Ralph McTell - When I Was a Cowboy lyrics

I was a cowboy back in the alley
Me and my six-gun kept law on the prairie
I remember my first horse well
He was lean but a fast one
We travelled miles together
Until he got stolen

And the sheriff said get early to bed
And always keep your hat
Screwed on real tight
Case you get in a fight
Well, that's one of the tricks
That you must employ
If you wanna be a cowboy

I travelled far from home
Even jumped freight trains
Threw stones in the ocean
Slept out in the cold rain
It was down in some southern town
And the music was playing
And the people were talking so loud
They heard no words I was saying

And the sheriff said get early to bed
And always keep your hat
Screwed on real tight
Case you get in a fight
Well, that's one of the tricks
That you must employ
If you wanna be a cowboy

I dreamed of a mountain
With one lonesome rider
He was ragged and tattered
But he carried a sabre
And all through the canyon
You could hear his bones rattle
He was dead on a dying horse
And he was tied to the saddle

And the sheriff said get early to bed
And always keep your hat
Screwed on real tight
Case you get in a fight
Well, that's one of the tricks
That you must employ
If you wanna be a cowboy

I was a cowboy out on the prairie
Life sure is easier back home in the alley

And the sheriff said get early to bed
And always keep your hat
Screwed on real tight
Case you get in a fight
Well, that's one of the tricks
That you must employ
If you wanna be a cowboy