Words and Music by Billy Joel
From Songs In The Attic (1981) |
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From a town known as Wheeling, West Virginia
Rode a boy with a six-gun in his hand And his daring life of crime Made him a legend in his time East and west of the Rio Grande Well he started with a bank in Colorado In the pocket of his vest, a Colt he hid And his age and his size Took the teller by surprise And the word spread of Billy the Kid |
Well, he never traveled heavy
Yes, he always rode alone
And he soon put many older guns to shame
And he never had a sweetheart
And he never had a home
But the cowboy and the rancher knew his name
Well, he robbed his way from Utah to Oklahoma
And the law just could not seem to track him down
And it served his legend well
For the folks, they'd love to tell
'Bout when Billy the Kid came to town
Well, one cold day a posse captured Billy
And the judge said, "String him up for what he did"
And the cowboys and their kin
Like the sea came pourin' in
To watch the hangin' of Billy the Kid
Well, he never traveled heavy
Yes, he always rode alone
And he soon put many older guns to shame
And he never had a sweetheart
But he finally found a home
Underneath the boothill grave that bears his name
From a town known as Oyster Bay, Long Island
Rode a boy with a six-pack in his hand
And his daring life of crime
Made him a legend in his time
East and west of the Rio Grande
Yes, he always rode alone
And he soon put many older guns to shame
And he never had a sweetheart
And he never had a home
But the cowboy and the rancher knew his name
Well, he robbed his way from Utah to Oklahoma
And the law just could not seem to track him down
And it served his legend well
For the folks, they'd love to tell
'Bout when Billy the Kid came to town
Well, one cold day a posse captured Billy
And the judge said, "String him up for what he did"
And the cowboys and their kin
Like the sea came pourin' in
To watch the hangin' of Billy the Kid
Well, he never traveled heavy
Yes, he always rode alone
And he soon put many older guns to shame
And he never had a sweetheart
But he finally found a home
Underneath the boothill grave that bears his name
From a town known as Oyster Bay, Long Island
Rode a boy with a six-pack in his hand
And his daring life of crime
Made him a legend in his time
East and west of the Rio Grande
The Ballad of Billy The Kid
(Recorded June 1980, Madison Square Garden, New York, NY) An exercise in cowboy movie impressionism. Totally inaccurate historically, the themes are pure east coast suburban romanticism. Elmer Bernstein shot in hot blood by the infamous Newman brothers, Alfred and Lionel, avenging the murder of Aaron Copeland. (By the way, "Billy," in this case is not me, myself and I. He still tends bar in Oyster Bay). – From Songs In Attic liner notes |
Words and Music by Billy Joel. © 1976 JoelSongs.
Photo: Joel Family Photos
Photo: Joel Family Photos