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johnny cash – the legend of john henry’s hammer (at folsom prison) lyrics

“anybody got any special requests for us to do? john henry? let me do john henry…”

john henry’s pappy woke him up one midnight
he said before the sheriff comes i wanna tell you
he said listen boy…
said learn to ball a jack and learn to lay a track
learn to pick and shovel too
and take my hammer, it’ll do anything you tell it to

john henry’s mammy had about a dozen babies
john henry’s pappy told tale about a dozen times
the babies all got sick and when the doctor wanted money
he said i’ll pay you quarter at a time, startin’ tomorow
that’s the pay for a steel driver on this line

then the section foreman said hey hammer swinger
i see you brought your own hammer boy, but what else can all those muscles do?
and he said, i can hoist a jack, i can lay a track
i can pick and shovel too
he said, can you swing that hammer?
i can i’ll do anything you hire me to

now ain’t you something
you’re so high and mighty with your muscles
go ahead, boy, pick up that hammer, show me what you can do
he said get a rusty spike and hammer it down three times
i’ll pay you a nickel a day for every inch you sink it to
go on and do what you say you can do
with a steep nose hammer on a four foot switch panel
john henry raised it back till it touched his heels
then the spike went through the cross tie and it split it half in two
35 cents a day for driving steel
said, sweat sweat boy, sweat, you owe me two more swings
i was born for driving steel

well john henry hammered in the mountains
he’d give a grunt and he’d give groan with every swing
the women folks for miles around heard him and come down
to watch him make the cold steel ring, lord what a swinger
just listen to that cold steel ring

but the bad boss come up laughing at john henry
said you full of vinegar now, but you ’bout through
we gonna get a steam drill to do your share of driving
then what’s all them muscles gonna do, huh john henry?
gonna take a little bit of vinegar out of you

john henry said i feed four little brothers and my baby sister’s walking on her knees
did the lord say that machines oughta take the place of living
and what’s a substitute for bread and beans, i ain’t seen it
do engines get rewarded for their steam?

john henry said to his captain, a man ain’t nothin but a man
but if you bring that steam drill round, i’ll beat it fair and honest
i’ll die with my hammer in my hand, but i’ll be laughing
’cause you can’t replace a steel driving man
there was a big crowd of people at the mountain
john henry said to the steam drill how is you
pardon me mister steam drill, i suppose you didn’t hear me, i said how are you?
this hammer swinger’s talking to you

2,000 people hollered go john henry
then somebody hollered the mountain’s caving in
john henry told the captain, tell the kind folks don’t worry
that ain’t nothin but my hammer suckin’ wind
it keeps me breathing, a steel drivers muscle i intend

captain tell the people move back further
i’m at the finish line and i ain’t no drill
it’s so far behind you ain’t got the brains to quit it
when she blows up she’ll scatter cross the hills, lord lordy
when she blows up she’ll scatter cross the hills

now john henry had a little woman
i believe the lady’s name was polly ann
yeah that was his good woman
john henry threw his hammer over his shoulder and went on home
early next morning he said come here polly ann come here sugar
i believe this is the first time i ever watched the sun come up that i couldn’t come up with it!

dirty minds! (laughs)
he said, take my hammer polly ann and go to that rail road
swing that hammer like you seen me do it, tell em

i can hoist a jack, and i can lay a track
i can pick and shovel too, ain’t no machine can
that’s been proved to you

there was a big crowd of mourners at the church house
the section hands laid him in the sand
trains go by on the rails john henry laid
they slow down and take off their hats, the men do, when they come to where he’s laid
rests on his back, some say morning steel driver you sure were a hammer swinger, then they go along picking up speed

yonder lies a steel driving man
yonder lies a steel driving man, lord lord
yonder lies a steel driving man

“thank you very much. you know, john henry was a real man, he worked on the tunnel in west virginia, building a tunnel for the c&l railroad. he was a mighty big man, they say that from his heels on around to the ground he had a stroke of nineteen feet. whew, that’s a long stroke!”

- johnny cash lyrics

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