NIGHT RIDER'S LAMENT
(G) C F / C G G7 / F G7 C / G G7 C
F C F C / F G7 C / F G7 C F C F / G7 C
Last night as I was riding
Graveyard shift, midnight to dawn,
Oh, the moon was as bright as a reading light
For a letter from an old friend back home
He asked me, "Why do you ride for your money?
Why do you rope for short pay?
You ain't gettin' nowhere and you're loosing your share - -
Oh, you must have gone crazy out there"
He said, "Last night I run into Jenny;
She's married and has a good life
Oh, you sure missed the track when you never come back;
She's the perfect professional's wife
She asked me, 'Why does he ride for his money?
Why does he rope for short pay?
He ain't gettin' nowhere and he's loosing his share
Oh, he must have gone crazy out there' "
But they've never seen the Northern Lights
Never seen the hawk on the wing
Never seen the spring hit the great divide - -
No, they've never heard old camp cookie sing
Well, I read up the last of the letter
I tore off the stamp for Black Jim
And Billy come by to relieve me;
Just looked at my letter and grinned
He said, "They ask you why do you ride for your money?
Why do you rope for short pay?
You ain't gettin' nowhere and you're loosing your share - -
Oh, you must have gone crazy out there"
But they've never seen the Northern Lights
Never seen the hawk on the wing
Never seen the spring hit the great divide - -
No, they've never heard old camp cookie sing

Words and music by Mike Burton, copyright 1975 Groper Music, Inc
Recorded on Fashioned in the Clay, FSI-104, 1985, Gordon Bok, Ann
Mayo Muir, and Ed Trickett Also recorded earlier by Jerry Jeff
Walker with a yodel at the end It's a nice statement about
different strokes for different folks with a little bite to it
@work @cowboy
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