Down the line, down the line I get to hit you down the line
Down the road and cross the creek Can't get a letter but once a week
Asked little Ida to be my wife She run at me with a barlow knife
A Shanghai rooster has got no comb Poor little Ida's got no home
I asked little Ida to be my beau She run at me with a gooseneck hoe
A big jug of liquor makes a poor man alone I kep' a-hittin' it down the road
Not a-goin' to have that lousy man I'm not a-gonna have that lousy man
Lousy man, lousy man Not a-gonna have that lousy man
...........................
I will comment, this is a very unique version of Ida Red. A lot of the verses I've never heard anywhere else before (believe it or not, the Shanghai rooster one is not one of those unique ones). Instead of breaking up the lines into equal parts, Norris tends to make the first half of the line a lot longer, and seems to sing the lyrics essentially independent of the rhythm of the rest of the song.