Verse
A# D#
My name is Donald White, you see
F7 A#
I stand before you all
A# D# A#
I was judged by you a murderer
F7
And the hangman’s knot must fall
A# D# A#
I will die upon the gallows pole
D#
When the moon is shining clear
A# D#
And these are my final words
F7 A#
That you will ever hear
[Verse 2]
A# D#
If I had some education
F7 A#
To give me a decent start
A# D# A#
I might have been a doctor or
A# F7
G master in the arts
A# D# A#
But I used my hands for stealing
D#
When I was very young
A# D#
And they locked me down in jailhouse cells
F7 A#
That’s how my life begun
[Verse 3]
A# D#
Oh, the inmates and the prisoners
F7 A#
I found they were my kind
A# D# A#
It was there inside the bars
A# F7
I found my peace of mind
A# D# A#
But the jails they were too crowded
A# D#
Institutions overflowed
A# D#
So they turned me loose to walk upon
F7 A#
Life’s hurried tangled road
[Verse 4]
A# D#
And there’s danger on the ocean
F7 A#
Where the salt sea waves split high
A# D# A#
And there’s danger on the battlefield
A# F7
Where the shells of bullets fly
A# D# A#
And there’s danger in this open world
A# D#
Where men fight to be free
A# D#
And for me the greatest danger
F7 A#
Was in society
[Verse 5]
A# D#
So I asked them to send me back
F7 A#
To the institution home
A# D# A#
But they said they were too crowded
A# F7
For me they had no room
A# D# A#
I got down on my knees and begged
A# D#
“Oh, please put me away”
A# D#
But they would not listen to my plea
F7 A#
Or nothing I would say
[Verse 6]
A# D#
And so it was on Christmas Eve
F7 A#
In the year of ’59
A# D# A#
It was on that night I killed a man
A# F7
I did not try to hide
A# D# A#
The jury found me guilty
A# D#
And I won’t disagree
A# D#
For I knew that it would happen
F7 A#
If I wasn’t put away
[Verse 7]
A# D#
But I’m glad I’ve had no parents
F7 A#
To care for me or cry
A# D# A#
For now they will never know
A# F7
The horrible death that I die
A# D# A#
And I’m also glad I’ve had no friends
A# D#
To see me in disgrace
A# D#
For they’ll never see that hangman’s hood
F7 A#
Wrap around my face
[Verse 8]
A# D#
Farewell unto the old north woods
F7 A#
Of which I used to roam
A# D# A#
Farewell unto the crowded bars
A# F7
Of which’ve been my home
A# D# A#
Farewell to all you people
A# D#
Who think the worst of me
A# D#
I guess you’ll feel much better when
F7 A#
I’m on that hanging tree
[Verse 9]
A# D#
But there’s just one more question
F7 A#
Before they kill me dead
A# D# A#
I’m wondering just how much
A# F7
To you I really said
A# D# A#
Concerning all the boys that walk
A# D#
G road just like me
A# D#
Are they enemies or victims
F7 A#
Of your society?