Beggin’ your pardon there stranger
|
You look like you’re new to this town
|
We’re a long way away from the beach here
|
You won’t see many gringos around
|
Well I come from West Colorado
|
And I’ve wandered this world far and wide
|
I’ve lived for some years in the shadows
|
And my eyes are unused to this light
|
If you buy me a strong drink of whiskey
|
I will tell you the tale of my life
|
It’s long and it’s sad but it fits me
|
And it may bring a tear to your eye
|
|
All the men of my family were solidiers
|
The hard fightin’ straight talkin’ kind
|
When my turn came all that was over
|
But I’d already made up my mind
|
I was there when we blew though Grenada
|
And I still have to ask myself why
|
Then we took down that fool Noriega
|
That’s where I caught the good colonel’s eye
|
Well he asked me if I loved my country
|
And before I had time to reply
|
He regaled me with tales of past glories
|
I believed every one of his lies
|
|
So I left my old life behind me
|
Turned my back on my family and friends
|
And I did everything that they asked me
|
And I lost some sleep now and again
|
And I lived like a thief and assassin
|
I smuggled their poisons sometimes
|
Until I asked the wrong question in passin’
|
|
And the colonel himself dropped the dime
|
So if you’re ever in west Colorado
|
Tell the folks in Durango goodbye
|
There’s a price on my head and I can’t go
|
So I’ll just wait around here ‘til I die
|
|
-----------------
|
The Gringo's Tale
|
| Steve Earle |
