ONLY THE HANGMAN

I left my hometown one warm summer evening,
Went down to the station to catch me a train,
Rode west through Missouri and into Wyoming,
Headed out to California to stake a gold claim.

I met her at Clancy’s, the cause of my trouble:
A woman with beauty for all men to see.
She fed me rye whisky and gave me a six-gun.
Said, “The fools do the digging; smart men work for me.”

There's gold in the mountain, gold in the valley,
Gold in the river and gold in the sea.
Fortunes are waiting for men to find them,
But only the hangman is waiting for me.

She gave me her favors. I gave her my six-gun.
We cheated most all of the miners in town.
Those who complained that she dealt from the bottom
Were challenged to draw and were quickly shot down.

I'm so tired of killing for love of this woman.
The notches on my gun are twenty and three.
The next one I kill will be my scarlet lover,
And that's why the hangman is waiting for me.

There's gold in the mountain, gold in the valley,
Gold in the river and gold in the sea.
Fortunes are waiting for men to find them,
But only the hangman is waiting for me.

(As sung by Al Terry. Air: Streets of Laredo)