Verse
G C
My name is Donald White, you see
D7 G
I stand before you all
G C G
I was judged by you a murderer
D7
And the hangman’s knot must fall
G C G
I will die upon the gallows pole
C
When the moon is shining clear
G C
And these are my final words
D7 G
That you will ever hear
[Verse 2]
G C
If I had some education
D7 G
To give me a decent start
G C G
I might have been a doctor or
G D7
E master in the arts
G C G
But I used my hands for stealing
C
When I was very young
G C
And they locked me down in jailhouse cells
D7 G
That’s how my life begun
[Verse 3]
G C
Oh, the inmates and the prisoners
D7 G
I found they were my kind
G C G
It was there inside the bars
G D7
I found my peace of mind
G C G
But the jails they were too crowded
G C
Institutions overflowed
G C
So they turned me loose to walk upon
D7 G
Life’s hurried tangled road
[Verse 4]
G C
And there’s danger on the ocean
D7 G
Where the salt sea waves split high
G C G
And there’s danger on the battlefield
G D7
Where the shells of bullets fly
G C G
And there’s danger in this open world
G C
Where men fight to be free
G C
And for me the greatest danger
D7 G
Was in society
[Verse 5]
G C
So I asked them to send me back
D7 G
To the institution home
G C G
But they said they were too crowded
G D7
For me they had no room
G C G
I got down on my knees and begged
G C
“Oh, please put me away”
G C
But they would not listen to my plea
D7 G
Or nothing I would say
[Verse 6]
G C
And so it was on Christmas Eve
D7 G
In the year of ’59
G C G
It was on that night I killed a man
G D7
I did not try to hide
G C G
The jury found me guilty
G C
And I won’t disagree
G C
For I knew that it would happen
D7 G
If I wasn’t put away
[Verse 7]
G C
But I’m glad I’ve had no parents
D7 G
To care for me or cry
G C G
For now they will never know
G D7
The horrible death that I die
G C G
And I’m also glad I’ve had no friends
G C
To see me in disgrace
G C
For they’ll never see that hangman’s hood
D7 G
Wrap around my face
[Verse 8]
G C
Farewell unto the old north woods
D7 G
Of which I used to roam
G C G
Farewell unto the crowded bars
G D7
Of which’ve been my home
G C G
Farewell to all you people
G C
Who think the worst of me
G C
I guess you’ll feel much better when
D7 G
I’m on that hanging tree
[Verse 9]
G C
But there’s just one more question
D7 G
Before they kill me dead
G C G
I’m wondering just how much
G D7
To you I really said
G C G
Concerning all the boys that walk
G C
E road just like me
G C
Are they enemies or victims
D7 G
Of your society?