The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #109677   Message #2297533
Posted By: Joe Offer
25-Mar-08 - 04:14 PM
Thread Name: DT Correction: Bill Pickett (by Mark Ross)
Subject: DT Correction: Bill Pickett (Mark Ross)
Here are the corrected lyrics Mark sent me:

OLD BILL PICKETT
(Mark Ross)

Old Bill Pickett's gone away over the Great Divide,
To the place where all the preachers say both saint and sinner abide,
If they check his brand like I think they will, it's a running horse they'll give to Bill,
And some good wild steers 'til he gets his fill,
And a great big crowd to watch him ride.

CHORUS:
Old Bill Pickett's long time gone,
Left me here to sing this song. (2X)

Old Bill Pickett was a mighty black man, and he rode for the 101
Way down yonder on the Cherokee lands around when the West was won,
He'd jump a steer from a running horse, and throw him down with a mighty toss,
He worked for many but he had no boss,
He was the last of the great cowhands.

CHORUS

Way down South in Mexico he took a great big dare,
To try and hold a fighting bull to see how he would fare,
He grabbed Old Toro by the horns, grabbed the bull's nose in his jaws,
The crowd never seen such a thing before,
For an hour and a half they cheered.

CHORUS

With the great Will Rogers and wild Tom Mix he rode for the rodeo,
For all who paid their 50 cents he gave a great big show,
For all who paid to come and see, Bill wrassled steers with his teeth,
We've never seen such a mighty feat,
'Cause he left us long ago.

CHORUS

Way down on the Miller Ranch in the year of '32,
Bill Pickett roped a sorrel stud to see what he could do,
That sorrel stomped and jumped and bucked, and tromped Bills' body in the dust,
At 73 Bill was out of luck,
He took eleven days to die, there was nothing we could do.

CHORUS

So we laid him down in a six by three beneath the land he knew,
And left a cross for the world to see, said, "Of his kind we've seen few."
That night for Bill they drank some wine, and Old Zack Miller he wrote these lines,
And left them there for me to find,
To put to music and sing to you.

CHORUS

@cowboy @death
filename[ BILLPCKT
JN, MR



Thanks, Mark. Is the tune at all close to Poor Howard? It might be an idea to call and sing this one to me so I can figure it out. I'll be home most of the week.
-Joe-