Darrell Scott - You'll Never Leave Harlan Alive lyrics
[Darrell Scott - You'll Never Leave Harlan Alive lyrics]
In the deep, dark hills of eastern Kentucky
That's the place where I trace my bloodline
And it's there I read
On a hillside gravestone
"You will never leave Harlan alive"
Well my grandad's dad walked
Down Katahrin's Mountain
And he asked Tillie Helton to be his bride
He said, "Won't you walk with me out of
The mouth of this holler
Or we'll never leave Harlan alive"
Where the sun comes up about
Ten in the morning
And the sun goes down about three in the day
And you fill your cup with
Whatever bitter brew you're drinking
And you spend your life just
Thinking how to get away
No one ever knew there was
Coal in them mountains
'Till a man from the northeast arrived
Waving hundred dollar bills
He said "I'll pay you for your minerals"
But he never left Harlan alive
Well Granny, she sold out cheap and they
Moved out west of Pineville
To a farm where Big Richland River winds
And I'll bet they danced them a jig
And they laughed and sang a new song
"Who said we'd never leave Harlan alive?"
But the times
They got hard and tobacco wasn't selling
And old Granddad knew what he'd do to survive
Well he went and dug for Harlan coal
And sent the money back to Granny
But he never left Harlan alive
Where the sun comes up about
Ten in the morning
And the sun goes down about three in the day
And you fill your cup with
Whatever bitter brew you're drinking
And you spend your life just
Thinking how to get away
And the sun comes up about ten in the morning
And the sun goes down about three in the day
And you fill your cup with
Whatever bitter brew you're drinking
Spend your life diggin' coal from
The bottom of your grave
In the deep, dark hills of eastern Kentucky
That's the place where I trace my bloodline
And it's there I read
On a hillside gravestone
"You will never leave Harlan alive"
That's the place where I trace my bloodline
And it's there I read
On a hillside gravestone
"You will never leave Harlan alive"
Well my grandad's dad walked
Down Katahrin's Mountain
And he asked Tillie Helton to be his bride
He said, "Won't you walk with me out of
The mouth of this holler
Or we'll never leave Harlan alive"
Where the sun comes up about
Ten in the morning
And the sun goes down about three in the day
And you fill your cup with
Whatever bitter brew you're drinking
And you spend your life just
Thinking how to get away
No one ever knew there was
Coal in them mountains
'Till a man from the northeast arrived
Waving hundred dollar bills
He said "I'll pay you for your minerals"
But he never left Harlan alive
Well Granny, she sold out cheap and they
Moved out west of Pineville
To a farm where Big Richland River winds
And I'll bet they danced them a jig
And they laughed and sang a new song
"Who said we'd never leave Harlan alive?"
But the times
They got hard and tobacco wasn't selling
And old Granddad knew what he'd do to survive
Well he went and dug for Harlan coal
And sent the money back to Granny
But he never left Harlan alive
Where the sun comes up about
Ten in the morning
And the sun goes down about three in the day
And you fill your cup with
Whatever bitter brew you're drinking
And you spend your life just
Thinking how to get away
And the sun comes up about ten in the morning
And the sun goes down about three in the day
And you fill your cup with
Whatever bitter brew you're drinking
Spend your life diggin' coal from
The bottom of your grave
In the deep, dark hills of eastern Kentucky
That's the place where I trace my bloodline
And it's there I read
On a hillside gravestone
"You will never leave Harlan alive"