I'll Tell You What He Did
Tom Flannery
Jimmy was a farmer
with a wife and kid
sit right down young fella
I'll tell you what he did
what he did
what he did
Looked to the sky for rain
and to the church for peace
hid from town so he wouldn't see
his old friends on the street
on the street
on the street
Sometimes he went hungry
to give his kids a meal
sometimes he would borrow
and sometimes he would steal
The bank said "sorry Jimmy..
you didn't stick to the plan
if you can't make that land work
we'll find someone who can"
someone who can
someone who can
searched his world for answers
couldn't find a one
so he drove down to the pawn shop
his wife's diamond for a gun
Drove to town in his tractor
parked it in the square
shot out the bank's front windows
like a cockey millionaire
a millionaire
a millionaire
Tipped his cap to the tellers
collected everything he owed
threw it in fistfuls
into the middle of the road
of the road
of the road
Traffic was a'snarlin'
coming up over the hill
when word got out that it was raining
hundred dollar bills
cops they came a 'crawlin'
sratchin' sunburned heads
till they saw Jimmy lying there
smiling and dead
he was dead
good and dead
he had turned to a barefoot boy
thrust a wad into his hand
said "get on home to your mamma now"
and then he turned to sand
It was July the 2nd that day
I forget the year
but it couldn't have been that long ago
if I'm still standing here
still standing here
still standing here
bought my mamma a new dress that day
she never asked me why
she was wearing it when we left town
said it always made her cry
made her cry
made her cry
Jimmy was a farmer
with a wife and kid
sit right down young fella
I'll tell you what he did
what he did
what he did
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