Truth be told, it took five years after his death for me to appreciate Johnny Cash as a vocalist. When I performed a tribute show at the Vera Project in Seattle it was more for exposure than anything else. Even then, I liked the lyrics to Tennessee Stud more than the melody, so I took some liberties with the song. I mean no offense.
lyrics
Just about eighteen and twenty-five
I left Tennessee very much alive
I never would have got through the Arkansas mud
If I hadn't been a-ridin on the Tennessee stud
I had some trouble with my sweetheart's pa
One of her brothers was a bad outlaw
I sent her a letter by my Uncle Fud
And I rode away on the Tennessee stud
Chorus:
The Tennessee stud was long and lean
The color of the sun and his eyes were green
He had the nerve and he had the blood
And there never was a hoss like the Tennessee stud
We drifted on down into no man's land
We crossed the river called the Rio Grande
I raced my hoss with the Spaniards bold
Till I got me a skin full of silver and gold
Me and a gambler we couldn't agree
We got in a fight over Tennessee
We jerked our guns, he fell with a thud
And I got away on the Tennessee stud
CHORUS
We loped on back across Arkansas
I whipped her brother and I whipped her pa
I found that girl with the golden hair
And she was ridin' on a Tennessee mare
Pretty little baby on the cabin floor
Little hoss colt playin' 'round the door
I love the girl with golden hair
And the Tennessee stud loves the Tennessee mare
CHORUS
credits
from Cover Lover,
released September 7, 2012
Written by Jimmie Driftwood and made famous by Johnny Cash
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