Coward of the County Kenny Rogers
vs. 1
[C]Everyone considered him the [F]coward of the [C]county
He never stood one single time to prove the county [G]wrong
[C]His mama named him Tommy, but [F]folks just called him [C]yellow
Something always told me they were [G]reading tommy [C]wrong
vs. 2 chord prog. simile
He was only ten years old when his daddy died in prison.
I looked after Tommy 'cause he was my brother's son.
I still recall the final words my brother said to Tommy:
"Son, my life is over, but yours is just begun".
Chorus. 1
[C]Promise me son not to [F]do the things I've [C]done
[F]Walk away from [C]trouble if you ca[G]n
Now [C]it don't mean you're weak if you [F]turn the other [C]cheek
I [C]hope you're old en[F]ough to under[G]stand
[F]You don't have to [G]fight to be a [C]man
vs. 3
[C#]There's someone for everyone and [F#]Tommy's love was [C#]Becky
In her arms he didn't have to prove he was a [G#]man
[C#]One day while he was workin', the [F#]Gatlin Boys came [C#]callin'
They took turns at Becky (spoken in disgust) [G#]there were three of [C#]them.
vs. 4 chord prog. simile
Tommy opened up the door and saw his Becky cryin'.
The torn dress, the shattered look was more than he could stand.
He reached above the fireplace and took down his daddy's picture.
As his tears fell on his daddy's face, he heard these words again:
Chorus 2
[C#]Promise me son not to [F#]do the things I've [C#]done
[F#]Walk away from [C#]trouble if you [G#]can
Now [C#]it don't mean you're weak if you [F#]turn the other [C#]cheek
I hope you're old en[F#]ough to under[G#]stand
[F#]You don't have to [G#]fight to be a [C#]man
vs. 5
[D]The Gatlin boys just laughed at him when he [G]walked into the [D]bar room
One of the got up and hit him halfway cross the [A]floor
[D]Tommy turned around they said, "Hey, [G]look! Ol' Yellow's [D]leavin'!"
But you coulda heard a pin drop when Tommy [A]stopped and locked the [D]door.
vs. 6 chord prog. simile
Twenty years of crawlin' was bottled up inside him.
He wasn't holdin' nothin' back; he let 'em have it all.
When Tommy left the barroom not a Gatlin boy was standin'.
He said, "This one's for Becky," as he watched the last one fall.
And I heard him say,
chorus 3
[D]I promised you Dad, not to [G]do the things you've [D]done
I'll [G]walk away from [D]trouble if I [A]can
Now [D]Please don't think I'm weak, I couldn't [G]turn the other cheek[D]
Papa I sure hope you [A]understand
some[G]times you gotta [A]fight when you're a [D]man
[D]Ev'ryone considered him the [G]coward of the [D]county.
(Thanks to Jim Wright for tabs)
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