The Ballad of Bobby Lee
Bobby Lee was born in the South
Big, blue eyes and a pretty, little mouth
Loved to run up side the hill
Run back down and take a spill
Bobby’s mama was tall and thin
Raven-black hair and milk-white skin
Loved to sing while Bobby played
Wore a bracelet Bobby made
Bobby Lee, oh, Bobby Lee
Won’t you please have mercy on me
Bobby's house was small and square
Miles from just about everywhere
Windows shined like polished chrome
Least until his pa came home
Rolled in slow like a thundercloud
Dark and fierce, full and proud
Kept t' himself till you got him riled
Then he'd crack like lightning, quick and wild
Bobby Lee, oh, Bobby Lee
Won’t you please have mercy on me
When Pa was home not much was heard
Mama got quiet as a frightened bird
Pa'd bump Bobby from his Mama's bed
So he listened up when Papa said
"When you grow up, boy, you'll understand
A man's gotta keep the upper hand
A woman's mouth's like an open cut
Gets real nasty 'less you keep it shut."
Bobby Lee, oh, Bobby Lee
Won’t you please have mercy on me
Mama came home too late one night
Slipped in quiet, Pa hit the light
Grabbed her arm, took her to the floor
Broke the bracelet she always wore
Bobby's eyes could not erase
His papa's fist on his mama's face
The bloody flame on her milk-white cheek
The price you pay for being meek
Bobby Lee, oh, Bobby Lee
Won’t you please have mercy on me
Gravel flew when Pa hit the gas
A stone cut through the fragile glass
Night wind whistled through hole it made
Such a mournful tune it played
Mama held him close and tight
Warmed his body all through the night
Blood and tears, warm and wet
Bitter comfort he could not forget
Bobby Lee, oh, Bobby Lee
Won’t you please have mercy on me
When Bobby left his mama's home
He bragged about how far he'd roam
But he got a job in a music store
Stocked the shelves and swept the floor
Met a girl looking for a song
They were making love before too long
It was working out the way he planned
And it sure felt like the upper hand
Bobby Lee, oh, Bobby Lee
Won’t you please have mercy on me
One night he opened his girlfriend's door
Found naked lovers on the kitchen floor
Somebody screamed, the man attacked
Something inside Bobby cracked
His blood had never burned so hot
He killed her lover on the spot
Plain to see somebody lied
Something inside Bobby died
Bobby Lee, oh, Bobby Lee
Won’t you please have mercy on me
Shamed and shaken, hurt and scared
His woman cursed the dreams they shared
He tried to hide from the thundercloud
But her words were wicked, cruel, and loud
When she refused his crude embrace
His fists rained down on her tear-stained face
One blow killed, don't know which
Carried her out to a shallow ditch
Bobby Lee, oh, Bobby Lee
Won’t you please have mercy on me
Brittle comfort, the warmest yet
Lying with her, cold and wet
Blood and tears, close and tight
Barking dogs, blinding light
Bobby proud on the witness stand
"A man's gotta keep the upper hand."
Guilty verdict, eye for eye
Bobby Lee condemned to die
Bobby Lee, oh, Bobby Lee
Won’t you please have mercy on me
Bobby's cell was small and square
A long, long way from anywhere
Cold and dark like an open tomb
But his mama's songs fought the awful gloom
His last day came, his last day went
All his legal options spent
TV cameras, a spark of fame
Call from the governor never came
Bobby Lee, oh, Bobby Lee
Won’t you please have mercy on me
We strapped him down to that deadly chair
Said he liked it, small and square
"I just might stay here till I'm dead."
At least that's what I thought he said
Lightning cracked through Bobby's bones
Reporters grabbed their mobile phones
Headline spun the words he spoke
"Killer's Final Words a Joke"
Bobby Lee, oh, Bobby Lee
Won’t you please have mercy on me
Our job don't take a lot of skill
Never did and it never will
Wait for the light, throw the switch
One of us kills but we don't know which
Bobby's grave is small and square
Don't know who can tell you where
Nothing gained, nothing learned
Another mama's baby burned
Bobby Lee, oh, Bobby Lee
Won’t you please have mercy on me
© Copyright 2025 Peter Lloyd
music by suno AI