Verse
F A#
My name is Donald White, you see
C7 F
I stand before you all
F A# F
I was judged by you a murderer
C7
And the hangman’s knot must fall
F A# F
I will die upon the gallows pole
A#
When the moon is shining clear
F A#
And these are my final words
C7 F
That you will ever hear
[Verse 2]
F A#
If I had some education
C7 F
To give me a decent start
F A# F
I might have been a doctor or
F C7
D master in the arts
F A# F
But I used my hands for stealing
A#
When I was very young
F A#
And they locked me down in jailhouse cells
C7 F
That’s how my life begun
[Verse 3]
F A#
Oh, the inmates and the prisoners
C7 F
I found they were my kind
F A# F
It was there inside the bars
F C7
I found my peace of mind
F A# F
But the jails they were too crowded
F A#
Institutions overflowed
F A#
So they turned me loose to walk upon
C7 F
Life’s hurried tangled road
[Verse 4]
F A#
And there’s danger on the ocean
C7 F
Where the salt sea waves split high
F A# F
And there’s danger on the battlefield
F C7
Where the shells of bullets fly
F A# F
And there’s danger in this open world
F A#
Where men fight to be free
F A#
And for me the greatest danger
C7 F
Was in society
[Verse 5]
F A#
So I asked them to send me back
C7 F
To the institution home
F A# F
But they said they were too crowded
F C7
For me they had no room
F A# F
I got down on my knees and begged
F A#
“Oh, please put me away”
F A#
But they would not listen to my plea
C7 F
Or nothing I would say
[Verse 6]
F A#
And so it was on Christmas Eve
C7 F
In the year of ’59
F A# F
It was on that night I killed a man
F C7
I did not try to hide
F A# F
The jury found me guilty
F A#
And I won’t disagree
F A#
For I knew that it would happen
C7 F
If I wasn’t put away
[Verse 7]
F A#
But I’m glad I’ve had no parents
C7 F
To care for me or cry
F A# F
For now they will never know
F C7
The horrible death that I die
F A# F
And I’m also glad I’ve had no friends
F A#
To see me in disgrace
F A#
For they’ll never see that hangman’s hood
C7 F
Wrap around my face
[Verse 8]
F A#
Farewell unto the old north woods
C7 F
Of which I used to roam
F A# F
Farewell unto the crowded bars
F C7
Of which’ve been my home
F A# F
Farewell to all you people
F A#
Who think the worst of me
F A#
I guess you’ll feel much better when
C7 F
I’m on that hanging tree
[Verse 9]
F A#
But there’s just one more question
C7 F
Before they kill me dead
F A# F
I’m wondering just how much
F C7
To you I really said
F A# F
Concerning all the boys that walk
F A#
D road just like me
F A#
Are they enemies or victims
C7 F
Of your society?