Interpret:

Kenny Rogers

Album:

Through the Years: A Retrospective

Everyone considered him 
the coward of the county
he´d never stood one single time 
to prove the county vrong.


His mama named him Tommy
the folks just called him yellow
but something always told me
they were reading Tommy wrong


He was only ten years old 
whenhis daddy died in prison
i took care of Tommy
cause he wasmy brother son


I still recall the final words 
my brother said to Tommy
Son,my life is over
but yours is just begun


Promise me son not to do 
the things  i´ve done
walk away from troble 
if you can
It wan´t mean your weak
if you turn the other cheek
i hope you´re old enough
to understand
Son you don´t have to fight
to be a man.


There´s someone for everyone
and Tommy´s love was Becky
in her arms he didn´t have
to prove he was a man


One day while he was working
the gatlin boys came calling
they took turns at Becky
there was three of them


Tommy opened up the door
and saw his Becky crying
the torn dress,the shattered look 
was more then he could stand


He reache above the fireplace
and too down his daddy´s picture
as his tears fell on his daddy´s face
i heard these words again


Promise me son not to do 
the things i´ve done
walk away from trouble 
if you can
It wan´t mean you weak
if you turn the other cheek
i hope you´re old enough to understand
Son you don´t have to fight
to be a man.


The gatlin boys just laughed at him
when he walked into the bar room
one of them got up and meet him
halfway cross the floor


Tommy turned around they said
Hey look all yellows leaving
but you could hear a pin drop
when Tommy stopped and blocked the door


Twenty years of crawling
was bottled up inside him
he wasn´t holding nothing back
he left them have it all


Tommy left the bar room
not a gatlin boy was standing
He said this one´s for Becky
as he watched the last one fall


And i hear him say


I promised you dad
Not to do the things you done
i walked away from trouble when i can
now please don´t think i´m weak
i didn´t turn the other cheek
Papa i sure hope your understand
sometimes you got to fight 
if your a man


Everyone considered him 
the coward of the county