you "Sue.'"
I got all
choked up and I threw down my gun And I called him my pa, and he called me
his son, And I came 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!
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