Hard luck papa comin’ down the lane
Mama give him back his walkin’ cane
Lord, Lord, I got them Brown’s Ferry blues
Thrown it away and he went to town
To see that woman and now he’s down
Lord, Lord, I got them Brown’s Ferry blues

Hard luck papa gettin’ too tired
If he don’t quit drinkin’, he’ll be high as a kite
Lord, Lord, I got them Brown’s Ferry blues
He’s drinkin’ that block and tackle kind
He can walk a block and tackle a lion
Lord, Lord, I got them Brown’s Ferry blues

I walked up to my girl’s old man
And I asked him for my true love’s hand
Lord, Lord, I got them Brown’s Ferry blues
He said, “You la-la-little galoot”
And instead of her hand, I got his foot
Lord, Lord, I got them Brown’s Ferry blues

Hard luck papa standin’ in the rain
If the world was corn, he couldn’t buy grain
Lord, Lord, I got them Brown’s Ferry blues
He runs around in secondhand clothes
You can smell his feet wherever he goes
Lord, Lord, I got them Brown’s Ferry blues

Revenue man took my gin
I hope they won’t come back again
Lord, Lord, I got them Brown’s Ferry blues
Took my sweetie with them too
‘Cause she’d had a little drink or two
Lord, Lord, I got them Brown’s Ferry blues
Said that’s why he took her