| John Hardy was a desperate little man |
| Carried a razor every day |
| He killed a man on the West Virginia line |
| Should'a seen John Hardy gettin' away |
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| John Hardy had a pretty little gal |
| The dress she wore was blue |
| She came skippin' thru the old jailhouse |
| Sayin' "Pappy, I'll be true to you" |
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| And John Hardy has another little gal |
| The dress she wore was red |
| She followed John Hardy to his hanging grounds |
| Sayin' "Pappy, I would rather be dead" |
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| John Hardy stood in that old barroom |
| So drunk he could not see |
| Sheriff came by and took him by the hand |
| "Johnny come and go with me" |
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| And the man John Hardy was to be hung |
| There came a storm and a hail |
| And the wind blew the hanging scaffold down |
| Threw John Hardy back in jail |
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| Well I been to the east and I been to the west |
| I been this wide world 'round |
| I been to the river and I been baptized |
| Take me to my burying grounds |
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