Tossed and turned the night before in some old motel
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Subconsciously recallin' some old sinful thing I'd done
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My buddy drove the car and those big coal trucks shook us up
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As we drove on into Hyden in the early morning sun
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Past the hound dogs and some domineckered chickens
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Temporary-lookin' houses with their lean and bashful kids
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Every hundred yards a sign proclaimed that Christ was coming soon
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And I thought, "Well, man, he'd sure be disappointed if he did."
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On the way we talked about the 40 miners
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Of the 39 who died and one who lived to tell the tale
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We stopped for beans and cornbread at the Ed & Lois Cafe
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Then went to see the sherrif at the Leslie County Jail
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They took us to the scene of that disaster
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I was so surprised to not find any sign of death at all
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Just another country hillside with some mudholes and some junk
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The mines were deadly silent like a rathole in the wall
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"It was just like being right inside of a shotgun."
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The old man coughed and lit a cigarette that he had rolled
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Back in town I bought a heavy jacket from a store
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It was sunny down in Hyden but somehow the town was cold
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The old man introduced the undertaker
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Who seemed refreshed despite the kind of work I knew he did
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We talked about the pretty lady from the Grand Ole Opry
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An' we talked about the money she was raisin' for the kids
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Well, I guess the old man thought we were reporters
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He kept reminding me of how his simple name was spelled
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Some lady said, "They worth more money now than when they's a-livin'. "
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And I'll leave it there 'cause I suppose she told it pretty well
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Trip To Hyden
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Tom T. Hall |