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THE SKY ABOVE THE MUD BELOW Tom Russell
AmTwo men rode in fCrom the south, on a rainy autumn Amnight The Sky aGbove and the mud bAmelow They walked into the CDeacon's bar, they were Mexican byAm sight The sky aGbove and the mud bAmelow TheyC threw a horsehairG bridle down, We Dmtrade this for Amwhiskey rounds. TheC DeaconG slams aF bottle Amdown, The Emtwo men Em/Gstart to Amdrinkin'
Their hair was long and Cblack, tied up behind theirAm ears The sky abGove and the mud beAmlow Their faces were idenCtical, like one man beside a Ammirror The sky abGove and the mud beAmlow Then Csomeone whispered &Gquot;That beats all, Dmtheir wanted poster'Ams on the wall TwiCn brothers Gname of FSandoAmval, Emhorse thievesEm/G from BoAmquillas"
Now the bridle and the belts they wore were braided gray and black The sky above and the mud below The color of a roan horse once belonged to Deacon Black The sky above and the mud below The fastest horse for miles around, He'd been stolen from the old fairground A month ago outside of town. We tracked and never found him Now the Deacon was a preacher who had fallen hard from grace The sky above and the mud below He owned the bar and a string of quarter horses that he'd race The sky above and the mud below Yea, Deacon he could drink and curse, though he still quoted sacred verse. He was sheriff, judge; he owned the hearse, a man you did not anger.
TheC sky above, theG mud below, TheD wind and rain, theF sleet and snow Two Amhorse thieves fromG Mexico Emdrinkin'Em/G hard and sAmingin'
AmOne brother he spoke CEnglish, Deac inquires as to theirAm work The skyG above and the mud Ambelow The man says "MistCer we braid horsehair bridles, ropesAm and quirts. The sky aGbove and the mud bAmelow. Yea,C that fine bridle Gwe did make, Dmroan horse killed by Amleg-bone break. HCe's horsehair Grope now; Fhorse-meat Amsteak, We Emcleaned Em/Ghim to the Ambone
Well these gentlemen they were ignorant or didn't know just where they were. The sky above and the mud below The Deacon's face grew darker as he measured every word. The sky above and the mud below "You horsehair braidin' sons of bitches stole my claim to earthly riches. Someone go and dig a ditch, There may well be a hangin." One brother reached inside his shirt searching for his gun. The sky above and the mud below. Too late, for Deac had whirled around his sawed off Remington. The sky above and the mud below The twins, they raised their hands and sneered, Deac was grinnin' ear to ear. "Court's in session, hear ye hear, Yours truly is presidin'" Well the trial commenced and ended quick, They didn't have a hope The sky above and the mud below Deac says "We'll cut your hair now boys and you can braid yourselves a rope" The sky above and the mud below "The Old Testament, it says somewhere 'Eye for eye and hair for hair Covet not thy neighbors mare', I believe it's Revelation." Now the fancy horsehair bridle, it hangs on Deacon's wall The sky above and the mud below Next to that wanted poster of the brothers Sandoval. The sky above and the mud below And the twisted rope so shiny black, the artifact that broke their necks, Their craftsmanship he did respect, 'They shoulda stuck to braidin.'
The Csky above the mGud below, theD wind and rain, thFe sleet and snow The AmDeacon's hearse is Grollin' slow in the Emfirst blue Em/Dlight light oAmf morning. Em Em/D Am
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